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ZDNET's key takeaways
Apple could be developing a new budget-friendly MacBook for around $599.
Rumors state it would house an A18 Pro chipset -- the processor found in the iPhone 16 Pro.
Despite corroboration by industry experts, information is speculative.
This summer, rumors starting surfacing that Apple was developing a lightweight MacBook running on iPhone hardware. Notable Apple insider Ming-Chi Kuo supported the rumors in a post on X in July, claiming the company was currently working on a "more-affordable MacBook" running on the A18 Pro chipset -- the same one found in the iPhone 16 Pro -- instead of an M-series processor.
Also: Should you upgrade to M5 MacBook Pro from an M1? How the numbers add up
Tech news site DigiTimes claims to have recently spoken to an insider with intimate knowledge of this laptop, suggesting the device will cost somewhere between $599 and $699: much cheaper than the M4 MacBook Air's starting price of $999.
Even more notable is the alleged timing of such a product: potentially releasing this fall, just as millions of PC users are looking for a new computer with Microsoft pulling the plug on support for Windows 10.
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