The next big Apple event in 2018 is WWDC in July. WWDC is the event where Apple announces their software updates and occasionally new MacBooks. The most recent MacBook was released last year, many upgrades and differences were featured in this new device. An OLED Touch Bar replaced the function keys and brought touch ID to the MacBook. Various ports were taken off the device and left USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 as the only ports on the computer. The 2017 MacBook Pro was released in a 13-inch model with a dual-core processor and a 15 inch with a quad-core processor. With the recent release of the iMac Pro, the bar has been raised completely for the expectations of the next line of MacBook Pros.
The first rumoured addition to the new MacBook Pros is FaceID. FaceID was introduced in September 2017 with the release of the iPhone X. It only makes sense for FaceID to be included in a MacBook, we are constantly staring at the screen which would make unlocking your device and make payments lightning fast. Apple introduced Touch ID onto the MacBook Pro with the Touch Bar model in 2017 and the introduction of FaceID could be our chance to experience both on one device (much like the Samsung Galaxy phones).
Another very unlikely hope is that ports may be put back onto the MacBook Pro. The last device only featured USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 for charging and importing/exporting media and data. This left users having to use various adapters externally which after a while can become extremely annoying. However more and more devices and products are beginning to take advantage and use USB-C due to the speed of it. We just need to wait for Apple to entirely jump on the USB-C bandwagon. One major complaint about the lack of ports was from video editors and photographers. Many cameras still rely on SD cards and having a port dedicated to your memory cards which the 2017 Pro did not offer, but of course, Apple sold an external dongle for that separately.
Storage also seems to be a big rumour within the tech community. The 13-Inch 2017 Pro maxes out at 1TB of storage as does the 15-inch with 2TB. Many would love to see the 15-inch model having storage upgradable to 4TB and the 13-inch to 2TB. Whether this will happen is unknown but it would surely attract many more professionals to purchase the 2018 MacBook Pro.
What about the MacBook Air?
MacBook airs and notebooks seem to become less relevant each year. People want a powerful and portable device with great displays, not a small computer that will get the job done. This is where the Air falls flat, with a not so good display and pretty poor specs there isn’t much room for the MacBook Air on the market anymore. Apple announcing an updated MacBook air with a better display (at least a Retina display) and definitely updated storage options as it is only configurable to 512GB would be amazing. However, we should not get our hopes up for a brilliant updated Air model but it is interesting to see what Apple will do with their oldest notebook.
What do you want to see in 2018 MacBooks? Let us know at @AppleMagazine.
