Apple unveils the new 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air with the powerful M3 chip
- The new MacBook Air with the M3 chip offers significant performance improvements over previous models.
- The M3 chip features a powerful 8-core CPU, up to a 10-core GPU, and support for up to 24GB of unified memory.
- MacBook Air is now available in four colors and is the world's best thin and light laptop.
- The laptop supports up to two external displays, has Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, and features a Magic Keyboard with Touch ID.
- Apple has focused on sustainability with the new MacBook Air, using recycled materials and reducing plastic in packaging.
- None.
Insights
The announcement of Apple's new MacBook Air with the M3 chip introduces significant performance improvements that could influence consumer behavior and impact Apple's market share. The claim of up to 60 percent faster performance over the M1 chip and up to 13 times faster than Intel-based models positions Apple at the forefront of high-performance, energy-efficient computing. This leap in technology is likely to resonate with both existing Apple users and potential customers, potentially increasing sales volume.
From a market perspective, the introduction of the M3 chip also signifies Apple's continued investment in proprietary silicon, which may affect the competitive dynamics with Intel and other chip manufacturers. This shift towards in-house chip development could lead to increased profit margins for Apple due to reduced reliance on third-party suppliers. Moreover, the environmental initiatives mentioned, such as using recycled materials and aiming for carbon neutrality, align with growing consumer demand for sustainable products, which could further enhance Apple's brand loyalty and attract socially conscious consumers.
Apple's pricing strategy for the new MacBook Air models with the M3 chip could have a notable impact on their financials. The starting price points are set at a premium, which is consistent with Apple's high-end market positioning. This pricing may contribute to higher average selling prices (ASPs) and, consequently, an increase in revenue per unit sold. However, it is essential to monitor the sales performance post-launch to assess the actual impact on Apple's revenue and profit margins.
Investors should also consider the potential for increased research and development costs associated with the advancement of the M3 chip and its production using cutting-edge 3-nanometer technology. While these costs may be significant, the long-term benefits of owning the chip technology could outweigh the initial investment, as it could lead to reduced production costs and less susceptibility to supply chain disruptions.
The technological advancements in Apple's M3 chip, such as the use of 3-nanometer technology, the powerful 8-core CPU and up to a 10-core GPU, are noteworthy. These improvements are not just incremental but represent a significant leap that could redefine user expectations for laptop performance, particularly in AI capabilities, gaming and professional creative applications. The support for hardware-accelerated mesh shading and ray tracing, as well as AV1 decode, indicates that Apple is pushing the boundaries of graphical performance and video streaming efficiency.
Moreover, the integration of a 16-core Neural Engine highlights Apple's commitment to enhancing on-device machine learning, which is becoming increasingly important in consumer technology. The ability to run optimized AI models and support for cloud-based AI solutions like Microsoft Copilot and Adobe Firefly suggests that Apple is positioning the MacBook Air as a versatile tool for both local and cloud-based computing, which could influence software development trends and user productivity.
The world’s most popular laptop is better than ever with even more performance, faster Wi-Fi, and support for up to two external displays — all in its strikingly thin and light design with up to 18 hours of battery life
The new 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air soars with the powerful M3 chip, featuring a super-portable design, power-efficient performance, and all-day battery life. (Photo: Business Wire)
“MacBook Air is our most popular and loved Mac, with more customers choosing it over any other laptop. And today it gets even better with the M3 chip and new capabilities,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “From college students pursuing their degrees, to business users who need powerful productivity, or anyone who simply wants the unmatched combination of performance, portability, and industry-leading battery life, all in a fanless design, the new MacBook Air continues to be the world’s best thin and light laptop.”
Blazing-Fast Performance with M3
Built using industry-leading 3-nanometer technology, the M3 chip brings even faster performance and more capabilities to MacBook Air. Featuring a powerful 8-core CPU, up to a 10-core GPU, and support for up to 24GB of unified memory, the new MacBook Air is up to 60 percent faster than the model with M1 and up to 13x faster than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Air.1 It also features up to 18 hours of battery life, which is up to six hours longer than an Intel-based MacBook Air.1 Users will feel the blazing speed of M3 in everything they do, from everyday productivity, to demanding tasks like photo and video editing, and software development. And with the next-generation GPU of M3, the new MacBook Air supports hardware-accelerated mesh shading and ray tracing, offering more accurate lighting, reflections, and shadows for extremely realistic gaming experiences. It also includes the latest media engine with support for AV1 decode, providing more efficient and higher-quality video experiences from streaming services.
