Apple has been developing a more affordable version of the MacBook, and it's rumored to be launching in under two weeks. This is going to be one of Apple's most unique Macs, because there hasn't really been anything quite like it before.


We've rounded up everything we know about the low-cost MacBook ahead of its March debut.

Design

Rumors about the MacBook's design make it sound a lot like the MacBook Air. It will have an aluminum chassis in various colors, and a 12.9-inch or 13-inch display, depending on the rumor.


It's possible the low-cost MacBook will have a thin and light design because it's going to use a lower power A-series chip that doesn't require a lot of heat dissipation, but that's not yet confirmed. Apple used to have a 12-inch MacBook with a thin design and a low-power Core M chip, and it's been suggested that this new MacBook could be something of a revival of that machine.

Thinner and lighter typically means more expensive with Apple products, so a super slim design might not be what Apple is optimizing for. Making the low-cost MacBook thinner than the ‌MacBook Air‌ could just confuse the MacBook lineup.

With the low-cost iPad, Apple keeps the price down by using older display technology that's not as thin, so we could see that same strategy with the low-cost MacBook. A thicker chassis and a super efficient chip could mean a long battery life, which would be ideal for an educational environment.

Colors

The MacBook is going to come in a selection of fun colors, and Apple has tested light yellow, light green, blue, pink, silver, and dark gray, according to Bloomberg. Not all of those colors are likely to ship, but it sounds like we'll get at least four of them.

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo thinks the MacBook will come in yellow, silver, blue, and pink, which would be the same colors that Apple offers for the ‌iPad‌.

A-Series Chip

The most consistent rumor we've heard about the MacBook is its planned chip. Rather than an M-series Mac chip, Apple is planning to use an A-series chip. The low-cost MacBook is expected to use the A18 Pro chip, which Apple first debuted in the iPhone 16 Pro.


The A18 Pro uses a second-generation 3-nanometer process. It has a 6-core CPU with four performance cores and two efficiency cores, along with a 6-core GPU and a 16-core Neural Engine for AI-based tasks. In Geekbench benchmarks, the A18 Pro has an average single-core score of 3451, and a multi-core score of 8572. For comparison, the M4 iPad Pro earns a single-core score of 3694 and a multi-core score of 13732 (Apple's next ‌MacBook Air‌ is going to use the M4 chip).

The A18 Pro outperforms the M1, which is the chip that Apple kept around in a lower-cost version of the ‌MacBook Air‌ for several years. An A18 MacBook wouldn't be too far off from the M4 Mac/‌iPad‌ chips in terms of single-core performance, but there would be a difference in multi-core performance.

A MacBook with the A18 chip would be more than powerful enough for day-to-day use like web browsing, document creation, watching videos, and even light photo and video editing. It won't be ideal for system-intensive games or tasks like 4K video editing and 3D rendering, but it will do almost everything an iPhone or ‌iPad‌ can do.

Apple is developing the low-cost MacBook with students in mind, and it sounds like it will be the Apple equivalent of the affordable Chromebook PCs that are often used by students.

RAM

Macs start with 16GB RAM, but the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro has 8GB RAM, the minimum for Apple Intelligence. We can expect an A18 Pro MacBook to have at least 8GB RAM so it can support ‌Apple Intelligence‌, but it's possible Apple will give it the 16GB that all Macs have.

Storage

The ‌MacBook Air‌ starts with 256GB of storage, but Apple could possibly launch the low-cost MacBook with 128GB.

Ports

The A18 Pro chip in the ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro models doesn't support Thunderbolt, so the MacBook will be limited to USB-C (10GB/s) and won't offer Thunderbolt speeds. That will limit display connectivity, so it's likely the A18 Pro MacBook will only support a single external display.

Naming

It's not really clear what Apple will name the low-cost Mac notebook. We have the ‌MacBook Air‌ and the MacBook Pro, so it's entirely possible it will be called "MacBook." Apple has used the MacBook name multiple times in the past, and it's not in use at the moment.

Price

Pricing on the ‌MacBook Air‌ starts at $999, and the low-cost MacBook is expected to be priced much lower.

