MacBook Air M4 Early 2025: Unveiled

Apple continues its annual tradition with the 2025 MacBook Air lineup, offering a sleek and refined design that remains largely unchanged aside from the upgraded M4 system on a chip. The new MacBook Air 15-inch model stays true to its roots—delivering a stylish, ultra-portable laptop built for productivity, long battery life, and a stunning visual experience.

While it's not designed for heavy PC gaming, it excels in areas that matter most to everyday users: portability, performance for office tasks, and all-day battery life. If you're looking for a lightweight laptop to handle writing, browsing, and multimedia consumption while on the go, this is the MacBook you’ve been waiting for.

Purchasing Guide

The 2025 MacBook Air (M4, Early 2025) is now available for purchase, starting at $999 for the 13-inch variant and $1,199 for the 15-inch model reviewed here. As with most Apple products, customization options are available, allowing you to upgrade your configuration with more RAM and storage. For example, a fully loaded 15-inch model featuring 32GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD will set you back $2,399.

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Design

The MacBook Air has become synonymous with what many envision when thinking of a modern laptop. Despite maintaining the same familiar aesthetic as its predecessors, this latest iteration continues to impress with its feather-light build and slim profile. Weighing just 3.3 pounds, the 15-inch MacBook Air defies expectations for what a device of its size should feel like.

Its ultra-thin aluminum unibody chassis measures less than half an inch thick, reinforcing the Air’s reputation as one of the most portable laptops on the market. Beyond weight savings, the minimalist design extends to every detail—including how Apple integrated the speakers into the hinge rather than placing them beside the keyboard. Though unconventional, this setup works surprisingly well, with sound projecting clearly and amplified by the lid itself.

Thanks to the fanless M4 chip, Apple was able to maintain a completely sealed bottom panel, save for four small rubber feet to prevent scratches. The keyboard continues to offer excellent key travel and reliable responsiveness, with no ghosting or repeating issues. The TouchID sensor located in the top-right corner delivers fast and accurate biometric login, and the expansive trackpad remains among the best in the industry, offering precise control and excellent palm rejection.

Port selection remains minimalistic, with two USB-C ports and a MagSafe connector on the left side, and only a headphone jack on the right. While practical for basic use, those who rely on multiple peripherals may find themselves reaching for dongles more often than not.

Display

The MacBook Air doesn’t need to compete with the Pro models in terms of display innovation, but it still offers a high-quality screen that punches well above its weight class. The 15.3-inch Retina display features a resolution of 2880x1864, covers 99% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, and reaches peak brightness levels of around 426 nits—more than enough for most indoor environments.

While it doesn't match the contrast and vibrancy of OLED panels, the MacBook Air's display is vibrant and sharp, making it ideal for content creation, photo editing, and streaming media. Watching shows like *The Clone Wars* felt immersive and visually rich, thanks to the wide color range and crisp clarity.

Performance

Benchmarking macOS hardware can be tricky due to limited compatibility with standard testing tools, but real-world usage paints a clear picture. Running on a fanless version of the Apple M4 chip, the MacBook Air isn’t built for gaming, and that’s perfectly fine.

In games like *Total War: Warhammer III*, performance hovered around 18 fps at Ultra settings, improving to about 34 fps on Medium. Similarly, *Assassin’s Creed Shadows* struggled to exceed 10 fps at Ultra, rising to just 19 fps on Medium settings. These numbers aren’t surprising given the device's form factor and intended use case.

However, where the MacBook Air truly shines is in productivity and multitasking. With 32GB of RAM, I ran over 50 Safari tabs simultaneously while streaming music and experienced zero lag. Light creative work in Photoshop was smooth, though heavier filters in Lightroom did cause some slowdowns—issues even higher-end MacBooks occasionally face.

Battery Life

Apple claims up to 18 hours of video playback and 15 hours of web browsing on a single charge. In local video playback tests, the MacBook Air exceeded expectations, lasting over 19 hours and 15 minutes. Even under typical usage scenarios involving several 4–5 hour work sessions, the battery easily lasted two full days without needing a recharge.

This makes the MacBook Air ideal for frequent travelers, students, and remote workers who need a machine that keeps up with their lifestyle without being chained to a power outlet.