Three Months With the MacBook Air M3
I’ve been using this laptop as my daily driver since October. Took it on two trips, used it for work, watched way too much YouTube on it. Here’s what I’ve learned.
The Speed Thing
Everyone talks about how fast Apple Silicon is, and yeah, it’s fast. Apps open instantly. I can have Photoshop, Chrome with 20+ tabs, Spotify, and Slack all running without any slowdown. My old Intel MacBook would be choking at this point.
What surprised me more was how fast it wakes up. Open the lid and it’s ready immediately. No waiting, no spinning wheel. It sounds minor but it genuinely changes how you use a laptop.
Battery Life in the Real World
Apple says 18 hours. In my actual usage - Chrome, some light Lightroom editing, lots of YouTube - I get around 10-12 hours. Still excellent. I stopped bringing my charger to coffee shops because I never need it for a few hours of work.
One thing that drains battery faster: Chrome. Safari is noticeably more efficient if you can stomach switching. I couldn’t, but it’s worth knowing.
The Port Situation
This is where I have complaints. You get:
- MagSafe (for charging)
- Two USB-C/Thunderbolt ports
- Headphone jack
That’s it. If you need HDMI, SD cards, or USB-A, you’re carrying dongles. I bought a $30 hub that lives in my bag. It’s fine, but I wish Apple would just include more ports on a laptop this expensive.
What I Like
- Silent operation - No fan means no noise, ever. It’s weird at first if you’re used to laptop fans.
- Build quality - Feels solid, premium. The new colors are nice if you’re tired of silver.
- Keyboard - Way better than the butterfly keyboard disaster years. Comfortable for long typing sessions.
- Display - Bright, colorful, the notch doesn’t bother me as much as I expected.
What Bugs Me
- Port selection is too limited - Two USB-C ports feels stingy in 2026.
- Storage starts at 256GB - You’ll want to upgrade, and Apple charges a lot for storage.
- No Face ID - Touch ID works fine, but my phone has Face ID. Why not the laptop?
- Price creep - The “good” configuration (16GB/512GB) pushes the price up significantly.
Who Should Get This
If you want a laptop that’s thin, light, and can handle everyday work without breaking a sweat, this is hard to beat. The combination of performance and battery life in this form factor doesn’t really exist on the Windows side.
If you need lots of ports, maximum power, or prefer Windows, look elsewhere. The MacBook Pro or a Windows gaming laptop might suit you better.
For my use case - writing, web browsing, light photo editing, travel - it’s been pretty much perfect. I just wish I hadn’t needed to buy dongles.
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