The new M5 MacBook Pro goes on sale on Wednesday, but the M4 Air is still by far the best value
The new M5 MacBook Pro offers cutting-edge performance with its fastest single-core processor and ProMotion display, but the M4 Air remains the best value for most users in South Africa, providing exceptional performance at a significantly lower price. Picture: Michael Sherman/IOL
Image: Michael Sherman/IOL
As the new M5 MacBook Pro 14” goes on sale on Wednesday, there’s still a much better value, more affordable option for the majority of people in South Africa.
The new M5 will start at R34,499 - R1,500 less than the starting price of the previous model - which will feature the fastest single-core processor on the market at the moment. It’s also up to 45% faster than the M4 equivalent in some areas, like graphics performance.
It also boasts faster storage and faster unified memory.
It also comes with a high-quality display with ProMotion (120Hz variable refresh rate) and an incredible speaker system.
M4 Air: The Ideal Choice for Most Users with Exceptional Performance and Affordability
There’s just one problem though, if you’re in any doubt about whether or not you need all that power - you don’t.
For around 95% of users who don’t do intensive video editing, sound production, and/or graphic design - the M4 Air still has all the power you will ever need.
In fact, the M4 Air is more than capable of all those demanding tasks as it is a powerhouse in its own right. For every other use case, like web browsing and general snappiness, it will be just as fast as the new model.
The Air has a smaller 13.6” screen compared to the 14.2 inch of the Pro, and the size difference is actually quite small.
The display quality is quite big, with the Air only boasting a 60Hz. However, the Liquid Retina display is still a fantastic screen and unless you had size by side with the Pro, you’d never notice the difference.
The biggest thing in favour of the Air though, is the price. Currently at R22,499 is far less outlay for a premium device. In fact, the M4 Air has already been on special since its launch for R19,999 and with Black Friday sales coming up in November there’s every chance it will go on special for that price again soon.