MacBook Air 2017 release date, canceled rumors: Major upgrade may come in 2017?

The 2016 minor upgrade done on MacBook Air did not prove to be enough to tide consumers over as speculations about a possible major update next year continue to increase. Is a MacBook Air 2017 really on its way, or has the Air product line been completely killed off?

After the 11-inch MacBook Air variant was discontinued, talks about the 13-inch model being wiped out as well have been going around, especially after the release of the new MacBook Pro 2016, which is a much smaller, thinner, and thus more portable choice.

Moreover, the older MacBook Air models have reportedly undergone a price bump, which made them more expensive than the more powerful Mac laptops. Macworld speculated that this could be Apple's way of cutting out the Air product line.

However, these are all just speculations, and a MacBook Air 2017 may still be in the works, and a proper update may finally be released in the early part of next year, possibly between the period of March to May, based on Apple's yearly upgrade cycle.

Other sources reported that the MacBook Air 2017 may well get a larger upgrade in 2017, with an increased 32 GB RAM and a major price cut so that more people can avail of it without comprising the MacBook Air's quality.

This was in accordance to what the Apple Marketing Chief, Phil Schiller, said in an interview with CNET, "Affordability is absolutely something we care about. But we don't design for price, we design for the experience and the quality people expect from Mac."

If and when the MacBook Air 2017 does come, it is speculated to be much thinner and lighter than its predecessors, with major internal spec enhancements like new batteries, cooling modules, and chassis. It may run on the next-generation Intel processors with compatible graphics and RAM upgrades, and possible support for Thunderbolt 3, USB 3.1 and DisplayPort 1.2.

Apple has yet to make an official statement about a possible MacBook Air 2017 release.

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