There are plenty of reasons to buy a MacBook, but saving money certainly isn't one of them. The best MacBooks give you a lot for your money, but they're not budget devices by any definition of the word.
The good news is that analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims Apple will be releasing a cheaper Macbook next year — and it'll apparently be powered by iPhone chips.
According to Kuo, this machine will have a display somewhere around 13-inches, and will be powered by the A18 Pro chipset. That's the same chip as the iPhone 16 Pro, which has already proven to be a performance powerhouse. On top of that the machines could come in a variety of different colors, including silver, blue, pink and yellow.
Apparently this new cheaper MacBook will go into mass production at the end of this year, or early next year. Apparently this new machine is projected to sell between 5 and 7 million units in 2026.
According to Kuo, this will help Apple get shipment figures back to their pre-COVID shipment peak of 25 million units — up from 20 million in 2025.
How will iPhone chips affect a Mac?
It's no secret that Apple's M Series chips came about because of the success of the iPhone's A-series. Compared to old Intel Macs, this offered far better performance and efficiency — boosting the capabilities and battery life. So bringing the A-series into the MacBook lineup brings that whole idea full circle.
The main question I have is, how much of a hit would this rumored machine take in both those areas? The A-series may be able to perform well on iPhones, but there's a reason why the best iPads have been using M-series chips for the past few years.
I'm also curious as to how cheap this "cheap" Macbook might actually be. The M4 MacBook Air models start at $999, but is discounted to $849 right now.
A cheaper model would have to be at least $200-$300 cheaper to make it worthwhile and that kind of price point could come with some other sacrifices like worse cameras, fewer ports and a less impressive screen.
Of course we won't know for sure until Apple actually announces the laptop, which isn't likely to happen until it's ready to go on sale. Meaning we've got almost a year of waiting ahead of us.
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