Review: the M4 MacBook Air is the perfect mass-market laptop
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.
Source: Samuel Buchmann
The laptop is now available in a new Sky Blue shade, while Space Grey has been dropped from the range. I’m a big fan of the light blue. Though subtle, it’s still pretty resilient against smudges – worlds apart from the dark blue Midnight shade. However, when push comes to shove, I’d still go for classic silver. It’s the only colour that’s remained a constant in Apple’s line-up, and is consistent across devices. Among a sea of annually changing shades that go in and out of fashion, silver remains timeless.
Source: Samuel Buchmann
Now equipped with Center Stage technology, the webcam can actively track your movements. There’s nothing new to report when it comes to the display, keyboard and trackpad – they’re all good. You’ll find more detailed information on these things in my review of the M2 MacBook Air. When I compare the device to my MacBook Pro, however, I miss the SD card reader, the smoother, 120-hertz picture created by ProMotion, and the mini LED’s superior black level.
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.
Source: Samuel Buchmann
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.
Most of this additional power also comes into play in real programs. When I export a test project to DaVinci Resolve, it takes 16 per cent less time with the M4 MacBook Air’s 16 GB of RAM than with the M3 generation. The base model has made an even bigger leap, exporting the project a whopping 78 per cent faster. Mind you, this isn’t necessarily down to the chip. It’s mainly because my M3 comparison device still has 8 GB of RAM. The additional RAM also makes a considerable difference in Lightroom.
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.
You won’t notice any of this performance when you’re writing emails. But if you regularly edit images in Lightroom or cut videos, I’d say paying extra is worth it. The difference between a good 13" MacBook Air and the 14" MacBook Pro with 14-core CPU is currently around CHF 650. In addition to the extra performance, you also get longer battery life, a better display, better speakers and more ports.
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.
Source: Samuel Buchmann
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
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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.
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