Product test
M3 MacBook Air review: Apple, it’s time
by Samuel Buchmann
Review: the M4 MacBook Air is the perfect mass-market laptop
11.3.2025
Translation: Katherine Martin
When «regular» people ask me to recommend a good laptop, the MacBook Air is my stock answer – and has been for years. It’s stylish, long-lasting, sufficiently fast and not too pricey. And the newly released version has made it easier to recommend than ever.
Sometimes, the best updates are the boring ones. Apple hasn’t reinvented the wheel with the new MacBook Air. In releasing the M4 generation, however, Apple has given its smallest laptop a faster chip and lowered the price to boot. This makes it the best office laptop for people who don’t need crazy-high performance.
Design and features: a beautiful sky blue
Apple hasn’t made any changes to the MacBook Air’s shape, materials or build quality. The laptop still looks like a flat MacBook Pro. These days, Apple maintains a uniform design vocabulary right across its range. Depending on your perspective, you’ll either see this as well coordinated or unimaginative.
20 per cent more performance
The M4 chip is a decent upgrade on its predecessor. The individual CPU and GPU cores are faster, plus it has two additional efficiency cores. If you buy the base model of the 13-inch MacBook Air, you get a slightly slimmed-down version of the chip, with eight GPU cores instead of ten. All other configurations have the fully fledged M4.
Apple finally started kitting out all of its computers with at least 16 gigabytes (GB) of RAM. This means even the cheapest MacBook Air is well equipped for multitasking. I’m inclined to say you shouldn’t upgrade to 24 or 32 gigabytes for an office laptop. Every additional eight gigabytes you buy will cost 200 francs or 250 euros. That’s seriously overpriced.
The base model’s only weak spot is still its measly 256 GB SSD. It doesn’t just fill up quickly – the fact that it consists of fewer modules also makes it less powerful than the larger versions. If you don’t have generous cloud storage at your disposal, I’d recommend upgrading to 512 GB.
All in all, the M4 MacBook Air is about 20 per cent faster than its predecessor. The CPU boasts the most significant performance increase when all cores are being utilised. In multi-core benchmarks, the M4 scores 25 per cent higher than the M3 (see first slide in the carousel below). The individual performance cores are 19 per cent faster (see second slide). You’ll find individual benchmarks displayed on slides 4–14.
In terms of graphics performance, the MacBook Air has improved by 18 per cent (see third slide in the carousel above). The base version of the chip with eight cores and the full version with ten cores show an identical difference. This puts the base model roughly on a par with the last generation’s fully fledged chip.
If you’re wavering between the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro, you’ll find some comparisons between the M4 and the M4 Pro in the next carousel. The Pro chip has six additional performance cores and twice as many GPU cores as the regular chip. As a result, it’s much more powerful. That power boost is also down to the fact the MacBook Pro has active cooling for longer periods under load.
Battery life: more efficient under load
The M4 MacBook Air plays my YouTube test video for the same amount of time as its predecessor. Bearing the additional power reserves in mind, this represents progress. When I burden the chip with a demanding task, the better efficiency becomes apparent. For five video exports, the M4 requires roughly 22 per cent less electricity than the M3 (see second slide in the carousel below).
When it comes to day-to-day use, Apple’s thinnest laptop with the M4 will likely last a little longer than the M3 version. Let’s face it, you don’t usually just watch YouTube videos – you call up more power as you’re doing so. Considering its weight (1.24 kg in 13 inch, 1.51 kg in 15 inch), the M4 MacBook Air’s battery life is nothing short of miraculous. The larger model boasts a slightly better runtime than the smaller one.
In a nutshell
My easiest recommendation since I started reviewing laptops
Last year, I complained that Apple was neglecting the MacBook Air. My argument? That its 8 GB of RAM was outdated. Cupertino seems to have heard my pleas, finally equipping the M4 generation with 16 GB of RAM as standard. Though the model’s also been fitted with a faster chip, it’s still cheaper than the previous version. This is exactly the kind of progress I’d expect from a mass-produced laptop.
The M4 MacBook Air feels lightning fast in office-based applications – a verdict I’d even apply to the base version. Alongside the Mac Mini, it offers the best value for money of any product in Apple’s range. You won’t find a laptop with a comparable combination of fast chip, long battery life and excellent build quality from any other manufacturer for the same price either.
Again, the only weak point is the base model’s measly 256 GB SSD. In its refusal to improve this, Apple is continuing to lure customers down the upgrade rabbit role, then charging them exorbitant prices for additional memory. With this in mind, I hope the next generation will come with 512 GB as standard.
Pro
- Pretty, lightweight and dependable
- Fast – even in the base version
- Good display
- Long battery life
- Completely noise-free
- Inexpensive, given its performance
Contra
- Base version only has a 256 GB SSD
- Expensive RAM and SSD upgrades
Header image: Samuel Buchmann
Samuel Buchmann
Senior Editor
Samuel.Buchmann@digitecgalaxus.chMy fingerprint often changes so drastically that my MacBook doesn't recognise it anymore. The reason? If I'm not clinging to a monitor or camera, I'm probably clinging to a rockface by the tips of my fingers.
Notebooks
Follow topics and stay updated on your areas of interest
Computing
Follow topics and stay updated on your areas of interest
