Apple's New MacBook Air Gets Beaten By This Surprising Laptop

Featuring the Apple Silicon M2 processor, the latest MacBook Air offers glamour, speed, and luxury all in one package. As for everyone else, you might want to consider a two-year-old laptop over Apple's latest and greatest MacBook Air... Apple's other MacBook Air. Those looking for the apex of consumer laptops that run macOS do not need to look any further.

The M1 MacBook Air has not only remained in Apple's lineup but it is still priced at $999. Because there has been a long history of reluctance to drop below $1,000 for a new MacBook (although you should still apply an educational discount), it shouldn't be surprising that this entry-level macOS laptop continues to cost this much.

It's surprising that Apple retained the M1 MacBook Air but added the M2 MacBook Air above it. The 'base' laptop can be raised $300 with one hand from a business point of view while still maintaining the psychological $999 as the starting price for all your laptops.

In short, you will have to keep your older laptops around in order to meet the vast majority of your customer's needs at a lower cost.

As a result of Apple Silicon unlocking a higher level of performance on the entry-level M1 chipset, many consumers, who used to use MacBook Pros in the Intel days, found the MacBook Air's performance to be higher than their existing Pros. In their eyes, the Air was enough, just as it was for macOS users who needed a reliable computer to use every day.

Upon the arrival of the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro powered by the M1 Max and M1 Ultra, the MacBook Pro lived up to that 'professional' tag. In the wake of the arrival of the M2, the MacBook Air has received a performance boost of around 20%.

Despite its performance bump, the M1 MacBook Air still meets the needs of most consumers. There are a limited number of users who actually require 'a little more power, but not too much that I need a MacBook Pro'.

Apple's M1 MacBook Air delivers when it comes to capability. If the specifications are not enough to attract you, what about the sparkle?

Rather than the new design language spreading across the Mac market, you get the same tired old look that hasn't changed since 2016. You don't get the mag-safe power connector or fast charging... what you get is the same old tired design that hasn't changed in two years.

For some, this will be enough to ensure the M2 MacBook Air gets the sale because Apple has a cachet of being fashionable and meeting new expectations. When Apple finally introduces the five pastel colors seen on the Apple Silicon iMac desktops in the near future, this is probably the same crowd that will update to another M2 MacBook Air.

The M2 MacBook Air doesn't yet feel like it is at its destination due to the ever-changing fashion goalposts. With every new update to the Apple Silicon platform, Apple continues to redefine what a laptop can do, and geeks are in a daze at the headline numbers. It's not about the biggest number in the world; it's about a laptop that works comfortably and efficiently in the real world.

In many cases, the M1 MacBook Air is a more affordable workhorse that offers the same specs as the M2 model.