Apple appears all set for one of its most launch-heavy windows of the year in early March, when it might launch its much-anticipated low-cost MacBook as well as the iPhone 17e along with the M5 Pro/M5 Max MacBook Pro, and Apple Studio Displays.
Now, however, a new price-related tidbit has substantially doused the enthusiasm surrounding Apple's low-cost MacBook.
Apple's low-cost MacBook might not be a bargain
DigiTimes recently reported that Apple's upcoming low-cost MacBook is already contending with a number of price-related pressures:
- Quanta Computer, as the primary assembler of the upcoming budget MacBook, experienced production ramp-up delays at a time when component costs have been rising by the day.
- With Apple expecting to sell up to 8 million units in its first year, Foxconn is expected to join the device's assembly cadence to beef up production.
- Apple is facing substantial margin pressures from the memory sphere. We recently reported that the Cupertino giant is now procuring 12GB LPDDR5X chips from Samsung DS with a price hike of around 100 percent.
- With cobalt costs rising in tandem, battery costs are increasing as well.
Apple's low-cost MacBook was previously expected to debut between $599 and $699 price points. However, given these new realities, DigiTimes believes the budget MacBook might cost as much as $749.
Meanwhile, as we detailed recently, Apple is likely to use a new manufacturing process for the aluminum shell of the low-cost MacBook. This aligns with previous reports that had suggested that Apple might leverage the thermal design elements of the iPhone 16 Pro, which used a graphite-clad aluminum substructure.
Also, the budget MacBook is expected to sport the A18 Pro chip that featured in the iPhone 16 Pro Max, a 12.9-inch screen, and come with bright colors, with Apple reportedly having tested light yellow, light green, blue, pink, classic silver, and dark gray color options.
We've aggregated the low-cost MacBook's expected specs in a dedicated hub post:
- A USB 3.2 Gen 2 controller capable of speeds of 10Gb/s or 1.25GB/s.
- No Thunderbolt controllers.
- Apple is likely to use the aluminum chassis of the MacBook Air for its upcoming low-cost MacBook, albeit with reduced component specs.
- A haptic trackpad, but without a backlit keyboard.
- Apple expects to record an annual sales volume of between 5 million and 8 million units for its new budget MacBook.
About the author: Writing is my one incontrovertible passion. Over the past six years, he has authored over 2,200 distinct articles on financial and tech-related topics, spanning nearly 1 million words. And he has been a member of Wcctech mobile team since 2025. As an alumnus of the University of Toronto, Rotman Commerce Program, I bring nuance, in-depth knowledge, and a unique perspective to every topic that I cover. When I'm not writing, I'm traveling the world, exploring hidden confectionaries and restaurants as an aspiring food connoisseur.
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