The black MacBook Air rumour that began earlier this week may actually have some truth to it but don’t expect to pick up one too soon. An anonymous tipster claiming to be an Apple engineer told Mac Rumors that a black powder-coated MacBook Air was created but failed to make the grade.
The email claims Steve Jobs rejected the black MacBook air because the coating showed a tendency for soaking up body oils. Yep, we think that sounds fairly grim too. Head through to see what the alleged insider had to say about the issue:
Here it is with the odd grammar and wayward apostrophes intact:
The rumors that the next iteration of the MBA’s will have an optional black finish is grounded in truth. We tried to powder coat the Air’s (and Pro’s for that matter) in black as a test run. There are more than a few floating around campus.
The coating looks good and holds up well, but it also soaks up the body oils, making the palm rest look pretty gross. Ultimately that is the reason the top brass (Jobs) killed the idea…it was just too easy to make the computer look like crap. At some point we may offer a black coating, but it won’t be a powder coat and it won’t be anytime soon.”
Mac Rumors says this source hasn’t tipped it off in the past but says it believes the story checks out. The poor quality of the English in the email makes us more than a little suspicious but we could certainly see how powder-coating a MacBook Air might be more trouble than its worth.
Would you buy a black MacBook Air if Apple offered one?
Out NA | £NA | Apple (via Mac Rumors)
