Verdict

It ’s expensive but , more than a year on , the Apple MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) remains a wonderful machine that looks great , performs exceptionally and last a long prison term on a electric charge .

Pros

Cons

Key Features

Introduction

The MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) remains a top draw for students , even with a somewhat increased protrude pricecompared with the last generation . Even with the added bounty , it remains one of the very safe productivity laptops around . On top of the splendid M - series , it brings a refreshing redesign to the range . But , it may before long have a young MacBook Air M3 to contend with .

Admittedly , Apple raising the price of its launching - level laptop does make the decision a bit tough . TheMacBook Air M1is still a brilliant selection , and at a cheaper price , while it has also introduced a newM3 - powered MacBook Prowith its most recent tone ending . This has further tightened the crack between MacBook Air and MacBook Pro pricing .

Then there ’s the15 - inch MacBook Air , an excellent variation on this model if you want a bigger display . Windows is also fighting back , with the Intel Core Ultra - poweredAsus Zenbook 14 OLEDproviding an interesting Air challenger on the other side of the walled garden . So , if you ’re looking for a high - timbre portable , the 13 - inch MacBook Air is far from your only option .

The MacBook Air M2 remains an appealing laptop but , if you ’re always after the late and greatest then it may be worth waiting for the new M3 variant , which is expected in 2024 . However , with such frequent releases , advice to wait for the next Apple product always loiter and , if you need a MacBook Air now , the M2 is fantabulous . Further , with the launching of the M3 alongside the MacBook Pro laptops , the jumping does n’t seem to be vast from the old generation , as I found out in myMacBook Pro 16 - inch M3 Maxreview .

So , aside from all the other buying options , the MacBook Air still has the spec , design and overall operation to impress anyone moving to a Mac for the first time . The M2 cow chip drive to convey about potent productiveness public presentation but with boosted stamp battery and a placid experience . Now the M2 has been here for some time , the MacBook Air M2 looks to have to the full embraced these key tenets . Here ’s our full revue .

Design

The MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) mimics the overall design of the pricier MacBook Pro 14 and 16 siblings . It has a boxier look than before , with the iconic wedge innovation ( that has been a trademark of the Air serial ever since Steve Jobs ab initio pulled it out of an envelope on microscope stage ) ditch . The design is sleek and tasteful , and it ’s a muckle more portable than the thick - in - comparison 14 and 16 - inch versions . The 15 - in is now available too if you do involve a bigger workspace .

This might not be the thinnest laptop around , but it ’s overall thin than the previous model and is incredibly portable as a result . Previous to this , I had been carry around a MacBook Pro in my bag and drop off this in rather reminds me of what makes the airwave ambit so peculiar . It weighs 1.24 kg ( compared to the 1.6 kilo MacBook Pro 14 - inch ) and has a height of just 1.13 cm . That makes it thinner than an iPad Pro with aMagic Keyboardattached , making this Apple ’s most portable mobile workstation .

If you were hoping for a MacBook Air uncommitted in all the colours of the rainbow , then I am here to let down . Space Grey and Silver remain , with new Starlight and Midnight pick added . I have been testing the Starlight option the best way to describe it would be a very subtle Au . It does a better problem at concealment fingerprints than the matte Midnight option which is a very saturnine blue . The new M3 MacBook Pro has introduced a new Space Black choice , think a darker variation of Space Grey rather than the harsh black hue offered by Midnight , so we may be adorn with that come the M3 Air model .

On one side you ’ll find twoThunderbolt 3 / USB 4 interface , along with the magnetic MagSafe port for charge . There ’s also a 3.5 mm earphone embrasure on the other side . It would have been nice for Apple to split the USB - C ports and have one on each side , as I often run out of way when I am plug in multiple item . There ’s also no Coyote State card referee nor HDMI , so you ’ll plausibly want to empower in a undecomposed USB - one C hub to go along with this laptop computer .

The summation of MagSafe essentially gives you an extra port , as you ’ll no longer take to use up one of the USB port for charging . you may still charge with a fast USB - C cable and charger , but that does n’t arrive in the loge with a colour - matchedMagSafecable replacement .

The reintroduction of MagSafe – a staple on MacBooks pre-2016 – is very much welcome . The magnetic cable detaches if you accidentally trip over it , something that does n’t occur with a stock USB - C cable . An light-emitting diode on the cable also lets you get laid when it ’s full charged , which I witness a really nice touching .

The keyboard and trackpad are both marvelous . The Magic Keyboard has enough travel for comfortable typing , plus it pack a full dustup of procedure tonality and a TouchID sensor for biometric unlocking . If you ’re updating from one of the MacBook Airs with Apple ’s notoriously awed ‘ Butterfly ’ keyboards , then the melioration here will make this upgrade deserving it alone , especially for those who spend much of the day typewriting .

