Rumors surrounding the long-awaited 15-inch MacBook Air are ramping up as the launch nears. Today, reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reports that the machine is likely to feature the M2 chip inside with two different configuration options.

The M3 chip, meanwhile, is expected to enter mass production during the second half of the year.

Kuo’s update today comes as a revision to his previous details on the 15-inch MacBook. In the past, Kuo said he wasn’t sure if this machine would be branded as a “MacBook Air.” He now says, however, that it “should be named MacBook Air.”

The analyst had also previously reported that the 15-inch MacBook Air would be available in M2 and M2 Pro configurations. In today’s report, however, Kuo says the two options are “more likely to be M2 with different cores,” rather than the M2 and M2 Pro.

With that in mind, Kuo says the M3 chip is expected to begin mass production during the second half of the year, followed soon by the M3 Pro and M3 Max variations.

To reiterate, the upcoming 15″ MacBook Air will feature the M2 series and offer two processor spec options. However, two options are more likely to be M2 with different cores (similar to the M2 13″ MacBook Air).

Mass production of M3 chip is anticipated to begin in 2H23, slightly ahead of M3 Pro and M3 Max.

Finally, Kuo says that Apple is estimating 15-inch MacBook Air shipments of between five million and six million units.

The current expectation is that the 15-inch MacBook Air will be announced and released sometime this summer. The most likely outcome is that the machine is announced at WWDC, which kicks off on June 5.

Source - 9to5Mac