The MacRumors Show: Apple's New MacBook Air With M3!

[MacRumors]

On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss Apple's new MacBook Air models featuring the M3 chip.

Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos​

We delve into the new machines' features, exploring upgrades such as the M3 chip, improved microphones, and more versatile external display support. We discuss the MacBook Air's ideal configurations and key buying decisions, weighing the new machines up against the MacBook Pro, and take a look at where the MacBook Air could be headed next amid reports of an significant upgrade to OLED display technology in the future. We also discuss the rest of Apple's rumored announcements for March, which include new OLED iPad Pro models, a new Apple Pencil, and a redesigned Magic Keyboard accessory.

The MacRumors Show is now on its own YouTube channel, so make sure you're subscribed to keep up with new episodes and clips going forward:

Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel!​

You can also listen to The MacRumors Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, or your preferred podcasts app. You can also copy our RSS feed directly into your podcast player.

​

If you haven't already listened to the previous episode of The MacRumors Show, catch up for our discussion about Apple's decision to cancel its long-rumored electric vehicle project.

Subscribe to The MacRumors Show for new episodes every week, where we discuss some of the topical news breaking here on MacRumors, often joined by interesting guests such as Brian Tong, Quinn Nelson, Kevin Nether, Jared Nelson, Eli Hodapp, Luke Miani, Mike Bell, Sara Dietschy, iJustine, Jon Rettinger, Andru Edwards, Arnold Kim, Ben Sullins, Marcus Kane, Christopher Lawley, Frank McShan, David Lewis, Tyler Stalman, Jon Prosser, Sam Kohl, John Gruber, Federico Viticci, Thomas Frank, Jonathan Morrison, Ross Young, Ian Zelbo, and Rene Ritchie.

The MacRumors Show is on X @MacRumorsShowhttps://twitter.com/macrumorsshow, so be sure to give us a follow to keep up with the podcast. You can also head over to The MacRumors Show forum thread to engage with us directly. Remember to rate and review the podcast, and let us know what subjects and guests you would like to see in the future.

Article Link: The MacRumors Show: Apple's New MacBook Air With M3!

 

[StoneJack]

it is a good machine

 

[dannyyankou]

I'm considering upgrading. But I have a feeling they're going to increase the base storage to 512gb any moment now. Maybe I'll wait until next year.

 

[SoldOnApple]

If the Air came with 32 or 64GB of RAM I may have considered it. I guess that's what the Pro and Max is for.

 

[Fuzzball84]

Its very iterative over the M2 macbook air… and thats what most people expected.

The M2 Macbook Air is now the best consumer laptop for the vast majority.

More exciting will be what they do to ipad air and magic keyboard… repositioning the FaceTime camera could make me jump to that as a decent all round device alongside my surface laptop go. My Macbook Air M2 currently sits between my ipad air with magic keyboard and my surface laptop go. But more improvements to the iPad air could make me get rid of the macbook air in that equation.

 

[trusso]

I’m convinced half the reason Hartley helped start the MacRumors podcast is so he (and Dan) could practice a new pose each week.

I’ll let each of you decide if that was kudos or a swipe.

 

[Sixteengigabytes]

8GB ram though. Seems beyond stingy at this point. Not sure if it’s the increased rate of obsolescence and lack of future proofing, or the $300 to add 8GB extra ram, either way I’ll skip this generation yet again. Customers can play this game too, Apple. Make 16gb ram standard and I’ll open my wallet.

 

[Fuzzball84]

If the Air came with 32 or 64GB of RAM I may have considered it. I guess that's what the Pro and Max is for.

What is your use case? if its more than bursty processor tasks then the Pro makes sense in every single possible way considering it has an active cooler. Never mind the 32 or 64 RAM.

The Air is passively cooled.. and is perfect for bursty processor tasks.

 

[Fuzzball84]

If the Air came with 32 or 64GB of RAM I may have considered it. I guess that's what the Pro and Max is for.

The Air is just not designed for that memory spec… you're well into the spec of Macbook Pro etc with that memory requirement.

The Air is a product for the average consumer apple sells to… and the vast majority will take the base model with 8 GB.

Its like telling people you'd consider a fiat 500, if it came with an engine you'd find in a Ferrari.

 

[redcarlsen]

It's funny the way they talk about a $1k+ machine as being good for people..... Whose tasks would just as easily be fulfilled by a $200 Chromebook or tablet. Lol.
30 years of exponential processing power advancement! Now you can check email and listen to music!

 

[DrewHawk]

Got mine today. Midnight 10/16/512. It's very very nice. I'm sure I will use this as my on the go daily driver for 5 years.

 

[einsteinbqat]

@Hartley How can you not like Starlight!!! 😁

 

[SoldOnApple]

The Air is just not designed for that memory spec… you're well into the spec of Macbook Pro etc with that memory requirement.

The Air is a product for the average consumer apple sells to… and the vast majority will take the base model with 8 GB.

Its like telling people you'd consider a fiat 500, if it came with an engine you'd find in a Ferrari.

