On the threat of repeating myself from Engadget's MacBook Air M1, M2 and M3 critiques: The M4-equipped MacBook Air is a virtually flawless ultraportable. Even higher, it now begins at $999, which is $100 lower than earlier than. Whereas I'd nonetheless prefer to see extra ports and a sooner display refresh price, the MacBook Air nonetheless stays heads and shoulders above the competitors. And when corporations attempt to one-up Apple, as ASUS did with its 2.2-pound Zenbook A14, it solely proves how a lot better-designed Apple's {hardware} really is.
It's simple to take the MacBook Air as a right, since its design hasn't modified because the M2 mannequin arrived in 2022. It's nonetheless a exceptional machine as we speak, one which's quick, gentle and well-built. The one main draw back is that there's a little bit of a studying curve for Home windows customers leaping ship for the primary time. However except for that, the MacBook Air is a no brainer buy in case you're on the lookout for a brand new ultraportable.
{Hardware}
As soon as once more, each the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air fashions really feel impressively skinny (measuring 0.44 inches thick) and lightweight, weighing in at 2.7 kilos and three.2 kilos, respectively. Final 12 months, I famous "Its unibody aluminum case feels as clean a river stone but as sturdy as a boulder. It's a pc I merely love to the touch." All of that continues to be true with the M4 fashions.
In truth, it's much more spectacular that Apple holds such a commanding design lead when rivals have had an opportunity to catch up. As a lot as we just like the Floor Laptop computer, XPS 13 and ASUS' Zenbook S14, Apple nonetheless maintains a degree of polish that PC makers can't fairly match. The MacBook Air's case feels extra luxurious than the remaining, its keyboard is a dream to sort on and it has among the best trackpads round. (And earlier than you go calling me an Apple fanboy, I'm nonetheless primarily a Home windows desktop consumer.)
Apple's M4 chip — which sports activities a 10-core CPU, 10-core GPU and 16-core Neural Engine (or what you'd name an NPU in a PC) — is the primary improve with these new MacBook Airs. It's additionally value noting that the bottom $999 13-inch mannequin has a barely slower 8-core GPU, which is able to barely hamper gaming and media creation efficiency. Apart from a brand new Sky Blue possibility, there aren't any bodily design adjustments. Apple additionally upgraded the webcam to a brand new 12-megapixel Heart Stage shooter, which may very well be significantly useful if you wish to exhibit the contents of your desk. (Extra on that later.)
The 13-inch MacBook Air encompasses a 13.6-inch Liquid Retina Show, which virtually looks like a 14-inch display, whereas the bigger mannequin has a 15.3-inch show. They're nonetheless restricted to 60Hz — an annoyance since loads of PC ultraportables are transport with sooner and smoother screens — however they're spectacular shows however, with assist for the P3 large colour gamut and 1 billion colours. Each screens may attain as much as 500 nits of brightness, which is sufficient to be usable on a sunny day.
In use: Quick and lightweight
Each the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Airs dealt with my primary workflow and not using a sweat: juggling browsers with a ton of open tabs, Slack, Spotify, messaging apps and the Pixelmator photograph editor. However that was no shock, because the earlier fashions have been equally zippy. Nonetheless, after testing the sluggish Zenbook A14 just lately, it felt refreshing to be utilizing laptops that appeared desirous to get to work.
I couldn't really really feel a distinction with the bounce to the M4 chip, however in line with the Geekbench 6 benchmark, it’s 19.5 p.c sooner than the M3 for single-threaded duties, and 21 p.c sooner for multi-threaded duties. That's a typical incremental bounce for CPU enhancements, so I received't knock Apple an excessive amount of there. The M4's GPU beneficial properties have been far much less spectacular, scoring simply 6 p.c increased than the M3 within the 3DMark Wildlife Excessive benchmark and 16.3 p.c higher within the Geekbench GPU check.
|
Geekbench 6 CPU |
Geekbench 6 GPU |
Cinebench 2024 |
|
|
Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M4, 2025) |
3,784/14,745 |
36,273 |
172/660 GPU: 3,465 |
|
Apple MacBook Air 15-inch (M4, 2025) |
3,874/14,873 |
36,131 |
171/748 GPU: 3897 |
|
Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M3, 2024) |
3,190/12,102 |
30,561 |
N/A |
|
Apple MacBook Professional 14-inch (M4, 2024) |
3,797/14,571 |
37,869 |
172/979 GPU: 3770 |
|
Floor Laptop computer 7 (Snapdragon X Elite) |
2,797/14,400 |
19,963 |
123/969 GPU N/A |
You possible received't be doing a lot critical inventive work on the MacBook Air, particularly since there's no fan to chill issues down. However you may nonetheless squeeze out a little bit of efficiency in a pinch. I used to be capable of transcode a 4K clip to 1080p in 27 seconds utilizing the M4's CPU in Handbrake, whereas utilizing the GPU took simply 17 seconds. Compared, the Dell XPS 13 Copilot+ system took 32 seconds with its CPU and 24 seconds with its GPU.
