Usually reliable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities, has released a few “predictions” for Apple releases in the upcoming year. He sees a lower-cost iMac, a sharper display for the full-sized iPad, and a 12-inch MacBook with a new design, including a Retina display.
The major 2014 Apple product updates that Kuo highlights revolve around MacBooks, iMacs, and iPads. Earlier this week, another analyst forecasted major updates to Apple products in the display department, and Kuo seems to agree with some of these claims. Notably, Kuo believes Apple will introduce a 12-inch Retina laptop, a sharper full-sized iPad, and a more affordable iMac desktop computer.
Kuo sees the 12-inch MacBook sporting a Retina display and a new design, saying it will “redefine laptop computing” just like the MacBook Air did. It will be thinner and lighter than the Air, with a new clamshell structure. He also says the new laptop will still run on the Intel platform, not an Apple “A8” processor. Kuo believes the new MacBook will launch in either Q2 or Q3 of 2014.
Kuo reports the current iMac did not ship as many units as Apple expected, and he says they could ship a lower-cost model of the iMac next year. He says the lower-cost model could help Apple battle Windows desktops, and could improve iMac sales by 10-20%. The new iMac would ship in Q2 or Q3 of 2014.
Kuo’s vision for the sixth-generation iPad sees the 9.7-inch screen staying in place, but boasting a higher-resolution screen, with a pixels-per-inch count 30-40% higher than the current Retina display iPad.
The third-generation iPad mini would still sport the 2048×1536 Retina display of the upcoming second-generation iPad mini.
