MacBook Air update with lower price expected from Apple in September

Analyst Keith Bachman with BMO Capital Markets this week issued a note to investors in which he said Apple will finally update its MacBook Air line next month. He said the Cupertino, Calif., company will launch two new units in September.

"We are not yet clear on all the specs, but supply chain checks suggest that unit shipments o the new Air products could far exceed the current Air, which we believe could suggest lower starting prices," Bachman wrote. "We project 2.9 million total notebooks in the September quarter, which we believe is reasonable."

Updates have been repeatedly rumored over the last year but never panned out. The hardware was last updated in June 2009, giving it a Core 2 Duo processor and Nvidia GeForce 9400M graphics at a lower starting price of $1,499.

Bachman also spoke of Apple's anticipated update to its iPod line, though he did not specifically cite any industry insiders in his prediction for a redesigned, "much smaller" iPod nano.

"We believe that the Nano will be much smaller than past versions, and will not have a physical track wheel," he said, adding that it's possible that the iPod shuffle could be eliminated if the iPod nano is reduced in size.

Bachman also noted strong iPad and iPhone sales, and said checks in the supply chain indicate that the iPod touch has not been cannibalized by the iPad. BMO Capital Markets has maintained its "outperform" rating for AAPL stock, and has a price target of $315.