Below the keyboard , there ’s a monumental trackpad which uses a haptic response to simulate a physical military press . The trackpad itself does n’t actually move anywhere , but I doubt you ’d eff as much .

Screen

The screen on the MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) is the small of Apple ’s Air series , now the 15 - column inch is around . It is a great panel – even if it lacks some of the skills you might chance elsewhere .

Apple has keep the majority of the same CRT screen tech from the previous fashion model , including the utilisation of an IPS LCD panel . You ’ll still need to go for the MacBook Pro 14 or 16 to get the deeper blacks and properHDRperformance that comes withMini LED . Another feature missing here is the 120HzProMotionvariable refresh pace technical school , with this just a standard 60hz display .

The shift to thinner bezels has allowed Apple to stretch the projection screen out , moving it from 13.3 to 13.6 - inches . This come up with a downside though – there ’s a sinewy notch digging into the display from the top . The notch does n’t necessarily bother me and it does blend in finally , but the lack of true upgrades to the webcam ( see the Performance surgical incision for more ) make it harder to swallow .

The resolve has been upped from 2560 x 1600 to 2560 x 1664 to make up for the bigger screen and the panel is brighter than its predecessor . In my lab tests , the sieve hit the maximal 500 - nit brightness that Apple claimed . That ’s importantly smart than the average 300 - nit laptop filmdom .

In my daily role , I tended to keep the brightness at around 50 % , which I feel was well-heeled on my centre in a well - lit elbow room . Having that extra few hundred nits uncommitted does make it operational out-of-doors , something dimmer screen are n’t capable of .

Performance

After the huge leaping fore Apple made with itsM1 splintering , the move toM2was always going to be far more minimal . While I will get onto performance shortly , let ’s run through the models uncommitted .

you could pick up this laptop computer in two chief configurations : the home model ( $ 1999/£1249 ) has an 8 - core GPU , 8 - core CPU , 16 - core neuronal engine and 8 GB memory . I have been reviewing the pricier version , which will set you back £ 1499/£1549 and fall with the same 8 - gist CPU , 8 GB memory , 16 - essence nervous locomotive engine , but doubles the 256 GB nucleotide storehouse to 512 GB and has a beefier 10 - core GPU .

If you have some concern about the power of the M2 splintering , the M3 model is on the apparent horizon with the chip launch for new Pro models in late 2023 . However , the jump forward does n’t appear to be hugely substantive , with Apple keen to vaunt comparisons between the M3 and older Intel or M1 models rather than the M2 .

256 GB of storage , for me and for most mass I ’ve discussed this laptop with , just is n’t enough . Apps , photos , movies , games etc are all vainglorious these days and I roared past 400 GB just by transfer a small amount of depicted object from my older political machine . There have also been report the 256 GB SSD is slow , however , I have n’t been able to test this myself . If you ’re looking at investing in this machine for the long draw then I would suggest plumping for the dear model .

you could also pay $ 200/£200 for 16 GB memory or $ 400/£400 for 24 GB , and up to $ 800/£800 for a 2 TB SSD . As with all Apple machines , the cost will rocket up when you commence customising the internals . If you spec the MacBook Air up to 16 GB remembering then you ’ll be expend $ 1699/£1749 – that ’s closing in on a few hundred pound than the 16 GB , 512 GB MacBook Pro 14 - inch , which comes with a far superior screen , more ports and fast internals . If you ’ve mulled want a bigger screen too , then there ’s the have a bun in the oven 15 - inch Air coming down the stock , potential with a start price a couple of hundred dollars higher than the 13 - inch .

The MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) is being sold alongside the M1 version from 2020 , and that intend a terms leap for the young models . This is no longer a £ 999/$999 laptop and that pull in it far less attainable for many .

I would n’t really advocate someone bear that extra just for the startle in carrying out from the M1 to the M2 . There are lowly upgrades in all the benchmarking mental test I lean which you could see below , but I did n’t notice too much extra carrying out in real - world utilisation .

Test Data

However , this remain one of the most capable laptops in its size range simply due to the howling performance of Apple ’s M - serial chip . This might not be a laptop computer with a ‘ Pro ’ sobriquet , but it can easily plow pro tasks .

4 kibibyte TV redaction in both Adobe ’s Premiere Pro and Apple ’s Final Cut Pro is easily achievable , with smooth scrolling through timelines . The only fashion I managed to slow the machine down while editing 4 thou footage transferred across from an iPhone was to have it plugged into Apple ’s 5KStudio Display .

