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M2 MacBook Air 15” vs. MacBook Air 13” 2017 - Specs Comparison

Here is a comparison between the specifications of the M2 MacBook Air 15” and MacBook Air 13” 2017, including differences in the chip, memory, storage, display, battery, ports, and more.

By Conor Banett

January 26, 2024 05:58 am

M2 MacBook Air 15” vs. MacBook Air 13” 2017

The 2023 M2 MacBook Air 15” features the Apple M-Series ARM 64-bit 8-core Apple M2 (8C, 10G) with the boost speed up to 3.48 GHz. While the MacBook Air 13” 2017 features the 15W 5th Generation Intel Broadwell dual-core Intel Core i5-5350U up to dual-core Intel Core i7-5650U with the boost speed up to 3.10 GHz.

If you are in the market looking for a laptop and don't know what's the difference between the 15.3″ M2 MacBook Air 15” (2023) and the 13.3″ MacBook Air 13” 2017 , we have a detailed tech specs comparison between both devices for you to check out here.

M2 MacBook Air 15” vs. MacBook Air 13” 2017: Specs Comparison

	Compare With Please enter device name or part of it M2 MacBook Air 15”	Compare With Please enter device name or part of it MacBook Air 13” 2017
Availability
Released	2023	2017
Release Info	Announced on June 05, 2023. At the WWDC 2023 event. Available on June 13, 2023.	Available on June 6, 2017
Pricing	Base prices: $1,299 M2, 8C CPU, 10C GPU, 8GB, 256GB $1,499 M2, 8C CPU, 10C GPU, 8GB, 512GB Memory options: +$200 16GB unified memory +$400 24GB unified memory Storage options: +$200 512GB SSD +$400 1TB SSD +$800 2TB SSD	$999 Intel Core i5 5350U \| 8GB RAM \| 128GB SSD $1,199 Intel Core i5 5350U \| 8GB RAM \| 256GB SSD

Display	M2 MacBook Air 15”	MacBook Air 13” 2017
Size	15.3 Inches	13.3 Inches
Info	Liquid Retina display Size: 15.3-inch Technology: Liquid Retina display Resolution: 2880 x 1864 Pixel Density: 224 PPI Brightness: 500 nits Color [li]1 billion colors Wide color (P3) True Tone technology[/li]	Widescreen display 13.3-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit glossy widescreen display with support for millions of colors Supported resolutions: 1440 by 900 (native), 1280 by 800, 1152 by 720, and 1024 by 640 pixels at 16:10 aspect ratio and 1024 by 768 and 800 by 600 pixels at 4:3 aspect ratio

Exterior	M2 MacBook Air 15”	MacBook Air 13” 2017
Size Comparison
Dimensions	Height: 0.45 inch (1.15 cm) Width: 13.40 inches (34.04 cm) Depth: 9.35 inches (23.76 cm)	12.8” x 8.94” x 0.11 - 0.68” (325 mm x 227 mm x 3 - 17 mm)
Weight	3.3 pounds (1.51 kg)	Starting at 2.96 pounds (1.35 kg)
Colors	Midnight Starlight Space Gray Silver	Silver
Keyboard and Trackpad	Backlit Magic Keyboard with: 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) keys including 12 full-height function keys and 4 arrow keys in an inverted-T arrangement Touch ID Ambient light sensor Force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and pressure-sensing capabilities; enables Force clicks, accelerators, pressure-sensitive drawing, and Multi-Touch gestures	Full-size backlit keyboard with: 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) keys, including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys (inverted “T” arrangement) with ambient light sensor Multi-Touch trackpad for precise cursor control; supports inertial scrolling, pinch, rotate, swipe, three-finger swipe, four-finger swipe, tap, double-tap, and drag capabilities
Ports	1 x MagSafe 3 Magnetic charging port 1 x Headphone jack Headphone/Microphone combo port 2 x Thunderbolt ports support: Charging DisplayPort Thunderbolt 3 (up to 40Gbps) USB 4 (up to 40Gbps) USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10Gbps)	1 x Thunderbolt 2 port Supports data transfers up to 20 Gbps. 2 x USB 3.0 ports Supports data transfers up to 5 Gbps. 1 x 3.5 mm headphone jack 1 x SDXC card reader 1 x MagSafe 2 power port

