9to5Mac has got the Mac world talking about the new MacBook Air. Its report says the new laptop will be thinner and ditch all but two ports: USB and headphones. The former port will be a USB Type-C connector that almost no-one’s using at the moment. 9to5Mac adds:

Additionally, the latest specifications from the USB foundation indicate that USB Type-C can actually be used to power computers, which makes the standard MagSafe plugs unnecessary on this new device.

By contrast, the current MacBook Air has two USB 3 ports, Thunderbolt, a headphone socket, and MagSafe 2. (The larger model adds a slot for an SDXC card.) So if 9to5Mac is to be believed, Apple is going to remove one USB port, Thunderbolt, and MagSafe 2, in order to thin the thinnest laptop that’s ever thinned.

Although Apple’s never been shy in ruthlessly ditching ports and the like (both ADB being replaced by USB on the original iMac, and also getting rid of optical drives spring immediately to mind), this seems like a step too far. One USB port for everything—charging, connectivity—seems over the top, even for Apple. And ditching MagSafe is effectively a downgrade, given that Apple laptops would once again potentially be hurled across the room if someone stumbled into the charging lead when it’s plugged in.

So there are three possibilities here:

1. Apple’s decided no-one really needs to plug anything in any more, because Wi-Fi and Bluetooth is everywhere, and too bad for those that do. And it doesn’t care if your laptop gets a free flying lesson while it’s being charged.

2. The same as 1, but Apple will also announce a ‘magical’ new version of MagSafe that combines USB Type-C and some sort of magnetic attachment doohickey, assuming that’s possible.

3. The rumours are all utter bollocks, like the one last summer that said Apple would ditch the headphone port from the iPhone 6 and force everyone to use Lightning port headphones instead.

I know which of those options I’m putting my money on.

Update: Judging by the response on Twitter, quite a few people reckon this is a legit ‘leak’. Of my options above, I’m not discounting #2, but reckon that would be a big jump, even for Apple. If we get #1, that says things about Apple that aren’t at all positive.