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MacBook Air 2020 USER reviews
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Bottom case of my i5 remains comfortable in my lap through an evening of usage.
Measuring the bottom case via IR thermometer while using it at my desk I typically see something in the high 80's (F). If pushed it'll creep up a bit from there but hasn't ever been uncomfortable.
Haven't installed something to read the CPU temperature because I don't ever touch the CPU.
The temps on i7 were basically about the same as the i5’s here. Would run 40-60C doing usual stuff and go to 100c when being pegged when running Lightroom or benchmarks. The neat thing is despite the higher temps, it feels much cooler on the lap vs the MBP 16
Both the i5 and i7 have the same power limits and the same cooling, hence the same temps. Sadly the extra $150 resulted in hardly performance increase. That’s why I shipped it back yesterday. Ordered i5 2020 mba for the wife now with 8gb ram and only 512gb ssd. We probably would’ve kept it if it if there was enough of a performance difference of the i7 to make it worth it
Question about the clock speed. Why does Apple use 1.1-1.2 GHz clock speed processors that can turbo boost up to 3.2-3.7 GHz?
I am coming from a 2.7 GHz i5 on my 2015 MBP so I thought I would ask why the lower power processors that can turbo boost a lot?
I am coming from a 2.7 GHz i5 on my 2015 MBP so I thought I would ask why the lower power processors that can turbo boost a lot?
10th gen CPU's do more instructions per clock cycle, plus the 2020 i5 & i7 are quad core rather than dual-core such as yours. I suspect the lower power CPU choice is to maintain some differentiation from the MBP13's as the MBA isn't set up for sustained CPU loads, yet it does well with a bursty usage pattern as is typical for most email/safari/messaging/light-office type work.
See:
Intel Core i5-5257U Benchmark
www.cpubenchmark.net
Intel Core i5-1030NG7 Benchmark
www.cpubenchmark.net
Welcome to Apple/Intel 2020. The Ice Lake CPU's in this power range are designed for fast burst operation, but due to power/heat constraints they can only maintain full boost for a short period of time. If you peg the CPU it will clock down to the base clock speed. It gives you the appearance of a very fast machine as the 2020 Air feels very responsive. Once you push it hard for more than a few seconds is where you start to see the difference between it and the higher power machines. It's good enough for most people who don't do heavy productivity as most things like web browsing feel fast on it.
It's similar to my 2016 MacBook 12, but feels much faster and doesn't do the weird Yoyo speeds that the MB 12 does as the fan allows it to maintain speed without severe throttling that the MacBook 12 has to do as it has no fan.
I finally got the fans on my MBA 2020 (i5/16) to siiiiiinnnnngg (8000+ rpm)
all it took was a Windows 10 VM in Virtual Box. The temps hit 101! but it didn't even slow OSX.. not even a bit... I even had another VM of Kali Linux open running a network scan of my network... and my iTunes didn't falter... It's frikkin beast...(the windows machine was sluggish... but it was grand once all the updates and Windooohs crap was done...). Fan noise was there, but Metallica drowned it out nicely.
Once again, don't listen to the noise out there. The machine is a pig of a worker!
all it took was a Windows 10 VM in Virtual Box. The temps hit 101! but it didn't even slow OSX.. not even a bit... I even had another VM of Kali Linux open running a network scan of my network... and my iTunes didn't falter... It's frikkin beast...(the windows machine was sluggish... but it was grand once all the updates and Windooohs crap was done...). Fan noise was there, but Metallica drowned it out nicely. Once again, don't listen to the noise out there. The machine is a pig of a worker!
In other words, the i7 in the 2020 MBA is going to be more efficient, more powerful at multi-tasking, and more faster than my 2015 MBP w/ 8gb RAM and the i5 at 2.7 GHz? That definitely will be a welcomed upgrade.
Would heavy productivity include running financial models on Excel, Tableau data visualization, and Python software practice?
I think the 2020 Air would meet my needs based off my initial perception, but I am not 100% sure if that's my reality with a purchase?
I assume your 2015 MBP is dual core right? The 2020 i5 would definitely be all of the above.
Can't comment on excel as I don't do that line of work, but I assume it would be ok as the 2020 i7 that I had was just a bit slower than my partner's 2017 MBP 15 with i7 2.9 quad core in Lightroom. The MBP 16 was the next big leap but has 8 cores....
If anyone is looking for the gold version of the 2020 MacBook Air, with 512 gig of SSD space, Amazon has it on sale for $1,199, a $100 savings:
www.macworld.com
The new 512GB MacBook Air just dropped to the lowest price to date on Amazon
The $100 discount is only for the gold model, though.
www.macworld.com
Yes and no. The CPU in the MBA is a low power version with quick burst ability. So a lot of interface stuff will be very snappy, as will stuff like a quick spreadsheet update, but when you start pushing the CPU hard with constant compute load the performance will drop substantially.
