Apple Might Discontinue the MacBook Air (gizmodo.com)

An anonymous reader shares a report: Just in time for its tenth anniversary, Apple might finally be killing the MacBook Air, according to a new report from Digitimes. If this is true, it'd be the first axing of a laptop line from Apple since the iBook and Powerbook were axed back in 2006. It would also be about damn time. Apple quietly killed the 11-inch MacBook Air back in 2016, but the larger 13-inch version has lingered on, getting a mild processor refresh last year that still left the laptop using a 5th generation Intel processor. That's three generations behind the processors currently found in the MacBook Air's competition, and it is the primary reason the laptop was excluded from our piece looking at the best laptop to be had for under $1000.

Comments

About damn time?

[DontBeAMoran]

Apart from the 2015 MacBook Pro, it's the only laptop with a decent keyboard and enough ports for real-world use.

The replacement cannot be the MacBook because the keyboard sucks, there's only one USB-C port that also happens to be the port for charging, it's slower because of thermal throttling and it's more expensive on top of that. The only thing better than the MacBook Air is the display.

Re:About damn time?

[Anonymous Coward]

I wouldn't be surprised if it is dropped. The newer MBPs have a very similar keyboard to the MB, and people wind up either buying the MB if they want a small laptop, or a MBP if they want something better. Plus, with all the USB-C adapters, including ones that actually work and can charge the laptop while you can use your external hard disk, there isn't as big a demand for the MBA as there was before.

Even the MacBooks can give you an i7 and 16 gigs of RAM. The 512 gigs of storage is a tad puny, but the machine's size is decent.

Re:About damn time?

[angel'o'sphere]

An iPad can not replace a MacBook. It runs different OSes, different App(-lications).
You can not even import the data from a backup from a laptop onto/into the iPad. (Of course you could both have connected to the cloud and synch the essentials)

But perhaps you mean, people who have no serious use for a MacBook, could use an iPad instead.

Re:About damn time?

[vux984]

"Maybe they have something else in the pipeline."

Like a new macbook pro that caters to pro users? I can dream, right?

Then the current so-called macbook and macbook pro could easily fill the niche the macbook air is leaving, since all they've done the last several years is make their 3 separate lines converge to the same thing, which is great if you want that one thing, but lousy if you want anything else.

" Or maybe they don't care about losing market-share in the laptop area because they see tablets/phones as more profitable. "

The thing about that is that destroying the ecosystem tarnishes the smartphones ... once someone switches to a windows laptop the integration with their phone becomes weaker, and the whole reason for choosing iphone becomes weaker.

"(and everyone has been half expecting a decent dockable phone that runs a computer setup for a long time)"

This is an interesting concept and the technology is definitely getting there, but I'm curious to see it'll land successfully or not.

The idea of having my computer in my phone which i can use as a phone/tablet, and then i walk up to a 'dumb terminal' and plug it in, and now I have a keyboard mouse and monitor... looks great on paper, but it seems to be missing a few things.

a) How many people are going to want a dumb terminal that needs a phone plugged into it before it will work? Especially given that an actual computer that your wife or kids can use while you aren't home will actually probably be cheaper. Yes, it works for the 'businessman on the go' and 'single hipsters', but pretty much everyone else finds it simpler and more useful to just have a desktop computer where they want a desktop computer. Docks have always had a niche, but they've never really taken off.

and even bigger b)

Most regular people I know have a phone and a laptop. Gamers and real power users have a desktop, but most people I know just have laptops -- they want and need desktop applications, word, excel, quickbooks, RDP to a server a work, whatever, they want a form factor with a keyboard they can use, and a decent size screen, in a form factor they can carry easily, use in a hotel room, a classroom, or a coffee shop.

A desktop-dock system for their phone doesn't meet any of their needs. Are they going to want to carry around a 'dumb laptop' that they dongle attach their phone too when they need more than a phone/tablet? Dongles are awkward, and phablets are heavy... who is going to want to sit on the couch with a their 'dumb-laptop' with their phablet hanging off it by a usb-c cable for it to work? That'll be unbalanced an awkward at best.* Is there really much market for a laptop device with no brains that needs your phone attached for it to work? And you can't use your phone as a phone while its plugged in like this?

* another possibility is a dumb laptop you slide your phone into, almost like an old PCMCIA card -- but that's only going to work with one model phone, and only if it doesn't have a case. There's no way that's going anywhere.

The *only* good argument for such a thing ever existing is it could be less expensive than just having a proper laptop... which makes it the opposite of the market apple is interested in. Apple would rather court people who can afford a $1200 phone, and then also afford a $2500+ laptop. I can't see them getting to the dumb-terminal market when there's more profit in laptops.

The only other way this tech gets off the ground is if the connection between phatlet and dumb-laptop is wireless. That could actually work. But again, what's the advantage to that over just having an actual laptop, and using wireless sync to move everything you need between them?

And most people will find a full blown laptop more useful... they can still do things with it when there phone is off / low battery / or stolen. The laptop processing isn't burning the battery down on the phone. The laptop has more room than the phone and can pack more horsepower, r

Re:About damn time?

[angel'o'sphere]

I use a 13" MacBook Air for Java development, works fine.
It has 8GB RAM and the hard disk interface seems to be faster than that of my linux PC at work.
At least similar big builds are on my Air similar fast as on the PC.

