Apple was expected to announce the new M3 MacBook Air models alongside the OLED iPad Pro later this month. However, the company saw fit to introduce the M3 MacBook Air via press release yesterday, which came with a plethora of upgrades from the previous version. Now, early benchmarks of the new MacBook Air with an M3 chip have surfaced online, showcasing the performance gains it will bring to the table from the M2 chip.
The M3 chip in MacBook Air is roughly 20 percent faster than the M2 MacBook Air
The Geekbench results of the M3 MacBook Air were discovered by MySmartPrice for the 16GB unified memory variant of the device. Apple says that the M3 chip in the MacBook Air is 60 percent faster than the M1 chip. While the company's claims are impressive, the benchmarks could show a different story altogether. If you are planning to upgrade to the M3 MacBook Air from the M1 or M2 MacBook Air models, it would be wise to check out the performance ratio between the devices through benchmarks.
According to Geekbench 5 results, the M3 chip features a single-core score of 3,157 and a multi-core score of 12,020. The device can be seen on Geekbench 5 with the identifier "Mac15,3". This tells us that the benchmarks are for the bigger 15.3-inch variant of the M3 MacBook Air. However, we can argue that the performance will be more or less similar to the 13-inch variant of the device.
If you are unfamiliar, benchmarks for the same configuration of the MacBook Air with an M2 chip reflected a single-core score of 2,610 and a multi-core score of 10,120. This shows that the M3 chip has seen performance gains on both fronts on the MacBook Air compared to last-gen's M2 chip. The latest from Apple boasts a 20 percent gain in single and roughly 18 percent gain in multi-core score.
The M3 chip in the new MacBook Air features an 8-core CPU and up to 10-core GPU for enhanced computational and graphical performance. All in all, the chip also consumes less power, which could benefit the device by improving battery life. Apart from performance, Apple has also upgraded the connectivity on the device, as it now comes with support for Wi-Fi 6E. Additionally, the device also features support for dual external displays, which is higher than that of the M3 MacBook Pro.
If you are interested in getting your hands on the latest machines, pre-orders for the device will begin on Friday, March 8, in the United States. We will share more details on the machine as soon as additional information is available. Let us know in the comments if the M3 chip is worth upgrading from the M2 chip.
About the author: Ali Salman is a technology reporter for Wccftech mobile section with a specialized focus on Apple and the intellectual property that drives mobile innovation. He has cultivated a unique expertise in analyzing and deconstructing complex technology patents, translating dense legal and technical documents into clear, insightful reports on future products.
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