MacBook Air M4 launch date, value, specs & design

The M4 MacBook Professional, iMac and Mac mini are all accessible, however the M4 MacBook Air is nowhere to be seen. Simply how lengthy will we’ve to attend to see the brand new MacBook Air and what specs and value can we count on?

We take a look at the rumors and maintain observe of what’s being reported, in addition to supply a perspective primarily based on Apple’s present lineup.

Replace February 7, 2025: New M4 MacBook Air is in manufacturing and will launch “comparatively quickly”. Apple may discontinue M3 model as a consequence of issues with M3 chip manufacturing course of.

M4 MacBook Air: Launch date

• Between January and March 2025 (Predicted)

Again in April 2024, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman mentioned that the Mac’s model of the M4 chip could be launched within the MacBook Professional and iMacs later in 2024, and certainly it was. At the moment, Gurman predicted that the M4 MacBook Air launch wouldn’t come till spring 2025, a few 12 months after the M3 MacBook Air was launched.

In June 2024, Gurman once more reported that the M4 MacBook Air just isn’t anticipated till the spring of 2025. And in August, he reiterated that the M4 MacBook Air won’t be accessible till 2025.

In October 2024, Gurman reported that Apple is on the brink of begin manufacturing on the M4 MacBook Air, with a risk of a launch between January and March of 2025.

In December, Gurman claimed the up to date 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air fashions with the M4 chip could be introduced “earlier” than the anticipated iPhone SE and iPad updates.

In January 2025, Gurman reported that the M4 MacBook Air will ship “comparatively quickly” with the brand new laptop computer is already in manufacturing.

Apple might launch the brand new MacBook Air at an Spring Apple Occasion or it might subject a press launch asserting the brand new product. If there isn’t a occasion the replace may occur as quickly as February.

M4 MacBook Air: Processor

Apple shocked us with the discharge of the M4 chip within the iPad Professional in early Might, barely six months after the M3 debuted within the MacBook Professional. In October 2024, Apple launched the M4 MacBook Professional, iMac, and Mac mini. Listed below are the specs:

MacBook Professional & Mac mini M4 Professional

• 12-core or 14-core CPU (10 efficiency cores and 4 effectivity cores)
• 16-core or 20-core GPU
• {Hardware}-accelerated ray tracing
• 16-core Neural Engine
• 273GB/sec reminiscence bandwidth
• 24GB RAM

MacBook Professional M4 Max

• 14-core or 32-core CPU (12 efficiency cores and 4 effectivity cores)
• 32-core or 40-core GPU
• {Hardware}-accelerated ray tracing
• 16-core Neural Engine
• 546GB reminiscence bandwidth
• 36GB RAM or 48GB RAM

How will Apple allocate the M4 within the subsequent MacBook Air? We may see the corporate use the 10-core CPU model of the chip. It doesn’t appear doubtless that the 9-core model shall be within the Air.

In comparison with the 8-core M3, the M4 has two additional effectivity cores and better reminiscence bandwidth (120 GB/s vs 100GB/s). Apple will doubtless use the identical design for the Mac, making the M4 the primary non-Professional or Max chip that has

Earlier than the M4 arrived within the iPad, Gurman reported that the chip would deal with AI enhancements. Apple talked briefly throughout its Let Free occasion concerning the improved Neural Engine and its means to ship over 38 trillion operations per second however didn’t get into a lot element about real-world use.

Will Apple proceed to promote a cut-price M3 MacBook Air?

It’s been Apple’s behavior in recent times to maintain the earlier era mannequin on sale with a view to supply a cheaper price of entry to the vary. This time, nevertheless, there’s some hypothesis that the M3 MacBook Air shall be discontinued with Apple maybe retaining the M2 MacBook Air within the lineup as a substitute.

It’s thought that the M3 chip has proved to pricey to fabricate. Apparently the producer of the chip, TSMC, discovered that it was pricey to provide and yields had been decrease than these of earlier processes. The M4 chip makes use of a extra environment friendly 3nm fabrication course of. This goes some solution to clarify why Apple jumped from M2 to M4 for the iPad Professional and fully bypassed the M3 for the Mac mini, Mac Studio and Mac Professional.

The M2, however, is getting used within the iPad Air so Apple may maintain the M2 MacBook Air within the line up because it utilises that very same chip and can subsequently maintain prices down. See: Apple’s M3 nightmare is coming to an finish.

M4 MacBook Air: Design and specs

The M4 improve could be the fourth era of the M-series chip within the MacBook Air, nevertheless it’s not the fourth time round for the present Air design. Apple shipped the M1 MacBook Air in 2020 with an older design that was used with Intel chips and the present design wasn’t launched till the M2 chip improve in July 2022. Apple isn’t anticipated to alter it in any respect for the M4.

Apple made a slight change to the Air’s design with the M3 replace in March 2024, however just for one particular coloration. The Midnight model now has an anodization seal to assist lower down on fingerprints–it’s the same course of launched with the Area Black MacBook Professional. Apple just isn’t anticipated to supply the method for the Silver, Area Grey, and Starlight colours. 

When Apple launched the M4 MacBook Professional in October 2024, the corporate elevated the bottom quantity of RAM to 16GB. It additionally did the identical with the M2 and M3 MacBook Air that’s presently on the market. Apple will; not launch a laptop computer that begins with 8GB of RAM.

One other characteristic that might get an improve is battery life. If the MacBook M4 follows the iPad Professional’s chip design, it might be extra energy-friendly with two additional effectivity cores. That might imply extra battery life.

AppleInsider reported that it has seen a regulatory doc for the M4 MacBook Air that refers to a “Entrance Extremely Large Digicam.” That might imply that the 1080p FaceTime digital camera shall be changed with a 12MP Heart Stage digital camera, just like the one within the M4 MacBook Professional.

The whole lot else concerning the MacBook Air will doubtless keep the identical with an M4 improve. The show, measurement, weight, mics, audio system, ports, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth are anticipated to stay unchanged.

TheElec reviews that Apple is growing an oxide thin-film transistor liquid crystal show for the MacBook Air, however this characteristic gained’t be prepared till 2027. The brand new show would exchange the usual TFT LCD that’s presently in use.

M4 MacBook Professional: Worth

With considerations about Trumps tariffs making headlines are the costs of the MacBook Air prone to improve? It appears inevitable that they’ll if Apple decides to move on the additional prices to the buyer. Prices exterior the U.S. can also improve as a consequence of forex fluctuations.

Listed below are the costs for the present customary configurations of the M3 MacBook Air for reference.

Apple will doubtless supply comparable configurations, so hopefully the M4 MacBook Air costs gained’t change. Alternatively Apple might launched a much less highly effective entry-level mannequin with a view to fight the upper costs of parts.