Apple's new 15-inch MacBook Air will launch in stores and begin arriving to customers this Tuesday. Ahead of time, the first reviews of the laptop have been shared by select media outlets and YouTube channels, offering a closer look at new features.

15 inch MacBook Air hands on
The 15-inch MacBook Air is equipped with the same M2 chip as the 13-inch model, and the laptops share the same overall design. Apple says both models even have the same battery life. The 15-inch model's only hardware differences include a larger display/chassis and six speakers, compared to four in the 13-inch model. For a more detailed comparison, read our 13-inch vs. 15-inch MacBook Air Buyer's Guide.

The 15-inch MacBook Air starts at $1,299, while the 13-inch model now starts at a lower $1,099. However, all 15-inch configurations include a 10-core GPU, while the entry-level 13-inch model is equipped with an 8-core GPU. All 15-inch models also ship with 35W Dual USB-C Port Compact Power Adapter at no additional cost.

Written Reviews

The Verge's Monica Chin was impressed with the 15-inch MacBook Air's speakers:

But the third big difference is the speakers. The Air 13's speakers are good; the Air 15's are stupendous. Bass came through in a way it doesn't on pretty much any other computer; I was so stunned when I first turned on a bass-heavy song that I thought it must've been coming from a Bluetooth speaker somewhere else.

TheStreet's Jacob Krol said the 15-inch MacBook Air offers considerable value:

At its core, the 15-inch MacBook Air is an impressively robust, ultra-portable laptop and a crazily thin one at just 11.5-millimeters. When you consider the price point, though, the $1,299 starting MSRP significantly undercuts the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro by $700 and doesn't compromise a ton on performance.

TechCrunch's Brian Heater said he managed 19 hours of video playback on a single charge:

The battery is rated at 18 hours – same as the 13-inch. In TechCrunch's testing, we got around 19 hours of video playback. While the screen is larger and therefore draws more power, that’s counteracted by an enlarged footprint, creating more space for battery.

CNBC's Kif Leswing said the 15-inch MacBook Air "hits the sweet spot for most people in terms of price, capability, and portability."

Six Colors' Jason Snell said the 15-inch MacBook Air fills a void:

If you've hesitated to consider buying a MacBook Air because its screens always seemed a bit too cramped, you now have another option. If you've always wanted a bigger display but didn't want to pay more than $1000 for the privilege, your time is now.

This laptop has literally everything that made the M2 MacBook Air great. It's just bigger. Sometimes, bigger is better.

Video Reviews






Related Roundup: MacBook Air
Related Forum: MacBook Air

Top Rated Comments

AlexJaye Avatar
25 months ago
Imagine, in 2023, Apple is still cheap enough to ship 8gb RAM as the base amount. What a joke.
Score: 47 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Asthmatic Kitty Avatar
25 months ago
15 foot Air? Oh, iJustine …



Attachment Image
Score: 40 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Love-hate ? relationship Avatar
25 months ago
looks really sweet

too bad it costs 1600 euros in europe , hard price to swallow, especially since you need to add 230 euros for 16gb of ram, and another 230 euros if you want "M1 speeds" SSD
Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DEMinSoCAL Avatar
25 months ago
$200 seems to be the number Apple thinks people won't care about spending.

$200 for 2 inches extra screen size.
$200 for 8GB extra memory.
$200 for extra 256GB SSD.

Seems crazy to me.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Algus Avatar
25 months ago
The 13'' lower price point and slightly smaller form factor will still be appealing to a lot of folks. When you think of the price difference, that's $200 for a slightly larger screen. Some people will think that is money well worth spending, others will probably prefer to keep their $200. I definitely see both sizes having their niches.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
spaxxedout Avatar
25 months ago
Will have to find out from non-sponsored reviews if Apple used single or dual ssd modules for the base 256gb model.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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