Whether you work from home or out and about, it’s next to impossible to get by without a computer of some form, and probably a laptop.
Folks who only work from home and need all the power that a desktop can offer might have a desktop, and possibly a meaty one at that.
But if you’re like pretty much everyone else, you’re livin’ la vida laptop. That is to say, you’re living the laptop life. (Ricky Martin never sang that, but we simply imagined it instead.)
And if you’ve ever gone shopping for a laptop, there’s a pretty solid chance you’ve considered the MacBook Air.
Easily Apple’s most popular laptop, there’s little question as to why: it’s thin, light, powerful, and offers some of the best battery life in its class. It’s no wonder we regular give it a Best Pick when it pops up in our reviews.
This year, there looks to be a new model on the way, as Apple updates the spec with its new M5 processors, and leaves just about everything else alone, except the price.
The main change is clearly the processor, with that shiny new M5 chip just like the MacBook Pro received last year, and even the iPad Pro, but Apple has also upgraded the storage which now comes with a minimum of 512GB compared to the 256GB before.
Apple is also using its N1 wireless chip here, which means WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 6 are both a part of the spec set, though there’s no Thunderbolt 5 here like on the MacBook Pro models. You’ll find Thunderbolt 4 instead, with two ports also working with USB-C, charging the laptop either using that or the MagSafe connection the Air can also take.
Most everything else is the same, with either a 13.6 inch screen in the M5 MacBook Air 13 or a 15.3 inch screen in the MacBook Air 15, and up to 18 hours of battery life on the latter.
It is largely the same laptop it was last week, but with twice the storage and a new processor.
But the new Air also comes with one other unexpected twist: a slightly higher price.
Previously a $2099 laptop (at least for the 15 inch), the M5 MBA now starts at $2199, while the 13 inch now starts at $1799. Things are a little pricier this year, and I think we all know the reason why (spoiler alert: it’s AI).
Ultimately, if you were waiting until the Apple event to buy new laptops, your waiting could well have paid off.
Mind you, this is just one of several major announcements this week, and Apple’s big event hasn’t even happened. We have a pretty clear expectation of a new less expensive laptop range, possibly called the “MacBook Neo” or even just simply the “MacBook”.
Essentially, if you have been waiting, you might just want to wait a little bit longer. Maybe a day. We’ll see how it goes.
