M4 MacBook Air performance almost competes with Pro models

By Fionna Agomuoh Published February 21, 2025

A person holds a MacBook Air at Apple's Worldwide Developer's Conference (WWDC) in 2023. — Apple

The M4 MacBook Air is anticipated as Apple’s next light and fast laptop, and a recent benchmark suggests that the device may have mild performance improvements over the lastest MacBook Pro.

Apple is expected to announce the coming laptop in 13-inch and 15-inch models in the March timeframe. A device suspected to be the M4 MacBook Air surfaced on the Geekbench 6 benchmark on February 19, revealing results that experts are comparing to other Apple products, including the M4 MacBook Pro and the 13-inch M4 iPad Pro.

The M4 MacBook Air February 19 Geekbench 6 benchmark. — Geekbench 6

Results of the Geekbench 6 Metal benchmark revealed a device with macOS 15.2, a ten-core M4 chip, and 24GB of unified RAM. In particular, the SoC configuration includes four performance and six power-efficiency cores, with no modifications to the CPU clock speeds, Wccftech noted.

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The device is referenced as Mac16,12, a never-before-seen naming scheme– which many are assuming is a codename for the M4 MacBook Air.

As for the benchmark scores, the laptop received a score of 54,806, approximately 5 percent slower than the M4 MacBook Pro. This still shows an improvement in the development of the M4 MacBook Air, considering both devices run the same chip. Overall, pundits note that users will likely not notice a difference in performance between the two laptops in everyday functioning. Prior Geekbench Metal tests have shown the M4 MacBook Pro scores at 57,596.

The M4 MacBook Air February 19 Geekbench 6 benchmark.

The M4 MacBook Air February 19 Geekbench 6 benchmark.

The M4 MacBook Air February 19 Geekbench 6 benchmark.

Though many are sure of the legitimacy of the recent benchmark, we keep in mind that scores on unreleased products cannot be confirmed.

The laptops are strategically marketed toward different styles of users. MacBook Air models are geared toward light browsers, email checkers, and hobbyists. MacBook Pro models are targeted more toward power users that frequently navigate large programs and files on a desktop.

TechRadar noted that the M4 MacBook Air is better compared to the 13-inch M4 iPad Pro, which scored 54,064 on Geekbench. Notably, the tablet is known for having a thin design and fanless cooling, features that are also expected for the M4 MacBook Air.

Computing Writer

Fionna Agomuoh is a Computing Writer at Digital Trends. She covers a range of topics in the computing space, including…

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The long overdue MacBook Pro design refresh might land in 2026

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Apple likes to stick around with each product design refresh for at least a few generations. Take for example the M4 MacBook Pro, which is still carrying the same design language that was first introduced atop the M1 series models back in 2021.
Things could finally change next year. “In terms of major new Mac designs, I don’t expect the MacBook Pro to get an overhaul until around 2026 — when the M6 model is due to come out,” says a Bloomberg report.
Apple is currently working on refreshed MacBook Air and Pro models with M5-series processors. They might, however, stick with the same aesthetic formula as their respective M4-series counterparts. It’s not bad, but not without its flaws either.

“It’s no joke to lug around. Some will appreciate the extra screen real estate, no doubt, but there’s definitely a trade-off in mobility,” said Digital Trends’ review of the current-gen MacBook Pro.
“The one eyesore in the whole experience to me is still the notch in the display. I find it quite ugly and intrusive, and the way it cuts into the menu bar can be clumsy, especially on the 14-inch model,” the review adds.

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Apple silicon has made the MacBook Pro a consumer favorite

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According to statistics from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP), MacBook form factors, in either MacBook Pro or MacBook Air made up 86% of Apple’s PC market share in 2024. Consumers especially favored the M4 MacBook Pro at a rate of 53%, while 33% of MacBook Air models shipped during the year, and 14% of iMac models. These figures vary only slightly from the year prior; however, CIRP noted that Apple appears to have weathered any fluctuations that may have occurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Rumors have persisted for years now that Apple is working on a touchscreen MacBook, but I’ve never been truly convinced. For one thing, I don’t see how a touchscreen could improve my MacBook experience enough to justify the inevitable price rise. This is Apple we’re talking about, after all, and there’s just no way that a touchscreen MacBook will possibly come cheap.

As well as that, I’ve long agreed with Steve Jobs’ belief that adding a touchscreen to a regular MacBook is an ergonomic nightmare. Constantly reaching up to the display is a quick way to exhaust your arms, and paining its users isn’t really part of Apple’s playbook. The Mac operating system isn’t designed for touch either, and in any case, adding a touchscreen would result in all manner of greasy fingerprints on your monitor. It’s never seemed like a good idea to me.