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In 2008 Steve Jobs introduced the first ultra-thin, lightweight MacBook Air by dramatically sliding it out of an inter-office envelope. The idea of a dramatically thin, lightweight, and fully functional laptop continues on.

MacBook Air M3 15-inch deals

The MacBook Air is “the default Mac” – the one you should buy if you’re not sure which model you need.

History

The MacBook Air was launched in 2008 as a premium 13-inch model, billed as the world’s thinnest laptop. It was dramatically revealed by Steve Jobs sliding it out of an office envelope.

In 2010, it was joined by an 11-inch model. By 2011, that had become the entry-level MacBook, replacing the plain MacBook in the lineup. Its combination of affordability, portability, cuteness, and suitability for most people’s computer usage saw it become a hugely popular machine with everyone from students to senior business execs.

The 11-inch MacBook Air was discontinued in 2016, leaving only the 13-inch models.

In 2018, we saw the first major update to the then-elderly design. This gave the machine a Retina display, Touch ID, USB-C ports along with a design refresh with smaller bezels, a slimmer form factor, and lighter weight.

In 2020, the MacBook Air was one of the first three machines to make the switch from Intel processors to Apple Silicon in the form of the M1 chip. In 2022, it was joined by an M2 model.

MacBook Air Specs

The 2020 M1 MacBook Air is powered by an 8-core Apple M1 chip, comprising four performance cores and four efficiency cores. It’s available in two almost-identical versions, one with an 8-core GPU, the other with a (chip-binned) 7-core one. The machine is available with either 8GB or 16GB of unified memory. SSD storage options are 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB.

The 2022 M2 MacBook Air has a 10-core GPU option, up to 24GB of unified memory, and up to 2TB of SSD storage.

Pricing

M1 MacBook Air (2020) pricing starts at $999 for the 7-core GPU with 8GB unified memory and 256GB SSD.

M2 MacBook Air (2022) pricing starts at $1199 for the 8-core GPU with 8GB unified memory and 256GB SSD.

The machine can be specced up as far as 16GB unified memory and 2TB SSD for $2,049.

Lower prices may be available from Apple’s official Amazon store.

MacBook Air Review

In our video review of the machine, we described it as game-changing.

There is very little negative to say about these MacBooks. Apple has taken a design like the MacBook Air, which it more or less perfected with the early 2020 refresh, and made it 10 times better. This is no hyperbole. These M1-powered MacBooks are such a huge improvement in performance and battery life with virtually no negative baggage. I can’t see myself ever wanting to go back to an Intel-based laptop […]

If I was using an Intel-based MacBook Air, I wouldn’t even consider using a machine with such little memory to handle my day-to-day creative workflow, but Apple’s implementation of unified memory cannot be compared 1:1 with typical RAM configurations.

Basic day-to-day usage is relatively unaffected by the amount of RAM, or lack thereof. The MacBook Air is competent with only 8GB of RAM even when running lots of apps simultaneously, even with a dozen Safari windows, and even when swapping out to the SSD […]

I can attest to the fact that these MacBooks have incredibly long battery life, so much so that it was honestly hard to believe initially. I was able to use my MacBook Air for a full workday, writing, browsing the web, chatting on zoom, and editing video and photos, and the machine was only at 50% by the end of the day. I woke up the next day, and did several hours of zoom video calls and web browsing, and the machine finally gave me a warning to plug in when it reached 10%

Apple apologizes for ‘small number’ of MacBook customers experiencing issues with new keyboard

Complaints about the durability of Apple’s recent MacBook keyboards are nothing new, but Apple’s third-generation butterfly keyboard was expected to remedy lingering issues with sticky keys. Joanna Stern’s latest column in the WSJ explores the infamous keyboard problem, however, and suggests we’re not out of the woods yet. Included in the piece is an Apple spokesperson statement acknowledging ongoing issues.


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2019 Intel CPU plans point to Wi-Fi 6 and much faster integrated graphics in MacBooks

2019 Intel CPU

Intel hasn’t yet revealed its 2019 CPU line-up, but it has disclosed the names of this year’s chips and given a few details about what we can expect from them.

We can never know for sure when Apple will adopt a new generation of Intel CPU even when it is available, but we can make some educated guesses …


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How to: MacBook Air Windows 10 RTX 2080 eGPU gaming setup [Video]

MacBook Air

On its own, the 2018 MacBook Air is a downright terrible gaming machine. Connected to my LG UltraWide 5K2K Display, the MacBook Air averages around 1-2 frames per second in Rocket League, and similarly abysmal scores in Unigine Heaven and Valley benchmarks. That’s no fault of the MacBook Air, as it’s a thin and light portable laptop built around maximizing battery life. In other words, it was never intended to be a gaming machine.

