Apple MacBook Air M3: Is the new chip worth the price or is it better to get the M1? | Practical video training

Launched in Brazil at the beginning of March, the mission of the MacBook Air M3 is to continue Apple's good legacy when it comes to lightweight, premium laptops with good autonomy.

In this generation, the device received new chipsets and some internal improvements, but it still retains the essence of previous generations.

Is it worth moving from MacBook Air M1 to M3? For those who want their first MacBook, is it worth it to buy this model or the older model?

Find out more details about the MacBook Air M3 in this quick hands-on. Scroll to the bottom of the page!

When you take the MacBook Air M3 out of the box, it gives the impression that you're picking up a device from last year or even a MacBook M1.

In the model tested, we have a 13-inch screen and this is good for those looking for mobility, as the laptop fits into any backpack or briefcase.

However, for those who prefer a larger option, Apple offers the version with a 15-inch screen. In terms of construction, the laptop features a metal chassis which gives it a sturdy feel, while its weight of just 1.2kg is excellent for everyday use.

The Apple keyboard is good and has the perfect distance, even for those with larger fingers. The trackpad is undoubtedly one of the best available on the market.

In terms of connectivity, the MacBook Air M3 is modest by only offering two standard USB-C Thunderbolt ports, a P2 headphone port, and the reborn MagSafe. The advantage of the return of MagSafe is that you now have two free USB ports while charging the laptop.

But, if you prefer, you can also charge using any of the Thunderbolt ports. In terms of connectivity, Wi-Fi has been updated to version 6E, Bluetooth 5.3 for connecting to wireless headphones and also supports two displays, something previously unheard of in Apple's cheapest laptops.

In the box, Apple sends the notebook, a 30W or 35W USB-C power adapter, depending on device specifications, and a USB-C to MagSafe 3 cable.

The MacBook Air M3's display is a 13-inch Liquid Retina display with a maximum brightness of 500 nits. As expected, this monitor has excellent color calibration and can provide a high level of accuracy.

The only annoying point for many is the presence of a notch to accommodate the 1080p webcam. Audio-wise, in this tested model we have four Dolby Atmos certified speakers.

This ensures good volume and, oddly enough, well-calibrated sound for the laptop. You can hear that there is a bit of bass in the sound and it is noticeable.

The MacBook Air M3's chipset is, without a doubt, more powerful than the M1, but the improvement over the M2 is modest. Moreover, this notebook does not have active cooling, like the MacBook Pro version.

So, the MacBook Air is clearly designed for people who will be browsing the web, viewing messages, editing documents and media like photos in Photoshop, and viewing light video.

This is because negative heat dissipation will eventually undermine processing power when the chip temperature rises further. In raw numbers, the M3's performance is 25% higher than the M1's.

In other words, it's an interesting improvement, but it doesn't make much of a difference in everyday life. Even more so in this context of lighter use.

Regarding RAM, which Apple usually calls unified, we have 8 GB by default. The Cupertino giant says this amount is more than enough for most light activities, since macOS can manage RAM well.

But, if you wish, you can expand the RAM to 16GB or 24GB at the time of purchase. Storage capacity starts at 256GB and you can also upgrade to 512GB, 1TB, or even 2TB.

In terms of autonomy, the MacBook Air M3 manages to stand out compared to Windows laptops, even more so now that the chip is more efficient thanks to the 3nm build process.

Apple guarantees up to 18 hours of autonomy with the MacBook Air, but in our daily use tests, we averaged between 12 and 16 hours during a hard workday.

In other words, it is an excellent brand, and for many, the MacBook Air M3 can provide up to two days of autonomy if used more lightly.

MacOS Sonoma is the operating system that runs on the MacBook Air M3 and is highly optimized for use on laptops with an ARM chip. In other words, the porting process that started on M1 is practically over and you will see the vast majority of software running locally.

This results in good performance not only for everyday tasks, but also for file editing or even casual gaming. But it is necessary to note that the system is definitely not suitable for gamers, but programmers, editors and other professionals can make good use of it.

An important detail is that the Mac is truly capable of extracting everything and more from the 8GB of RAM of the base model of the MacBook Air M3.

Even if you open many Chrome tabs and run some heavy programs, the system will give you good processing without any hiccups.

The transitions also continue to be rich and the MacBook's mouse pad features some gestures that speed up your work to the point where you forget about the mouse.

Is it worth migrating from M1 or M2 to M3? The simple and direct answer is no. Regarding the M2, it is necessary to emphasize that progress has been very minimal.

When we take the MacBook Air M1 into consideration, it's also not worth moving to this laptop with the M3. This is because the improvement in performance, although significant in numbers, is not reflected much in daily use.

For those who want to enter the world of Apple and get a MacBook, the best option is to buy the model with the M1 chip.

This is because the basic model of the MacBook Air with the M3 chip costs R $ 12,500 on Apple's official website. In this, you only get the basic combination of 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage.

If you are going to upgrade your RAM, you will have to pay an additional R$2,000. Not to mention, the M3 chip with a 10-core GPU starts at R$14,500.

On the other hand, the MacBook Air M1 can now be found in national retail promotions at a cost of around R $ 6,800 in the basic version.

Therefore, we can say that the MacBook Air M1 will be a gateway for many Brazilians to the world of Apple.