Apple probably won't want to undercut its ‌iPad‌ pricing by too much. The low-cost ‌iPad‌ with A16 chip starts at $349, and the iPad Air with M2 chip starts at $599. A price between $599 and $799 could make the most sense because it wouldn't be as expensive as the ‌MacBook Air‌ or ‌iPad Pro‌, but would come in at or just over the ‌iPad Air‌'s cost.

$599 would be on par with some of the highly rated Chromebook options that people often purchase for school use, while a $699 or $799 price would be in the same general pricing area, but a little more of a premium price tag. $599 is also the cost of the iPhone 16e, Apple's most affordable ‌iPhone‌ that uses a slightly less powerful A18 chip.

Launch Date

Rumors suggest that the low-cost MacBook will be introduced at or just before Apple's March 4 Special Experience that's taking place in New York, London, and Shanghai. Apple could announce the MacBook in a press release ahead of the experience.

Select members of the media have been invited to the mini event, and it's likely to provide them with a chance to try the new MacBook and other new devices.
This article, "Apple's Low-Cost Colorful MacBook: All the Rumors" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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OpenAI is working on several AI hardware devices in partnership with former Apple designer Jony Ive, and the first product that comes out could be a smart speaker. The company is developing a smart speaker, a smart lamp, and considering AI glasses, according to The Information, with the speaker set to come out in early 2027.


OpenAI's smart speaker has an integrated camera and it is designed to learn information about who is using it and what's around them. It will include a facial recognition feature similar to Face ID, and users will be able to use the speaker to make purchases. The speaker will have AI integration, so users can ask it questions and make requests.

In an internal presentation, OpenAI employees were told that the speaker would observe users and suggest actions to help them achieve goals, such as suggesting an early bedtime ahead of a morning meeting.

Apple is working on a similar home hub device that's set to come out this year. The home hub will include an integrated camera and speaker for video calls and controlling smart home products, plus it will have deep integration with the updated version of Siri that Apple is developing.

OpenAI is planning to price the speaker between $200 and $300, with a launch planned for February 2027 at the earliest. OpenAI is exploring a smart lamp and smart glasses, but those products won't be ready until 2028 or later. With the exception of the speaker, OpenAI's hardware development is in the early stages and other products could be canceled.

Jony Ive has been working with OpenAI since OpenAI acquired Ive's hardware firm io in May 2025. Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman have shared some details on their AI hardware work, suggesting that there was an established prototype in November 2025. At the time, Ive and Altman said the device would be "peaceful" and an "active participant" that's not annoying. The duo also described the device as a product that would "make people feel joy."

Additional rumors about OpenAI's plans came following an employee meeting, where Ive and Altman said they didn't want a device with a screen. The device, which is presumably the speaker that The Information says is in development, was described as pocket-sized and contextually aware of the user's surroundings. Altman told employees it's "the coolest piece of technology that the world will have ever seen."

While Altman and Ive have promised the next big thing after the iPhone, there is some internal tension at OpenAI. Ive's LoveFrom design company has remained separate from OpenAI, but LoveFrom is providing hardware designs to OpenAI. It's up to OpenAI's hardware and software engineers to actually make the products that LoveFrom comes up with.

OpenAI employees have apparently complained about LoveFrom's secrecy and slow speed when it comes to design revisions. Former Apple designer Evans Hankey is leading industrial design, and Ive is said to be making the final call on almost all design choices. Other former Apple employees working at OpenAI on hardware include Tang Tan and Scott Cannon, plus Eddy Cue's son Adam Cue is working on OpenAI software.
This article, "Jony Ive's First OpenAI Device Will Be Smart Speaker With Camera, 2027 Launch Planned" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Six skiers who survived the avalanche near Lake Tahoe on Tuesday used the Emergency SOS via satellite feature on the iPhone to get help, reports The New York Times. Emergency SOS via satellite lets ‌iPhone‌ users communicate with emergency responders via text when a cellular or Wi-Fi connection is not available.


The skiers were able to stay connected to the Nevada County Sheriff's Office for several hours while rescue efforts were coordinated. "One of my personnel was communicating with one of the guides over a four-hour period, giving information back to the Nevada sheriff's office and coordinating what rescues could be permitted," said Don O'Keefe, law enforcement chief for California's Office of Emergency Services.