But if you own a MacBook Air and are looking for ways to get more out of your laptop, then an eGPU setup within a Windows Boot Camp environment can go a long way towards making that a reality. Watch our hands-on video walkthrough for the step-by-step details.
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Satechi launches 30W and 75W USB-C chargers, powers MacBook, iPad, and iPhone simultaneously

USB-C charger MacBook iPad iPhone

Satechi has announced two new USB-C PD chargers at CES 2019. The 30W and 75W travel chargers feature both USB-C and USB-A for convenience to charge any device. Notably, the 75W charger offers two USB-C ports and two USB-A ports, perfect for simultaneous charging of a MacBook, iPad Pro, iPhone, and more.


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Poll: Should Apple use a ‘reverse notch’ to add Face ID to MacBooks?

Face ID MacBook approach

It can only be a matter of time before Apple adds Face ID to MacBooks, but the question is: what approach should the company take?

Apple has applied two different solutions to iPhones and iPads. For iPhones, Apple opted for super-slim bezels and a notch to house the TrueDepth cameras and other sensors. For the iPad, the company instead chose to keep the bezels thick enough to house the module.

Should it adopt the iPad solution for MacBooks, or should it copy an approach seen in one of the latest Asus laptops … ?


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Review: 34-inch LG 5K2K UltraWide Thunderbolt 3 Display – was it worth the wait? [Video]

With near perfect timing in relation to Apple’s big MacBook Air and Mac mini refresh, the LG UltraWide 34WK95U display (on sale for $1399 at B&H) landed in the office last week. Should you consider this highly anticipated end-of-year hardware release? Watch our LG 5K UltraWide review for the details.
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Review: 2018 MacBook Air with Retina display – mainstream Mac [Video]

2018 MacBook Air

Apple recently ushered in its long-awaited refreshes to two product lines that haven’t received a lot of love lately: the 2018 MacBook Air and the 2018 Mac mini (review). Both machines have been updated with new processors, Apple’s T2 chip, modernized I/O, and several other enhancements.

The MacBook Air, though, is by far the more popular machine, and will demand the majority of the public’s attention between the two. This is the portable Mac that lots of people have been waiting for, but does it live up to its namesake? Watch our video review for the details.
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Comment: Could ARM-powered Macs mean the end to full custom configuration options?

ARM-powered Macs

Jason Snell has raised an interesting possibility over at Macworld: that future ARM-powered Macs might mean an end to the level of custom-build options we get at present.

It’s long been thought that it’s only a matter of time before Apple ditches Intel in favor of ARM-powered Macs using Apple-designed silicon. One report suggested that might happen as early as 2020. We’ve pointed to multiple reasons to believe that it will happen sooner or later. But Snell suggests that may come with a downside we haven’t yet discussed.

He opens by noting that, while Apple normally offers a choice of at least two processors (true even for the 12-inch MacBook), that isn’t an option with the 2018 MacBook Air


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Review: The Twelve South Journal for MacBook Pro is a sleeker version of the excellent BookBook

The Twelve South Journal for MacBook Air and Pro was launched earlier this week as a kind of updated version of the company’s much-loved BookBook case. Both models are designed for the current MacBook range with USB-C ports. The 13-inch is suitable for the MacBook Air or Pro, while the 15-inch is designed for the larger MacBook Pro.

We first looked at the BookBook case back in 2011. The one we looked at then was for the MacBook, but Twelve South offered them for all MacBook models – I even had one for my 17-inch MacBook Pro – before adding iPad and iPhone versions.

The BookBook combined three features …


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Twelve South Journal for MacBook Air and Pro launches as a luxury leather case alongside Journal Caddysack for accessories

The Twelve South Journal for MacBook is the company’s latest Apple accessory. With the option to use your MacBook while it’s in the case or easily remove it, the beautiful zippered, leather case offers a nice blend of function and form. Another addition to the Journal lineup is the new accessory organizer, CaddySack.


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Best cases and sleeves for the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro from $9

best cases and sleeves for the 2018 MacBook Air

Update 7/10/19: Apple’s 2019 MacBook Air features the same dimensions as the 2018 model. The 2019 MacBook Pro also has the same dimensions as previous versions so all the sleeves and cases below remain great options.

Whether your shiny new Retina MacBook Air is arriving tomorrow or you’re planning on picking one up soon, keeping it protected is probably on your mind. Follow along for a look at the best cases and sleeves for Retina MacBook Air as well as the MacBook Pro.


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