Apple‘s rumored cheaper MacBook is now expected to be aired (ahem) at the early March event that the company just announced. This device is going to be affordable, and could pitch in at around $699 in the US (maybe a bit more, some even argue a bit less), with Apple obviously having to cut corners with the spec to achieve a price tag in that kind of ballpark.
The main cutbacks Apple will run with, if the rumor mill is correct, is dropping down to a cheaper processor, and saving on the system RAM. The theory is the affordable MacBook will actually use an iPhone CPU, in fact – the A18 Pro – rather than an M-series chip. And if you’re concerned about that, I think you’re worrying about the wrong thing here – for me, it’s the purported drop to 8GB of unified RAM which makes me more nervous about this wallet-friendly MacBook.
Why am I not concerned about the use of a mobile processor rather than a desktop chip here? Well, don’t get me wrong – expectations will certainly have to be managed with the A18 Pro.
Plenty of comparisons have been drawn in the past between this mobile CPU and Apple’s M-series silicon, and the consensus is that the A18 will be able to keep up well in terms of single-core performance. For multi-core tasks, though, the lesser chip is going to fall away considerably – but to me, all this does is spell out exactly what this new low-tier MacBook will be.
The affordable MacBook is set to be a laptop that’s designed for basic computing tasks – a bit of web browsing, email checking, document editing and other relatively lightweight duties. It’s a machine aimed at the everyday user, one that offers a cheap entry point into the world of the MacBook without breaking the bank, in a time when PC prices are going to continue to spike upwards in a possibly disconcerting manner (due to rising RAM and storage costs, among other factors).
Longer-term memory
As noted, what’s more of a concern for me is that 8GB of RAM is just too lean a loadout for a modern laptop. Although granted, much like the A18 Pro, 8GB of memory is not going to be a drag when it comes to basic computing tasks.
My main worry is that 8GB just isn’t good enough in terms of future-proofing. How will this affordable MacBook perform in a few years’ time with just 8GB of RAM? I’m not sure that’s going to hold up nearly as well as the CPU will, especially given Apple is now focusing heavily on AI (as is the entire computing world, of course).
I expect a laptop that I buy to last me a good five years – preferably longer (my Surface Pro is still going seven years after I purchased the device) – and in that timeframe, I can see AI tasks coming much more to the fore.
Sadly, I think the timeframe for 8GB being ‘good enough’ (just) is simply shorter than an expected decent lifespan for a laptop – even an affordable one (it’s not like this will be a ‘throwaway’ budget purchase, either).
Now, Apple may yet release this affordable machine with 16GB – or perhaps even 12GB of RAM – but the rumor mill seems fairly sure it’ll be 8GB, and it’s an obvious, indeed arguably necessary, compromise to make to keep the cost down in the current raging RAM crisis. Further remember that given Apple’s rumored shipment expectations – which are eye-opening in terms of how large-scale they are – this device will presumably be priced to sell.
We shall see, but I fear the danger is that Apple is going to build in far more obsolescence than is ideal here with a drop to 8GB – a move that runs against its recent policy of 16GB for all Macs, let’s remember, and that was a decision made for a reason.
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