Earlier this week, Intel officially released their latest 4th-gen Haswell processors – including a more power-friendly version perfect for the MacBook Air. And speaking of the MacBook Air, 9to5Mac has gotten their hands on additional confirmation that Apple is preparing to launch new models of the popular notebook at WWDC!
Apple appears set to release new versions of its MacBook Air notebook computer at next week’sWorldwide Developers Conference, according to information provided by a source. Earlier this week, we reported that Apple is planning to release four new Mac models at WWDC, and we narrowed this down to either new MacBook Pro with Retina display models or MacBook Air models.
Today, we have received specific pricing for the aforementioned SKUs, and the price-points correspond to Apple’s current pricing for the 11-inch and 13-inch MacBook Air models. We have yet to receive pricing information that points to the imminent availability of new MacBook Pros (assome had hoped), but perhaps the next refresh to Apple’s Pro portables will arrive in the coming months. Supply constraints to the Retina MacBook Pro line seems to imply that…
The new MacBook Air models are indeed expected to include Intel’s new Haswell processors, and will likely feature ultra-fast 802.11AC WiFi chips – which Apple added support for in OS X 10.8.4 (which, incidentally, was released just yesterday). The device may also feature a 1080p front-facing FaceTime camera, and a new dual microphone system. It also appears that Apple may lower the price for the MacBook Air in some countries.
This backs up a previous report from the highly accurate analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who claimed that new MacBook Airs (and other Macs) could ship shortly after WWDC – followed by new Retina MacBook Pro models. The report also claims to have received details regarding a trio of new Mac accessories, which are expected to involve 802.11AC updates for Apple’s AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule wireless base stations.
Coupled with the likelihood that we could see a new Mac Pro unveiled at the event, as well as both iOS 7 and OS X 10.9, and even perhaps a new streaming radio service, and it looks like this year’s WWDC keynote could pack quite a wallop! We’ll find out for sure on Monday – so stay tuned!