The graphically intense Lies of P ran at a clean 60 fps in 1080p with excessive settings. That was additionally true of the M3 MacBook Air, however this time across the efficiency appeared a bit extra constant. Whereas I'd by no means suggest shopping for a MacBook Air with gaming in thoughts, it's good that it might deal with a little bit of playtime, at the very least.
Whereas leaping between the 13-inch and 15-inch fashions, I discovered loads to love about them each. The smaller one is certainly simpler to journey with, however I additionally beloved the immersive display on the 15-inch. Finally, selecting between them comes right down to what's most essential to you.
Equally, the leap to a 12-megapixel Heart Stage digital camera isn't precisely Earth-shattering, however I appreciated having a barely higher image throughout video calls. I usually flip off the precise Heart Stage characteristic on Macs, however I'm positive some will admire its means to trace you round a room. The brand new digital camera additionally helps Desk View, which initiatives a barely skewed view of the world instantly in entrance of the MacBook Air.
As for battery life, each MacBook Air fashions lasted for greater than 18 hours whereas enjoying an HD video. The 13-inch Air lasted for 18 hours and quarter-hour, whereas the 15-inch pocket book went for 18 hours and 23 minutes.
How can Apple enhance the MacBook Air?
As a lot as I really like the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air, there are nonetheless loads of methods Apple can refine them down the road. As I discussed above, it'd be nice to have increased refresh price shows, which makes scrolling via paperwork far simpler in your eyes. And whereas I don't want Apple to go all-out with ports, it'd be good to have at the very least one USB-C connection on the precise aspect of the Air to permit for simpler charging. Proper now, you're caught with a MagSafe charging port and two USB-C connections on the left aspect.
After all, I don't actually anticipate Apple to truly ship these upgrades anytime quickly. I'd wager the corporate would nudge extra demanding customers to the $1,599 14-inch MacBook Professional, which has a ton of ports and a excessive refresh price ProMotion display. Nonetheless, a geek can dream.
Must you purchase the M4 MacBook Air?
When you can't inform by now, I believe the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air are the perfect ultraportables for most individuals. So positive, in case you're out there for a glossy laptop computer, they're value contemplating. And in case you're a Home windows consumer who's hesitant to make the bounce, I'd suggest making an attempt an Air for some time. It's not that tough to study the fundamentals of macOS, and in case you're not happy you may all the time return it (simply you’ll want to double-check retailer return insurance policies).
Whereas I'd wager most customers could be nice with the bottom $999 13-inch MacBook Air with 256GB of storage, it might be value leaping as much as the $1,199 mannequin with a 10-core GPU and 512GB SSD in case you plan to do gentle media work. Or simply bounce straight to the $1,199 15-inch mannequin, which comes with a 10-core GPU.
As typical, I'd additionally suggest avoiding paying Apple's absurd improve charges for elements. When you're contemplating spending $400 extra for 32GB of RAM, you must in all probability be contemplating a MacBook Professional as a substitute. When you're trying to avoid wasting money, a number of retailers are nonetheless promoting the M2 MacBook Air at a steep low cost of $700. Although it's an older chip, that laptop computer may nonetheless serve most customers effectively for a number of years (simply be sure to're getting 16GB of RAM).
Wrap-up
As soon as once more, the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air are mainly all the pieces we would like from ultraportable notebooks. They’re zippy, splendidly gentle and may final effectively past a full day of labor. Whereas the M4 chip isn’t a transformative improve, it helps Apple preserve tempo with evolving PC pocket book chips. And now that the MacBook Air begins at $999, even Home windows customers ought to think about making the bounce.
This text initially appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/apple-macbook-air-m4-13-inch-and-15-inch-review-minimal-upgrades-at-a-much-better-price-130002570.html?src=rss
