In a recent surprise announcement, Apple revealed a handful of new products, including the MacBook Pro M5.
Ahead of our MacBook Pro M5 review, we’ve compared its specs to the 4.5-star MacBook Air M4 and noted the key differences between the two.
For a more general look at how the MacBook Pro series compares to the Air, make sure you visit our MacBook Pro vs Air explainer. Otherwise, our best Mac list is here to help you decide which computer will likely suit your needs best.
Price and Availability
The MacBook Pro M5 is readily available to buy now, and has a starting RRP of £1599/$1599 for its smallest 512GB model.
The MacBook Air M4 is a slightly more affordable option, with a starting price of £999/$999 for the 13-inch or £1199/$1199 for the 15-inch model.
M5 vs M4
Powering the MacBook Pro is Apple’s newest M-series chip, the M5. Although we’re yet to review the M5 ourselves, it promises to offer up to 3.5x better AI performance and up to 45% better graphics compared to its M4 predecessor.
It’s worth noting that the M5 isn’t the only chip that the MacBook Pro runs on, as you can also upgrade to the M4 Pro or M4 Max iterations. Although the M4 moniker might be misleading, both the M4 Pro and Max chips offer beefier specs compared to the standalone M5. We explain more in our M5 vs M4 Pro explainer.
In comparison, the MacBook Air is only available running on the M4 chip, however it does offer some differences with the GPU. While all models are equipped with a 10-core CPU and 16-core neural engine for AI tasks, the same as the M5, the base model only has a 8-core GPU while for an additional £200/$200 you can upgrade to a 10-core GPU with 512GB storage too.
That’s the iteration we reviewed, and we found the MacBook Air M4 to be a fast and capable laptop that performs brilliantly in everyday use. It likely won’t replace a Pro model for professionals, but it’s perfectly sufficient for everyday work tasks and casual gaming too.
MacBook Air M4 comes in a choice of four colours
It might not be the most pressing matter when it comes to deciding on a laptop, but it’s still good to know that the MacBook Air M4 boasts a choice of four colours whereas the MacBook Pro M5 only sports two.
While both are available in Silver, the MacBook Air also sees Sky Blue, Starlight and Midnight shades whereas the MacBook Pro comes in Space Black.
Speaking of design, the MacBook Pro only comes as a 14-inch model whereas the MacBook Air is available in either 13-inches or 15-inches. Even so, the MacBook Pro is the heaviest of the three iterations, at 1.55kg.
MacBook Pro M5 has a Liquid Retina XDR display
Much like its predecessor, the MacBook Pro M5 sports a Liquid Retina XDR display with 3024×1964 pixels and up to a whopping 1600 nits (HDR content) or 1000 nits of brightness (outdoor).
Also like its predecessor, the MacBook Pro M5 also has the option to add a nano-texture display for an additional £150/$150. Although it’s always frustrating to consider additional fees, we would recommend opting for this as we found the nano-texture option of the MacBook Pro M4 helps significantly reduce glare and makes reading the screen feel more like paper.
In comparison, the MacBook Air M4 sports a Liquid Retina display that sees up to 500 nits of brightness. It’s fair to say that the MacBook Air M4’s display is only fine, and doesn’t really hold a candle to the likes of the MacBook Pro.
MacBook Pro M5 has an HDMI port and SDXC slot
One of the biggest issues with the MacBook Air M4 is its port selection, or rather its lack of. With just two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports, 3.5mm headphone jack and a MagSafe port for the charger, the MacBook Air M4 is undoubtedly limited with its port offerings.
There are, of course, workarounds to get past this, with the easiest being to purchase an external hub which adds in additional ports.
The MacBook Pro M5, on the other hand, boasts the same ports found on the Air but throws in a HDMI port and an SDXC card slot.
MacBook Pro M5 promises faster charging
Not only does the MacBook Pro M5 promise longer battery life but it should also offer faster charging than its Air alternative. While both the 13- and 15-inch iterations of the MacBook Air M4 offer up to 18 hours of battery life, the MacBook Pro M5 promises up to 24-hours. However, it’s worth noting that these claims by Apple just factor in video playback and not varied use.
In addition, the MacBook Pro M5 promises a faster charging speed but only when using a 96W or higher power adapter. Annoyingly, Apple doesn’t include a charger with the MacBook Pro M5, so you’ll need to spend an additional £59/$59 for a 70W charger or £79/$79 for the 96W.
Early Verdict
Whether you’re choosing between a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air, generally speaking, depends on your computing needs. If you run intensive apps and games, then a Pro will likely suit you better than the Air, whereas the latter remains a more affordable yet reliable option for everyday use.
Although we haven’t reviewed the MacBook Pro M5 yet, it does see some similarities to its predecessor, the MacBook Pro M4, which we found to be the “best all-round MacBook option on the market”.
We’ll be sure to update this versus once we’ve reviewed the MacBook Pro M5.
