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REASONS TO BUY REASONS TO AVOID REASONS TO BUY REASONS TO AVOID
The best MacBooks - and their desktop Mac counterparts - remain some of the top laptops and PCs money can buy. Since Apple dumped Intel in 2020 to make its own M-series chips to power its computers, there has been a renaissance for MacBooks and Macs.
Over the course of the M1, M2 and M3 generations, it feels like Apple has fallen back in love with Macs and MacBooks - and consumers seem to have as well. These past four years have brought us not just the best MacBooks and Macs that Apple has ever made - but they are also some of the best laptops and best PCs as well.
The best MacBooks are so good, that they've even won over hardcore Windows fans thanks to their sleek and modern designs, excellent performance and the kind of battery lives that most Windows 11 laptops can only dream of.
At TechRadar, we've tested and reviewed every single Mac and MacBook from Apple, and many of them have been tested by myself. I've personally used M1, M2 and M3 Macs and MacBooks, and I've also reviewed the new M4-powered iPad Pro, and I'll be using my extensive experience to help advise you on the best Macs for your needs, no matter what your budget is. Speaking of budgets, make sure you check out our collection of the best MacBook deals, which can help save you some serious cash.
Written by Written by Matt Hanson Managing Editor, Core TechMatt has been reviewing Macs and MacBooks for the best part of 15 years, and personally uses a 13-inch MacBook Pro with M2 chip and 16-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro on a daily basis. Since joining TechRadar in 2014, he's reviewed over 250 laptops and computing accessories, many of which are Macs and MacBooks, as well as competitor devices from the likes of Microsoft, HP and Lenovo.
Our expert review:
Apple’s latest MacBook Air for 2024 has been upgraded with the addition of the M3 chip, bringing this nicely portable 13-inch laptop even closer to the level of performance you might expect from the MacBook Pro range. While the latter remains the choice for power users and content creators, the MacBook Air (M3, 2024) closes the gap more than ever.
Okay, so this laptop didn’t do much in terms of design, essentially being much the same as its predecessor, the MacBook Air (M2, 2022). But that was already a great notebook, and there was no real need to change the formula in this respect – what Apple did instead was give us better performance, at a better price.
The MacBook Air (M3, 2024) is a top-notch performer for everyday computing, and impressive for more demanding tasks like content creation – or even dabbling in playing some games. It provides a great multi-tasking experience, running multiple apps comfortably, and outperforms the already strong MacBook Air M2 as noted, and still benefits from that fan-less design (so it’s practically silent).
Boasting plenty of battery life – 14 hours on a single charge in our tests – and a new lower price point, the M3-toting version of the MacBook Air pushes this device to fresh heights, and is an excellent buy overall. There’s just one sticking point here, namely that Apple’s baseline spec feels weak by contemporary laptop standards, sticking with the same 8GB of RAM and 256GB storage the M2 version had – which now looks rather shaky at this price point.
Our expert review:
For those seeking a powerful performer in a highly portable form-factor, but not wanting to fork out for the new M3 version of the MacBook Air, its predecessor with the M2 chip remains an excellent laptop – and considerably more keenly priced since the M3 version hit the shelves.
If you recall, when the MacBook Air M2 first emerged in 2022, Apple bumped up its entry-level price to $1,199 / £1,249 / AU$1,899, a good deal more than the M1-toting Air which was released at $999 / £999 / AU$1,599. Well, the good news on the pricing front is that the MacBook Air M2 now costs exactly the same as the M1 at launch, so you can pick it up for $999 / £999 / AU$1,599 – with sales events making that recommended price even more attractive at times.
You’re still getting sterling performance levels from the M2 – and the power to take on, say, 4K video editing, and other relatively intense workloads – a ton of battery life (16 hours on a charge), and the same top-notch design and chassis as seen with the newer MacBook Air M3. If you want the best value proposition in the MacBook world, well, this is it.
Our expert review:
The Mac mini got a surprise upgrade in 2023, and the compact PC now comes with a choice of the powerful M2 chip - or the even more powerful M2 Pro. We reviewed the M2 Pro model and were really impressed with its performance, just as we were with its sleek and compact design.
Despite its small size, this is an extremely capable Mac that can run macOS Sonoma and any app or game with ease. It also performed brilliantly when we ran similar tests as we did with the MacBook Pro 16-inch (2023), including editing 8K movie files, making projects in Ableton Live 11 using a MIDI keyboard, and synthetic benchmarks such as Cinebench.
The M2 model is also worth considering. It comes with the same M2 chip that the 2022 models of the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro 13-inch feature, and offers a similar level of performance but without the high price tag. Speaking of which, the Mac mini (2023) launched at a new, lower, asking price, making it even better value for money.
Our expert review:
After releasing the M2 Pro and M2 Max-powered MacBook Pro 14-inch early in 2023, Apple replaced it with a brand-new model later in the year, coming with a choice of M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max chips. Those new Apple CPUs offered further performance gains over the M2 series, meaning the M3-toting 14-inch MacBook Pro stole the title of the best MacBook for creatives.
The MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3/M3 Pro/M3 Max) handled everything we threw at it during testing, whether we were editing videos in 8K, recording numerous instruments at the same time, or editing multi-track audio projects in Ableton Live 11. Of course, it fared well tackling a range of use cases for day-to-day workloads as well. And, its Liquid Retina XDR and mini-LED technology display with ProMotion adaptive refresh rates of up to 120Hz delivered vibrant colors and rich, deep contrast, making our creative experience incredibly immersive.
The laptop keeps the same design as the 2021 and early 2023 models, but that's no bad thing given the brilliant screen and solid build quality. It is, as with many creative mobile workstations, eye-wateringly expensive, however. There is some good news, however, as Apple introduced a more affordable base model of the MacBook Pro 14-inch with the standard M3 chip. While it lacks the sheer performance of the M3 Pro and M3 Max versions, this is a great way for more people to enjoy an absolutely fantastic laptop.
