Kuo: Apple Silicon MacBook Shipments to Be Cut in First Half of 2022 Due to Component Shortages and Other Factors

Shipments of Apple Silicon MacBooks will be cut in the first half of next year due to component shortages, a decline in working from home demand, and the introduction of a redesigned MacBook Air in the third quarter of 2022, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo's latest investor note, seen by MacRumors.

macbook pro vs macbook air
From the note:

We forecast that the shipment of Apple Silicon processor-based MacBook models will be cut by approximately 15% in 1H22 and attribute it to three reasons: 1) component shortages, 2) structural demand change in the post- COVID-19 era, and 3) product transition between legacy and new models.

According to Kuo, the shortage of components relates primarily to a continuing lack of power management integrated circuits, for which delivery times currently extend as far out as 52 weeks.

This shortage will hit all PC brands, but is said to coincide with the capacity expansion of Unimicron, one of the main IC providers in Taiwan and the sole supplier for the Apple silicon ABF substrate. As a result, Unimicron is expected to aggressively secure non-Apple ABF substrate orders to cut risk.

MacBook shipments are also expected to be impacted by the change in demand structure in the post-COVID-19 era will, with the number of people working from home declining and purchasing power falling due to inflation.

Kuo believes a new redesigned ‌MacBook Air‌ powered by next-generation ‌Apple Silicon‌ will enter mass production in the early third quarter of 2022, making the second half of next year a product transition period that will have an impact on MacBook orders.

Apple is still expected to launch redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models before the end of this year, likely to be announced via a digital event in October or November.

The latest macOS Monterey beta references two new built-in display resolutions that likely correspond to the upcoming 14-inch and 16-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ models. The new display resolutions are listed as "3456 x 2234 Retina" and "3024 x 1964 Retina," which would represent an increase in pixel density for a sharper image if the displays are the expected sizes.

Related Roundups: MacBook Pro, MacBook Air
Related Forums: MacBook Pro, MacBook Air

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With 'Major' Design Changes and 19-Inch MacBook Detailed in New Report

Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie. The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...

Top Rated Comments

cocoua Avatar
42 months ago
Waiting for M2/M1X is being the slowest time of my live.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hot-gril Avatar
42 months ago
Read the title twice as "cut in half" – phew.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
icymountain Avatar
42 months ago

Read the title twice as "cut in half" – phew.
Yes, but if you read twice "cut in half" and sum the two halves, you get normal shipment. Problem solved. ?
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wanha Avatar
42 months ago
These types of reports are always so myopic, because they focus on Apple in isolation.

In the big picture, Apple is the King Kong of component customers in the world, which is to say they get preferential treatment over all other customers, because every component manufacturer wants Apple as their customer.

So although Apple is also affected by component shortages, they are very likely to be the least impacted out of all the manufacturers out there.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
42 months ago
Hopefully, the new Macs are not going to be delayed.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macar00n Avatar
42 months ago

Another so called component shortages, had no troubles getting a iPad and iPhone on launch day.
Yeah sheeple, don't believe there is a component shortage just because every manufacturer across all industries has been reporting so for like a year. Supporting evidence: this one guy was not affected by it.

This is how I know global warming isn't real - some days I go outside and it's cold
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)