I don't have experience with Excel on macOS nor experience with Tableu anywhere, so I'd ask if these get the fans spinning audibly on your MBP? If so, you'll likely get them going more on the MBA.
Best suggestion is give the MBA a try, ordering it from somewhere you can easily return it to if it isn't the right fit for your needs.
Yeah, it's a dual core i5 at 2.7 GHz. MBP 16" isn't under my options. Basically the only option I have for a new machine is the 2020 Air. I was allowed to go up to 16gb of RAM and an i7, so that should help bridge the gap in performance from the i5 at 2.7 GHz to an extent.
You should be fine, the 28 watt CPU i5 in the $1800 MBP 13 is barely faster than the MBA i5 in geekbench. Less than 20%. The MBP should be a bit faster in sustained workloads.
How come you didn't look at the new MBP? When the MBA is loaded with i7/16gb ram it's close to the price of the MBP...
The MBA makes more sense in lower configurations...
I finally got the fans on my MBA 2020 (i5/16) to siiiiiinnnnngg (8000+ rpm)
Once again, don't listen to the noise out there. The machine is a pig of a worker!
Good to hear I only do light work and plan on getting the air from my early 2015 pro, I just don't need a pro power with my needs and figure why waste the money.
This seemed like a good honest review for the MBA i5 and discussions about turbo boost and the Y series chip.
It was just posted 2 days ago.
It was just posted 2 days ago.
I am in this boat. I want the air, but would upgrade it to quad, and 16gb ram, but that's close to the price of the pro, but the processor is older, It's a hard decision. my 2015 pro I did the high end model, but don't feel like I used it to it's ability. I am struggling to decide on this one.
No, you can get the 10th gen MBP 13 for a measly $150 more. That's why I returned the MBA. If you're only getting the base MBA i5 model, it makes perfect sense as the price gap is large
Once you add the i7 and 16gb ram upgrade to the MBA, you are within $150 of the 10th gen i5 $1800 model which comes already with 16gb of ram and 512 gb SSD installed plus you're getting: 1. Better screen, 2. Faster CPU, 3. better cooling, 4. Faster SSD
Don't get caught up on the i7, the 28 watt i5 will be much faster than the MBA i7 under sustained load as it has 28 watts to play with and better cooling
The only reason to pick a loaded MBA over the MBP is if you really hate the touchbar, need the extra hour of battery or must have the wedge shape. The weight difference is hardly noticeable...
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Good points. I think those who bought top spec Airs (such as i7/16/1000) either just like spending money to say they've bought the most expensive of something, or they would really be much happier with the Pro. I bet if the Air and Pro came out at the same time, there would have been less Air sales.
The cost to go from 8 to 16GB RAM is much cheaper on the Pro than the Air.
I bought the i5/8/256 Air and am really happy with it. I'm coming from a late-2013 15" Pro which I probably never fully taxed, although that was the minimum spec at the time, too.
The cost to go from 8 to 16GB RAM is much cheaper on the Pro than the Air.
I bought the i5/8/256 Air and am really happy with it. I'm coming from a late-2013 15" Pro which I probably never fully taxed, although that was the minimum spec at the time, too.
Hard to explain, but basically I was looking at moving to an 8gb RAM i7 2.8 GHz 2019 MBP w/ 256gb SSD a few weeks ago, but it was on backorder and now discontinued. Due to special circumstances, I can only get the 2020 MBA. I am not sure how bad is the drop off between the 2.8 GHz 8th gen i7 and the 1.2 GHz 10th gen i7?
Yeah I understand the base 13 still outperforms the air. I was thinking of doing i5/16/256 on the air. I don't really care much for the Touch Bar, but have only used it places like best buy etc.
The thing with touchbar for me is it's a discontinuous user interface when I switch between using the computer in my lap and using in clamshell mode at my desk with an external monitor and Apple Magic Keyboard / Apple Trackpad combo.
I prefer just having the function keys and everything stays static.
I just received my i5/16/1TB 13" 10th gen MBP. It is awesome! Beautifully designed, small and compact, clear and brilliant screen. By the way, I love the TouchBar. I heard so many negative things about it – it's very handy and easy to use. I'm still setting things up and exploring, but so far so good.
In the past there was no physical ESC key, so lots of folks were anti-touchbar since they were used to using the ESC key in much of their daily work. That's the legacy you'll likely still hear a great deal about.
For me though it's a matter of a discontinuous experience. I mostly use my MBP15 in clamshell mode with external Apple trackpad and keyboard - which has function keys not touchbar. Then when I use it away from my desk I have a touchbar and different interface. Same when I'm using my MBA (replaced a rMB12), function key row not touchbar.
Perhaps if there were an external keyboard with touchbar I'd feel differently, but personally I'd rather just not have it at all and stick with the normal function keys.