Apple’s new MacBook Air with 13.3-inch Mini-LED display will debut in mid-2022, says respected TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo in a new note to clients, seen by Cult of Mac.
Kuo had previously said that a MacBook Air with Mini-LED screen would arrive sometime next year. However, he had not narrowed this down to a particular time of the year. Kuo is one of the more accurate (although not infallible) Apple analysts/reporters. According to AppleTrack, he has an accuracy rating of 76.6%.
The MacBook Air was last updated in late 2020, giving it Apple’s M1 processor. With the exception of 2016, the product line has received an upgrade every year since its debut in 2008. It’s not clear whether Apple will release any kind of minor update for the MacBook Air this year.
Currently the MacBooks use LCD panels. Mini-LED screens offer higher contrast, deeper blacks, improved brightness, and better power efficiency. They use thousands of tiny (well, mini) LEDs to provide a backlight that can be illuminated far more accurately in different sections — meaning that some areas can appear bright, while others are dark. While the screens aren’t quite as good as the OLED screens found in the iPhone, they are cheaper (and apparently suffer less from effects like burn-in, too.)
The 12.9-inch iPad Pro unveiled in April 2021 was the first (and, to date, only) Apple device with a Mini-LED screen. Apple is now reportedly introducing the technology to other products, such as its MacBooks and other forthcoming iPads.
Are you excited at the prospect of a Mini-LED MacBook Air? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
