MacBook Air M2 (2022)

What is it? The MacBook Air is Apple’s most affordable laptop, designed with portability in mind. There are two versions of the MacBook Air available from Apple, and three configurations. The MacBook Air M2, which was introduced in July 2022, comes with either 8-core GPU and 256GB SSD or 10-core GPU and 512GB SSD and has a larger 13.6-inch display. Apple is still selling an older MacBook Air model with M1 chip, which arrived in November 2020. It has a 13.3-inch display.

Who’s it for? The MacBook Air is ideal for the budget-conscious. It’s also for anyone who is always on the go, doesn’t want to be bogged down by a regular-size laptop, and needs a computer that’s more versatile than an iPad.

How much does the MacBook Air cost? There are three configurations starting at $999/£999 for the MacBook Air M1 and $1,199/£1,249 for the MacBook Air M2. There is also a $1,499/£1,549 M2 model.

What are the specifications? Apple offers two standard configurations of the M2 model and one of the M1 model:

• Apple 8-core M1 SoC with 8GB of memory, a 7-core GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine; 256GB SSD, two Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports
• Apple 8-core M2 SoC with 8GB of memory, an 8-core GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine; 256GB SSD, two Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports
• Apple 8-core M2 SoC with 8GB of memory, a 10-core GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine; 512GB SSD, two Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports
• Additional options for M2 model: 16GB or 24GB unified memory. Up to 2TB storage
• Additional options for M1 model: 16GB unified memory. Up to 2TB storage

What are display specifications?

• The 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display on the M2 MacBook Air has a native resolution of 2,560×1,664 and 500 nits brightness.
• The 13.3-inch Retina display on the M1 MacBook Air has a native resolution of 2,560×1,600 and 400 nits brightness.

How do I connect stuff? The MacBook Air has only a pair of Thunderbolt/USB 4 connectors. If you want to connect USB-A devices, you need either a USB-C to USB adapter, like Apple’s $19 one, or a USB-C hub that has USB-A ports. See our round up of the best USB-C hubs and adapters.

The MacBook Air has built-in Wi-Fi for connecting to a network. It also provides built-in Bluetooth for wirelessly connecting a mouse or other peripherals. If you want to connect to an ethernet network, you need an adapter.

How fast is it? The M2 provides performance that is leaps and bounds faster than the Intel processors that were previously found in the MacBook Air, and Apple claims an 18 percent total CPU improvement over the M1, and a 35 percent improvement in graphics speed. It’s plenty fast enough for general purpose use—it’s actually close to performing like the 13-inch M1 MacBook Pro in this situation. But because it doesn’t have a fan to keep the computer cool, it may throttle down its speed during long processing sessions, such as video editing or compiling code. Even then, it’s still plenty fast.

Macworld’s buying advice: The MacBook Air is a great affordable laptop for someone who does general-purpose work and moves around a lot, such as a student or a self-employed person. You can’t easily upgrade the storage or memory after purchase, so you should buy the model with the largest amount of storage you can afford.

13-inch MacBook Pro M2 (2022)