Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)
Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)
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GENERAL USE: Very Good—8.5/10
GAMING/AI: Fair—6.6/10
ENG/DESIGN: Good—7.9/10
SOFTWARE DEV: Very Good—8.4/10
CONTENT CREATION: Very Good—8.5/10
PORTABILITY: Very Good—8.9/10
BATTERY: Excellent—9.3/10
OVERALL SCREEN QUALITY: Very Good—8.0/10
OVERALL PERFORMANCE: Good—7.1/10
SIZE: 15.3"
Evaluation
Pros
- High-resolution screen
- Long battery life
- Lightweight and thin
- Fanless, silent operation
- Solid build quality
Cons
- Limited RAM capacity
- Fewer available ports
- Moderate 3D performance
- No touchscreen option
Ratings by Category
Build Quality:5.0
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, chassis rigidity, and overall reliability. Our assessment of build quality includes many details that are difficult to quantify. Our laptop experts use their best judgment to produce the final score.
Operating Noise:5.0
PerfectRec’s Operating Noise Score is based on fan noise measurements. Laptops with a fanless design, such as Macbooks, receive the maximum score.
Keyboard Quality:5.0
The Keyboard Quality score is based on the PerfectRec experts’ assessment of tactile feedback, typing comfort, keyboard reliability and typing noise.
Battery Life:4.8
PerfectRec’s Battery Life rating is based on hours of battery life in typical usage scenarios.
Portability:4.7
PerfectRec’s portability rating takes into account the volume and thickness of the laptop as well as its weight.
General Use:4.6
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) excels in general use due to its robust Apple M2 processor and 8 GB of RAM that ensure smooth multitasking and speedy performance, while the 15.3-inch IPS display provides vivid and accurate colors with high brightness for outstanding visual quality.
Content Creation:4.6
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, and video editing work.
In addition to a strong emphasis on overall performance, this score also places very high importance on screen quality. Heat management, storage, keyboard and speaker quality are also incorporated, with fan noise rounding out this score.
Software Development:4.5
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software development.
In addition to a strong emphasis on overall performance, this score also places very high importance on screen quality. Heat management, storage, keyboard and speaker quality are also incorporated, with fan noise rounding out this score.
General Use Screen Quality:4.5
The general use screen score is based on the screen technology, contrast ratio, resolution, brightness, color gamut and color accuracy. This score does not take into account specialized display features for specific use cases, such as high refresh rate for gaming.
Engineering & Design:4.4
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) is equipped with a powerful Apple M2 CPU and integrated 10-core GPU which handle complex engineering and design applications smoothly, and its high-resolution IPS screen offers sharp, color-accurate visuals necessary for detailed work in these fields.
Gaming & AI:3.7
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)'s GPU, the Apple M2 with a 10-core GPU, is adequate but not as powerful as dedicated gaming or professional graphics cards, which limits its ability to handle high-end 3D tasks efficiently. Additionally, its screen, while high-resolution, has a standard refresh rate of 60Hz, which is fine for casual use but might not provide the smoothest experience for 3D applications that benefit from higher refresh rates.
Full Specs
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
| Price | $1,699 | ||
Release Date | June 1, 2023 | ||
Overall Dimensions | 13.4'' x 9.4'' x 0.45'' | ||
Weight | 3.3 lbs | ||
Width | 13.4" | ||
Depth | 9.35" | ||
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | Apple M2 | ||
RAM | 8 GB | ||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | ||
RAM Slots | 0 | ||
Storage | 1024 GB | ||
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | 15 Hours | ||
Battery Capacity | 66.6 Wh | ||
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | 15.3" | ||
Display Technology | IPS | ||
Resolution | 2880 x 1864 | ||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | ||
Display Brightness | 501 nits | ||
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score  | 10/10 | ||
Portability Score | 9/10 | ||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | ||
Premium Business Laptop | Yes | ||
Fan Noise Score | 10/10 | ||
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | 10/10 | ||
Speaker Quality Score | 10/10 | ||
Webcam | 1080p | ||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | ||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | ||
Number Pad | No | ||
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | 0 | ||
USB-C ports | 2 | ||
USB-C Charging | Yes | ||
Display Outputs | 1 | ||
Thunderbolt Version | 3 | ||
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Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)
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NotebookCheck
Andreas Osthoff | June 2023
"The Apple MacBook Air 15 is boringly good. The new MacBook Air 15 is a very good, but also boring device, because apart from the larger screen and the higher price, there are no differences compared to the smaller MacBook Air M2 from last year. No new processor, no additional ports, just the usual basic hardware - but the overall package is extremely good and it simply works. Above all, the lack of fans is an aspect that should not be underestimated in everyday use. In our opinion, the Air could be a lot better, but Apple goes easy on itself here."
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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
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Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
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Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
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