Apple consistently updates its MacBook Air lineup annually, and 2025 follows this trend with the new MacBook Air 15, featuring an updated System on a Chip (SoC). This sleek laptop continues to excel in handling office tasks with exceptional battery life and a stunning display. While not designed for PC gaming, the MacBook Air remains the perfect companion for everyday productivity, embodying the essence of a reliable, portable workhorse.
Purchasing Guide
The MacBook Air (M4, Early 2025) is now available, starting at $999 for the 13-inch model and $1,199 for the 15-inch model reviewed here. As is typical with Apple, you can customize your system with additional features for a higher price. For example, a 15-inch MacBook Air with 32GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD is available for $2,399.
MacBook Air (M4, 2025) – Photos
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Design
In many ways, the MacBook Air has become the quintessential laptop. Despite its unchanged appearance from recent models, it remains exceptionally thin and light, weighing just 3.3 pounds for a 15-inch device. This lightweight is achieved through its slim unibody aluminum chassis, which measures less than half an inch thick. The MacBook Air's clean design is enhanced by speakers cleverly integrated into the hinge, which also utilizes the laptop's lid as a natural amplifier for improved sound quality.
The fanless design of the M4 chip contributes to a sleek, uninterrupted aesthetic, with only rubber feet on the bottom to prevent scratching. The top features the same excellent keyboard with deep travel and a reliable TouchID sensor for quick and secure access. The expansive touchpad provides excellent palm rejection, maintaining Apple's reputation for superior touchpad technology. However, the port selection is somewhat limited, with two USB-C ports and a MagSafe connector on the left, and a headphone jack on the right, which may disappoint some users looking for more connectivity options.
Display
The MacBook Air's display, while not as advanced as the MacBook Pro's, is still impressive. The 15.3-inch, 1880p screen offers vibrant colors, covering 99% of the DCI-P3 and 100% of sRGB color gamuts. It achieves a brightness of up to 426 nits, making it suitable for most indoor environments. Although it doesn't match the quality of an OLED display, it's more than sufficient for everyday use and entertainment, as evidenced by my enjoyable viewing sessions of shows like The Clone Wars.
Performance
Benchmarking a MacBook can be challenging due to the limited compatibility of standard tests with macOS. However, the fanless M4 chip in the MacBook Air prioritizes efficiency over raw power, making it less suitable for gaming but excellent for productivity. In gaming tests, it struggled with high settings, but for everyday tasks, it performed flawlessly. With 32GB of RAM, the reviewed model handled multitasking with ease, even on battery power. It managed light Photoshop work well, though it struggled with more intensive tasks like noise filtering in Lightroom. Overall, its performance in daily work scenarios is outstanding, especially considering its thin and light design.
Battery
Apple claims the MacBook Air's battery can last up to 18 hours of video streaming and 15 hours of web browsing. In my testing, using local video playback in VLC Media Player, the MacBook Air exceeded expectations, lasting 19 hours and 15 minutes. While this test differs from streaming, it still demonstrates impressive battery life. Over multiple 4-5 hour work sessions, the laptop rarely needed charging, making it ideal for travelers. The included charger is compact, enhancing the laptop's portability and convenience for quick email checks on the go.
