Apple announces new MacBook Pro and M5 MacBook Air with NZ pre-orders

Apple has announced two major Mac updates: the new 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro powered by M5 Pro and M5 Max, and a refreshed MacBook Air in 13- and 15-inch models with the new M5 chip. Both are available to pre-order in New Zealand from tomorrow, 5 March, with availability from Wednesday, 11 March.

MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max

Apple is calling the new MacBook Pro the world's best pro laptop, and the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips are at the centre of that claim. Both feature a new CPU with what Apple describes as the world's fastest CPU core, a next-generation GPU with a Neural Accelerator in each core, and higher unified memory bandwidth — combining to deliver up to 4x AI performance compared to the previous generation, and up to 8x compared to M1 models.

That AI uplift opens up new on-device workflows for developers, researchers, and creatives that simply weren't possible before. The new MacBook Pro also ships with up to 2x faster SSD performance and bumped-up base storage: 1TB for M5 Pro models and 2TB for M5 Max.

Connectivity gets an upgrade too, with the inclusion of Apple's new N1 wireless chip enabling Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 for faster, more reliable wireless performance. The rest of the package is what you'd expect from MacBook Pro: up to 24 hours of battery life, a Liquid Retina XDR display with an optional nano-texture finish, Thunderbolt 5, a 12MP Center Stage camera, studio-quality microphones, and a six-speaker sound system. It runs macOS Tahoe with Apple Intelligence built in. Available in space black and silver.

MacBook Air with M5

The new MacBook Air brings M5 to Apple's most popular laptop, with a faster CPU and a next-generation GPU featuring Neural Accelerators — giving the fanless design meaningful AI capability for the first time at this level. Base storage doubles to 512GB with faster SSD technology, and the Air is now configurable up to 4TB.

Like MacBook Pro, the Air gains the N1 wireless chip for Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. It retains the thin, light aluminium design, Liquid Retina display, 12MP Center Stage camera, up to 18 hours of battery life, Spatial Audio, and two Thunderbolt 4 ports with support for up to two external displays. Available in 13- and 15-inch models in sky blue, midnight, starlight, and silver — and running macOS Tahoe with Apple Intelligence.

Pricing and Availability

Pre-orders open at 3:15 a.m. NZDT on Thursday, 5 March on apple.com/nz/store and in the Apple Store app. All models arrive to customers and Apple Authorised Resellers from Wednesday, 11 March.

MacBook Air with M5

MacBook Pro with M5 Pro

MacBook Pro with M5 Max