The 15-inch MacBook Air M2 is an extension of the popular MacBook Air M2 – literally. It offers a 15.3-inch display while maintaining the degree of portability promised by the MacBook Air’s name. Apple unveiled the laptop at WWDC 2023, one year after announcing the first M2 MacBook Air.
In terms of specs, there are quite a few similarities between the current 13-inch MacBook Air — our current pick for the best MacBook — and the new 15-inch version. But the larger screen offers some perks beyond just better multitasking. Stronger speakers and a larger battery capacity commensurate with the size of the device.
However, starting at $1,299, the 15-inch MacBook Air moves into the MacBook Pro’s price territory, potentially blurring the lines of two product families. We’ll be able to provide more specific shopping instructions once we’ve done our full review of the 15-inch MacBook Air M2, so in the meantime, here are our hands-on impressions and everything else you’ll want to know about the new laptop.
MacBook Air 15-inch M2 specifications
| Row 0 – cell 0 | 15-inch MacBook Air (starting up) |
| price | $1299 |
| Colors | midnight, stars, gray space, silver |
| CPU | Octa core processor |
| GPU | Eight core graphics processor |
| an offer | 15.3 inches (2880 x 1864) |
| memory | 8 GB |
| storage | 256 GB |
| ports | Two Thunderbolt / USB-4, microphone |
| webcam | 1080p |
| Shipping | 35W MagSafe; 70 watts USB-C |
| measuring | 13.40 x 9.53 x 0.45 in |
| Weight | 3.3 pounds |
MacBook Air 15-inch M2 price and release date
The 15-inch MacBook Air M2 starts at $1,299 and is available June 13, 2023. Here’s our guide on how to pre-order the 15-inch MacBook Air if you want to be a Day 1 user.
With entry-level configurations, the 15-inch MacBook Air comes with 256GB of storage, 8GB of RAM, and an eight-core CPU and eight-core GPU. It can be expanded up to 2TB and 24GB of RAM, though you’ll pay a much higher price.
As a result of the launch of the 15-inch MacBook Air, the starting price of the 13-inch MacBook Air has been reduced to $1,099. Both devices are available in four colors: midnight, starlight, silver, and space gray.
MacBook Air 15-inch M2 design and display
The 15-inch MacBook Air M2 looks like the 13-inch MacBook Air’s big brother. It follows the same design language introduced last year — a flat, unified body with flat edges. It maintains a slim body with a thickness of only 11mm.
It weighs 3.3 pounds, which isn’t much heavier than the 2.7-pound, 13-inch machine. Portability is rooted in the MacBook Air brand, so it’s nice to see that Apple doesn’t seem to compromise too much on creating a larger screen size.
The screen measures 15.3 inches diagonally, which apparently offers 25% more screen than the Air’s 13-inch display; However, the actual display specs don’t change much with 500 nits brightness and the same P3 color gamut supported on the Liquid Retina display.
Although the keyboard and trackpad aren’t noticeably larger, there is now more space between them and the edges of the device. As for ports, the 15-inch MacBook Air M2 gets a 3.5mm headphone jack, two Thunderbolt ports and a MagSafe charging port. AKA, you’ll still need a MacBook Pro for things like a built-in SD card reader.
Key specifications and features for the 15-inch MacBook Air M2
Powered by Apple M2 silicon, the new MacBook Air claims to run up to 12 times faster than the speedy Intel-based MacBook Air. Apple has also stated that the device is up to twice as fast as a 15-inch laptop with a Core i7 processor. We’d be surprised to see significantly different test results compared to the 13-inch MacBook Air, but we still need to run our benchmarks as part of a full review.
In our testing, we’ll also want to gauge the 15-inch MacBook Air M2’s multitasking capabilities. During the demo, we were able to open several application windows without overlapping them too much. The split screen feature seems to feature more on this device as well.
The larger screen gave Apple more room inside the laptop to pack a 6-speaker audio system with Dolby Atmos support. We did hear a brief demo, though it was hard to gauge if the audio delivered the promised 2x more powerful bass. Again, something we have to take a closer look at during testing.
MacBook Air 15-inch M2 battery life
Apple says the 15-inch MacBook Air M2 has the same 18 hours of battery life as the 13-inch MacBook Air. While this isn’t necessarily an improvement, the device’s larger battery provides consistency despite the increased screen real estate.
And as long as the battery life of the 15-inch MacBook Air M2 matches that of the 13-inch models, it could be one of the best laptops for battery life. On the Tom’s Guide battery test, which involves continuous Web surfing at 150 nits of screen brightness, the 13-inch averaged 14 hours and 6 minutes, which is excellent by our standards.
All configurations of the 15-inch MacBook Air M2 come with Apple’s 35W Dual Port Adapter, which means you can charge your MacBook and another device at the same time. This charger is only offered for the higher spec 13-inch MacBook Air models, for comparison.
MacBook Air 15-inch M2
As a user of the 13-inch MacBook Air, it’s hard not to look at the 15-inch model with envy. By maintaining a portable design, the machine still feels and feels aerodynamic, but with promises of greater productivity. More powerful speakers and no problem with a dual-port charger make for a compelling first impression, too.
But starting at $1,299, the MacBook Air has gone up in price from the affordable laptop (by Apple standards) that the Air name has represented in recent years. We’ll have to see if the MacBook Air, in this new size, has enough differences from the MacBook Pro.
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