Review | M3 MacBook Air review: Apple’s remote-work icon made faster and more efficient, and the most powerful laptop in its weight class

Apple’s M3 MacBook Air looks like the M2 model, but is 20 per cent more powerful. It performs better on battery power than Intel-powered competitors

Its AI capabilities are nothing new and it is lacking in terms of ports. The larger screen on the 15-inch model makes this workhorse a pleasure to work with

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The MacBook Air just got a spec bump, with the addition of Apple’s M3 chip making it faster, more powerful and more efficient than anything in its weight class. Photo: Ben Sin

Published: 4:15am, 12 Mar 2024Updated: 8:00am, 15 Mar 2024

Eight months ago Apple introduced a 15-inch screen MacBook Air that became an immediate hit, particularly with the digital nomad and remote work community because of its “happy medium” screen size.

The 13-inch model that had been the standard of the Air series since its 2008 debut, while still an option for consumers, felt cramped.

Now that M2-powered 15-inch MacBook Air is to give way to an upgraded edition with the latest Apple silicon, the M3.

This model is a so-called spec bump in every sense of the word, as it brings back the exact same design and outer components as the M2 MacBook Air; what’s new are the available colour options and the M3 chip inside.

The new 15-inch Apple MacBook Air M3 has the same design as the M2 model, but is different in terms of the colour options available, and the chip inside. Photo: Ben Sin

Let’s get this out of the way now: if you own the M2 MacBook Air, you absolutely do not need to upgrade to this laptop. But if you have an older M1 or Intel-powered MacBook, or have been using a 16-inch MacBook Pro and want to shed some weight without losing much screen real estate, this new machine is worth a look.

Review | M3 MacBook Air review: Apple’s remote-work icon made faster and more efficient, and the most powerful laptop in its weight class

Design and hardware