MacBook Air M4 Review: Redefining Thin and Capable

The MacBook Air M4 arrived a week ago — an upgrade from my M3 model. I can already hear the skeptics: "Isn't M3 good enough?" After living with it daily, my answer is: yes, the jump is understated, but it's real.

The M4 Chip Is About Headroom, Not Raw Speed

On paper, M4 is roughly 20% faster than M3. In everyday tasks — browsing, writing, spreadsheets — you won't feel that gap in any obvious way. What you will feel is a new sense of breathing room.

Running an Xcode build with 30 Safari tabs open? No stutter. Exporting 100 RAW files in Lightroom while keeping up with Slack messages? Handled without complaint. That stability under multitasking pressure is where M4 earns its keep.

The 10-core GPU is a meaningful addition for video work. Editing 4K footage in DaVinci Resolve on an Air is now genuinely practical — not MacBook Pro territory, but fully capable for YouTube-level projects.

The 18-Hour Battery Claim: How Does It Hold Up?

Apple advertises 18 hours. My usage pattern — cycling between browsing, coding, and light photo editing — consistently landed between 14 and 15 hours.

Short of the spec sheet, but that gap barely matters in practice. I stopped carrying a charger on day trips entirely. Spending five or six hours at a cafe and still having 40%+ left when I get home removes battery anxiety from the equation.

Compared to M3, I'm getting roughly 1.5 extra hours per charge. The idle power draw in particular feels lower — the instant wake from sleep is just as snappy as ever, which remains one of the Air's best daily-use traits.

Where Fanless Design Hits Its Ceiling

Silence is one of the Air's defining qualities, and M4 keeps that promise for everyday work. Push it hard enough, though, and the thermal ceiling makes itself known.

After 30+ minutes of continuous video export, the keyboard deck climbs to around 40°C (~104°F). The task finishes without failing, but you'll feel the warmth if the laptop is on your lap. M3 would sometimes hit thermal throttling under the same workload; M4 handles it better, which is a clear step forward.

That said, if heavy rendering is part of your daily routine, the MacBook Pro is the right tool. The Air is best understood as "everyday workhorse with occasional heavy lifting" — not a dedicated production machine.

The Liquid Retina Display in Practice

The 13.6-inch Liquid Retina panel carries the same spec as M3: 500 nits, P3 wide color gamut. On paper, nothing new. In use, photo editing at this display's color accuracy is entirely satisfying for most workflows.

What I appreciate most is how much better the anti-reflective coating feels compared to earlier models. Working near a window — the kind of cafe situation where older Macs would become mirrors — is noticeably more comfortable now. True Tone's ambient color temperature adjustment is one of those features that earns appreciation only when you notice you've stopped noticing it.

One limitation carries over: a single external display is the maximum. If you need a dual-monitor setup, step up to the MacBook Pro or invest in a DisplayLink-compatible dock.

Price and the Upgrade Decision

In Japan, the MacBook Air M4 starts at 164,800 yen (~$1,100 USD). The upgrade calculus breaks down simply: if you're on M2 or older, this is a strong buy. If you're on M3, there's no rush.

The M2-to-M4 jump alone is substantial: base RAM doubles from 8GB to 16GB, which translates to a fundamentally smoother experience for anything memory-intensive. Add Wi-Fi 7 support and faster Thunderbolt 4, and the overall platform feels properly modernized.

The Bottom Line: Mastering "Just Right"

No headline feature. No dramatic redesign. The MacBook Air M4 simply raises the floor on everything — performance headroom, battery endurance, thermal management — without adding bulk or noise. At 1.24 kg with an honest all-day battery and complete silence, it remains the benchmark for portable laptops.

Not the most powerful laptop you can buy. The most well-balanced one.

Who should buy this:

• Anyone looking for a primary laptop they'll carry every day
• MacBook users on M2 or older considering an upgrade
• Developers, writers, and light photo editors who want reliable performance without thermal surprises

Also worth reading: the iPhone 16 Pro review and AirPods Pro 3 review.