Last Updated: January 31, 2024, 18:14 IST
One of big people at Apple could have killed the Air lineup
Apple sells a wide range of MacBooks in the market these days but it might have been different if Ive had his way earlier.
Apple MacBook Air and Pro lineup could have been merged if the company had decided to go ahead with the advice from chief designer and Apple veteran Jony Ive.
MacBook Air is one of Apple’s top-selling products but Ive felt that the company didn’t need two models and give all of them in one product itself. The details about Ive’s interest in killing the Air model has been shared by veteran journalist Walt Mossberg in a recent podcast.
The anecdotes about Ive’s time at Apple were quoted to a ‘high level source’ with a good idea about Apple’s products. In the podcast, Mossberg also mentioned that Ive got more control over hardware and software as Tim Cook, CEO, Apple didn’t see himself as a product guy.
Ive thought that using his design nous, he could make the Pro thinner and even lighter than the MacBook Airs, helping him clear the decks for the Air lineup and allow Apple to charge a higher price which only works to increase Apple’s bottom line. Interestingly, Steve Jobs had no plans to shelve the Air, he wanted both to exist and cater to different users and their needs.
Air continues to be Apple’s most-affordable laptops in the market, even though its price has gone up a notch in the past few years. The company is now offering all of its Macs with the M-serie silicone, which is now available in the M3 generation. Ive has been instrumental in the development of various Apple products but asking a product to be killed was never going to go down well with the company, let alone Jobs.
Tim Cook is now the spearhead of the company, with Ive leaving Apple to pursue other ambitions and projects. The company is still at the top of the value charts with trillions of dollars in the bank and it is likely that if Apple had killed the Air lineup that wouldn’t have been possible.
