Apple’s laptops are known to offer exactly what its users want: a no-frills device at a premium price point. At this year’s developers conference, the company launched the all-new 15-inch Macbook Air that is powered by same M2 chipset packed into its predecessor.
The Macbook Air 15-inch features a fan-less design, but its large chassis handles heat quite well. With this launch, Apple hopes to hit the sweet spot and bridge the gap between the Air and MacBook Pro ranges. We have tested the base variant that comes with 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD, and retails at a starting price of ₹1,34,900.
Design
The MacBook Air 15-inch strikes the right balance between sporting an-ultra premium look with its slick-metallic body and still managing to feel extremely sturdy.
The new MacBook Air measures 11.5mm in thickness. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The laptop is extremely thin and light measuring 11.5mm in thickness and weighing in at just below 1.5kg. Like the 13-inch model, the new MacBook has ditched Apple’s wedge-like design of the past and instead features a modern and minimalistic look.
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The laptop sports a 1080p FaceTime webcam on the top center of the display. As for ports, there are two USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports located on the left-hand side of the laptop, offering high data transfer speeds and support for up to one 6K-resolution external monitor. The MagSafe charging port sits on the left side of the MacBook with a cable that magnetically snaps on and off. The device also packs a 3.5mm headphone jack on the right-hand side.
The laptop boasts of a well-spread out and extremely responsive keyboard. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The new MacBook Air looks pristine with a sense of royalty, but the inclusion of more ports on the right-hand side would have been welcome. The presence of just two Thunderbolt 4 ports will not sit well with you if you’re looking for a productivity machine and use a lot of peripherals. The laptop boasts of a well-spread out and extremely responsive keyboard. The keys are snappy, and typing is a pleasurable experience.
Display and speakers
The new MacBook Air packs a 2K 15.3-inch IPS LCD screen(2880 x 1864) with support for up to 500 nits peak brightness. Even though this is not an OLED screen or a mini-LED screen like the Pro models, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the visuals offered by Apple’s Liquid Retina display.
The new MacBook Air packs a 2K 15.3-inch IPS LCD screen. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The screen boasts of excellent contrast, the colours are natural with the right amount of kick and the screen is bright enough. While watching action sequences, the screen represented chaotic environments and the action set-pieces without breaking a sweat. Every detail amidst the explosions, gunfights, and chaos was delivered clearly.
The experience was further elevated by the new 6-speaker sound system compared to the 4-speaker sound system on its 13-inch counterpart.
The speakers are still placed on the hinge of the device and are amply loud, while offering punchy bass and pretty good separation as well. Watching movies and TV series were a pleasurable experience thanks to the surround sound like experience. The large 15.3-inch screen is well suited for watching content, browsing the internet and video editing.
Performance
The MacBook Air 15-inch comes with Apple’s extremely powerful M2 processor which allows it to handle almost anything you throw at it.
This is the same chipset you get on the Pro models albeit one difference. While the MacBook Air has a fan-less design, you get better thermal management on the Pro Models.
If you are looking to get short bursts of high-end performance, the MacBook Air can handle the same without breaking a sweat.
But, if you task the device with sustained loads, the device may throttle to keep the temperature under wraps. As per our tests, we were able to open more than 15 tabs at once while watching a video, without any significant dip in performance.
The MacBook Air 15-inch comes with Apple’s extremely powerful M2 processor. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The temperature of the device was pretty cool as well, without any significant heating. We were easily able to open apps, perform basic photo, video editing tasks, and do a bit of casual gaming. As for gaming, it currently comes up short due to the lack of support from many third-party developers. However, the titles that are available on the App Store work well.
Battery
Apple claims that the new MacBook Air can offer up to 15 hours of wireless web browsing and 18 hours of video playback. We found this to be mostly accurate as we were able to use the device unplugged for more than a full working day.
During our daily usage, we streamed shows, browsed the web, composed documents on Google Docs, and edited photographs. The variant we received came with a 35W Dual USB-C Port Compact Power Adapter. What’s great about this particular adapter is that you can plug in another device at the same time.
Verdict
The MacBook Air 15-inch offers an impressive screen, well-tuned speakers, powerful chipset, great battery life and a stunning design. While the laptop may not be revolutionary, it is one of the best 15-inch laptops you can buy due to its reliability.
The MacBook Air 15-inch is a highly functional and well-tuned device. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The new MacBook offers competent performance along with a bright and vivid display, 15-hour battery life, and a premium design. This laptop could be a good choice for anyone looking for a highly functional, well-tuned device for their everyday computing needs.