M3 takes MacBook Air performance even further:
- Game titles like No Man’s Sky run up to 60 percent faster than the 13-inch MacBook Air with the M1 chip.1
- Enhancing an image with AI using Photomator’s Super Resolution feature is up to 40 percent faster than the 13-inch model with the M1 chip, and up to 15x faster for customers who haven’t upgraded to a Mac with Apple silicon.1
- Working in Excel spreadsheets is up to 35 percent faster than the 13-inch model with the M1 chip, and up to 3x faster for customers who haven’t upgraded to a Mac with Apple silicon.1
- Video editing in Final Cut Pro® is up to 60 percent faster than the 13-inch model with the M1 chip, and up to 13x faster for customers who haven’t upgraded to a Mac with Apple silicon.1
- Compared to a PC laptop with an Intel Core i7 processor, MacBook Air delivers up to 2x faster performance, up to 50 percent faster web browsing, and up to 40 percent longer battery life.1
World’s Best Consumer Laptop for AI
With the transition to Apple silicon, every Mac® is a great platform for AI. M3 includes a faster and more efficient 16-core Neural Engine, along with accelerators in the CPU and GPU to boost on-device machine learning, making MacBook Air the world’s best consumer laptop for AI. Leveraging this incredible AI performance, macOS delivers intelligent features that enhance productivity and creativity, so users can enable powerful camera features, real-time speech to text, translation, text predictions, visual understanding, accessibility features, and much more.
With a broad ecosystem of apps that deliver advanced AI features, users can do everything from checking their homework with AI Math Assistance in Goodnotes 6, to automatically enhancing photos in Pixelmator Pro, to removing background noise from a video using CapCut. Combined with the unified memory architecture of Apple silicon, MacBook Air can also run optimized AI models, including large language models (LLMs) and diffusion models for image generation locally with great performance. In addition to on-device performance, MacBook Air supports cloud-based solutions, enabling users to run powerful productivity and creative apps that tap into the power of AI, such as Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365, Canva, and Adobe Firefly.
World’s Most Popular Laptop
More people choose MacBook Air over any other laptop, and M3 raises the bar yet again with its phenomenal combination of performance, portability, and capabilities users love:
- Two perfect sizes in a super-portable design: With a durable aluminum enclosure that’s built to last, the 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air have fantastic battery life, are incredibly light, and are less than half an inch thin, so users can work, play, or create from anywhere. The 13-inch model provides the ultimate in portability, while the 15-inch model offers even more screen real estate for multitasking. There’s a perfect size for everyone, from students on the go to business professionals who prefer a larger screen.
- Gorgeous Liquid Retina display: MacBook Air features a brilliant 13.6- or 15.3-inch Liquid Retina display with up to 500 nits of brightness, support for 1 billion colors, and up to 2x the resolution of comparable PC laptops. Content looks vivid with sharp detail, and text appears super crisp.
- Support for up to two external displays: MacBook Air with M3 now supports up to two external displays when the laptop lid is closed — perfect for business users, or anyone who requires multiple displays for multitasking across apps or spreading out documents at the same time.
- Versatile connectivity: MacBook Air with M3 features Wi-Fi 6E, which delivers download speeds that are up to twice as fast as the previous generation. It also includes MagSafe charging and two Thunderbolt ports for connecting accessories, along with a 3.5mm headphone jack.
- Camera, mics, and speakers: With a 1080p FaceTime® HD camera, users will look their best whether they’re connecting with friends and family, or collaborating with coworkers around the world. Users will also sound their best with a three-mic array and enhanced voice clarity on audio and video calls. MacBook Air features an immersive sound system with support for Spatial Audio along with Dolby Atmos, so users can enjoy three-dimensional soundstages for music and movies.
- Magic Keyboard and Touch ID: The comfortable and quiet backlit Magic Keyboard® comes with a full-height function row with Touch ID®, giving users a fast, easy, and secure way to unlock their Mac; sign in to apps and websites; and make purchases with Apple Pay® — all with the touch of a finger.
The Magic of macOS
Together with macOS, the MacBook Air experience is unrivaled:
-
macOS
Sonoma : Users can now place widgets right on the desktop, interact with them with just a click, and even access the extensive ecosystem of iPhone® widgets on MacBook Air. Video conferencing gets more engaging with great features like Presenter Overlay and Reactions. Profiles in Safari® keep browsing separate between multiple topics or projects, while web apps provide faster access to favorite websites. And gaming gets even better with Game Mode.
