Today is the third anniversary of Apple’s decision to discontinue the 12-inch MacBook. – Apple Inc. On July 9, 2019, Apple deleted the portable notebook from its online shop along with updates to the MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro.
The 12-inch MacBook, released in March 2015, was Apple’s first fanless laptop and boasted a thin and light design that weighed only two pounds. First generation models were available for little over $1,300 and had 8GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD and a dual-core Intel Core M CPU with Intel HD Graphics 5300 built into the motherboard.
With a single USB-C connector to charge and transmit data, a Force Touch touchpad, and an innovative terraced battery architecture, Apple’s 12-inch MacBook was one of the most innovative laptops of its time.
Ex-Apple CEO Phil Schiller declared in a press release that “Apple has reimagined the notebook” with the new MacBook in March 2015. “The MacBook has a fresh innovation in every component. A fanless design, ultra-thin retina display, full-size keyboard that is 34% thinner, and a new Force Touch trackpad are just some of the features that make the new MacBook the laptop of the future.”
The 12-inch MacBook was the first MacBook to incorporate Apple’s controversial butterfly switch keyboard design, which is prone to malfunction and was finally deleted from the whole MacBook series after years of complaints.
Before being retired, the 12-inch MacBook had been sitting on Apple’s shelf for more than two years without a hardware upgrade.
With the benefit of hindsight, it’s evident that Intel processor thermal limits impeded the 12-inch MacBook, whose thin and light design is better suited to Apple silicon chips’ performance while using less power. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman revealed last month that Apple was contemplating introducing a brand-new 12-inch laptop by 2024, although it is unknown whether the laptop will be labeled as a MacBook, MacBook Air, or MacBook Pro.. Apple marketed a higher-end 12-inch PowerBook G4 in the mid-2000s, before the initial MacBook Pro was produced, in addition to the lower-cost 12-inch MacBook.