New MacBook Air Announced With Magic Keyboard, Up to 2x Faster Performance, and Lower $999 Starting Price

[ascender]

Is it worth the $150 to go from the i5 to i7?

Personally, I don't think so. That new i5 looks like the sweet spot if you're looking for a machine which can do a bit of everything - but isn't going to be used all day every day for really intensive stuff.

I'd put money towards 16GB RAM and any storage you need first.

 

[irmstuff]

First time poster. Occassional lurker.

Typing this from a MBP mid-2010 that's somehow still kicking (minus the T on the keyboard these days), though it's very slow. I almost bit the bullet on a MBP 2019 last year but ultimately decided against it due to the potential keyboard issue.

I am not planning on using a new MBA on work; simply web browsing (Twitter, online streaming, Google Drive, etc). I'll occasionally use Photoshop.

The MBA with i5 and 512GB seems like the perfect thing for me but I want this computer to last at least 5 years (I mean this one is about to be 10 years old and has only had 2 major issues). Since I don't anticipate heavy usage, does that seem like the right move?

Also do people still get Applecare these days? Literally been a decade since I bought a laptop lol

 

[mpainesyd]

Nice update. I just wish I could run Mojave instead of Catalina.

Yes - if only it had been released last year. My Retina Macbook is due to retire soon and I have many apps that won't run under Catalina. I am not hopeful but I will wait until someone comes up with a way to "downgrade" to Mojave. Major obstacles are graphics drivers and the T2 chip.
see https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/mojave-on-2019-mac-pro.2216641/

 

[cgsnipinva]

Lower price. Better keyboard. Decent storage. A great update. iMac next please.

I might trade in my ipad pro 2017 for this. Powerful and portable.

 

[deconstruct60]

....
Furthermore, other than having more power (but not enough to make that severe of a difference), I'm kind of wondering what the point of the 13" MacBook Pro in general is anymore. In most workloads where the difference between the current higher-end (four-port model) 13" Pro and the new Air would be noticeable, one is far better suited for a 16" MacBook Pro instead.
....

With the MBA on gen 10 8W and the MBP 13" two port on 8th gen it would look to be "not enough to make difference". if moved up to 10th/11th gen at the 15-20W budget ( at higher clocks and/or more cores ) there would be more of a difference. (likewise if the MBP moved to AMD Ryzen 4000 mobile. There would be a gap. ).

EVEN FURTHERMORE, when Apple switches to ARM, a 13" MacBook Air will likely be able to fully cannibalize the 13" Pro entirely.

From the moment switch to ARM doesn't' get you more ports. Or even Thunderbolt. With Apple ARM at the moment gets you a one port wonder MacBook like system.

There is little to nothing to point to that indicates going to get something different that would be effective be a "hand me down' A--X ( or A--Z ) ARM system at this point. Apple trotting out the A12Z isn't super prowlness on highly divergent SoC development.

 

[mi7chy]

More interesting than the new iPad Pro but at 2.8# it's more of a Macbook Chubby. Apple needs to get it on a diet down closer to 2# considering the competition has a 2.4# with replaceable SSD, faster AMD Ryzen 4000 SoC, 32GB DRAM, better keyboard, more ports, etc.

 

[russell_314]

More interesting than the new iPad Pro but at 2.8# it's more of a Macbook Chubby. Apple needs to get it on a diet down closer to 2# considering the competition has a 2.4# with replaceable SSD, faster AMD Ryzen 4000 SoC, 32GB DRAM, better keyboard, more ports, etc.

Someone else besides Apple is making MacBooks with AMD? I want one!

 

[Spectrum]

So based on this update, I guess we can assume that the updated 13" (or 14?) MBPro will get 6-core CPU options, and cheaper RAM and SSD pricing (finally!).

Hopefully there is a base version with an i7 CPU and 16 GB RAM.

 

[KPOM]

First time poster. Occassional lurker.

Typing this from a MBP mid-2010 that's somehow still kicking (minus the T on the keyboard these days), though it's very slow. I almost bit the bullet on a MBP 2019 last year but ultimately decided against it due to the potential keyboard issue.

I am not planning on using a new MBA on work; simply web browsing (Twitter, online streaming, Google Drive, etc). I'll occasionally use Photoshop.

The MBA with i5 and 512GB seems like the perfect thing for me but I want this computer to last at least 5 years (I mean this one is about to be 10 years old and has only had 2 major issues). Since I don't anticipate heavy usage, does that seem like the right move?

Also do people still get Applecare these days? Literally been a decade since I bought a laptop lol

The i5 quad core MacBook Air seems like it should work well for you. As for AppleCare, Apple wouldn’t sell it if they didn’t make money on it. It does cover accidental damage now, though. It’s important to note that the new keyboard is more reliable than the butterfly keyboard it replaces.

 

[throAU]

Personally, I don't think so. That new i5 looks like the sweet spot if you're looking for a machine which can do a bit of everything - but isn't going to be used all day every day for really intensive stuff.

