Apple's new MacBook Air might arrive sooner than expected

MacBook Air 13 M3 closed on a slatted wooden table showing the ports and overall thinness

The new MacBook Air is coming. (Image credit: Laptop Mag/Sean Riley)

Apple is in the midst of announcing new devices and updates.

Last week, the company unveiled its budget phone with the iPhone 16e although it has a higher price tag than previous SE versions, but comes with more features than the low-cost phones have in the past. That new phone will hit stores on Friday, Feb. 28.

Then on Friday, Apple revealed the next big update to the Vision Pro OS will add Apple Intelligence and give the VR headset an iPhone app providing some much-needed new features to attract more attention for the pricey VR headset.

Apple will continue with its announcements in March as the company will reportedly release its M4 MacBook Air, as reported by Bloomberg Sunday. The Mac maker is currently getting teams ready for the release of the 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air using the latest Apple Silicon while older models are being phased out.

Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the news of the MacBook Air M4.

A powerful chip in a lighter case.

Benchmarks for the MacBook Air M4 showed up online, and if these numbers prove to be true, it could mean these new MacBooks could offer impressive performance at a budget price while remaining lighter than the MacBook Pro.

A Geekbench Metal benchmark for the upcoming MacBook came back with a score of 54,806. That puts it way ahead of the MacBook Air 13 (M3, 2024) and its 41,045 score and slightly ahead of the MacBook Pro 14 (M4, 2024) with its score of 57,479. The MacBook Pro 16 (M4 Pro, 2024) was still far ahead of the pack with a score of 112,261.

The MacBook Air M4 tested in benchmarks was noted to have 24GB of RAM. This would make the tested unit an upgrade over the base model that should come with 16GB of RAM.

Both of the MacBook Pro M4 laptops came out in May 2024, while the MacBook Air M3 was released in March 2024, aligning with Apple's release timing of the earlier MacBook Airs.

Apple still has a potential announcement or two before it has its Worldwide Developer Conference in June. There is still an expectation of a new iPad Air release during the spring, but Apple could also reveal its M5 chip before the company's big event.

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