Should I wait for the MacBook Air 2022? If you're an Apple fan, you've likely asked the same question, especially with each new generation of the Apple laptop lineup producing consistently better results.
It's easy to see why so many people are interested in this when you consider the rumour mill, and what a lot of analysts are predicting, as 2022 could be the year of the Air.
So, here's what you should know if you're currently weighing up your options.
How Long Will The Wait For The MacBook Air 2022 Be?
So how long will you be waiting to get your hands on the new laptop? Well, it looks like the wait for the new MacBook Air won't be too long, given that reputable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (via MacRumors) has stated that mass production could begin in late Q2 or early Q3 2022, with a full release in August or September.
This would line up with the same rough timescale as previous Apple events, given that the 2021 MacBook Pros were announced and released in October 2021 at the brand's last event of the year.
It has also been recently reported that the Apple MacBook Air 2022 may have been leaked in recent renders.
But what is there to look forward to? And is it actually worth waiting for Apple's next MacBook Air?
Should I Wait For MacBook Air 2022?
With all that being said though, the decision to hold out and wait for the new MacBook Air is all yours, but if you want our two cents, we'd say it's worth the wait, judging by the rumours we know at the moment.
2022 is touted to be the year the MacBook Air is going to experience a thorough redesign to be brought more into line with the current crop of MacBook Pros, featuring a similar style chassis with off-white bezels and a notch, with some intriguing colour additions.
The current generation of Airs can be had in the likes of space grey and rose gold, but with the new Air, Apple is said to be mimicking the colours of the 24-inch M1 iMac and could offer it in funky colours such as purple, yellow and blue, which would look good.
This redesign is also said to be bringing back some features of old, like the 2021 Pros, including MagSafe charging, which would be a welcome return, especially as charging up the current lot of Airs uses up one of your two USB-C/Thunderbolt 4 ports.
Under the hood, the Air is slated to be making use of the all-new Apple M2 chip, which could be a little less powerful than the Pro's M1 Pro and M1 Max offering.
It should still offer good performance with the same core CPU count as M1, but with a higher quantity of GPU cores, all on a smaller node, according to Mark Gurman for Bloomberg.
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For its display, DigiTimes has touted that Apple could utilise a Mini LED panel on the 2022 Air, which would no doubt make it look a lot sharper and increase the overall brightness of the display by some margin.
It's also said to be utilising a 1080p webcam, which would be an upgrade on older generations' 720p offerings and could include the handy Centre Stage feature that Apple has thus far only bundled with its iPads.
All this is well and good, but if you don't want to wait, what are you options right now?
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Is The MacBook Air (2020) Worth Buying Now?
With the new generation of MacBook Airs looking to be on the way for a release later this year, it's worth looking back to the current generation, released in 2020, to see what you'd be getting if you'd bought one now, and to be honest, they're still good laptops.
Price
As expected, the M1-powered MacBook Airs cost less than the new M1 Pro and M1 Max-powered Pros, and clock in with a starting retail price of £999 or £1249 dependent upon which storage you'd like, with the 256GB starting option costing the least.
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This may seem expensive, but considering the versatility of a MacBook compared to their Windows-based counterparts, we think it's a price worth paying.
Processor
The M1-powered MacBook Airs utilise Apple's own silicon when it comes to its chipset that comes with eight cores that are split down the middle with four efficiency and four power cores, alongside an eight-core GPU and a 16-core neural engine.
Compared to some of the Intel MacBooks of old, it does offer a fair bit more grunt, so if you're in the market for a powerful device then the Air is definitely worth a go.
Software
It may seem an odd thing to pick up on, but the reason a lot of people purchase MacBooks isn't down to its spec sheet, and arguably instead as a result of MacOS.
It's a remarkably simple operating system to utilise and Apple's own free and paid suites that include Pages, Keynote and even the likes of Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro X aren't all too difficult to get your head around.
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Everything is all conveniently laid out, so if you're wanting to try it out, the only way to do is to pick up a Mac.
Our Verdict
The new MacBook Air looks like it's going to be the biggest shakeup of the Air lineup in years, and we'd certainly say it's worth the wait, given that it feels like it's only just around the corner.
Sure, the price tag may tip the scales, but the long gap between releases should make for a laptop with even more staying power than its previous iteration.
Be sure to check back in with us soon, especially as 2022 looks to be a bumper year for tech, with LG's C2 OLED TVs, the iPhone 14, and of course, the rumoured MacBook Pro 2022 on the way.
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