A new report out of the China Times today claims Apple is readying a resurrected version of the ill-fated 12-inch MacBook, complete with an ARM-based processor. Since June, we’ve been waiting for details to unravel surrounding Apple’s plan to migrate its Mac line to ARM chips instead of Intel. This new 12-inch model would play an introductory role in that migration alongside a rumored 13-inch MacBook Pro and 24-inch iMac.
According to the report, the laptop would sport a 12-inch Retina display and an A14X processor which is also expected to ship in upcoming iPad Pros. The machine will also sport USB-C connectivity. Rounding things off, thanks to the low power consumption of Apple’s ARM chips, the device could achieve up to 15-20 hours of battery life.
It isn’t clear if this new 12-inch MacBook will look exactly like the one that launched in 2015 or if Apple will switch things up and give it a new design. That seems unlikely to me but time will tell. What I do think is likely is this new MacBook will get very popular. A laptop with this form factor, this screen size, and this kind of battery life can become incredibly valuable to college students or anyone who has an aging MacBook Air.
I, for one, am excited to see how this rumor unfolds. I’ll fill you in on any additional details as they become available.
