The MacBook Air is Apple’s latest work of art. It’s slim and looks awesome. But what about the laptops green credentials then? Is it greener than the iMac?

Well, it seems that finally Steve Jobs is on the right path to a greener Apple. The new MacBook Air is completely free from mercury and arsenic. That means it exceeds the Standards (RoHS directive exemptions).

The new MacBook Air’s motherboard is, just like Sony and their Vaio notebooks, free from BFR and PVC. Unfortunately the MacBook Air isn’t entirely free from hazardous chemicals. It still contains PVC and BFRs, but less than other Mac computers.

So will this new MacBook Air make Apple gain a better spot in the Greenpeace Guide to Greener Electronics? Maybe they will, but Greenpeace still wants a “real global commitment to take back and recycling” saying they can “almost taste that Green Apple”, but “unfortunately it’s not ripe yet”.

So what about the energy consumption? As you know laptops are generally much better than the stationary (desktop) computers when it comes to power consumption. And the MacBook Air is no exception. The MacBook Air consumes about 7.4 watts and meets Energy Star 4.0 standards and attained a Silver EPEAT rating.