Apple has released the latest version of the MacBook Air laptop now powered by the new M4 chip.
The updated laptop—available in both 13‑inch and 15‑inch models—boasts “the blazing‐fast performance of the M4 chip, up to 18 hours of battery life, a new 12MP Centre Stage camera, and a lower starting price” of approximately ₦1.52 million ($999) excluding shipping and retailer markups, according to Apple.
“MacBook Air is by far the world’s most popular laptop, and today we’re giving everyone even more reasons to love it, including a big boost in performance with the M4 chip, a new Center Stage camera, and a beautiful new sky blue color,” says Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “Combined with its thin and light, fanless design, all-day battery life, and the incredible capabilities of macOS Sequoia with Apple Intelligence, MacBook Air is unlike any other laptop. And with a new lower starting price of $999, MacBook Air delivers more value to consumers than ever before, making this the perfect moment to upgrade or experience the Mac for the first time.”
Apple: Macbook Air performs 23x faster
Apple claims that the new M4 chip, featuring a powerful 10‑core CPU and an up‑to‑10‑core GPU with support for up to 32GB of unified memory, makes the MacBook Air “up to 2x faster than the M1 model.” When benchmarked against the fastest Intel‑based MacBook Air, Apple says the M4 model delivers “up to 23x faster performance.”
Apple also details specific performance gains over previous-generation models:
– Spreadsheet Calculations: Up to 4.7 times faster than the fastest Intel‑based MacBook Air, and 1.6 times faster than the 13‑inch M1 model.
– Video Editing: iMovie tasks are up to 8 times faster than on Intel-based models, and 2 times faster than the 13‑inch MacBook Air with M1.
– Photo Editing: Adobe Photoshop runs up to 3.6 times faster than on Intel-based MacBook Air, and 2 times faster than the M1 version.
– Web Browsing: Performance is up to 60% faster when compared to a PC laptop with an Intel Core Ultra 7 processor, with more demanding tasks achieving up to 2x faster speeds.
A notable upgrade in the new MacBook Air is its external display support. Unlike previous generations that required users to close the lid to drive an external monitor, the M4 MacBook Air “offers support for up to two external displays in addition to the built-in display.” This change significantly benefits professionals and creative users who rely on multitasking across multiple screens.
Both models continue to feature a Liquid Retina display with up to 500 nits of brightness and include two Thunderbolt 4 ports—features that remain similar to prior versions.
Apple has also introduced an all-new sky blue color—a “metallic light blue that creates a dynamic gradient when light reflects off of its surface”—to its already popular MacBook Air color palette that includes midnight, starlight, and silver.
The new MacBook Air is also “built for Apple Intelligence,” with macOS Sequoia now incorporating advanced features such as Image Playground, Genmoji, and Writing Tools with seamless ChatGPT integration.
Pre-orders for both the 13‑inch and 15‑inch MacBook Air models have begun, with availability in Apple Stores and through Apple Authorized Resellers starting Wednesday, March 12.
Article edited by Yusuf Balogun.
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