Apple has unveiled updates to its MacBook series, unveiling fresh iterations of the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro equipped with the newest generation of its proprietary silicon chips. The latest laptops promise swifter performance, enhanced AI capabilities, and storage enhancements across both variants.
The MacBook Air with M5 is catered towards casual users, featuring double the initial storage capacity and improved wireless connectivity. On the other hand, the MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max targets professionals engaged in demanding workflows like AI model training and 3D rendering. Both product lines are open for pre-orders starting March 4, with general availability commencing from March 11.
The new MacBook Air is available in 13-inch and 15-inch models, boasting a 10-core CPU and up to a 10-core GPU with a Neural Accelerator in each core. Apple asserts that the M5 chip offers up to four times faster performance for AI tasks compared to the prior M4 iteration and up to 9.5 times faster than the M1 model.
The laptop now initiates with 512GB of storage, which is twice the previous base offering, expandable up to 4TB. The SSD provides double the read and write speeds of the preceding generation. Apple’s new N1 wireless chip facilitates Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 support.
Additional features include a Liquid Retina display, a 12-megapixel Centre Stage camera, up to 18 hours of battery life, and two Thunderbolt 4 ports supporting up to two external displays. The fanless chassis is available in four color options: sky blue, midnight, starlight, and silver. Prices start at $1,099 for the 13-inch model and $1,299 for the 15-inch variant.
The 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models now run on the new M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, constructed using Apple’s Fusion Architecture that merges two dies into a single system. The CPUs offer up to 18 cores with six high-performance cores, while the GPUs incorporate Neural Accelerators in each core.
Apple specifies that M5 Pro is tailored for users handling intricate workflows like coders refining algorithms and photographers processing extensive image libraries, while M5 Max caters to individuals pushing the boundaries, including engineers conducting rigorous simulations.
Apple claims that the new chips provide up to four times faster AI performance than the M4 Pro and M4 Max, and up to eight times faster than M1 Pro and M1 Max models. Memory bandwidth extends up to 307GB per second on M5 Pro and 614GB per second on M5 Max, supporting up to 128GB of unified memory.
Storage options commence at 1TB for M5 Pro models and 2TB for M5 Max models, with SSD read and write speeds reaching up to 14.5GB per second, twice as rapid as the prior generation. The laptops feature three Thunderbolt 5 ports, backing for up to four external displays on M5 Max, and the N1 chip enabling Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.
Battery life is rated at up to 24 hours. The 12-megapixel Centre Stage camera, studio-quality microphones, and six-speaker sound system with Spatial Audio are retained from previous versions. The laptops are offered in space black and silver.
Prices begin at $2,199 for the 14-inch M5 Pro model and $2,699 for the 16-inch variant, with M5 Max configurations commencing at $3,599 and $3,899, respectively. Furthermore, the older 14-inch MacBook Pro with the standard M5 chip now comes with 1TB of storage as standard, starting at $1,699.
