Apple MacBook Air Apple 15" MacBook Air (M5, Midnight) Review

This MacBook Air config is all about the 4TB SSD (98th percentile) in a 1.24kg body. The M5 CPU is strong (78th percentile), but the integrated GPU is a deal-breaker for anything graphical (18th percentile). At $2899, it's a niche machine for pros who need massive portable storage on macOS.

The 15-inch MacBook Air with the M5 chip is a study in extremes. It's a featherweight at 1.24kg, landing in the 88th percentile for compactness, but it packs a massive 4TB SSD that's in the 98th percentile for storage. That's a lot of space in a very light package. Under the hood, the 10-core M5 CPU is no slouch either, sitting in the 78th percentile. This isn't just a thin and light, it's a thin and light with serious grunt for everyday tasks and then some. The trade-off, as always with the Air line, is in the graphics department. Its 10-core GPU lands in the 18th percentile, which tells you exactly who this machine is for and, more importantly, who it's not for.

Let's talk numbers. The M5's 10-core CPU punches above its weight class, delivering performance that puts it in the top quarter of all laptops we track. For tasks like code compilation, video transcoding, or running multiple VMs, it's going to feel significantly faster than the median machine. Paired with 32GB of unified RAM (72nd percentile), you've got a setup that can handle heavy multitasking without breaking a sweat. The star of the spec sheet, though, is that 4TB NVMe SSD. Being in the 98th percentile means you're getting near-desktop-level storage in a laptop this slim. Just don't expect to game on it. That 18th percentile GPU score is real, and it means even light gaming will be a stretch.

At $2899, the value proposition hinges entirely on how much you need that specific configuration. You're paying a massive Apple tax for the 4TB storage upgrade and the 32GB of RAM. For that price, you could get a maxed-out MacBook Pro with a far more powerful GPU, or a top-spec Windows Copilot+ PC with an OLED screen and dedicated graphics. The value is only there if your workflow demands extreme portability, massive local storage, and macOS, and you're willing to accept the graphical limitations.

Stacked up against its main rivals, the choices are clear. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M4 Max will run circles around it in GPU tasks and likely match it in CPU performance, but you'll lose some portability and pay even more. A Windows alternative like the ASUS ProArt PX13 offers a stunning OLED touchscreen, a capable RTX 4050 GPU for light creative work, and the Copilot+ AI features, often for less money, though you trade macOS for Windows. The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i is in a different universe for gaming and raw power but is also much heavier. This Air wins on portability and macOS integration, but loses on graphics performance and price-to-performance ratio.

Gamers and creative pros who rely on GPU power should steer clear. That 18th percentile GPU score isn't a suggestion, it's a hard stop. Video editors working with high-res footage, 3D artists, engineers running CAD, or anyone who wants to play a modern game will find this machine frustratingly slow. Also, budget-conscious buyers should skip this specific config; you're paying a huge premium for storage that most people don't need locally.

We can recommend the 15-inch M5 MacBook Air, but only to a very specific user. If you are a professional who needs a supremely portable, reliable macOS machine for writing, coding, business, or general productivity, and you absolutely require that huge 4TB of fast local storage, this config makes sense. For everyone else—especially students, casual users, or anyone who might want to play a game or do GPU-accelerated work—the standard 16GB/512GB or 1TB model, or a competing Windows laptop, offers far better value and more balanced performance.