Skip to main content

Apple kills the regular MacBook

macbook1white_01
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Apple today released its new line of MacBook Air laptops, along with OS X Lion, a new Mac mini and new displays that connect via the ultra-fast Thunderbolt port from Intel. Noticeably absent from Apple’s computer lineup, however, is the now-iconic white MacBook, which has officially been discontinued.

Recommended Videos

Observers noticed the absence of the MacBook from the online Apple Store, which now only lists the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac mini, iMac and Mac Pro.

The death of the MacBook has been in the rumor pipeline for about three weeks. Late last month, Apple Insider reported that a number of Apple retailers, including Amazon, DataVision, MacConnections and J&R were all either sold out or nearly sold out of MacBook units.

At the $999 price point, the MacBook served as Apple’s “budget” laptop offering. That slot is now occupied by the 11.6-inch MacBook Air, which comes with 64GB of flash storage, a 1.6GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 Sandybridge processor, 2GB of memory and an Intel HD Graphics 3000 GPU.

In addition to the $999 MacBook Air model, Apple  also has an 11.6-inch version with double the flash storage for $1,199, as well as a 13.3-inch model with 1.7GHz Core i5 CPU, and 4GB memory, for $1,299 and a top-of-the-line 256GB model for $1,599.

It makes sense that Apple would do away with the MacBook in favor of the MacBook Air. The new Airs are approximately 2 to 2.5 times faster than last year’s models. They are also the first Apple computer to be built from the ground up to run OS X Lion, so the laptops are optimized for the latest Apple has to offer. Not to mention, the Air is far lighter, thinner and attractive than the poor ol’ plastic white MacBook.

Wise move, Apple. Wise move.

Andrew Couts
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Features Editor for Digital Trends, Andrew Couts covers a wide swath of consumer technology topics, with particular focus on…
Here’s your chance to buy the Apple MacBook Air M3 for less than $1,000
The MacBook Air on a table in front of a window.

For Apple fans who have been on the lookout for MacBook deals: We've found an interesting one from B&H Photo Video. The 13-inch model of the Apple MacBook Air M3 with 8GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD is on sale for only $899, for savings of $400 on the laptop's original price of $1,299. That's a huge discount that you probably won't find anywhere else, but you'll need to act fast if you're interested in taking advantage of this bargain because it may disappear as soon as tomorrow.

Why you should buy the Apple MacBook Air M3

Read more
I can recommend the M4 MacBook Air for its battery life alone
Rear view of lid on M4 MacBook Air.

Over the course of the past few months, I’ve tried a handful of Windows on Arm machines. The biggest takeaway is that if you buy a slim and light Windows laptop in 2025, you don’t need to hunt for a seat near a wall outlet. The battery life figures I’ve got from Qualcomm Snapdragon X-powered laptops have been pretty amazing. 

For the first time, I feel Windows laptops have reached a point where they can reach the high benchmark set by the MacBook Air. My most recent tryst was with the Asus Zenbook A14, and the Dell XPS 13 before that. I loved the thin and lightweight form factors, and the progress Windows on Arm has made with the app compatibility situation. 

Read more
Apple is right to make iPadOS more Mac-like, but I’ll never buy an iPad that runs macOS
Magic Keyboard and iPad Pro.

Do you use a Mac or an iPad? Huge numbers of people use both, yet there are growing calls for Apple to merge the two devices into some kind of all-in-one super product. I’m not one of those people -- in fact I think it would be a terrible idea -- and I’m determined to steer clear of any hypothetical iPad that runs macOS.

Over the past few years, Apple’s best iPads have grown closer to the Mac. We’ve seen the devices get outfitted with Mac-grade chips like the M4, gain macOS-like software features such as Stage Manager, and gain increased compatibility with mice and keyboards.

Read more