The new MacBook Air with the M4 chip launches this Wednesday. Ahead of time, the first reviews of the laptop have been shared by selected publications and YouTube channels, offering a closer look at new features and changes.

Apple MacBook Air hero
While it is a minor spec-bump year for the MacBook Air, the new model does offer a few upgrades beyond the M4 chip. There is an improved 12-megapixel camera with support for Center Stage, support for two external displays even when the MacBook Air's lid is open, Thunderbolt 4 ports, and a new Sky Blue color option. And in the U.S., the latest-generation 13-inch MacBook Air now starts at $999, down from $1,099 previously.

Since the M4 chip existed prior to the new MacBook Air, we already know that it offers up to 30% faster multi-core CPU performance compared to the M3 chip in the previous model. Geekbench 6 results for the new MacBook Air already confirmed this 30% performance increase, before Apple's review embargo lifted.

Highlights

Center Stage Camera

Engadget's Devindra Hardawar said the Center Stage camera offers a small but noticeable quality-of-life improvement during video calls:

The leap to a 12-megapixel Center Stage camera isn't exactly Earth-shattering, but I appreciated having a slightly better picture during video calls. I typically turn off the actual Center Stage feature on Macs, but I'm sure some will appreciate its ability to track you around a room. The new camera also supports Desk View, which projects a slightly skewed view of the area directly in front of the MacBook Air.

$999 Value

Jason Snell of Six Colors said it is "generous" for Apple to offer 16GB of RAM in the MacBook Air at the base $999 price point:

That's why perhaps the most important change in the M4 MacBook Air is its base configuration, which starts at $999. When Apple introduced a winning new flat-with-rounded-corners Air design in 2022, it had to keep selling older models in order to get down under a thousand dollars. Three years later, Apple is finally able to sell a brand-new Air—with a generous 16GB of unified memory—at that important price.

Sky Blue

Ars Technica's Andrew Cunningham likes Sky Blue, but he wishes the color was more saturated:

The laptop comes in four finishes—the traditional silver, the gold-ish Starlight, Midnight (still a bit smudge-prone), and a new Sky Blue option that replaces Space Gray. I like Sky Blue, and it's probably my favorite of the three light-colored options, though I do wish it was more saturated. It's similar in hue to the blue finish Microsoft offers for its Surface devices, but I prefer Microsoft's version because it's more noticeably blue.

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Related Roundup: MacBook Air
Related Forum: MacBook Air

Top Rated Comments

zedsdead Avatar
7 months ago
Excellent update for most people.

Miss the wedge design however.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
neuropsychguy Avatar
7 months ago
My wife's 15" sky blue Air (24 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD) just shipped from Hanoi, Viet Nam (to Hong Kong and onward). It looks like it's on track for a Thursday delivery.

This should be a considerable upgrade from her base 13" M1 Air (which will go to a child for schoolwork).

We wouldn’t have normally upgraded so soon but our child needed a computer and this was a good time to pass the computer on to him and get my wife a new one.

Edit: Out for delivery today after being in Hong Kong yesterday. That's quite impressive!
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
theLedger Avatar
7 months ago

Wake me up when they get rid of the notch.
There is a freeware hack that makes the notch disappear by making the entire band of the menu bar black. That’s when your realized that by using the notch, Apple provided a little extra screen real estate rather than putting the camera in the bezel.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
brofkand Avatar
7 months ago
Wake me up when they get rid of the notch.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Takeo Apple Avatar
7 months ago
Beautiful Mac. I always liked the air.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bobdigi76 Avatar
7 months ago
Ordered a 13" in Sky Blue with 16GB RAM & 512GB SSD. Coming from a 2020 Intel Air so this will blow me away.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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