Emergency SOS via satellite is available on the ‌iPhone‌ 14 and later, as well as the Apple Watch Ultra 3. Apple offers the functionality for free.

Emergency SOS via satellite has been credited with helping people in multiple off-grid emergencies, from car accidents to wild fires. The feature works in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, the U.K., and the U.S.
This article, "iPhone's Emergency SOS via Satellite Feature Helped Rescue Skiers Caught in Lake Tahoe Avalanche" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Google has added three new features to the Chrome desktop browser, including split view for multitasking, PDF annotations, and a Save to Google Drive option.


Split view for Chrome is a built-in tool that supports using two tabs at the same time side-by-side. Google says that it provides a more streamlined, flexible way to work. There is a split view icon in Chrome that can be clicked to enter the new view.

With PDF annotations, the Chrome PDF Viewer can be used to highlight text, insert signatures, and add notes.

The Save to Google Drive feature is meant to make it easier for users to locate their downloads. PDFs can be saved to Google Drive from Chrome without redownloading and re-uploading them. Google Drive has a "Saved from Chrome" folder for downloaded files.
This article, "Google Chrome Gets Built-In Split View and PDF Annotations" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple has inked a deal with EverPass Media to bring Apple TV sports content to EverPass customers in the United States. EverPass is a company that bundles premium sports content for restaurants, hotels, casinos, sports bars, and other businesses that want to air sporting events.


EverPass will now be able to offer Formula 1, Major League Soccer, and Major League Baseball content to its customers at no additional cost through the main EverPass Core content package. That package also includes Paramount+'s UEFA Champions League, Prime Video's Thursday Night Football, NBA, WNBA and more.

The deal includes all-access coverage of every F1 Grand Prix, including practice, qualifying, and Sprint sessions. For MLS, EverPass customers will be able to show enhanced feature matches every weekend during the regular season, plus MLS All-Star Game, Leagues Cup, MLS Cup, and pre-and post-match programming. Also included is Friday Night Baseball, with two MLB Friday night games per week.

‌Apple TV‌ sporting content will be available through EverPass alongside NFL Sunday Ticket, Peacock Sports Pass, Prime Video sports content, and Paramount+.
This article, "Apple TV Sports Content Including F1, MLS, and Friday Night Baseball Coming to Bars and Restaurants" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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As we approach the launch of the iPhone 17e, MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera decided to take a look back at the iPhone 16e. He goes over what it's been like using Apple's budget ‌iPhone‌ over the past 12 months, and whether it's worth choosing over one of Apple's more expensive models.


The ‌iPhone 16e‌ is $599, so it's $200 cheaper than the iPhone 17. ‌iPhone 16e‌ buyers didn't miss much in terms of performance or battery life compared to those who bought Apple's more expensive iPhones, but the device does only have a single camera, which is one of the main downsides.

There's a single-lens 48-megapixel Wide Angle lens, so no Telephoto and no Ultra Wide lens, which also means no macro support. The other major feature that's missing is MagSafe, which is majorly inconvenient since ‌MagSafe‌ charging is so prevalent. There's no Camera Control button, but that's easy to do without.

Apple used an older design for the ‌iPhone 16e‌, so it still has a tired-looking notch instead of the Dynamic Island, and it only comes in black or white so there are no fun colors to choose from. Other than the camera, design, and ‌MagSafe‌ shortcomings, the ‌iPhone 16e‌ is remarkably similar to Apple's other iPhones and you're not going to notice much in the way of day-to-day differences between the ‌iPhone 16e‌ and a higher-end model.

We definitely don't recommend buying an ‌iPhone 16e‌ right now, but the ‌iPhone‌ 17e that's going to launch very soon will absolutely be worth considering over Apple's more expensive flagship iPhones.

Rumors suggest the ‌iPhone‌ 17e is going to solve some of the problems that we had with the ‌iPhone 16e‌. It could get a ‌Dynamic Island‌ for the first time, adding all of the ‌Dynamic Island‌ features like Live Activities, and it's supposedly going to be updated with ‌MagSafe‌. We're also expecting Apple's upgraded C1X modem and the same A19 chip that's in the ‌iPhone 17‌.

