Is Apple so embarrassed by its prices that it won't get us all together this month?
After weeks of speculation about new iPads, MacBooks, and other Apple gear, the tech community is suddenly reacting to the news there might not be an Apple event at which these rumors can crystallize. Yesterday's announcement of new M3 versions of the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air seems to suggest that – instead of assembling a pack of products to release at a choreographed event, Apple will instead be updating current models as-and-when.
The new MacBook Air not only gains a M3 processor, which boosts power up to 60% over the original M1 versions and add a more powerful Neural Engine, but Wi-Fi 6E and improved external display support. The starting price is $1,099 / £999 and the device is available from March 8th.
Since the M3 MacBook Air was one of the key predictions for the event, it puts a hole in the side of any chance of it taking place. Further cold water comes from none other than Bloomberg's Mark Gurman himself, which means that if you've watched several over-enthusiastic Apple YouTubers spouting their prophecies then you're allowed to feel a little cheated at this point!
Of course, in fairness, the products approaching market are probably still nearing completion. Instead of a specific event, we can expect a separate press release and launch video for each one.
There has been a good deal of rumor about new iPad Pro models with M3 processors and OLED displays, and yet another Apple Pencil. A cheaper Apple Pencil came our recently, but the premium version might also need a re-design if Apple are to finally re-position the camera on the iPad Pro along the long edge of the screen so video conferencing looks more normal (because at the moment that's where the magnets charge the pencil). This is all widely predicted, alongside a special version of iOS to support the new hardware.
A giant 12.9-inch iPad Air is also anticipated, which begs the question "Just how expensive the iPad Pro is going to get with an M3 processor in it?" The anticipated OLED display might have some use, perhaps, to creators, but at the moment the starting price for the M2 12.9-inch XDR iPad Pro is $1,099 (same as that MacBook Air) with just 128GB storage – and another $129 for the pencil. The Magic Keyboard (which has a trackpad) is another $349 if you're looking for a vaguely laptop-like experience.
Since the iPad Pro has 8GB RAM (in the bottom two storage configs), you're parting with a lot more cash than for a MacBook Air with 256GB storage. Oh, and you still need to do your work in iOS which many feel has limitations in contexts beyond pen use is limiting in a lot of contexts beyond pen use.
No Apple rumor sources have suggested these limitations will vanish with a new iPad Pro – though almost all have suggested the price will get higher. Forbes had even reported that prices as high as $1,500 and $1,800 had been floated by chattering fans. It's possible that the lowest storage options will disappear, but even then that would probably be enough to kill off the product line.
With no information, I'd be inclined to anticipate Apple will cover their costs and inflation, and ditch (at least) the lowest storage option, ergo 128GB $799 minimum becomes a 256GB $999 or $1,099 minimum depending on OLED costs. Remember, too, there was also talk of a more expensive iPhone Ultra without anything emerging.
On a tangental note, another reason Apple might want to avoid assembling a crowd of journalists on their turf is that – despite a few enthusiastic videos about the Vision Pro – the extremely expensive AR device is in a tricky place at the moment and there have been some social media posts about returning them.
See our guide to the best tablets for photo editing.