Re:About damn time?

[berj]

Apart from the 2015 MacBook Pro, it's the only laptop with a decent keyboard and enough ports for real-world use.

I couldn't disagree more. I've been using the latest 13" MBP since early last year. I'm a software developer. I'm *constantly* typing on it (5-6 hours a day) and I love it. I'd like a few minor changes (mainly haptic feedback from the otherwise excellent touchbar) but overall it's my favorite keyboard.

Ports-wise I have no problem either. 95% of the time I use it with just the power plugged in. But when i need other stuff plugged in I have a really nice satechi hub that covers it all (HDMI, ethernet, USB-A, SD car). Easy peasy.

For my real-world use I haven't found a better laptop than the one I'm currently typing on.

My wife has the 12" MB and she loves it too (weight and size are much more important to her than processing power). She types alot as well and has no complaints about the keyboard and rarely (if ever) plugs anything but the power plug in. And she's got a similar (but even smaller) hub to mine for other situations.

These machines certainly aren't for everyone. But both of us are professionals doing professional work with them. Sadly they're both much more money than the Air so hopefully Apple finds something to fill that price gap if they do discontinue the Air.

Re:About damn time?

[bobm]

You couldn't be more wrong. I have an older 11" w/ i7 and 8G and do development, run vm's basically everything I do on my main machine with the exception of the number of vms I can run at one time.

Yeah it's a little slower but it's my goto machine when I'm on call and traveling where I won't be doing a ton of development.

It's just sad that they dropped the 11" it was amazing.

What's a computer?

[Rik Sweeney]

They need to get rid of all their desktops and laptops, just to prove that they're serious about the death of non-tablet devices.

Oh wait, some of us actually need to do work, rather than just dicking around looking at pictures of food and duck-faced girls.

Skip reading the article and look at the top pic

[bjdevil66]

A picture is worth a thousand words. It's key selling point - form factor - has been nearly eliminated. The MacBook Pro is almost exactly the same size, and has a lot more power for only a few hundred more.

Too Much Angst? Don't Worry.

[pubwvj]

OP: " It would also be about damn time."

Oookay... The OP has a bit of emotional involvement with this situation...

There are a lot of people who love the MacBook Air computers. If you don't like them then don't buy them.

Best of all, for haters and likers, is that Apple is bringing out a replacement. Some of the rumors involve merging the best of the Airbooks with the Pros. Just as long as it has function keys, USBx2 and a fast port all is good from my point of view.

But, I'm still using a 2010 MacBookPros - excellent machine. Even doing video editing work it keeps up. And I like the 17" screen on one of mine.

Re:Too Much Angst? Don't Worry.

[pak9rabid]

If you don't like them then don't buy them.

It sounds like people aren't buying them, which is probably why they're discontinuing them.

Re:Too Much Angst? Don't Worry.

[fincher69]

Given the iPad Pros that I have seen about with attached keyboards (mimicking Surfaces), I would be they see the Air as competition to that and are just going to try to push the iPad Pro + keyboard as the new Macbook Air.

Bad Summary

[Aero77]

The linked article from Digitimes is titled "New MacBook to boost LCM orders for GIS" and the first statement is "Touch panel maker General Interface Solution (GIS) is expected to land more LCM (LCD module) orders from Apple, which reportedly plans to release an entry-level 13-inch MacBook in the second half of 2018, according to industry sources.". Nowhere does the article state that the MacBook is being discontinued. #clickbait

Re:Skip reading the article and look at the top pi

[TheFakeTimCook]

Plus, post 2015, they port-neutered the MacBook Pro so all it is anymore is an higher powered, oversized MacBook anyway - so there's very little lineup differentiation.

Bullshit.

The 2016-2017 15" MBP has more I/O capability than any other laptop, period.

You can break-out its 4 TB3/USB-C Ports into a myriad of configurations of up to FIFTY-SIX SIMULTANEOUS "legacy" I/O Ports.

Name one other laptop that can do that.

Re:Skip reading the article and look at the top pi

[serviscope_minor]

The 2016-2017 15" MBP has more I/O capability than any other laptop, period.

Given sufficient dongles...

You can break-out its 4 TB3/USB-C Ports into a myriad of configurations of up to FIFTY-SIX SIMULTANEOUS "legacy" I/O Ports.

Hold donglestorm batman!

Name one other laptop that can do that.

Name one other laptop that can do something no one cares about by carrying around a bunch of shite that no one wants to carry around?

Meanwhile, the Carbon X1 has 2 TB ports, 2 USB3, full size HDMI, micro SD and micro SIM, so you can do all you want without a bag of annoying dongles to sort through.

It's also faster, lighter has a MUCH nicer keyboard and comes with up to 1TB flash, more than the 13 inch MBP.

And it comes with a cli... uh trackpoint.

Re:Yes!

[YukariHirai]

The OS doesn't seem to matter much anymore to more than a few people.

This does seem to be true. On the other hand, I am one of those few people. With that said, though I definitely prefer Apple laptops running MacOS, PC laptops running Linux are also generally fine, depending on a lot of the details of the PC laptop in question. But I point blank refuse to use Windows as the primary operating system on any computer I own.