M3 MacBook Air Supports More External Displays Than M3 MacBook Pro

With the 8GB RAM 2024 T___T are you kidding me, even student to get it need to run VM to run windows specific windows app that not available for Mac.

Macbook Air M3 + 24GB Ram + 1TB SSD = $2099 Asus UX3405 Ultra Core 7 + 32GB Ram + 1TB SSD = $1299

$800 difference that a lot.

Do these external display limits apply even when using display link monitors or dock?

No - displaylink is a software solution & native hmdi/thunderbolt etc is a hardware solution.

Display link docks have their own chips in them

Caveat: Only when the lid is closed.