Apple announces the release new MacBook Airs equipped with an M3 chip. The most popular gaming laptop does not change externally, we remain with the current range consisting of two models, a 13-inch entry-level and a 15-inch high-end. The next-generation chip will give them better performance while offering improved features, the most important being the move to Wi-Fi 6E. All without a price increase, we remain at €1,299 in base price.
The Apple M3 is engraved at 3 nanometers and retains the same general characteristics of its predecessor, including a CPU with four cores, four efficient and four economical, and a GPU which has up to 10 cores and above all major new functional features (ray tracing, dynamic caching…). The neural engine also remains at 16 cores, even if it is new generation. Enough to improve the performance of the new MacBook Air.
As it has become accustomed to doing, Apple does not compare the M3 MacBook Airs to the M2s and announces 60% gains compared to the M1 MacBook Airs. Which, by the way, are no longer marketed, it is the previous models with their M2 chip which remain in the catalog as a first price. The company is also announcing MacBook Airs up to 13 times faster than Intel models, but we wonder how much longer this comparison will survive…
Either way, these MacBook Airs will be fast, we already know this thanks to the first Macs with M3 chip on the market. Not that performance was a blocking point for the M2 models, obviously. Like the old models, this new generation will not be cooled by a fan and the official autonomy is maintained at 18 hours.
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In addition to increased performance, the M3 chip brings two significant new features. The Wi-Fi chip, first of all, goes to the 6E standard, which will allow speeds to be accelerated, provided of course that you are equipped with a Wi-Fi router that also meets this standard. The old MacBook Airs were “stuck” at Wi-Fi 6 and we will obviously have to wait one more generation, at least, to move on to Wi-Fi 7 which is now becoming established in the landscape.
The other big new feature concerns support for external screens. For the first time since the transition to Apple Silicon, a MacBook Air is no longer limited to a single external display, at least not without tinkering. You can connect two… but there is still a very important asterisk: you have to deactivate the internal screen to do this, by closing the computer for example. This is the only new thing, the M3 chip can still manage a maximum of two screens, except that you can now choose to have two externally as long as you have zero internally. To have three or more screens, MacBook Pros with M3 Pro or M3 Max chips will remain mandatory.
To complete the chapter of new features, the treatment designed for the Space Black MacBook Pro M3 has been used to better protect the Midnight MacBook Air M3 from fingerprints. It was a real fault with this color, pretty when you took it out of the box and quickly covered with fingerprints that were difficult to remove. The new anodizing process which seemed quite effective on the MacBook Pros is making its debut with this generation in the Air range.
Preview of the space black color of the MacBook Pro M3 Pro/Max: a happy dark finish
Apple also indicates that the MacBook Air M3 is its first product to be made from more than 50% recycled materials. Aluminum was already 100% recycled, just like so-called rare metals for magnets, but it is new for copper on the motherboard. It too is now entirely recycled, a first which allows the product to exceed the very symbolic 50% mark.
For the rest, the MacBook Air does not evolve, which undoubtedly justifies this release only by press release. Apple details all the advantages of its ultra-thin computer available in four colors and its chips, with heavy emphasis on the capabilities of the M3 and its neural engine in the field of artificial intelligence. The MacBook Air M3 would thus be the “best consumer laptop in the world for AI”, just that: 2024 is indeed shaping up to be the year of artificial intelligence if we judge from this press release alone. press.
You can order a copy now from the Apple Online Store and deliveries are expected from March 8, which is this Friday. The basic model in 13 inches, sold for €1,299, remains stuck with 8 GB of RAM and above all 256 GB of storage, while its M3 chip is slightly restricted. The CPU retains its eight cores (4 efficient and 4 economical), while the GPU has “only” eight cores out of the ten that it can have with the M3 chip. Excellent news, the model above, with 8 GB of RAM but above all a 512 GB SSD as well as the complete M3 chip, drop in price at €1,529, which is €120 less than Before.
If it’s too expensive for you, MacBook Air M2 remains in the catalog, even if the price reduction is very small. The entry level is thus sold for €1,199, a hundred euros less than with the new chip, not sure that it is very interesting. It’s the same price as the M3 at the education price, while students and teachers can buy the older generation for €1,079.
Finally, the 15 inch always starts at €1,599 with the same provision of RAM and SSD as the 13-inch and the only meager advantage of integrating the entire GPU from the base model. Note that there is no longer a 15-inch MacBook Air M2, only the latest generation remains available if you want a larger screen.