New battery, thought to be for MacBook Air, appears in online certification databases

A new battery has appeared in not one, but two online certification databases and it's too large to be part of the upcoming iPhone launch. That means it's most likely to be destined for a future MacBook Air refresh.

Rated for 49.9Wh and with a capacity of 4380mAh, the new battery has the same power rating as the battery used in the current MacBook Air, suggesting this will be a drop-in part for a refreshed model. Given the fact the battery has appeared in two databases, I'd guess a new MacBook Air will be with us sooner rather than later.

The battery was spotted in the Danish UL Demko and the China Certification Corporation databases earlier.

We're already expecting new Macs before the end of the year, potentially with the first Apple silicon chips inside. Rumors of a MacBook Air have swirled before, despite the fact the machine was refreshed once already in 2020.

There's also the potential for this battery being designed for the 12-inch MacBook, a machine that was killed off not too long ago. It was always underpowered, but the arrival of Apple silicon could go some way to fixing that. Especially with a nice big battery accompanying it.