When Apple unveiled the M3 MacBook Air in a subdued manner, forgoing the spectacle of a major launch event, it appeared to be a mere incremental upgrade, focusing on embedding a new chipset into its elegantly designed ultrabook series.
Yet, there’s an important enhancement Apple didn’t spotlight, which is particularly relevant for those eyeing the base 256GB models of both the M2 and M3 MacBook Air models.
In essence, Apple has made significant improvements to the SSD speeds in the 256GB model. This detail is crucial for those considering the entry-level option, making a compelling case to opt for the 256GB M3 Air over the now more affordable M2 version with identical storage.
The primary concern with the most affordable M2 MacBook Air model was its use of a single 256GB storage chip. This setup not only made it slower compared to its higher-capacity counterparts but also compared to the M1 MacBook Air, which divided the same 256GB capacity across two 128GB storage chips.
With the M3 MacBook Air, performance has been boosted. A teardown by the YouTube channel Max Tech revealed that the 256GB M3 MacBook Air has reverted to using two 128GB NAND chips, allowing for simultaneous operations and significantly faster data transfer speeds.
The performance improvement is significant. The M3 model reached write speeds of 2,108MB/s — a roughly 33% increase over the M2 model’s 1,584MB/s. The leap in read speeds is even more impressive, nearly doubling from 1,576MB/s for the M2 to 2,880MB/s for the M3.
These speeds closely match those of the 256GB M1 MacBook Air, which had write speeds of 2,221MB/s and read speeds of 2,910MB/s. Although slightly slower, the differences are minimal and likely only noticeable through benchmark testing. More importantly, these speeds are bolstered by the significant performance upgrades of the M3 chip compared to the M1.
A comprehensive review of the new M3 MacBook Air models is forthcoming, but preliminary impressions of both the 13-inch and 15-inch versions are already positive. Early feedback suggests that Apple has produced yet another standout product, with minimal drawbacks.
“You get very strong performance from the M3 chip paired with super long battery life, a great display, and a sturdy, lightweight design,” concludes our global editor-in-chief, Mark Spoonauer in his hands-on review of the 15-inch M3 MacBook Air. “Competing Windows laptops with Intel Core Ultra 7 processors offer a bit more raw processing power, but they’re not in the same league as the 15-inch Air when it comes to endurance.“
