Desperate for the new MacBook Air? Weve got some bad news

Date:
Wed, 13 Apr 2022 13:16:59 +0000

Description:
It might be delayed, and indeed all of Apples MacBook launches for 2022 may happen later than planned.

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MacBook production could be affected by current lockdowns in China due to Covid, and this might mean that Apples laptops planned for later this year
may be delayed.

Respected Apple source, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, took to Twitter to highlight a report in the Nikkei Asia , and observed that all this could spell big
trouble for the MacBooks due later in 2022. (2/2) Quanta is almost the sole EMS supplier for MacBook, so among Apple's main products, MacBook has been
the most affected amid China lockdowns due to Quanta's halted production. April 12, 2022 See more

As Kuo observes, the problem is that Quanta is pretty much the sole EMS supplier for MacBook, an acronym for Electronics Manufacturing Services meaning involvement in design issues (and more) as well as manufacturing and that Quantas disrupted production means the MacBook is the most impacted hardware when it comes to the Chinese lockdowns (in Shanghai and elsewhere).

Apples iPhone and iPad will also be affected as you might imagine, with production suspended at Pegatron and Compal, but as Kuo notes this wont be as big a deal because Foxconn can partially support the supply of iOS devices to mitigate the shortfall at least somewhat. (We discussed the impact on Apples iOS hardware in more detail here earlier this week , if youre interested). Analysis: MacBook Air delay in the cards?

Obviously this is not the news anyone keen to see new MacBooks wants to hear, with these laptops apparently set to take the brunt of Apples
lockdown-related disruption at least going by these sources (pinches of condiments to hand, as ever).

So what MacBooks are we talking about? The rumor mill reckons that Apple is planning to push out a redesigned MacBook Air (2022) this year, and perhaps also a refreshed entry-level MacBook Pro 13-inch .

Certainly the next MacBook Air is keenly awaited, with the grapevine consistently floating the idea that its set for launch in 2022 probably in the second half of the year, with production kicking off most likely in Q3. (The most recent rumor theorizes Apple could actually reveal the new Air as early as WWDC in June, but were not sure were buying such an early appearance for the device ).

If were looking at, say, a September on-shelf release date for the MacBook Air, or maybe even October, then its not difficult to see how any further major slippage in the supply chain and production schedules could push the
new notebook out to the very end of the year, maybe or even 2023?

Apple would certainly want to avoid the latter worst-case scenario, if what weve heard from the rumor mill is correct namely that it was originally the companys intention to get the revamped MacBook Air out late in 2021, so the device has already theoretically slid a fair distance in terms of launch timeframe. But then theres not much that can be done, really, if the tale really is playing out as these reports suggest the MacBook Air will be ready when its ready, and obviously enough, not before.

Naturally, these lockdowns wont just affect Apple, but also other big
notebook makers like Dell, HP and Lenovo, companies thatll doubtless feel similar pressures on their production timelines, too. Will the redesigned MacBook Air be worth the wait? Were betting yes, itll showcase a new M2 SoC and more

Via Digital Trends



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/desperate-for-the-new-macbook-air-weve-got-some -bad-news/


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