Apple's wildly popular MacBook Air remains in Microsoft's crosshairs as the Windows maker seeks to break Apple's stranglehold on the premium laptop market, this time compared to Lenovo's Yoga 3 convertible PC in Microsoft's latest television advertisement.
As Apple's industrial design language continues to evolve, a new rumor claims the company will change the way it affixes the famous logo that adorns its products, moving to a new process that produces a "3D-like" mark.
Though Apple has been rumored to be working on a redesigned MacBook Air with a high-resolution Retina display for some time, the device will not launch at this Thursday's media event in Cupertino, Calif., according to a new report.
A rumor out of East Asia on Wednesday claims Apple's rumored 12-inch MacBook Air with Retina display has reached the manufacturing phase, though production will be limited to small batches until a gradual ramp in November.
The new USB 3.0 reversible Type-C connector will also support DisplayPort Alternate Mode with screen resolutions of "4K and beyond," the standards setting group behind the technology announced on Monday.
A sketchy rumor on Thursday claims Apple's rumored 12-inch MacBook Air will debut in the middle of 2015, to be available in gold, space gray and silver colors identical to those offered with the iPhone.
The latest rumor on Apple's anticipated redesign of the MacBook Air casts a particularly wide net, suggesting that a thinner model could launch either this fall, or it could miss the holiday shopping season and debut at some point in 2015.
Intel on Monday announced that its first low-power Broadwell chips will hit the market in limited quantities before the end of the year, and that those processors will be intended for premium tablet- and hybrid-style devices, strongly implying that next-generation chips bound for Apple's popular MacBook Pro lineup won't be available until 2015 at the earliest.
Apple's latest television advertisement — which shows a number of MacBook Airs that have been customized by their owners with fanciful stickers — has reportedly been a boon for shops that sell the vinyl decals, with some receiving four times as many orders as they did before the ad's release.
Apple on Wednesday rereleased a recent MacBook Air EFI update targeting sleep-from-wake problems after a flawed initial rollout caused some machines to crash unexpectedly.
Hardware updates to the Mac lineup thus far in 2014 have been generally unexciting, and yet Apple has still achieved record sales this year, as consumers are seeing plenty to like about the company's newest and more affordable computers.
It appears Apple's most recent EFI update for mid-2011 Mac Book Air models contains a bug that in some cases fails to install, or more seriously creates system crashes.
Apple on Monday published a short 30-second commercial featuring a number of MacBook Airs dressed up in stickers and decals, with each customized thin-and-light reflecting the personality of its owner.
Apple on Monday posted an EFI update for its thin-and-light MacBook Air, addressing two wake from sleep issues including a rare problem that causes the computer's fans to spin at full speed unnecessarily.
Rumors out of Taiwan on Friday claim Apple's anticipated 12-inch MacBook Air may be delayed into 2015 due to processor supply constraints, but release of the next-generation 11-inch and 13-inch models will be on time as partner suppliers in East Asia are receiving parts for mass production.
With the back-to-school season nearing full-swing, AI's Price Guides and Deal Tracker continue to rack up exclusive, industry-low prices on many of Apple's most popular Macs, iPads and iPhones. This include 7-10% instant saving on dozens of custom configured MacBook Pros with Retina display, sub-$860 13-inch MacBook Airs, $200-$350 off Apple Certified Refurbished iPhone 5 handsets, and $100 off 32GB AT&T iPad Airs.
As part of its ongoing effort to deliver the lowest prices anywhere on Apple's Macs and iOS devices, AppleInsider is teaming up with Apple Authorized Reseller Adorama to give away 3-Year AppleCare Protection Plans with the purchase of each Mac from now till Aug. 12th. When combined with instant discounts of up to $250 on the Macs themselves, plus added tax-savings benefits in 48 of 50 states, the average savings from this promotion range from $300 and $800 off MSRP.
A report out of East Asia on Tuesday claims Apple's partner manufacturers will begin production of the long-rumored 12-inch MacBook Air sometime in the third quarter.
Best Buy for the next few weeks is serving up coupons to students that knock $150 off Apple's MacBooks & iMacs, and $50 off iPad Airs and iPad minis — effectively dropping the entry-level buy-in cost to owning a MacBook to $650 and an iPad (mini with Retina display) to $330. [Update: Best Buy has now cut WiFi iPad mini even further, yielding $300 16GB models with student coupons]
Apple fans hoping for significant Mac upgrades have been disappointed thus far in 2014, thanks in part to a lack of next-generation chips from Intel. That trend continued on Wednesday with the launch of a new low-end iMac that's focused on price rather than specs.
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AppleInsider Staff
Neil Hughes
Sam Oliver
Mikey Campbell
Katie Marsal
