It looks like the next-gen MacBook Air laptops with the M4 silicon upgrade are merely a few weeks away. According to Bloomberg, Apple is toning down inventory of the current-gen model and is readying the M4-equipped trim for a launch in March.
Apple is unlikely to make any design changes, serving the same aesthetic formula it introduced with the M2 MacBook Air. The most notable change, of course, is going to be the M4 silicon, which enhances the processing chops and lifts the efficiency figures, as well.
The M4 silicon features 10 CPU cores (four performance cores and six efficiency cores) and an equal number of GPU cores. According to Apple, the M4 is nearly 1.8x faster than the M1, and can deliver up to 3.4x speed boost at demanding tasks like graphics rendering in Blender.
An alleged Geekbench listing of the M4 MacBook Air recently surfaced online, flexing silicon brawns that nearly match the benchmark scores of the MacBook Pro. If that turns out to be true, it would be quite an impressive achievement for the fan-less entry-level Apple laptop.
Another crucial difference is the upgraded AI performance, thanks to a next-gen neural processing unit (NPU) which is said to be 3x faster. And if the M4 MacBook Pro is anything to go by, the upcoming MacBook Air will also allow users to hook it up with two monitors, in addition to the in-built display.
On the current-gen M3 MacBook Air, you have to close the laptop lid in order to power two monitors. As usual, Apple is expected to offer the M4 MacBook Air in 13-inch and 15-inch sizes. It is unlikely that these laptops are switching away from an LCD panel to a mini-LED display unit, primarily due to cost considerations.
Rumors, however, claim that Apple is eying an OLED upgrade for its laptops down the road. Apple armed the M4 MacBook Pro with a 12-megapixel front camera with Center Stage tech, but it’s unclear whether the MacBook Air will also get the same treatment and ditch its uninspiring 1080p webcam.
It would be interesting to see if Apple finally brings some of the zesty iMac energy and adds a splash of new colors to the M4 MacBook Air. The M3-generation gave us the Midnight (aka dark blue) shade, while the M2 line-up stunned with its Starlight hue.