It’s frustrating. I wish they would just charge an extra $X for the privilege of using multiple external monitors. I like the form factor of the MBA as is… if I need to compromise on that, I might as well choose a different machine.
I finally bit the bullet and bought a DisplayLink dock, which gets the job done, but just seems like a silly compromise when the Intel MBA could support 2 external monitors natively.
They do, you have to pay more for an M3 Pro or M3 Max.
That combo isn't currently offered, and judging from today's M3 specs the next MBA won't likely offer it either.
I assume the iMac has the same limitation, which is a bit of a downer for some uses. It would be nice to drive a second monitor and a wall-mounted TV or projector from an iMac in sleek a home setup.
...and almost any Windows laptop at the same price point.