On March 4, 2024, Apple unveiled the new MacBook Air with the new M3 chip. This new product not only inherits the consistent thin and light design of the MacBook Air series, but also achieves a qualitative leap in performance, battery life and functions. Here's what you need to know about the new M3 MacBook Air.
M3 MacBook Air: Design and dimensions
The new MacBook Air remains the same as its predecessor in terms of design, with the body still made of durable aluminum metal and available in Midnight, Starlight, Space Gray and Silver. In terms of size, users can choose between a 13-inch or 15-inch version, both of which have their own advantages in portability and screen space. It is worth mentioning that the new MacBook Air has been upgraded in details, such as the anodized sealing process on the midnight color version, which effectively reduces fingerprint contamination.
M3 MacBook Air: M3 chips
The M3 chip is the core highlight of the 2024 MacBook Air. Using a 3-nanometer process, the M3 chip has an 8-core CPU and up to 10-core GPU, and supports up to 24GB of unified memory. In the Geekbench 5 test, the single-core performance of the M3 chip was improved by about 20% and the multi-core performance was improved by about 18% compared with the M2 chip. Such performance improvements make the new MacBook Air capable of handling complex graphics editing, video editing and even 3D rendering.
The M3 chip also supports the dynamic caching, mesh shading and ray tracing features of the pro series. Dynamic caching allows for better real-time memory allocation while multitasking. Hardware ray tracing and hardware-accelerated mesh shading are more targeted at professional apps and games, delivering more realistic lighting effects, more accurate shadows and reflections, and improving the efficiency of 3D graphics rendering or complex visual effects.
M3 MacBook Air: Price
Apple's latest 13-inch MacBook Air M3 is now available on Apple official website with a starting price of $1,099. The configuration features Apple's M3 chip with an 8-core CPU and 8-core GPU, 8GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD storage. You can purchase the M3 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air at the Apple Store, Amazon and other popular retailers.
Here are the prices of the M3 13-inch MacBook Air:
- 13-inch, M3 chip (8-core CPU/10-core GPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD): $1,099
- 13-inch, M3 chip (8-core CPU/10-core GPU, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD): $1,299
- 13-inch, M3 chip (8-core CPU/10-core GPU, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD): $1,499
Here are the prices of the M3 15-inch MacBook Air:
- 15-inch, M3 chip (8-core CPU/10-core GPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD): $1,299
- 15-inch, M3 chip (8-core CPU/10-core GPU, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD): $1,499
- 15-inch, M3 chip (8-core CPU/10-core GPU, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD): $1,699
M3 MacBook Air: Battery
Battery life is an indicator that mobile office users are very concerned about. The new MacBook Air offers up to 18 hours of battery life, which is up to 6 hours longer than models equipped with Intel chips. Such endurance battery performance allows users to work productive even when there is no power supply.
M3 MacBook Air: Other upgrades
The new MacBook Air also features upgrades to the camera, microphone and speaker system. The 1080p FaceTime HD camera and three-microphone array allow users to perform even better in video calls. The speaker system that supports spatial audio and Dolby Atmos provides users with an immersive audio experience. The retention of Touch ID and MagSafe charging is also a careful consideration of the user experience.
Summary
The new M3 MacBook Air is undoubtedly an ideal choice for those seeking high performance, portability and long battery life. Whether you are a professional or an everyday user, you will find reasons to use this product to meet your needs. Although the exterior design has not changed much, the inherent performance enhancements and new features are enough to make the 2024 MacBook Air a competitive product on the market.