As long as you don't mind the lack of extra cameras, the ‌iPhone‌ 17e, like the ‌iPhone 16e‌, is going to be a very competitive ‌iPhone‌ that gives you a lot of performance for the money. If you've been waiting to upgrade from an older device, the ‌iPhone‌ 17e has the potential to be a very good buy.
This article, "iPhone 16e Long-Term Review: What to Know Before the iPhone 17e Launches" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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West Virginia's Attorney General JB McCuskey today announced a lawsuit against Apple, accusing the company of knowingly allowing iCloud to be used to distribute and store child sexual abuse material (CSAM). McCuskey says that Apple has opted to "do nothing about it" for years.

"Preserving the privacy of child predators is absolutely inexcusable. And more importantly, it violates West Virginia law. Since Apple has so far refused to police themselves and do the morally right thing, I am filing this lawsuit to demand Apple follow the law, report these images, and stop re-victimizing children by allowing these images to be stored and shared," Attorney General JB McCuskey said.

According to the lawsuit [PDF], Apple has described itself as the "greatest platform for distributing child porn" internally, but it submits far fewer reports about CSAM than peers like Google and Meta.

Back in 2021, Apple announced new child safety features, including a system that would detect known CSAM in images stored in iCloud Photos. After backlash from customers, digital rights groups, child safety advocates, and security researchers, Apple decided to abandon its plans for CSAM detection in ‌iCloud Photos‌.

"Children can be protected without companies combing through personal data, and we will continue working with governments, child advocates, and other companies to help protect young people, preserve their right to privacy, and make the internet a safer place for children and for us all," Apple said when announcing that it would not implement the feature.

Apple later explained that creating a tool for scanning private ‌iCloud‌ data would "create new threat vectors for data thieves to find and exploit."

West Virginia's Attorney General says that Apple has shirked its responsibility to protect children under the guise of user privacy, and that Apple's decision not to deploy detection technology is a choice, not passive oversight. The lawsuit suggests that since Apple has end-to-end control over hardware, software, and cloud infrastructure, it is not able to claim to be an "unknowing, passive conduit of CSAM."

The lawsuit is seeking punitive damages and injunctive relief requiring Apple to implement effective CSAM detection measures.

Apple was also sued in 2024 over its decision to abandon CSAM detection. A lawsuit representing a potential group of 2,680 victims said that Apple's failure to implement CSAM monitoring tools has caused ongoing harm to victims. That lawsuit is seeking $1.2 billion.
This article, "Apple Sued by West Virginia for Allegedly Allowing CSAM Distribution Through iCloud" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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The 31st Major League Soccer season is set to begin on Saturday, February 21, with games set to be available through the Apple TV subscription service. ‌Apple TV‌ subscribers in more than 100 countries can access MLS matches with no blackouts and no additional fees.


Apple used to charge $14.99 per month or $99 for the MLS Season Pass, but the Season Pass was removed for the 2026 season to give all ‌Apple TV‌ subscribers access for free. MLS is aiming to expand its fanbase and make content easier to access through its partnership with Apple.

Apple says that MLS on ‌Apple TV‌ will include Walmart Saturday Showdown, which spotlights a featured matchup during the Saturday slate of matches throughout the regular season. It will include enhanced production that's designed to "help viewers feel more connected to the match," with Shot on iPhone moments captured with dynamic angles. This week's Saturday Showdown will feature LAFC vs Miami at the LA Memorial Coliseum. The game is set to begin at 9:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

All 30 MLS teams will take the pitch on February 21 and February 22 for MLS is Back Weekend. 13 of 15 season openers are scheduled for Saturday, with two games on Sunday. The season will begin with St. Louis facing off against Charlotte at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time. A full schedule can be found on the MLS website.

Soccer fans can keep up to date with scores, stats, and standings throughout the MLS season with the Apple Sports app. The app offers Live Activities for all MLS matches, with live scores and play-by-play information. Apple will also have special curated playlists on Apple Music, dedicated Matchday Guides in Apple Maps, an MLS hub in the Apple Podcasts app, and MLS info in Apple News.
This article, "MLS 2026 Season Begins February 21 on Apple TV With Free Access for Subscribers" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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