Apple eyes MacBook Air overhaul, inspired by MacBook Neo, says 9to5Mac.

Apple’s next MacBook Air is expected to adopt the Neo’s 15‑inch Liquid Retina display, a step up from the current 13.6‑inch panel. 9to5Mac notes that the Neo’s larger screen “breaks the MacBook lineup as we knew it,” and analysts see the Air borrowing that size to stay competitive with the Neo’s “faster processor (though still a thermally limited one)” and the Neo’s 16 GB of RAM. The move would give the Air a clear advantage over its predecessor, which has long been positioned as the entry‑level model with a 13‑inch display and 8 GB of memory.

Beyond the screen, the redesign could bring an OLED panel to the Air as early as 2028, according to 9to5Mac’s citation of Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Gurman reports that Apple’s OLED rollout will follow the iPhone, iPad Pro, the upcoming iPad mini, and the refreshed MacBook Pro, but he adds that Apple “hasn’t decided whether to bring touch to any Macs beyond the MacBook Pro.” Consequently, the Air’s OLED upgrade would likely retain a traditional non‑touch interface while delivering higher contrast and color fidelity. The article also speculates that a 120 Hz refresh rate could be “an easy add for the price point,” positioning the Air’s visual performance a notch above the Neo without encroaching on the Pro line’s premium positioning.

Thermal management is another focal point of the rumored overhaul. The current Air relies on passive cooling, a design choice that limits sustained performance under heavy loads. 9to5Mac points to Apple’s recent use of graphite sheets and copper heat sinks in the iPad Pro, as well as the vapor‑chamber cooling in the iPhone 17 Pro, as potential templates for a fan‑less yet more efficient Air. While the article stops short of confirming a fan‑based solution, it suggests that “some form of thermal improvement” could be integrated, perhaps by channeling heat through the Apple logo or employing a thin vapor‑chamber layer, thereby mitigating the “heat in an effective way” issue that has plagued the Air’s thin chassis.

Design-wise, the Air may become “even thinner, even more portable, and more experimental,” according to the 9to5Mac writer. The piece argues that, now that the Air is no longer strictly Apple’s cheapest Mac, the company could push the envelope on form factor, echoing the fan‑less, ultra‑light ethos of the discontinued 12‑inch MacBook. A starting price of $1,299 is cited as a plausible target for a redesign that balances premium materials with a cost structure that still undercuts the Neo’s higher‑end positioning.

If Apple proceeds with these changes, the Air would occupy a middle ground between the Neo’s performance‑oriented spec sheet and the Pro line’s flagship capabilities. By adopting a larger OLED display, modestly boosting RAM, and refining thermal architecture—all while retaining a fan‑less design—the Air could reclaim its status as the go‑to general‑purpose laptop for users who “don’t need 16 GB of RAM for heavier multitasking,” as the 9to5Mac article asserts. The combination of these upgrades would address the current perception that the Air “doesn’t have much going for it” in the wake of the Neo’s launch, potentially revitalizing the Air’s appeal without cannibalizing Apple’s higher‑margin MacBook Pro offerings.