Apple MacBook Air (M3)
Buy it if
Outstanding ~18-hour battery
Skip it if
8GB base RAM is tight — size up if you can
Where to get it
Apple MacBook Air (M3)
From £999
Indicative price at the time of review.
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Nothing else at this price gets close on battery and build. The M3 Air is fanless (so silent), runs cool, and comfortably clears a full day of lectures and library sessions on one charge. Coursework, browser tabs and the odd bit of photo or video work are effortless.
The good & the bad
Pros
- Outstanding ~18-hour battery
- Silent, fanless and cool
- Premium build, brilliant screen
Cons
- 8GB base RAM is tight — size up if you can
- Only two USB-C ports
How it compares
| Pick | WATTB Score | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.Apple MacBook Air (M3)This pick | 96/100 | From £999 | overall |
| 2.ASUS Zenbook 14 OLED | 90/100 | From £799 | screen |
| 3.Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 5 | 88/100 | From £549 | value |
| 4.Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3 | 84/100 | From £629 | portability |
| 5.Acer Aspire 5 | 82/100 | From £399 | budget |
Good to know
- Price
- From £999
- Chip
- Apple M3
- RAM
- 8GB (16GB advised)
- Screen
- 13.6" Liquid Retina
- Battery
- ~18 hours
- Weight
- 1.24 kg
Insider tip · Spend the extra on 16GB of RAM — it's the one upgrade that keeps this laptop fast for the whole degree.
Researched by WATTB
- Published
- 10 February 2026
- Updated
- 30 August 2026
We research and rank options from public data, official information and published reviews. How we research →
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