Apple marks 2017 12-inch MacBook obsolete
Apple has added the final 12-inch MacBook to its obsolete list, ending normal hardware service for the 2017 Retina laptop.
Apple has added the final 12-inch MacBook model to its list of obsolete products, ending official hardware service for the 2017 Retina laptop. The same update also lists the sixth-generation iPad and several BeatsX variants. 12
What Apple now considers obsolete
Apple says a product becomes obsolete when it stopped being distributed for sale more than seven years ago. Obsolete products are no longer eligible for hardware service, and authorised providers cannot order replacement parts, although Mac laptops may qualify for battery-only repairs for up to 10 years where parts remain available. 1
The newly listed MacBook is the Retina, 12-inch, 2017 model. Apple’s original specification page identifies it as a lightweight notebook with a 12-inch display, a 1.2GHz or 1.3GHz dual-core Intel processor, up to 16GB of memory and a single USB-C port. 2
The end of a distinctive MacBook
The 12-inch MacBook was Apple’s thinnest and lightest laptop when it launched, using a fanless design and a minimalist single-port approach. The 2017 model was the last in the line before Apple discontinued it, leaving the MacBook Air as the more conventional entry point for the range. 3
Owners can still use their laptops, and the obsolete label does not stop macOS from running on supported installations. It does mean that a failed display, keyboard, logic board or other major component is no longer covered by Apple’s normal hardware service network. 1
Our opinion
Apple’s classification is a practical warning rather than a sudden death sentence for the 12-inch MacBook. The machine can remain perfectly useful for light work, but its unusually compact design also makes a major hardware failure harder to justify financially. For anyone still relying on one, a current backup matters more now than an optimistic assumption that Apple can repair it indefinitely.