Apple M4 MacBook Air is here: Specs, price and release date

Apple has officially introduced the M4 MacBook Air, delivering a major performance boost, improved AI capabilities, and a fresh sky blue color option. With a starting price of $999—$100 less than the previous model—this update makes the world’s most popular laptop even more accessible.

M4 MacBook Air: What’s new?

The M4 chip brings significant speed improvements, making the new MacBook Air up to 2x faster than the M1 model and up to 23x faster than Intel-based MacBook Airs.

Key M4 chip specs:

• 10-core CPU and up to 10-core GPU
• Support for up to 32GB of unified memory
• Up to 3x faster Neural Engine for AI-powered tasks
• Enhanced gaming performance, including ray tracing support

Extended battery life

Apple claims up to 18 hours of battery life, an improvement of six additional hours over Intel-based MacBook Airs.

M3 iPad Air (2025) vs M2 iPad Air (2024) vs M1 iPad Air (2022)

Apple Intelligence

The M4 MacBook Air is optimized for Apple Intelligence, enabling users to:

• Generate images using Image Playground
• Create personalized emojis with Genmoji
• Use enhanced Siri with natural language processing and ChatGPT integration

Apple ensures privacy protection with on-device processing and Private Cloud Compute, keeping user data secure.

Image: Apple New 12MP Center Stage camera

Apple has upgraded the FaceTime camera to 12MP, with Center Stage support that keeps users in frame during video calls. Desk View also enables top-down presentations, useful for remote work and content creators.

Multi-display support

For the first time, the MacBook Air supports up to two external 6K displays in addition to its built-in Liquid Retina display. This is a major boost for professionals working with multiple screens.

The same MacBook Air, now in Sky Blue

While the thin, fanless aluminum design remains unchanged, Apple has introduced a new Sky Blue color, which joins Midnight, Starlight, and Silver.

Additional design highlights:

• Color-matched MagSafe charger
• 13.6-inch and 15.3-inch Liquid Retina displays
• Touch ID and Magic Keyboard
• Wi-Fi 6E, Thunderbolt ports, and a 3.5mm headphone jack

Image: Apple MacBook Air (M4) release date and pricing

Apple’s new MacBook Air models are available for pre-order starting today, with official availability beginning on March 12.

Model Standard Price Education Price 13-inch MacBook Air (M4) $999 $899 15-inch MacBook Air (M4) $1,199 $1,099

The $100 price drop makes the MacBook Air even more appealing to students, professionals, and first-time Mac buyers.

Image: Apple Should you upgrade?

• If you own an M1 MacBook Air, upgrading to M4 delivers double the speed, better battery life, and AI capabilities.
• If you have an M2 MacBook Air, the M4 version is not a dramatic upgrade unless you need multi-display support or enhanced AI features.
• If you’re upgrading from an Intel MacBook Air, this is a no-brainer—the M4 version is up to 23x faster.

The M4 MacBook Air refines an already great laptop with faster performance, smarter AI features, and better display support—all while dropping the price to $999. For students, professionals, and everyday users, it’s Apple’s best-value MacBook yet.

Featured image credit: Apple