Apple Says New MacBook Air Up to 23x Faster Than Intel-Based Model, But Read the Fine Print

[MacRumors]

Apple has a staggering marketing claim for the new MacBook Air with the M4 chip.

Specifically, Apple says the new MacBook Air is up to 23x faster than the last Intel-based model. However, there are some details in the fine print to be aware of.

First, Apple said it compared a new 2025 MacBook Air with a 10-core M4 chip and 32GB of RAM to a 2020 MacBook Air with a quad-core Intel Core i7 processor and 16GB of RAM. Both of the MacBook Air models were configured with a 2TB SSD. These are the best specifications that are or were available for each of these MacBook Air models.

So, Apple compared the new model to the fastest-ever Intel-based MacBook Air. That's fair.

Second, Apple said its test consisted of using the Super Resolution feature on a 4.4MB image in image editing app Pixelmator Pro — which it now owns. The feature uses machine learning to increase the resolution of images, while preserving sharpness and details.

So, the up to 23x faster performance claim is tied to quite a specific task.

Here is what Apple's fine print says in full:

Testing conducted by Apple in January 2025 using preproduction 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air systems with Apple M4, 10-core CPU, 10-core GPU, and 32GB of RAM, as well as production 1.2GHz quad-core Intel Core i7-based MacBook Air systems with Intel Iris Plus Graphics and 16GB of RAM, all configured with 2TB SSD. Tested using Super Resolution with Pixelmator Pro 3.6.14 and a 4.4MB image. Performance tests are conducted using specific computer systems and reflect the approximate performance of MacBook Air.

What about other tasks? Apple provided some more comparisons:

- Spreadsheet calculation performance in Microsoft Excel is up to 4.7x faster than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Air, and up to 1.6x faster than the 13-inch MacBook Air with M1.
- Video editing in iMovie is up to 8x faster than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Air, and up to 2x faster than the 13-inch MacBook Air with M1.
- Photo editing in Adobe Photoshop is up to 3.6x faster than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Air, and up to 2x faster than the 13-inch MacBook Air with M1.
- Web browsing is up to 60 percent faster when compared to a PC laptop with an Intel Core Ultra 7 processor, and more demanding tasks get up to 2x faster performance.

Those claims seem more realistic for most users.

Ultimately, while the 23x claim might be overselling things a bit, it is true that any MacBook Air with an M1 chip or newer is dramatically faster than any Intel-based model. If you have been holding off on upgrading, you are in for a treat.

You can pre-order the new MacBook Air now on Apple's online store, and it will begin arriving to customers on Wednesday, March 12.

Article Link: Apple Says New MacBook Air Up to 23x Faster Than Intel-Based Model, But Read the Fine Print

 

[sniffies]

Also, it's 860,000x faster than iBook

 

[jz0309]

well, they are documenting what they are comparing, nothing wrong with that.

Meanwhile, Qualcomm continues to use benchmarks and no real world comparison ...

 

[tyranne201]

and safari still sucks and freezes constantly.

 

[redmac]

At least they let us know exactly what device they are comparing against. Other brands compare their best products against the weakest of the current Macs, and they call it a win against Macs.

Also, I think this comparison is valid. Current owners of Intel Macs and M1 MacBook Airs are the ones who will buy these new models, not the owners of M2/M3 MBAs.

 

[Joe Rossignol]

well, they are documenting what they are comparing, nothing wrong with that.

Meanwhile, Qualcomm continues to use benchmarks and no real world comparison ...

That's fine.

It's this to be aware of: "Apple said its test consisted of using the Super Resolution feature on a 4.4MB image in image editing app Pixelmator Pro."

Very niche, specific task to achieve a mind-blowing 23x-faster marketing claim.

The other tasks that are in the 3-4x faster range are better examples of performance gains to expect when upgrading from an Intel-based MacBook Air, in my opinion.

Still very impressive, as my article concludes.

 

[DBZmusicboy01]

The most important thing is to make software be more stable and smooth like Snow Leopard. That will make things much better and feel much faster as well.

 

[ShivneelSingh]

I just want it compared to my 2021 16” M1 Max MacBook Pro.
I’m tired of lugging around this monster, she’s too heavy.

 

[PsykX]

If you take a look at Geekbench :

• M4 : 14,571
• MacBook Air with Intel Core i7-1060NG7 @ 1.2 GHz (4 cores) : 3166

4.6X faster overall

Some people criticize benchmarks, and I totally get that, but I think this is a fairly good representation.

 

[Astuces iOS]

Yup you guys are right... 23x more might not be realistic in most cases... And we might have the same problem with the M4 against M1 since they are comparing the 32gb of ram against a 16gb... not the base models.

 

[ShivneelSingh]

The most important thing is to make software be more stable and smooth like Snow Leopard. That will make things much better and feel much faster as well.

OMG Snow Leopard!! Literally my favorite OS of all time! I thought I was the only one who had a special place in my heart for it.

 

[PsykX]

I just want it compared to my 2021 16” M1 Max MacBook Pro.
I’m tired of lugging around this monster, she’s too heavy.

The M4 CPU should be 15% faster overall than your M1 Max... if you agree with GeekBench.
The M4 GPU should be almost 50% slower though.

Once again, I also think this is a fair comparison.

 

[pksv]

Macbook Air M4 is 7435923 times faster the Intel based Macbook Air suspended in liquid nitrogen orbiting Triton, Neptune's moon.

 

[redmac]

and safari still sucks and freezes constantly.

Are you using an Intel Mac, or are you making this up?

I usually keep about a hundred Safari tabs open, sometimes several hundreds of them, and never had any issues in any of my M-series Macs.

On the other hand, this may be because my devices are usually loaded with RAM.

 

[iObama]

Not at all! I was on a call with a printer vendor the other day and we were talking about how much we loved Snow Leopard and how it was the greatest OS of all time lol.

 

[theolderoldcoot]

You would hope so. What a dumb statement by Apple

 

[Alvinc]

I am using MacBook Air (2018) which was bought April 2019. Almost six years it's still great.
Of course, M3/4 is much smoother.

 

[iObama]

I am using MacBook Air (2018) which was bought April 2019. Almost six years it's still great.
Of course, M3/4 is much smoother.

We still have a couple of those in our fleet at work, and just booting the damn thing is painful. I'd submit them as the worst Mac Apple's made in the last 25 years.

 

[pksv]

I just want it compared to my 2021 16” M1 Max MacBook Pro.
I’m tired of lugging around this monster, she’s too heavy.

Same dillema and I'm eager to try maxed out Air 15" to see if performance is finally there to be at least in the same ballpark.

 

[iObama]

Same dillema and I'm eager to try maxed out Air 15" to see if performance is finally there to be at least in the same ballpark.

If you're not heavily reliant on the GPU for your workflow, it would probably be close to equivalent.

 

[DTphonehome]

I think we all want to know how much faster it is than the PowerBook G5.

 

[DocMultimedia]

It's probably just 8 times as fast as my 2012 Air. But hey, my 2k12 is still a great media server.

 

[Astuces iOS]

The M4 CPU should be 15% faster overall than your M1 Max... if you agree with GeekBench.
The M4 GPU should be almost 50% slower though.

Once again, I also think this is a fair comparison.

Upgrade might not be worth it I guess… since you are also loosing other things like the display quality, speakers…

 

[HiVolt]

Apple taking cues from nVidia... RTX 5070 has RTX 4090 level of performance. LOL.

 

[dturner123]

I think we all want to know how much faster it is than the PowerBook G5.

Nah. Maybe the iBook. lol. The PowerBook stopped at G4 btw.