Apple Announces New MacBook Air With M4 Chip, Sky Blue Color, and $999 Starting Price

Apple has announced an updated MacBook Air featuring the new M4 chip, offering improved performance, battery life, and features, along with a new color option—sky blue. Available alongside the existing colors midnight, starlight, and silver, the MacBook Air now starts at $999 and will be available for purchase beginning March 12, 2025.

The major upgrades on the new model include a performance boost from the new M4 chip, an improved 12 MP Center Stage camera, and enhanced external display support. Users will also have the option to integrate ChatGPT directly into macOS for productivity tasks, which can be accessed without an OpenAI account and with privacy protections.

Key Specifications

• Processor: Apple M4 chip
  • 10-core CPU
  • Up to 10-core GPU
  • Neural Engine up to 3x faster than M1
• Display:
  • 13.6-inch or 15.3-inch Liquid Retina display
  • 500 nits brightness
  • Enhanced external display support
• Memory & Storage:
  • Up to 32 GB unified memory
  • Configurable SSD options
• Camera:
  • New 12 MP Center Stage camera
• Battery Life:
  • Up to 18 hours
• Colors:
  • Sky blue (new)
  • Midnight
  • Starlight
  • Silver
• Connectivity:
  • MagSafe charging
  • Two Thunderbolt ports
  • 3.5mm headphone jack
• Audio & Microphone:
  • Three-mic array
  • Spatial audio support
• Networking:
  • Wi-Fi 6
• Operating System:
  • macOS Sequoia 15.4
  • Built-in Apple Intelligence features including optional ChatGPT integration
• Security & Privacy:
  • Private Cloud Compute for secure cloud-based processing
• Battery Life:
  • Up to 18 hours per charge
• Design:
  • Fanless, aluminum unibody
  • Colors: Sky blue (new), Midnight, Starlight, Silver

Additional features include Touch ID, Apple Pay support, backlit Magic Keyboard, and a commitment to environmental sustainability with over 95% recycled lithium in the battery, 100% recycled aluminum, and entirely fiber-based packaging.

Pricing starts at $999 ($899 for education) for the 13-inch model and $1,199 ($1,099 for education) for the 15-inch model. Both sizes are available for preorder now, with shipping and in-store availability starting March 12, 2025.