Apples M4 MacBook Air comes with several nice upgrades, but it isnt packed with tons of new features. Yet despite the limited revisions on paper, the new MacBook Air stands out from Apples lineup as a rare product I can heartily recommend to just about anyone. Heres why.Apple has grown significantly as a company since products like the iPhone and iPad first launched. And certainly its a night and day different entity than the Macs early days.There used to be one iPhone, for example. You could configure storage options of your choice, but everyone was still getting the same basic iPhone model.Currently, visiting Apples website youll be greeted by a whopping seven different models to choose from:iPhone 16iPhone 16 PlusiPhone 16 ProiPhone 16 Pro MaxiPhone 16eiPhone 15iPhone 15 PlusThis expanding array of options is meant to better serve Apples massive global user base.It can make product recommendations especially hard, though.Which iPhone should you buy? It depends on what youre looking for.The same problem applies to the iPad. If youre looking for a new iPad, I cant make a recommendation until I hear what your needs are, how you want to use the device, and so on.But with the Mac? Its easy.The new M4 MacBook Air is a no-brainer recommendation for just about anyone.Why the MacBook Air stands alone in Apples lineupThere are several reasons why its easy to recommend the M4 MacBook Air above all other Macs.First, theres the laptop vs. desktop equation.The majority of Mac models Apple sells are desktops. Theres the Mac mini, iMac, Mac Studio, and Mac Proas opposed to just MacBook Air and MacBook Pro on the laptop side.But as you might already know, almost all Mac buyers prefer laptops.Desktops make up a very tiny fraction of Apples Mac sales. Thus, its easy to assume that if someone wants a new Mac, they want a laptop. So four out of six options are immediately ruled out.When it comes to the MacBook Air vs. MacBook Pro debate, things are more complicatedbut only slightly.Typically if a MacBook Pro is the best device for someone, they tend to already know that. Either they do the kind of work that really benefits from the Pros extra power, or they really need some of the extra ports it offers.Again, the number of MacBook Pros sold is way smaller than the number of MacBook Airs. Thats because the Pro model serves a relatively niche market.MacBook Air, however, is the computer for everyone. From Apples M4 announcement:MacBook Air is by far the worlds most popular laptopsaid Greg Joswiak, Apples senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.Not that Apples going to say this out loud, but by far includes selling a lot more than the MacBook Pro.So the MacBook Air is an easy recommendation because its one of Apples only products with tremendously broad appeal.With iPhones and iPads, theres no single model that is so universally right for most people.Benefits of the M4 MacBook Air make it more of a no-brainerMuch of what Ive argued so far applied to the MacBook Air even before todays M4 update. But its now even more true thanks to the new model.The M4 MacBook Air starts at just $999, making it easily one of the best value products in Apples lineup.And for $999 you get 16GB of RAM, so its not like Apple achieved a low starting price by making cuts that nobody can live with. Will some want to upgrade the 256GB of storage? Sure, but thats not a necessity for the average person.The M4 also lets you drive two external displays while keeping your MacBook Airs lid open, for three screens total. That feature used to be exclusive to higher end MacBook Pros.Until today, Apple made a MacBook Air recommendation more difficult by keeping two models in the lineup. The M3 started at $1,099 while the M2 stuck around at $999.Both were solid options, but it was tricky sorting out whether the M3 was worth the extra $100.Now, Apple just has one MacBook Air model to choose from, and its an easy choice.If youre looking to buy a Mac, Im going to recommend the new M4 MacBook Air.Do you think the M4 MacBook Air is an easy recommendation? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments.Best Mac accessoriesAdd 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.Youre reading 9to5Mac experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Dont know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel