If you’ve been as confused as us on why the slim 12 inch MacBook even existed, you don’t need to think on it anymore. The standard MacBook is no more. For now, anyway.
We’ve been wondering about the super-slim MacBook line for so long, we’ve had numerous conversations about it.
Most of them revolved around the question of “why?” Specifically, “why is it still a product when it’s only marginally lighter than the MacBook Air, and yet a whole lot less powerful?” This question was often followed by “what’s next”, which may have been answered this week.
The MacBook signalled a change in design elements for Apple, and moved the Mac to the world of USB Type C, making it the first Apple laptop to embrace this universal method of charging.
It wasn’t a Thunderbolt 3 port — that came later to Apple’s computers — but it was the laptop that got the whole thing started, and has basically been an ultra thin and light machine for folks who needed that in the Apple world.
These days, however, its placement is a little confusing.
Which is why it makes so much sense that Apple has retired the MacBook.
As part of Apple’s changes to the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro line-up this week, the standard MacBook can no longer be found on Apple’s website.
Apple more or less confirmed this, with the site detailing the current line-up. which means the MacBook is gone. Despite the removal from the official site, you can probably expect to find a few for sale at stores with Apple stock, or in the Apple refurbs and clearance section. Any hope for an updated model in the near future, however, seems rather unlikely.
Given the power of the iPad Pro and the capability, we’re not surprised, as Apple would likely shift people in that direction.
While the MacBook was a full computer, the power of an iPad Pro with the next version of iPadOS might just give iPad owners a generation that makes their iPad more like a personal computer. Since the iPad Pro is particularly powerful, that kind of makes the case for killing off the MacBook altogether.
Don’t worry about the name, though. It wouldn’t surprise us to see Apple revive that eventually. The MacBook name has a seen a couple of variations, from the white plastic MacBook in the 2000s to the more recent slimline metal model that has now just been retired. If Apple returns the MacBook name in the future, we won’t be the least bit surprised.