More like I would consider a fiat 500 if it came with a larger fuel tank.

 

[DrewHawk]

The Air is just not designed for that memory spec… you're well into the spec of Macbook Pro etc with that memory requirement.

The Air is a product for the average consumer apple sells to… and the vast majority will take the base model with 8 GB.

Its like telling people you'd consider a fiat 500, if it came with an engine you'd find in a Ferrari.

So this is the problem with Apple's strategy. They are many of use choosing the Air for its light weight only. I want every possible spec possible while keeping it at this weight. Look at the Dell XPS 13. It's specced out like crazy with one of the best screens I have ever seen. The only thing the XPS doesn't have is a good GPU and that's because if they added it it would need a major cooling solution that would make it big and heavy.

They need to stop treating the Air as the "Mainstream budget" model and start just making it as the best ultralight on the market. I would be fine with an Air that cost more than the Pro if it was still 2.7 lbs and had an OLED etc.

 

[darngooddesign]

On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss Apple's new MacBook Air models featuring the M3 chip.

Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos​

We delve into the new machines' features, exploring upgrades such as the M3 chip, improved microphones, and more versatile external display support. We discuss the MacBook Air's ideal configurations and key buying decisions, weighing the new machines up against the MacBook Pro, and take a look at where the MacBook Air could be headed next amid reports of an significant upgrade to OLED display technology in the future. We also discuss the rest of Apple's rumored announcements for March, which include new OLED iPad Pro models, a new Apple Pencil, and a redesigned Magic Keyboard accessory.

The MacRumors Show is now on its own YouTube channel, so make sure you're subscribed to keep up with new episodes and clips going forward:

Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel!​

You can also listen to The MacRumors Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, or your preferred podcasts app. You can also copy our RSS feed directly into your podcast player.

​

If you haven't already listened to the previous episode of The MacRumors Show, catch up for our discussion about Apple's decision to cancel its long-rumored electric vehicle project.

Subscribe to The MacRumors Show for new episodes every week, where we discuss some of the topical news breaking here on MacRumors, often joined by interesting guests such as Brian Tong, Quinn Nelson, Kevin Nether, Jared Nelson, Eli Hodapp, Luke Miani, Mike Bell, Sara Dietschy, iJustine, Jon Rettinger, Andru Edwards, Arnold Kim, Ben Sullins, Marcus Kane, Christopher Lawley, Frank McShan, David Lewis, Tyler Stalman, Jon Prosser, Sam Kohl, John Gruber, Federico Viticci, Thomas Frank, Jonathan Morrison, Ross Young, Ian Zelbo, and Rene Ritchie.

The MacRumors Show is on X @MacRumorsShowhttps://twitter.com/macrumorsshow, so be sure to give us a follow to keep up with the podcast. You can also head over to The MacRumors Show forum thread to engage with us directly. Remember to rate and review the podcast, and let us know what subjects and guests you would like to see in the future.

Article Link: The MacRumors Show: Apple's New MacBook Air With M3!

If you used Notion AI for that Notion ad, it should have suggested “sent fewer emails”, not “sent less emails”.

 

[Fuzzball84]

It's funny the way they talk about a $1k+ machine as being good for people..... Whose tasks would just as easily be fulfilled by a $200 Chromebook or tablet. Lol.
30 years of exponential processing power advancement! Now you can check email and listen to music!

Remember this is a Mac forum... and the people and their opinions here (including the MacRumors show videos) are expected to be quite different from the average consumer.

Indeed most Apple users could do what they need to do on a $200 Chromebook... and some of those devices are pretty good too. You could probably do most things on a raspberry pi 5... or a 10 to 15 year old PC.

There is a minority group of Apple users who think its Apple and nothing else... while most of us happily use Apple with a bunch of other platforms and devices.

I think you have to remember that Apple is what you could call a "prosumer" company... they make devices and services which are meant to be premium, hence the higher cost. And a lot of Apple is about the image.. While they do make high quality devices and software... some of their choices are questionable... butterfly keyboard, all of their wired accessories (lack of strain relief leading to common fraying problems), inelegant and inergonomic design (Mouse), lack of consistency in naming and branding of products (MacBook, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro)....

 

[Melbourne Park]

My wife has a 5 year and a bit (its on site warranty just ran out) HP Elite book x-360. She uses it for all her writing, emails, etc etc. Then, she uses a pre M processor iPad, whose battery has gone and Apple will not replace its battery. She would not get a MacBook of any flavour for one simple and obvious reason - she touches the screen all the time. On both her HP notebook, and also her iPad.

It's crazy that Apple don't have a touch screen on all their notebooks. If Apple had a touch screen iMac, I'd buy her one. It's compact and powerful. But with no touch screen, it's not an option for any Windows user, who is used to the convenience of touch screens. So I'll buy her probably another Elitebook X-360. Or just keep the old one going. It also has a coffee spill proof keyboard. Why don't Apple?

If Apple want to get Windows users to cross over, they have to have a touch screen notebook. Come to think of it, maybe I should just switch from a mixed house to all Windows. Then everyone would be happy.