A MacBook Air with 13.3-inch mini-LED display is reportedly a bit farther away that previously thought. An analyst predicts it will go into production in time for a fall 2022 release, not a summer one.
But they’ll be new macOS laptops long before then. Apple is widely expected to launch a pair of redesigned MacBook Pro models with mini-LED and an updated M-series processor possibly as soon as October 2021.
Look ahead to MacBook Air 2022
Ming-Chi Kuo from TF International Securities had previously said that a MacBook Air with Mini-LED screen would arrive in mid-2022. But a note to clients sent Monday and seen by Cult of Mac says, “We predict that MacBook Air equipped with new Apple Silicon will enter mass production in late 2Q22 or early 3Q22.”
If true it means the notebook won‘t be on the market before next autumn.
A significant jump
The MacBook Air was last updated in late 2020, and the major change was Apple’s M1 processor in place of an Intel chip. The 2022 revision will supposedly be more significant.
According to Kuo, it’ll have a mini-LED screen not a traditional LCD. Mini-LED screens offer higher contrast, blacker blacks, improved brightness and better power efficiency. They use thousands of tiny LEDs to provide a backlight that can be illuminated in very specific areas.
The display won‘t break new ground. The 2021 iPad Pro from spring has mini-LED, and the 16-inch and 14-inch MacBook Pro models allegedly coming before the end of 2021 supposedly will too.
The 2022 MacBook Air is also expected to have an upgraded M-series processor. Possibly the same one going into the 2021 MacBooks.
Much of this info comes from Kuo, who is one of the more accurate (although not infallible) Apple analysts. According to AppleTrack, he has an accuracy rating of 74.6%.
