Apple, the company that effectively killed the netbook era more than a decade ago, might be preparing to bring it back - in its own meticulously designed way.

According to industry reports, the company is developing a low-cost MacBook, rumored to debut in 2026 with a starting price near $599 — far below its current entry-level MacBook Air M3 ($1,099). The move would mark a stunning strategic shift for Apple, which has long resisted the budget hardware market in favor of premium pricing and long-term brand equity.

“Apple doesn’t usually chase the bottom,” said Ben Bajarin, CEO of Creative Strategies. “But if this happens, it’s not about competing with Chromebooks — it’s about owning the next wave of affordable computing.”

From Netbooks to iPads: The Cycle Turns

In the late 2000s, netbooks — small, inexpensive laptops running Windows — briefly redefined mobile computing. Then came the iPad. Steve Jobs famously mocked netbooks as “cheap laptops that aren’t better at anything,” effectively ending their run.

But 15 years later, the market conditions look eerily familiar:

  • Global PC shipments have fallen for three consecutive quarters.

  • Chromebook adoption in education remains strong but stagnant.

  • AI-powered productivity tools now demand constant connectivity and moderate computing power, not brute-force specs.

That’s the environment Apple appears ready to exploit — not by reviving the netbook’s limitations, but by refining its purpose.

What We Know (and Don’t) About Apple’s Budget MacBook

According to supply chain sources cited by Digitimes Asia