The MacBook Air gets bigger with new 15-inch model

CUPERTINO, Calif.--It's common for Apple to refresh its various MacBook models more or less annually, but it's not so common that an entirely new screen size is introduced. That's what happened today during the company's WWDC keynote: Apple announced a 15-inch variant of the traditionally 13-inch MacBook Air.

It's something that has been rumored for years on end, and now after many false starts, the rumor has proven true.

The 15-inch MacBook Air is in most respects identical to its 13-inch counterpart and has Apple's M2 chip. The star is the 15.3-inch screen, with 5 mm borders and a 500-nit brightness claim. Apple hasn't provided the exact resolution for the screen yet, but it was rumored that the 15-inch MacBook Air would have the same resolution as the 14-inch MacBook Pro, 3024x1964. The 15-inch MacBook Air will be available with up to 24GB of RAM and 2TB of storage, Apple said today.

Design-wise, it looks like a larger version of the existing Air--or a bit like a slimmer 16-inch MacBook Pro, depending on your perspective. It's 0.45-inch (11.5 mm) thick and weighs 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg). Like the 13-inch MacBook Air, there are two Thunderbolt ports and a headphone jack, plus MagSafe. There are also four color options.

Apple is claiming an 18-hour battery life with the larger-screened Air. It also equipped the machine with a 1080p camera, 3 microphones, and a six-speaker array that includes two tweeters and two sets of "force-cancelling" speakers.

The fanless 15-inch MacBook Air starts at $1,299 ($1,199 for education) and will ship next week. Orders on the Apple Store begin today.

Apple will also still sell the 13-inch MacBook Air, but the M2 version will now be $1,099, $100 less than before. The M1 version, meanwhile, will start at $999.