Hello, 2020 MacBook Air! Apple has just taken the wraps off its ultra-thin-and-light notebook with beefier silicon, more base storage, and a lower entry price.
Design-wise, there are no notable changes from its predecessor. Its svelte body is made from 6000 series aluminium alloy for ultimate strength and durability.
This version though sees Apple backtracking on the much-hated butterfly switch keyboard to the “refined” scissor-switch mechanism, calling it “Magic Keyboard.” The backlit keyboard offers 1mm of travel and also comes with inverted-T arrow keys.
Out-of-the-box, the entry-level MacBook Air gets double the storage, from 128GB SSD previously to 256GB. This can be configured up to 2TB SSD, if that’s what you need.
The MacBook Air also gets more powerful silicon, now armed with up to the quad-core 10th Gen Intel Core i7 processor which Apple claims offers “up to 2x faster CPU performance and “up to 80 percent faster graphics performance.” This is coupled with up to 16GB of LPDDR4X memory.
As with the previous model, there’s a Touch ID sensor that lets you easily unlock your Mac without a password. It can also securely make online purchases with Apple Pay.
Moving on, the new notebook gets better audio—the stereo speaks deliver twice the bass and 25 percent more volume. It also comes with a three-microphone array to accurately capture your voice for FaceTime calls, dictation, or talking to Siri.
In terms of expansion ports, the new MacBook Air offers two USB-C (Thunderbolt 3) ports for charging, powering up to 6K displays, connecting to storage and other devices.
The notebook retains the 13.3-inch Retina Display which comes with True Tone technology and a 2560×1600 resolution, boasting four million pixels.
Battery life is rated up to 12 hours and the device runs macOS Catalina out-of-the-box.
Pricing and availability
The new MacBook Air comes in Space Gray, Gold and Silver colour options. Pricing are as below:
- MacBook Air – 1.1GHz dual-core 10th Gen Intel Core i3 processor, Intel Iris Plus graphics, 256GB SSD storage, 8GB LPDDR4X memory – USD999 (~MYR4,369)
- MacBook Air – 1.1GHz dual-core 10th Gen Intel Core i5 processor, Intel Iris Plus graphics, 512GB SSD storage, 8GB LPDDR4X memory – USD1,299 (~MYR5,681)
Maxing the specs out with a 1.2GHz quad-core 10th Gen Intel Core i7 with 16GB LPDDR4X memory and 2TB storage will set you back USD2,249 (~MYR9,836).
Apple also announced the new 11-inch iPad Pro priced at USD799 (~MYR3,494) and 12.9-inch model for USD999 (~MYR4,369) with a new Magic Keyboard that features a backlit keyboard and trackpad.
Lastly, the Mac mini gets a refresh with a cheaper price tag and more storage. The USD799 (~MYR3,494) model now includes 256GB of storage while the USD1,099 (~MYR4,807) model gets 512GB.
More details of the new MacBook Air here.
