Apple reportedly is set to launch its New MacBook Air
series notebooks with panel sizes of 11.6-inch, 13.3-inch and 15-inch in
the first quarter of 2012 and will directly compete against ultrabooks
from PC brand vendors, according to sources from the upstream supply
chain.
The sources noted that related upstream players
have already started pilot production of the MacBook Air models and will
add a 15-inch model into the product line to expand its
reach in the
ultra-thin notebook market.
Commenting on Apple's move,
sources from retail channels pointed out that Apple will start dropping
the price of its existing MacBook Airs before launching its series and
the promotion could further boost Apple's share in the global notebook
market.
For the year-end holidays, several channel
retailers in the US and Europe have dropped their MacBook Air prices to
attract consumers. Online shopping site MacMall saw 11.6-inch 64GB
MacBook Air drop from US$999 to US$939.94, while Best Buy is offering
the same model at an even lower price of US$849.99. Other models such as
the 128GB version 11.6-inch MacBook Air and 128GB/256GB 13.3-inch
models are being offered with a discount of US$79-101.
However, ultrabooks with Windows and document processing software will still be more attractive for the enterprise market.