Revo Posted October 6, 2020 Posted October 6, 2020 With 2020 heading into the final stretch and rumors of a 12-inch MacBook announcement, all eyes are on the calendar to see if the return of the po[CENSORED]r 12-inch MacBook is announced on October 13. Much of the excitement stems from the rumored Bionic A14X CPU, Apple's supposed new ARM-based processor, and the possibility that the 12-inch MacBook will be the first laptop to feature the new silicon. The 12-inch MacBook is a good candidate to get the new Apple chip as this model of MacBook - which wasn't included in last year's lineup - would target the mobile professional who doesn't necessarily need the most powerful laptop on the market, just a reliable and functional one. With the new A14X, Apple is expecting to get between 15-20 hours of battery life out of a single charge, making the 12-inch MacBook the likeliest beneficiary of this extended battery life. New 12-inch MacBook release date and price We're expecting Apple to announce the new A14X-powered 12-inch MacBook at their October 13 event (which also happens to be Amazon Prime Day). We don't know anything for sure about the price, but one of the big reasons for Apple's moving to their own silicon instead of relying on Intel or AMD was to reduce the costs. So there's some reason to hope that a new 12-inch MacBook powered by Apple's own chip will cost less than their current 13-inch MacBook Pro model, which sells for $1,299 (£1,299, AU$1,999). Will we see it for $1,099 (£1,099, AU$1,799)? That's entirely possible considering how the latest MacBook Air starts at $999 (£999, AU$1,599) but, again, the X-factor here is the new ARM processor. It's not out of the question to see the cost savings of using their own chip to translate into a new 12-inch MacBook selling for less than even the latest MacBook Air. We simply don't know and Apple is staying very tight-lipped, as usual. New 12-inch MacBook: what we want to see This is what we want to see changed, or new, in a new 12-inch MacBook. A working ARM-based Apple CPU More than anything, we want to see Apple's new Biotic A14X in action. We certainly don't expect it to be the fastest CPU out there - the A14X is also expected to power the latest iPad Pro, so it isn't quite as powerful as even true laptop-class CPU. But there has been a lot of hype around ARM-based processors making the jump from mobile devices to laptops running the more robust macOS and Windows operating systems for a while now - we want to see if Apple's new silicon lives up to its promise. A cheaper 12-inch MacBook One of the biggest benefits of Apple producing its own silicon is it not having to go through Intel or AMD, which saves Apple a lot of money. That cost savings is definitely not going to be passed entirely onto the consumer, but we'd like to see a huge chunk of it going into bringing down the retail price. Excellent battery life If Apple brings the A14X to their 12-inch MacBook, the battery life should see a substantial upgrade over previous generations, even as much as 15-20 hours which would double what the MacBook Air is able to achieve. 1
Premium
Recommended Posts