After weeks of anticipation, Apple finally unveiled the new MacBook Air M4 on Wednesday, complete with a new color and a lower starting price.
The new MacBook Air, announced in a press release, features the same basic design as the M3 model, but with some welcome improvements in performance from the M4 chip. The chassis also comes in a new color, "Sky Blue," which resembles the classic silver hue but with a colder pale blue.
According to Apple, the MacBook Air M4 is up to twice as fast as the MacBook Air M1 and up to 23 times faster than Intel-powered MacBooks. The M4 chip might not be a significant leap if you're coming from an M3 MacBook, but if you're thinking about switching from an older model, you'll definitely notice the difference. That's especially true for Intel MacBook users since Apple's new M-series chips support Apple Intelligence.
The new-and-improved MacBook Air also received a camera upgrade. The 12MP camera in the M4 model supports Center Stage and Desk View, which is especially handy for students and remote workers. Desk View can show what's on the desk in front of you during video calls, like homework, crafts, or other documents.
| Header Cell - Column 0 | MacBook Air M4 | MacBook Air M3 |
|---|---|---|
Processor | Apple M4 (10-core CPU, 8-core GPU) | Apple M3 (8-core CPU, 8-core GPU) |
Base RAM | 16GB | 8GB (increased to 16GB mid-2024) |
Base storage | 256GB | 256GB |
Apple Intelligence support | Yes | Yes |
Starting price | $999 | $1,099 |
MacBook Air M4: Price and release date
As if those upgrades weren't enough, Apple also lowered the price of the MacBook Air. Now it starts at $999, which is especially surprising considering that last year Apple increased the base RAM in the MacBook Air to 16GB. That means that now you're paying less overall and you don't need to pay extra just to get a good starting amount of RAM.
Unfortunately, Apple is still offering a measly 256GB of base storage, so you'll probably want to pay extra to bump up to 512GB or more, but at least that's more affordable now. Even so, I'd like to see Apple bump up the base storage like it did with the base RAM since 256GB is really not enough storage for most people in 2025.
The MacBook Air M4 is available to pre-order starting today with the 13-inch model starting at $999 and the 15-model starting at $1,199.
We'll be sharing our full review of the MacBook Air M4 soon along with benchmarks and all the latest MacBook deals, so make sure to stay tuned for more details.
More from Laptop Mag
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
