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MacBook Pro vs. MacBook Air: How to decide which Apple laptop you should buy

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Kerry Wan/ZDNET

If you’re in the market for a new MacBook, you may be wondering which model best suits your needs: the MacBook Pro or the MacBook Air. Apple consistently refreshes its lineup, adding new configurations every year, and with more powerful processors coming out, there have never been more factors to consider when buying a new Apple laptop.

Also: M3 MacBook Air vs. M2 MacBook Air: Which Apple laptop should you buy?

When buying a MacBook, you’ll want to consider the display size, storage capacity, computing power, and price. For example, the 2022 13-inch and 2024 13-inch MacBook Air<!–> may appear similar, but they have different chips, meaning the laptops vary in performance, efficiency, and battery life.

The most recent MacBook Pro models house Apple’s M4 chips, which are more efficient and capable than the M3 SoC (system on a chip). Meanwhile, the MacBook Air laptops still use the previous generation – the M3. Think of yourself as Goldilocks – you’re presented with five different MacBook models, and you must find the one that’s just right for you.

Before you decide which one to buy, let’s cover the main differences between the Pro and the Air.

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What’s the difference between the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air?

There are major differences between the MacBook Pro and the MacBook Air. The biggest is in pricing and computing power. The most affordable M4 MacBook Pro is more expensive than the cheapest M3 MacBook Air, but it makes up for it with better performance.

Apple’s M4 MacBook Pro models have additional unified memory, long battery life, extra ports (including three Thunderbolt 4 inputs and an SD card slot), and a more sophisticated hardware setup than their Air counterparts. There are two MacBook Pro display sizes: 14-inch and 16-inch, and they house different M4 chips.  

Also: How we test laptops at ZDNET

The 14-inch model only offers the M4 chip, while the 16-inch option can have either the M4 Pro or M4 Max. All three chips perform great, although there are notable differences. For example, the M4 Max has a “powerful Media Engine.”

Each one also has a different number of cores. The standard M4 has a 10-core CPU and a 10-core GPU. Apple’s M4 Pro houses a 14-core CPU and a 20-core GPU. The M4 Max has the same processor as the M4 Pro but sports a 32-core GPU instead. 

Also: I tested the new iMac M4, and one of the standout upgrades is also the least flashy

RAM also differs, ranging from 16GB to 48GB. The exact gulf between the M3 and M4 chipsets is unknown, but Apple told ZDNET Editor Kyle Kucharski that the “M4 is 1.3 times faster at handling productivity tasks than the M3.”

The company also said that the standard M4 MacBook Pro “delivers… up to 1.8x faster [image processing in Affinity Photo] when compared to” the M1 MacBook Pro. The M4 Max laptop goes even further, as it reportedly “delivers up to 3.5x the performance of [the] M1 Max,” allowing it to rip through “heavy creative workloads.”

<!–> MacBook Pro M4

Here’s the 14-inch MacBook Pro.

Kerry Wan/ZDNET

Apple unfortunately discontinued the 13-inch MacBook Pro after releasing the 14-inch MacBook Pro. It’s no longer available for purchase on the company’s website. You can still find 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros with the M3 Pro and M3 Max chipsets, but they’re refurbished.

Also: 4 Apple products you shouldn’t buy right now (including a popular iPhone model)

The M4 MacBook Pro is a solid laptop for most use cases, but if the base chip isn’t powerful enough for you, choose either the M4 Pro or M4 Max. Remember that going big with the 16-inch Pro raises the price tag. The 14-inch Pro starts at $1,599–>

 and, with chip and internal storage upgrades, can go up to $1,999. The 16-inch Pro starts at $2,499<!–> and, with internal upgrades, goes up to $3,999.

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Kerry Wan/ZDNET

The 13-inch MacBook Air from 2022 only comes with Apple’s base M2 chip. Meanwhile, the 2024 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air house the base M3 chip. The lack of Pro and Max chips doesn’t mean the Air is a less-than-capable computer. The MacBook Air is thinner and lighter than the Pro because it has less hardware: no HDMI port, SD card slot, or cooling fan. Apple banks on the efficiency of its chips to dissipate heat.

Also: M3 MacBook Air review: Apple’s AI computer for the masses has arrived

Of course, less hardware means the MacBook Air is less expensive, but you can make a few upgrades. For the M2 Air, you can choose between two chip configurations, one with more GPU cores than the other. An upgraded GPU means your computer can process footage more efficiently, making 4K video editing faster and smoother.

Last summer, Apple announced a 15-inch MacBook Air with an M2 chip but discontinued the device when it introduced the M3 15-inch MacBook Air. Although the 15-inch M2 MacBook Air had a short run, it’s still a great option if you’re looking for an Air. Unfortunately, you can only buy it refurbished from Apple<!–> or at a discounted price on Amazon–>.

Also: The MacBook Air’s free RAM upgrade was sneakily the best announcement during Apple’s Mac event

The M3 13-inch Air starts at $999<!–> and rises to $1,999 if you max out the internal storage and pick a more powerful GPU. The M3 15-inch Air starts at $1,099–> and goes up to $1,699 for the best configuration. It’s also worth mentioning that all the M3 MacBook Airs start with 16GB of memory, instead of just 8GB. 

If you’re contemplating buying an M3 MacBook Air and want to know how it compares to the M2 Air models, we compared the specs here to help you decide which device is best for you.

Which MacBook is right for you?

The answer mainly depends on how you see yourself using the laptops and how display size and weight factor into that equation. A reliable computer is an investment; you don’t want to spend too much on an overqualified laptop, and you don’t want to buy a computer that’s not powerful enough for your needs.

If you’re a graphic designer, music producer, professional photographer, videographer, 3D artist, or iOS game and app developer, a MacBook Pro<!–> would be the way to go. The Pro models can handle intense graphics processing and more software running in the background without significantly lagging, overheating, or slowing down.

If you are a student or someone who spends most of your time in Microsoft Office or Google Workspace, a MacBook Air–> may be a better fit, as it won’t put a burden on your back as you lug it around. If you want a MacBook to casually surf the internet, watch YouTube or Netflix, respond to emails, and FaceTime your friends, then the Air is perfect for you. In fact, if these tasks are the only things that bring you to open your laptop, an M2 Air will work just fine.

No matter which model you buy, a MacBook is an excellent device if you want to expand your personal Apple ecosystem with a device that works seamlessly with your iPhone, AirPods, Apple Watch, and other products. Handoff, for example, allows you to switch FaceTime calls between your MacBook and iPhone, and your MacBook can easily access your iPhone files, messages, contacts, and photos.

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Source: Robotics - zdnet.com