- Enhanced productivity: All users, including business professionals, can take advantage of the expansive display on MacBook Air with Split View, or spread out across screens with support for up to two external displays. Features like Stage Manager® also help users like students focus on the task in front of them.
- Better with iPhone: With Continuity, MacBook Air works seamlessly across iPhone and other Apple devices. Features like AirDrop® allow users to share and receive photos, documents, and more across nearby Apple devices. Universal Clipboard lets users easily copy images, video, or text from an app on one Apple device, and effortlessly paste them into another app on a nearby Mac. Continuity Camera makes it easy for users to scan or take a picture of something nearby with their iPhone and have it appear instantly on their Mac. And Handoff® lets them start a task like answering an email on one Apple device and easily finish it on another.
- Wide array of apps: MacBook Air comes with powerful apps built in, including FaceTime, Freeform®, iMovie®, GarageBand®, and Photos, as well as productivity apps including Pages®, Numbers®, and Keynote®, making it easy for users to create amazing work. And with thousands of apps optimized for Apple silicon, all of users’ go-to apps run incredibly fast in macOS — including Microsoft 365 and many of their favorite iOS apps.
Better for the Environment
The new MacBook Air is the first Apple product to be made with 50 percent recycled content, including 100 percent recycled aluminum in the enclosure, 100 percent recycled rare earth elements in all magnets and, in another first for Apple, 100 percent recycled copper in the main logic board. MacBook Air meets Apple’s high standards for energy efficiency, and is free of mercury, brominated flame retardants, and PVC. The packaging is 99 percent fiber-based, bringing Apple closer to its goal to remove plastic from all packaging by 2025.
Today, Apple is carbon neutral for global corporate operations, and by 2030, plans to be carbon neutral across the entire manufacturing supply chain and the life cycle of every product.
Pricing and Availability
-
Customers can order the new MacBook Air with M3 starting Monday, March 4, on apple.com/store and in the Apple Store® app in 28 countries and regions, including the
U.S. It will begin arriving to customers, and will be in Apple Store locations and Apple Authorized Resellers, starting Friday, March 8. -
The 13-inch MacBook Air with M3 starts at
$1,099 U.S. ) and$999 U.S. ) for education, and the 15‑inch MacBook Air with M3 starts at$1,299 U.S. ) and$1,199 U.S. ) for education. Both are available in midnight, starlight, silver, and space gray. -
The 13-inch MacBook Air with M2, available in midnight, starlight, silver, and space gray, now starts at
$999 U.S. ) and$899 U.S. ) for education. - Additional technical specifications, configure-to-order options, and accessories are available at apple.com/mac.
- With Apple Trade In®, customers can trade in their current computer and get credit toward a new Mac. Customers can visit apple.com/shop/trade-in to see what their device is worth.
- When customers shop at Apple using Apple Card®, they can pay monthly at 0 percent APR for their new MacBook Air when they choose to check out with Apple Card Monthly Installments, and they’ll get 3 percent Daily Cash® back — all upfront.
- Every customer who buys a Mac from their Apple Store can enjoy a free Online Personal Session with an Apple Specialist, get their product set up — including help with data transfer — and receive guidance on how to get the most out of their new Mac.
Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple TV. Apple’s six software platforms — iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, visionOS, and tvOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay, and iCloud. Apple’s more than 100,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.
1Testing was conducted by Apple in January 2024. See apple.com/macbook-air for more information.
NOTE TO EDITORS: For additional information visit Apple Newsroom (www.apple.com/newsroom), or email Apple’s Media Helpline at media.help@apple.com.
© 2024 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, MacBook Air, Liquid Retina, MagSafe, macOS, Final Cut Pro, Mac, FaceTime, Magic Keyboard, Touch ID, Apple Pay, iPhone, Safari, Stage Manager, AirDrop, Handoff, Freeform, iMovie, GarageBand, Pages, Numbers, Keynote, Apple Store, Apple Trade In, Apple Card, and Daily Cash are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240304158359/en/
Starlayne Meza
Apple
starlayne_meza@apple.com
Lizette Viviana Du Pond
Apple
ldupond@apple.com
Source: Apple
FAQ
What is the new chip in the MacBook Air?
How does the M3 chip compare to the M1 chip?
What is the battery life of the new MacBook Air?
What are the key features of the new MacBook Air?
How much does the new MacBook Air with the M3 chip cost?
