Apple introduces its latest MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models, equipped with the M5 chip which will be available in three versions.
Apple is launching the new MacBook Air and MacBook Pro featuring the latest M5 chip, the successor to the year-old M4 chip. The new chip comes in several variants: from M5 to M5 Pro and M5 Max. The MacBook Air models run on macOS Tahoe, which includes AI features under the name Apple Intelligence.
MacBook Air
Apple has introduced a new version of the MacBook Air with the M5 chip. This chip features a ten-core CPU and a GPU with up to ten cores. According to Apple, this provides higher performance for AI applications, creative workloads, and multitasking, among other things.
The new MacBook Air comes standard with 512 GB of storage, double that of the previous generation. Apple offers configurations with up to 4 TB of storage. For wireless connectivity, the brand is introducing a new N1 chip, which supports Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.
Connectivity and battery life
The Liquid Retina display has a brightness of up to 500 nits and supports one billion colors. Apple also includes a 12 MP Center Stage camera for video calls. The laptop features two Thunderbolt 4 ports and supports up to two external displays. Charging is done via MagSafe. According to Apple, the battery lasts up to 18 hours.
The 13-inch MacBook Air with M5 starts at €1,199 including VAT, while the 15-inch MacBook Air M5 is €1,599 including VAT. Both devices are available in four colors: sky blue, midnight, starlight, and silver. The new MacBook Air is available for order starting March 4, with deliveries beginning on March 11.
MacBook Pro
The new MacBook Pro is primarily aimed at professional workloads such as software development. According to the company, developers and researchers can train or run models locally. Creative applications like video editing, music production, and 3D design also benefit from the extra processing power.
M5 Pro and M5 Max
The new generation of Apple MacBook Pro is launching with the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips. These new chips combine a custom CPU and GPU architecture with support for AI tasks. The CPU features up to 18 cores, including six high-performance cores. According to Apple, multi-threaded workloads are up to 30% faster than the previous generation.
The GPU includes a Neural Accelerator per core, designed to accelerate AI processing. According to Apple, the new MacBook Pro can process prompts for large language models up to four times faster than models with M4 Pro or M4 Max. Compared to MacBook Pro models with M1 chips, AI image generation is up to eight times faster.
Storage
The M5 Pro supports up to 64 GB of unified memory with a bandwidth of up to 307 GB/s. For the M5 Max, this increases to 128 GB of memory with a bandwidth of up to 614 GB/s. Graphics performance is reportedly up to 50% higher than the previous generation.
The storage is also getting an update. According to Apple, the SSD can reach read and write speeds of up to 14.5 GB/s, about twice as fast as previous models. The MacBook Pro with M5 Pro starts with 1 TB of storage, while M5 Max configurations come standard with 2 TB.
Connectivity and battery life
Just like the MacBook Air, the Pro version features the new N1 chip, which supports Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. For external devices, there are three Thunderbolt 5 ports, along with HDMI, an SDXC card slot, and MagSafe 3.
The device features a Liquid Retina XDR display with a peak brightness of up to 1,600 nits for HDR content. The screen can optionally be equipped with a nano-texture coating to reduce reflections.
Furthermore, the laptop includes a 12 MP Center Stage camera, studio-quality microphones, and a six-speaker sound system. According to Apple, the battery can last up to 24 hours.
Variants
The entry-level model is the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M5 chip, which comes standard with 1 TB of storage and starts at €1,929. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M5 Pro starts at €2,549, while the 16-inch version with the same chip starts at €3,049.
For heavier workloads, there are models with the M5 Max: the 14-inch MacBook Pro with this chip starts at €4,249, and the 16-inch model starts at €4,549. All variants are available in space black and silver and can be ordered starting March 4.