WWDC22: Apple Unveils New MacBook Air Powered by M2

Apple has announced the all-new MacBook Air at WWDC22, which comes with an overhauled design and is now powered by the new M2 chip.

Firstly, the new MacBook Air is powered by the newly announced M2 chip, which features a next-generation 8-core CPU with advancements in both performance and efficiency cores, along with Apple’s next-generation GPU, which now has up to 10 cores — two more than the M1.

The M2 chip delivers 100GB/s of unified memory bandwidth and supports up to 24GB of fast unified memory, so it can handle even larger and more complex workloads with ease. Designed to dramatically speed up video workflows, M2 also adds a next-generation media engine and a powerful ProRes video engine for hardware-accelerated encode and decode, so systems with M2 will be able to play back more streams of 4K and 8K video than before.

Apple has redesigned the new MacBook Air, which is now remarkably thin from every angle. It measures just 11.3mm thin and is only 1.22kg, and features a durable, all-aluminum unibody enclosure that feels incredibly solid and is built to last. In addition to silver and space grey, MacBook Air is now available in two new finishes — midnight and starlight. It sports the new 13.6-inch Liquid Retina Display with 500 nits of brightness and now supports 1 billion colors.

Additionally, the laptop also comes with a new 1080p FaceTime HD camera in the notch with a larger image sensor and more efficient pixels that deliver twice the resolution and low-light performance of the previous generation. It also features a four-speaker sound system and a three-mic array that captures clean audio. The laptop supports immersive Spatial Audio for music and movies with Dolby Atmos.

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Additionally, the new MacBook Air also gets Magic Keyboard with a larger function key row. MagSafe also makes its return, giving users a dedicated charging port that is easy to connect, while protecting MacBook Air when it is plugged in by quickly releasing if the charging cable is accidentally pulled. It also comes with two Thunderbolt ports and a 3.5mm audio jack.

Apple claims that the new MacBook Air battery life is rated for 18 hours of video playback and it offers a number of charging options, including an all-new 35W compact power adapter with two USB-C ports, so users can charge two devices at once. And for the first time, MacBook Air supports fast charge for charging up to 50 percent in just 30 minutes with an optional 67W USB-C power adapter.

The laptop runs on macOS Monterey and is upgradable to macOS Ventura this Fall, delivering new features including Stage Manager, and powerful new capabilities with Continuity Camera and Handoff coming to FaceTime. macOS Ventura also includes big updates to Safari, Mail, Messages, Spotlight, and more.

Apple has also updated the 13-inch MacBook Pro with an M2 chip and it still comes with the Touch Bar. The all-new MacBook Air and updated 13-inch MacBook Pro will be coming soon to apple.com/my/store, the Apple Store app, and Apple Authorized Resellers. MacBook Air with M2 starts at RM5,499 and RM5,099 for education. Additional technical specifications are available at apple.com/my/macbook-air-m2. The 13-inch MacBook Pro with M2 starts at RM5,699 and RM5,299 for education. Additional technical specifications are available at apple.com/my/macbook-pro-13.

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