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jaspreet997

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 23, 2020
2
1
It can be a good idea for apple to start off its Armbook lineup with SE like device with a super powerful high end processor but skimp on other aspects like having only 1080p screen , normal speakers , keyboard.

An ideal price point can be 999$ for 8GB Ram, 256 GB storage? If it sells enough it can accelerate the ARM conversion marginally. A lot of PRO users can also buy it as a secondary machine
 
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sevoneone

macrumors 6502a
May 16, 2010
957
1,302
$999 is the starting price point of the current MacBook Air with those exact same specs and that has a retina display, TouchID and all the other typical MacBook niceties so I'd say an Arm Mac with similar specs at the same price point is very likely.

I think a value "SE" or "LC" MacBook will come for the education market to compete with Chromebooks, but I don't think Apple will start with that. The MacBook Air is their best selling laptop, you can bet they are going to start the transition there as it is the biggest opportunity to win mainstream consumer trust.

The Intel transition started with the consumer notebook, which was a big leap ahead, and I think we'll see something similar with the Air or whatever replaces it. I'm anticipating big improvements in processor and graphics capabilities and doubling the battery life.
 
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jaspreet997

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 23, 2020
2
1
$999 is the starting price point of the current MacBook Air with those exact same specs and that has a retina display, TouchID and all the other typical MacBook niceties so I'd say an Arm Mac with similar specs at the same price point is very likely.

I think a value "SE" or "LC" MacBook will come for the education market to compete with Chromebooks, but I don't think Apple will start with that. The MacBook Air is their best selling laptop, you can bet they are going to start the transition there as it is the biggest opportunity to win mainstream consumer trust.

The Intel transition started with the consumer notebook, which was a big leap ahead, and I think we'll see something similar with the Air or whatever replaces it. I'm anticipating big improvements in processor and graphics capabilities and doubling the battery life.
Yes but that comes with a i3 dual core. This one should come with the highest possible spec of the ARM silicon that Apple is gonna make. Should ideally blow the i3 out of the water
 

JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
13,532
26,159
It wouldn't make sense for Apple to come out the gate with a low-cost notebook. Apple wants to demonstrate high performance, not low-cost. The first Intel-based Apple product was a 15" MacBook Pro.

Besides, the A12Z consumes an estimated 9W and requires active cooling for sustained high performance. Apple can't make it both cheap and high performance.
 
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sevoneone

macrumors 6502a
May 16, 2010
957
1,302
I agree, but I think the variations, in terms of processor choice, will not be as big of a factor in Arm Macs. I think it will be more like the iPad/iPhone, where the MacBook Air will have one choice of processor and you'll be able to up the storage/memory with a base price of $999.
 

JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
13,532
26,159
I agree, but I think the variations, in terms of processor choice, will not be as big of a factor in Arm Macs. I think it will be more like the iPad/iPhone, where the MacBook Air will have one choice of processor and you'll be able to up the storage/memory with a base price of $999.

The thermal envelope of a iPhone and iPad is limited, so there's only two choices for processor speed.

Apple would leave huge amounts of money on the table if they didn't sell different MacBook processor bins. If a certain A14Z can't reach 3GHz or fit within 9W, will Apple throw it away? Of course not. It's now an A14X.

If every A14Z can hit 3GHz, will Apple give away that performance for free? Or do you think they will underclock some to 2.6GHz and make you pay for the 3GHz upgrade? This is the company that charges $699 for wheels.
 

Marty_Macfly

macrumors 6502a
Apr 26, 2020
962
272
That would be awesome.

A12z wired into a budget MacBook Air, why not, the DTK had one in it, and all the coding work was done against one of those. <Loving my techie Speak guys? ?>

Budget price mac, to go along with a premium mac on sale in the fall ?
 
Last edited:

chrfr

macrumors G5
Jul 11, 2009
13,707
7,277
Damn, dream over ?

How come they put a A12z into the DTK , and not the latest Chip??
because they had A12z processors.
When Apple did the Intel transition, the DTK of the time had a Pentium 4, and no Mac ever shipped with one of those.
Developers need to test binary compatibility at this point, and the A12z is sufficient for that.
 
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Marty_Macfly

macrumors 6502a
Apr 26, 2020
962
272
Really hope a budget option comes out sooner rather than later.

Ipad is great, but would like to have a traditional laptop option

....and a working excel to use!
 

Marty_Macfly

macrumors 6502a
Apr 26, 2020
962
272
Ok, latest wish list:

fall 2020 - really expensive MacBook comes out, latest new arm chip and design, ala iPhone X

spring 2020 - “SE” MacBook Air comes out, with same new ARM chip, but built down to a cost, with as much old parts bins as possible, ala SE 2020
 

maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,682
43,740
If Apple came out with a 1080 displayed device, that would be problematic. They need to show that they're capable of producing premium products and their new line is a step forward, not backwards. The 1080p screen would be a glaring issue, especially since so many PC laptops are embracing 4k.

Perception is reality, and if people perceive Apple's new line to be bargain basement, cheap or cutting corners it will come back to haunt them imo
 
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KPOM

macrumors P6
Oct 23, 2010
18,308
8,320
If Apple came out with a 1080 displayed device, that would be problematic. They need to show that they're capable of producing premium products and their new line is a step forward, not backwards. The 1080p screen would be a glaring issue, especially since so many PC laptops are embracing 4k.

Perception is reality, and if people perceive Apple's new line to be bargain basement, cheap or cutting corners it will come back to haunt them imo
1080p would be problematic, though it is still the standard on “business” PCs. That said, 4K is overkill on a 13-15” screen. I think Apple has struck a good balance with the ~218 PPIs they have , considering that particularly in the Windows world 16:9 27” and above displays mostly run at 4K.
 
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