The MacBook Air M5 delivers the goods thanks to its strong M5-driven performance, better connectivity options, all while retaining the same slim design, bright and colorful display, and long-lasting battery life. While it isn't a revolutionary update and costs $100 more, it's a stellar notebook for most people.Naturally, the biggest upgrade is the Apple M5 chip, which we first saw in last year's iPad Pro M5 and 14-inch MacBook Pro M5. Thanks to this processor, the Air M5 offers excellent performance for web surfing, video editing, and even some AAA gaming. While the new M5 Pro/Max MacBook Pros can handle heavier loads, the Air M5's performance is more than enough for everyday use.
It's safe to say the MacBook Air 13-inch M5 is every bit as good as its M4 predecessor, but a little faster. The differences are so few, in fact, that I could simply direct you to my now year-old MacBook Air M4 review, and just note here that the M5 chip makes Apple's latest, and sure to be quite popular, ultraportable both faster and more efficient.If there is a downside to this update, it's the new starting price. Over the years, the MacBook Air has bounced around the $1,000 mark, dropping just below and then rising up a hundred dollars or so. Now it's back to $1,099 / £1,099 / AU$1,799, but I'm actually okay with this change, because the Air finally starts with a half terabyte of storage.
Like the M4, the M3, the M2, and even the M1 before it, the MacBook Air remains what it's long been-even going back to the days before Apple silicon: the best Mac for most people.Of course, we've had an idea of the ballpark of M5 performance since last fall's first slew of products using the latest chip generation, and there's little surprising here: just the usual generation-over-generation bump, in this case of about 11 percent in both single and multicore performance over the M4 Air. GPU saw more measurable improvement in the M5 Air, with about 31 percent better performance on average.
The new Apple M5 SoC is very powerful and also very efficient - a perfect match for the passive cooling system of the MacBook Air 15. There is just nothing comparable in the Windows world, neither with x86 chips, nor with ARM CPUs from Qualcomm.Other improvements include Wi-Fi as well as faster PCIe 4.0 SSDs, and this is also the case for the base model starting at $1299. Our review unit is quite expensive due to the RAM and storage upgrades, but you will get pretty much the same performance from the base model, which is our recommendation for most users.
Apple's MacBook Air 15 with M5 chip continues to impress with its powerful performance and fanless design. While some aspects of the display remain unchanged, its capabilities still shine.The Apple MacBook Air 15 M5 excels in delivering powerful performance. Its display, despite minor drawbacks, remains a strong point for general use and even picture editing when calibrated properly.
M5 MacBook Air review: Still the best MacBook for almost everybody.The M5 MacBook Air is a minor upgrade, but minor upgrades add up over time.The M5 Pro and M5 Max in the new MacBook Pros are interesting not because they deliver a solid speed increase for Apple’s fastest laptop processors but because they also include substantial under-the-hood changes. And the MacBook Neo is interesting because, while the hardware has limits, it’s quite a capable and high-quality computer for its $599 starting price.And then there’s the M5 MacBook Air, which was also released this week.Apple sent us a 16-inch M5 Max MacBook Pro, the MacBook Neo, and a 15-inch MacBook Air to test, and the MacBook Air was the only one without a standard review embargo. As if to say, “we know the other stuff is more interesting—if you want to cover the Air, get to it when you can.”So here we are....The laptop you don’t have to think aboutThe MacBook Neo might be tempting for people who were only buying the MacBook Air because it was the least expensive laptop in Apple’s lineup. But I still think the vast majority of MacBook buyers should get the Air instead if their budget allows it.The M5 MacBook Air has enough memory and storage for most people. It performs well enough that most people will not need to worry about whether their computer can handle any given app or game. It’s light enough that most people will not have trouble carrying it around.You get the picture. The MacBook Air might not be the perfect laptop for everyone, but configured with the right specs, the Air can work for just about anyone. And it’s a nice counterweight to the chaos and uncertainty of the PC market, where even flagship portables from big companies can occasionally ship with bizarre regressions like “battery life worse” or “keyboard doesn’t work.”
In het kortDe MacBook Air met M5-processor is een luxe aanvoelende laptop met een paar fijne extra's, zoals de volledig stille werking, goede speakers en webcam. De M5-chip biedt uitzonderlijk goede singlecoreprestaties en heeft een erg goede gpu. Voor wat meer gevorderde gebruikers heeft de Air veel nice to haves ten opzichte van de goedkopere MacBook Neo, waaronder een fijnere werkomgeving, de optie voor een groter scherm, een veel snellere processor en meer opslag en werkgeheugen. De accuduur is daarbij langer. Voor veel mensen zal wat de Neo biedt wel al voldoende zijn. De MacBook Air is een stuk duurder dan de Neo: een instapmodel kost al twee derde tot het dubbele meer, een luxere configuratie is zelfs drie tot vier keer zo duur. Als je toch per se een MacBook Air wilt hebben zou je ook nog kunnen kijken naar de MacBook Air van 2025 met M4. Die verschilt afgezien van de processor niet van het nieuwe model.
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