Review of Apple 15-inch MacBook Air
The 15-inch MacBook Air’s marketing message couldn’t be much more straightforward: it’s the MacBook Air, just bigger.
Apple has made as few internal changes as possible, essentially enlarging the 13-inch model outward to make room for a larger screen and more battery power.
Even though it’s only been around for a year, the M2-powered 13-inch device is already a hit and doesn’t really need to be reinvented—although that time has allowed the Windows competitors to catch up in terms of sheer performance.
However, this is an appealing bigger laptop for individuals who don’t want the full capabilities of a MacBook Pro because to its exceptional battery life, superb Apple design, and reasonably low pricing.
Build and design
- a set of four subdued hues
- aluminum design that is thin and light
- fewer ports
With the exception of the apparent size difference, the 15-inch MacBook Air appears identical to the 13-inch model. The same combination of restricted colors—Silver, Starlight (gold), Space Grey, and—and 100% recyclable aluminum are used in its construction.
Trackpad, keyboard, and webcam
- full-size, comfortable keyboard
- broad haptic trackpad
Webcam in 1080p, despite the notch.
The top-right power button has a fingerprint sensor integrated into it, and the keyboard is big, comfy, and lighted.
Since it doesn’t go edge to edge and has plenty of room on the sides, I’m sure some people will be disappointed that Apple chose not to include a numpad or even just extend the arrow keys, which are currently somewhat small. However, if those won’t bother you, there isn’t anything wrong with this.
Similar to the keyboard, the trackpad is large and extends almost to the bottom edge of the laptop. It employs haptic technology to deliver touch sensation without moving the pad itself when you click.
The webcam is another option. You might have assumed that the MacBook Air had FaceID technology like the iPhones or that its camera will be particularly good because of the noticeable notch in the display, but I’m sorry to say that none of those things is true.
Although the 720p camera here has a little greater resolution than most competitors (1080p), the difference in video quality isn’t really noticeable. In less than optimal illumination, the camera struggles, the footage is still soft, and the details are muddled.
In other words, it is your typical laptop webcam. In spite of that large notch.
Display and speakers
- 15-inch IPS display with a resolution of 2880 x 1864
- Big notch made in the top
The MacBook Air 15in is primarily chosen because of its bigger display, yet despite this, the hardware feels most defective in this area.
It fits perfectly between the two MacBook Pro versions, at 15.3 inches, which is significantly larger than the display on the smaller MacBook Air. With adequate room for multitasking and split-screening that wouldn’t actually be conceivable on the smaller Air, all that extra space is ideal for increasing productivity.
The display has drawbacks still. Although it has a sharp 2880 x 1864 resolution and superb color accuracy, Apple is still employing IPS technology, which prevents it from having the same deep blacks and strong contrast as other OLED panels or the 120Hz mini-LED featured in the MacBook Pro.
Finally, its display lacks a touch screen, like other MacBooks. Even while touch input isn’t always the most effective way to use a laptop, it could first irritate you if you’re coming from a contemporary Windows laptop.
Details and performance
- outstanding M2 performance
- 24GB maximum RAM
- 2TB maximum storage
The same Apple M2 processor that powers the Air 13in also powers the Air 15in. There, customers may choose between two models, one of which has a few additional GPU cores, whereas here, just the more powerful model is offered.
This isn’t a slouch, but it’s still not as powerful as the M2 Pro and M2 Max CPUs found in the most recent MacBook Pro models.
Apple MacBook Air 15-inch benchmarks for 2023
In actuality, it has more than enough power for office work, abusing Chrome tabs, and moderate Photoshop use without ever breaking a sweat. Benchmarks place it at a comparable level to the Intel Core i7 CPUs you’d be likely to find in an equivalently priced Windows laptop.
Most office professionals and students should find this to be enough for their requirements. However, anyone active in developing 3D assets or 8K video editing will rapidly reach the laptop’s limitations.
The MacBook Air’s fanless design has the advantage of keeping it quiet even when it’s operating at full capacity, but it’s also one of the reasons performance will always be somewhat behind the Pro model.
Charger & battery
- Incredible multi-day battery life
- charging through USB-C or MagSafe
- Slow charging even for a 70W adapter
The biggest argument for choosing a MacBook over a comparable Windows laptop is still its longer battery life. While Intel may be able to rival Apple Silicon in terms of sheer performance, it falls well short on efficiency.
This is that most uncommon of things: a laptop that is so portable that I’m glad to use it without a charger for a whole workday.
With moderate use, you could discover that this can last for days without needing to be plugged in. It will comfortably last through an entire workday and then some. It easily outlasts the 13in Air, which is a solid incentive to choose this larger model, and even outlasts the most recent Pro in terms of lifespan.
The 15-inch MacBook Air is currently offered everywhere. There are two standard configurations that cost $1,299/£1,399 or $1,499/£1,599 and come with 8GB of RAM as standard.
Fortunately, you’re not overpaying for the bigger form factor because the 15in Air costs just $200/£250 more than the M2-powered 13in. The difference further narrows to $100/£150 if you compare the 13in with the same 10-core GPU.
