Macbook Air 2016 release date, specs rumors: gaming-friendly device getting Windows support?

MacBook Air Apple.com

Now that Apple has unveiled the new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus as well as the new iPad Pro, the attention shifts to the MacBook Air 2016. The Cupertino-based company did not mention anything about the purported laptop but speculations claim that it will break its silence about the device before the year ends. 

Rumor mills' round-the-clock churning suggests that the highly-anticipated new MacBook Air will pack massive power in a sleek, ultra-thin build. It will be powerful in the sense that users can use it for heavy-duty gaming. Rumor has it that it will be fitted out with the highly-advanced Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 graphics card. 

This unit will help the MacBook Air 2016 handle some intense gaming, which will easily make it a go-to for hardcore gamers. With a Skylake-U processor (the latest and more powerful chip from Intel) allegedly under its hood, the machine's performance should be nothing but stellar while the power consumption is kept relatively low.

Apple is also expected to integrate Force Touch technology on the device. The latest available MacBook already has the feature, which responds differently to a light tap and a hard press. It will reportedly feature USB Type-C ports but more outrageous reports claim that the laptop could be charged wirelessly.

The MacBook Air 2016 will apparently have support for select Microsoft apps or functions. These include an Office software especially tailored for the Apple-made notebook. Australia News Network says that there will also be a feature called Intelligent Search, which will apparently comb through the data on the Microsoft-native OneNote and Outlook that's on the MacBook Air. 

A so-called Translator, which the site says was initially introduced to the iPhone and Apple Watch, will also be integrated. This app apparently helps the user find phrases in a foreign language by accessing the current location and time of the user.

Apple has yet to make the MacBook Air 2016 official but media outlets believe that the company lowering the price of the MacBook Air 2015 is a sign that users are close to seeing the new laptop.  

News
Buddhism declines worldwide as ageing and disaffiliation take their toll, Pew study finds
Buddhism declines worldwide as ageing and disaffiliation take their toll, Pew study finds

Buddhism was the only major world faith to record a decline between 2010 and 2020.

Scotland: Eleventh hour plea to MSPs to reject assisted suicide
Scotland: Eleventh hour plea to MSPs to reject assisted suicide

Bishop John Keenan, President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland, is urging members of the Scottish Parliament to think of the vulnerable and vote against assisted suicide. 

Archbishop of Canterbury to embark on historic six-day pilgrimage
Archbishop of Canterbury to embark on historic six-day pilgrimage

The Archbishop of Canterbury will undertake a six-day pilgrimage before she is installed as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury later this month. 

Baptist seminary provides refuge to people displaced in Lebanon
Baptist seminary provides refuge to people displaced in Lebanon

The Arab Baptist Theological Seminary near Beirut is sheltering displaced people who fled their homes as fighting between Israel and Hezbollah forces hundreds of thousands of civilians across Lebanon to seek refuge.