Apple MacBook Air 13 Notebook: review, description, user reviews

Developers Apple, as a rule, change anything in new items only when it is necessary for better functionality. It is this circumstance that can explain the incremental and very impressive upgrade of the 13-inch Apple MacBook Air (available at $ 999). While the device uses the same design with a solid aluminum body and many of the same components as its predecessors, the new gadget is supplemented by one of the latest Intel Core i5 CPUs.

However, even with this modest improvement (and with the cost of last year's base model), the Apple MacBook Air 13 is ahead of competitors in terms of performance and strikes 17-18 hours of battery life. Thus, this device today is the best choice for daily performance of common tasks among medium ultraportable laptops.

Design and specifications

13-inch MacBook Air has the following dimensions: 22 cm in length and 32 cm in width, and its weight is about 1300 grams. The body tapers in thickness from 1.7 cm at the rear to 0.5 cm in front. Other 13.3-inch notebooks (such as Acer Aspire S7-393-7451, LenovoYoga 3 Pro and Asus Zenbook UX305FA-ASM1) are a little thinner and lighter, but you will not have any problems if you intend to wear Apple MacBooks all the time Air 13 with you. Ultrabook has not only small dimensions and weight, but also a compact streamline shape. Thus, you can easily place it in any bag or backpack.

Resolution and screen properties

Compared to today's widespread 1920x1080 or even higher resolution, typical for medium-sized laptops on Windows, the MacBook Air's 1440x900 settings seem relatively small, but that's only in theory. In fact, the screen looks contrasting and bright when using a gadget. This permission should be enough to perform everyday tasks, for example, creating and editing office documents and working in a web browser. If you need a higher screen resolution, but you prefer only Mac laptops, you should choose the more expensive devices - Apple MacBook with screen parameters 2,304х1,400 or the last 13-inch Apple MacBook Pro model with 2560х1600. Unfortunately, there is currently no option to achieve a high resolution Retina Display in the Apple MacBook Air 13 - this will lead to an increase in the cost and weight of the device, and will shorten the battery life. However, to watch video and read text documents, this indicator is sufficient, because the displayed on the screen looks very clear.

Possible connections and available connectors

Built-in ports do not differ from those that were on the previous model. On the left side of the device is a headset connector, two microphones, a USB 3.0 port, and a MagSafe 2 power connector. On the right side there is a compact SDXC card slot, a Thunderbolt 2 port and another USB 3.0 port. At first glance, there seems to be little opportunity for connecting components, but today this is quite typical for ultraportable devices, and this will be enough for many users. You will need to use an adapter to connect an HDMI cable or other connectors, but the Thunderbolt port functions at a high level with a mini-Display Port without an adapter. Wireless connection is carried out using 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and also Bluetooth 4.0, and provides high-quality and uninterrupted connection to the Internet or other devices.

Keyboard Features

The keys on the keyboard are backlit, and the rubber trim gives it an excellent appearance and makes it easy to use. Thus, the typing is carried out smoothly and gently, without causing fatigue of the fingers during long work. There is an easy trackpad for multi-touch capabilities. Nevertheless, the trackpad lacks additional mouse button options that are present in other Apple devices - the 12-inch MacBook Pro and MacBook laptops, but support for these settings can be seen in most of the third-party applications. Like all Mac gadgets, the Apple MacBook Air 13 lacks a touch screen.

Specifications

Many users will agree with the statement that the Apple MacBook Air 13 Early would not hurt the availability of more RAM, since 4 GB by default is a bit low for an ultrabook with a cost of $ 1,000. You can upgrade RAM to only 8 GB during the initial purchase, so it is advisable to think in advance whether you should spend an additional $ 100 to provide multitasking or multimedia projects. Flash memory is also relatively low - 128 GB, but this is a less important problem these days - cloud-based online storage is quite inexpensive. Fortunately, the system is completely protected from viruses.

RAM operates on the basis of PCIe, which makes it faster than SATA-based solid-state drives (SSDs) and flash memory from older ultraportables. This helps to boot the system and applications in just a few seconds. MacBookAir comes with a one-year warranty, which puts it at one level with competitor devices equipped with Windows OS.

Speed and multitasking

The gadget is equipped with an Intel Core i5-5250U (1.6 GHz) processor with integrated Intel HD Graphics 6000 graphics. As the testing shows, the Apple MacBook Air 13 laptop works very well when opening multimedia programs. Ultimately, the device manifests itself as acting much faster when performing multimedia tasks, if you compare it to the Apple MacBook.

The results for 3D-tests are predictably mediocre, given the integrated graphics. The operating system should work fast enough with such simple games as Diablo III, but it does not work to launch the high-power GrandTheftAuto V in high-quality settings.

Battery life time

Another indicator of the great performance of the Apple MacBook Air 13 i5 is the performance of its battery. With the continuous use of ultrabook, the battery usage time is 17 hours 36 minutes. This is almost two hours longer than in the model of the last generation. Unlike the MacBook Air, the most long-lasting portable notebook on Windows - Acer Aspire S7-393-7451 - does not require recharging in just about 10 hours. Thus, you can look at this device full trilogy "Lord of the Rings", and the ultrabook will have enough battery power to watch the first two films of the trilogy "The Dark Knight". It's just an insane amount of energy for a traditional laptop.

Conclusions and final verdict

In 2015, Apple's 13-inch MacBook Air 13 early outperformed its main competitors on both the Mac and Windows. First of all, this is due to its long battery life. The classic design of its body and mounts is one of the components that manufacturers of other ultraportables are trying to imitate for the past 5 years with varying degrees of success.

Despite this, the original design still looks fresh. Its characteristics far exceed the parameters of a standard notebook. Thus, its high cost justifies itself, especially if you need to work daily with various programs and go online.

It only has 4 GB of RAM, however, by paying an additional $ 100, you can double this figure. Therefore, if you plan to work regularly in multitasking mode, you should make additional expenses.

Given the high performance and especially the impressive battery life, the 13-inch Apple MacBook Air 13 MD760ru can be considered a gadget that offers more than enough features that are quite capable of driving out its predecessor from the market. For today it is the best choice among ultraportable laptops, despite its not low cost. In this case, you can argue that you are paying for excellent product quality.