Internal Specs	M2 MacBook Air 15”	MacBook Air 13” 2017
Processor	Apple M2 (8C, 10G) 8 cores, 8 threads, 2.42 → 3.48 GHz,	5th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-5350U 2 cores, 4 threads, 1.80 → 2.90 GHz, 3MB Cache, 15W 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-5350U 2 cores, 4 threads, 2.20 → 3.10 GHz, 4MB Cache, 15W
Integrated Graphics	Apple M2 (8C, 10G) Apple M2 iGPU 10 GPU Cores, 16 Neural Engine Cores,	5th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-5350U Intel® HD Graphics 6000 48 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz 5th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-5350U Intel® HD Graphics 6000 48 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz
Memory	8GB 16GB 24GB unified memory.	4GB8GB 1600MHz LPDDR3 onboard memory
Storage	256GB512GB SSD Configurable to 1TB or 2TB	128GB256GB Configurable to 512GB flash storage.

Connectivity	M2 MacBook Air 15”	MacBook Air 13” 2017
Wi-Fi	802.11ax Wi‑Fi 6 wireless networking IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac compatible	802.11ac Wi‑Fi wireless networking IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n compatible
Bluetooth	Bluetooth 5.3 wireless technology	Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology

Battery	M2 MacBook Air 15”	MacBook Air 13” 2017
Size	66.5 Wh lithium‑polymer battery	54 Wh lithium‑polymer battery
Battery Life	Up to 15 hours of wireless web Up to 18 hours of Apple TV app movie playback	Up to 12 hours wireless web Up to 12 hours of iTunes movie playback Up to 30 days standby time
Power Supply	70W USB‑C Power Adapter Fast-charge capable. 35W Dual USB‑C Compact Power Adapter Has two USB-C charging ports.	45W MagSafe 2 Power Adapter With cable management system; MagSafe 2 power port.

Software	M2 MacBook Air 15”	MacBook Air 13” 2017
OS	Shipped with macOS Ventura	Shipped with macOS Mojave
Built-in Apps	PhotosiMovieGarageBandPagesNumbersKeynoteSiriSafariMailFaceTimeMessagesMapsNewsStocksHomeVoice MemosNotesCalendarContactsRemindersPhoto BoothPreviewMusicPodcastsTVBooksApp StoreTime MachineFind MyQuickTime Player	PhotosiMovieGarageBandPagesNumbersKeynoteSiriSafariMailFaceTimeMessagesMapsNewsStocksHomeVoice MemosNotesCalendarContactsRemindersPhoto BoothPreviewiTunesBooksApp StoreTime Machine

Camera & Audio	M2 MacBook Air 15”	MacBook Air 13” 2017
Camera	1080p FaceTime HD camera. Advanced image signal processor with computational video.	720p FaceTime HD camera
Audio	Six-speaker sound system with force-cancelling woofers Wide stereo sound Support for Spatial Audio when playing music or video with Dolby Atmos on built-in speakers Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking when using AirPods (3rd generation), AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max Three-mic array with directional beamforming 3.5 mm headphone jack with advanced support for high-impedance headphones	Stereo speakers Dual microphones Headphone port Support for Apple iPhone headset with remote and microphone

Misc	M2 MacBook Air 15”	MacBook Air 13” 2017
Sensors	Touch ID sensor Ambient light sensor
Security	Touch ID sensor Apple T2 Security Chip
In the box	15‑inch MacBook Air 35W Dual USB-C Port Compact Power Adapter USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable (2 m)	MacBook Air 13″ Power adapter AC wall plug Power cord
Warranty	One-year limited warranty.	Limited Warranty and Service Your MacBook Air comes with 90 days of free telephone support and a one-year limited warranty. Purchase the AppleCare Protection Plan to extend your service and support to three years from your computer’s purchase date. Only the AppleCare Protection Plan provides you with direct telephone support from Apple technical experts and the assurance that repairs will be handled by Apple-authorized technicians using genuine Apple parts. For more information, visit Apple Support or call 800-823-2775.
More	Video Support Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display at 1 billion colors and: One external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz Thunderbolt 3 digital video output Native DisplayPort output over USB‑C VGA, HDMI, DVI, and Thunderbolt 2 output are supported using adapters (sold separately)	Video Support Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display and up to 3840-by-2160 resolution at 60Hz on an external display, both at millions of colors Thunderbolt digital video output Native Mini DisplayPort output VGA, HDMI, DVI, and dual-link DVI output using adapters (sold separately)