TrendForce: Apple to sell a record number of MacBooks in 2021

The analyst firm, TrendForce, has announced that it expects Apple to ship a record number of MacBook devices in 2021 thanks to its new Apple Silicon M1 processor. With the pandemic, Apple is already set to ship 15.5 million units, up 23.1% year-over-year but thanks to Apple’s new processor, shipments are expected to reach 17.1 million units in 2021.

With the growth in shipments, TrendForce believes that Apple will increase its global notebook market share from 8% this year to 8.7% next year. In recent years, Apple’s best year for MacBook shipments was 2017 when it shipped a few hundred thousand more notebooks than are expected this year. In 2018 and 2019, the firm saw sales continually decline which could be one of the reasons for the strong growth this year.

According to TrendForce, while the 13.3-inch MacBook Air and MacBook Pro are the only MacBook products equipped with the M1, M series processors are expected to be introduced on the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros next year. From there, Apple is likely to introduce its energy-efficient processor across more of its product range.

Apple announced its M1 processor at an event earlier this week. It’s the first ARM-based chipset for MacBooks and delivers great battery life while offering excellent performance. According to Geekbench, the new MacBook Air with Apple’s M1 processor outscored the 16-inch MacBook Pro despite the significantly lower price tag. Things may pan out differently in real-world tests but so far the M1 chip looks promising.