Apple continued its busy week of product announcements on Tuesday by unveiling the new M5 MacBook Air lineup alongside refreshed MacBook Pro models. The updated laptops will officially be released on Wednesday, March 11, while preorders begin on March 4.
The latest 13 inch and 15 inch MacBook Air models are powered by the same M5 processor that debuted in last year’s 14 inch MacBook Pro. One notable upgrade is the increase in base storage. Both models now start with 512GB of storage, and for the first time buyers can configure the laptops with up to 4TB.
The 512GB base models are priced at 1,099 dollars for the 13 inch version and 1,299 dollars for the 15 inch version. This pricing is particularly notable because it is 100 dollars lower than the previous M4 MacBook Air models with the same storage capacity. Earlier models started at 999 dollars but included only 256GB of storage, a configuration that Apple has now removed from the lineup.
Another addition to the new MacBook Air models is Apple’s N1 wireless chip. This upgrade introduces support for WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 6 connectivity.
Aside from these updates, the new models remain largely similar to their predecessors. The design continues to feature the same aluminum construction, 60Hz Liquid Retina display, 12 megapixel Center Stage webcam, two Thunderbolt 4 ports, and a battery life rating of up to 18 hours. Color options also remain unchanged, with sky blue, midnight, starlight, and silver available.
The starting price of 1,099 dollars also leaves room for Apple’s rumored budget MacBook, which the company is expected to reveal during its upcoming special experience events taking place in New York, London, and Shanghai. Industry analysts have been predicting that Apple may introduce a more affordable MacBook model aimed at competing with lower priced Windows laptops.
Apple began the week by announcing the iPhone 17e and the M4 iPad Air on Monday. Alongside the MacBook Air models unveiled Tuesday, the company also introduced updated MacBook Pro devices featuring the more powerful M5 Pro and M5 Max chips.
Apple M5 MacBook Air specifications
Sizes
13 inch and 15 inch models
Starting prices
1,099 dollars and 1,299 dollars respectively
Processor
M5 chip with a 10 core CPU and up to a 10 core GPU
Display
Liquid Retina display with a 60Hz refresh rate and 500 nits brightness
RAM
16GB
Storage
512GB up to 4TB
Connectivity
WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 6
Battery life
Up to 18 hours
Webcam
12 megapixel Center Stage camera
Ports
Two Thunderbolt 4 ports and a headphone jack
Colors
Sky blue, midnight, starlight, and silver
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