One of my favourite ways of spending ( ok , wasting ) meter is onFootball Manager 2022 , and this is a notoriously processor - intensive game to unravel . My partner has a 13 - inch Intel MacBook Air and the biz shinny on that simple machine , restricting graphical performance . That ’s not an issue at all on the M2 MacBook Air , with the game let more ramp up all the options without slowdown . Extended play school term did make the laptop computer red-hot though .

Unlike the 13 - inch MacBook Pro M2 ( 2022 ) , the MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) does n’t have a fan . That means this political machine is silent all the time , but it could fall down when it amount to sustained activities . I do n’t have the MacBook Pro M2 here to compare , so ca n’t make any opinion on that yet . Still , if your work relies on support activities like long renders then you ’ll have good execution from a machine with a fan , like the MacBook Pro M2 or MacBook Pro 14 - in .

A fate of questions I have been ask about this simple machine relate to its memory . As I observe above , up the RAM from 8 to 16 GB come up at a exorbitant $ 200/£200 cost , and plumping for this choice makes this even more expensive than it starts at . I ’ve been using the 8 GB version and I conceive for most people it ’s perfectly fine . I have point out a few round of memory slowdown , but this is ordinarily when I have big applications spark Lightroom or Photoshop clear , along with the Chrome web internet browser open and stuffed with tabs .

It ’s still worth call up that you ’ll get the adept performance here by run apps that are natively built for Apple Silicon . Intel - plan apps mostly act upon ( I have n’t found an app I habituate that does n’t work in over a yr ) but they run through a rendering bed called Rosetta 2 so performance will be feign .

I ’ve been impressed by the operation elsewhere , too . The improved utterer sound cracking consider the sizing of the machine and the microphone plunk up my vocalization clearly in Zoom calls . The 1080p webcam is better than previous MacBook Air laptop , but it ’s far from the best I have seen . Too often the images it produces are granulose and a bit lifeless .

Battery Life

Apple ’s M1 machines have produced outstanding endurance , and the M2 version mirror that even if it does n’t push things that much further .

Over the two weeks of using the MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) every day as my main work machine , I have n’t had to touch for the charger at all during a typical 9 to 5.30 day . This day would include a few hours of Zoom call , dateless Slack substance , typewrite in Google Docs and occasional round of Photoshop and Lightroom .

At the remainder of the day , I would typically be left with around 20 % left – enough for the starting time of the next day . This was on par with the answer I got when I reviewed theMacBook Air M1 . I hightail it a loop 1080p video with the light set to 50 % , and the MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) live for near 14 hours , which is up from 12 minute of the M1 auto . If you hop for even more than this , it seems safe to assume a newfangled 15 - inch MacBook Air would come with a larger battery , but this is n’t confirmed .

Oddly , the charging position is a little confusing here . The base example ships with a fairly basic 30w courser with a single USB - light speed port , while the pricier option comes with a 35w charger with 2 ports – so you’re able to change both your earphone and MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) at the same time .

But , if you do go for the $ 1499/£1549 model you could swop that dual - port charger for a firm single - port 67w version that ’ll level the machine much faster . you’re able to also devote more for this if you ’re going for the base example . libertine charging is always a big hike for me , so I would always go for that option even over the convenience of two ports .

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Should you buy it?

The sleek blueprint makes this a wondrously portable laptop , but one that does n’t give public presentation .

The MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) is expensive , especially when the M1 version remains an fantabulous buy and is more affordable .

Final Thoughts

In 2024 , the MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) remains one of the best laptops around . You get a top - notch display and a luxuriant portable design .

barrage fire life is some of the best on the securities industry , while theM2 processordoesn’t just chew through basic job but is more than capable of escape through more ‘ pro ’ task with ease .

My only real event with the MacBook Air M2 ( 2022 ) is the price . It ’s more expensive than theM1 versionwhich stay on a very just buy , and once you start upping the memory you ’re not far off the technically superiorMacBook Pro 14 - inch ( 2023)or the new M3 MacBook Pro .

You also now have the selection of a15 - inch MacBook Air , if a larger screen is something you ’d prefer . TheM3version is anticipate to set down in 2024 too , so you may want to await but early signs do n’t suggest it ’ll be a huge jump forward . Then , when it comes to MacBook alternatives , theAsus Zenbook 14 OLEDis able to run this gimmick close while offering good play support .

If this car vacillate around the £ 1000/$1000 bull’s eye it would be thebest laptopwithout interrogation , but at its current asking price it might be a small too pricey for many .

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How we test

Every laptop we review goes through a series of uniform checks designed to gauge key matter including human body quality , performance , screen quality and battery spirit .

These let in stately synthetic benchmarks and scripted tests , plus a series of real - world hitch , such as how well it run popular apps .

FAQs

No , none of Apple ’s laptop have a touch display

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