Digitimes is claiming that the long-expected 12-inch MacBook Air will be entering mass-production in the first quarter of 2015 “following a pilot production at the end of 2014.”
It should be noted this is the same source that predicted the machine would be launched in October, claiming at the time that shipments had already begun. Digitimes bases its latest claim on “upstream supply chain” sources – in other words, suppliers to suppliers to Apple. This does not aid its credibility …
The report claims that Apple has been struggling with low yield rates, and that it will be available in limited quantities initially. It goes beyond this to suggest that the new machine targets the “high-end market segment,” which seems at odds with reports that it will be a fanless design without clickable trackpad, a design which ought to be cheaper to manufacture than existing models.
A fanless design would likely be made possible by using the Intel Core M Broadwell processor, specifically designed for cool running. It has also been suggested that it will be available in the same range of colors as iPhones and iPads.
