Apple to Release 12-Inch Retina Display MacBook, Higher Resolution iPad, Lower Cost iMac in 2014?

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has issued a research note outlining his expectations for upcoming Apple products, reports 9to5Mac.

Kuo predicts a 12-inch Retina Display MacBook, a higher resolution sixth generation iPad, and a lower cost iMac.

12-Inch Retina Display MacBook With a New Design:
● Smaller MacBook with entirely new design
● Launching in either Q2 or Q3 of 2014
● 12-inch screen, but as portable as current 11-inch MacBook Air and productive as 13-inch MacBook Air
● Higher-resolution display (Retina)
● Will “redefine laptop computing” once again just like the current MacBook Air design
● Thinner/lighter than MacBook Air, new clamshell structure
● Will run on Intel chip, not Apple-based A8 processor
● Potentially lower-cost than current Apple notebooks


Lower Cost iMac:
● Apple could ship a cheaper iMac next-year
● Current iMac did not ship as many units as expected
● Lower-cost model could help combat Windows desktops
● Kuo expects this iMac model to boost iMac sales by 10-20%
● Ship in Q2 or Q3 2014

iPad (Sixth Generation):
● Same 9.7-inch screen size as current iPad and upcoming iPad 5
● Display would be higher-resolution with a PPI (pixels-per-inch) of 30-40% higher than the current Retina iPad
● While iPads with larger screens have been rumored, Kuo says that Apple will likely ship this higher-resolution model instead
● Third-generation iPad mini would retain the 2048×1536 Retina display of the upcoming iPad mini 2

Notably, Kuo's prediction of a 12-inch MacBook lines up with an earlier report from DisplaySearch. They predicted that Apple will revamp nearly all of the displays in its products over the next year. That includes 4.7-inch and 5.7-inch iPhones and a 12-inch 2304x1440 MacBook Air.

Read More