I'd put money towards 16GB RAM and any storage you need first.

Just one thing on that.

Apple haven't released full spec for the CPUs used and the GPUs used, and the only thing they list for GPU is "Iris Plus". And Iris Plus is a marketing term for a family that can vary wildly in performance.

It looks like they're ice lake i5s and i7s, with the Y low power variants used.

Now, there are two i5s in that range, one with 64 EUs in the Iris Plus graphics, and one with 48 EUs in the Iris Plus graphics:

i5-1030G7	4C/8T	0.8 GHz	3.5 GHz	3.2 GHz	64 EUs	9W	?
i5-1030G4	4C/8T	0.7 GHz	3.5 GHz	3.2 GHz	48 EUs	9W	?

the i7 in that range is only available with 64 EUs.

if you want to make sure you get the the best integrated GPU in this machine, make sure to go for the i7 variant until someone can confirm what the spec is for GPU in the i5.

The i3 will only have 32 EUs so the GPU is much weaker.


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See the CPU table listing for 9w processors - labelled "Intel Ice Lake-Y Lineup". The clocks won't match exactly what Apple is listing as these CPUs are TDP configurable by the OEM (i.e., Apple) between 9-15 watts, which will impact clock speeds.


If both the i5 and i7 end up having 64 EUs in their graphics processor then there's no point going for the i7. But I haven't been able to confirm that, and thus I went for the i7 to make sure i get the better integrated graphics.

And yeah, if you're thinking the i3 may be enough, also consider you're (maybe?) going to be getting HALF the GPU performance of an i7 and maybe 1/2 to 2/3 the performance for graphics (and Quicksync for video transcode most likely) of the i5.

Once someone can benchmark them this will all be cleared up, but in the mean-time, if you care about such things... buyer beware. There's more to it than CPU clocks and CPU core count!

 

[Simplifier]

Does that mean that I can finally call Apple and ask them to replace my butterfly MacBook Air with this one? Would they give me this new MacBook Air for free?

 

[Mitch1984]

Given that's a dual core and the i5 and i7 versions of the Air are quad core I would imagine at least multi core performance will be quite a bit better. The single core score might be comparable, a little better or a little worse.

Thank you.

 

[Palliser]

Just got a shipping confirmation. Base unit arriving tomorrow.

 

[saulinpa]

First time poster. Occassional lurker.

Typing this from a MBP mid-2010 that's somehow still kicking (minus the T on the keyboard these days), though it's very slow. I almost bit the bullet on a MBP 2019 last year but ultimately decided against it due to the potential keyboard issue.

I am not planning on using a new MBA on work; simply web browsing (Twitter, online streaming, Google Drive, etc). I'll occasionally use Photoshop.

The MBA with i5 and 512GB seems like the perfect thing for me but I want this computer to last at least 5 years (I mean this one is about to be 10 years old and has only had 2 major issues). Since I don't anticipate heavy usage, does that seem like the right move?

Also do people still get Applecare these days? Literally been a decade since I bought a laptop lol

If you want a machine to last 5 years the big thing for me would be upping the RAM. 8GB works fine for most but I can see it being more of an issue down the road than the number of cores. Putting my money where my mouth is I ordered one today with 16GB. Showing that it will ship in 1-2 weeks.

 

[Abombito]

Ordered mine this morninig

i7, 16GB, 1TB

I've been waiting to pull the trigger on a 13" Macbook with 1TB and 16 GB of ram with a quad core for a while, but wanted a keyboard that actually works.

That's the config I was thinking of going with if I pull the trigger (I might wait a few days to see if the alleged 14" MBP shows up). Let us know your impressions once you get it if you're willing. 😬

 

[Jimmy James]

Does it have a thermal path for heat this time?

 

[SprintSCREWSpooch]

Just got a shipping confirmation. Base unit arriving tomorrow.

2020 MBA? What part of the country?

NYC here, replacing 2011 11” MBA

 

[ignatius345]

What sort of things would I need to be using the Air for to warrant buying anything above the base model? I’ve been getting along with my 2012 Air with 128gb drive for 8 years now...

The main thing is just making sure that your machine has enough oomph to run future versions of the OS and future versions of software you use. And if you're gonna use it for another 8 years, spending a few hundred now might be a good investment.

I'd bump the processor up from that dual-core i3 first. The next one up, a quad-core, is only $100 more so that's a no-brainer.

As for the rest, the 8GB of RAM it ships with is probably fine? And 256 GB of storage might be fine as well, if you're managing on half of that now. And external storage is very fast and cheap these days.

 

[Palliser]

2020 MBA? What part of the country?

NYC here, replacing 2011 11” MBA

Phoenix

 

[SprintSCREWSpooch]

Phoenix

got return kit info yesterday 🙄

technically ordered 3/16

edit: im just bored as hell, been home since saturday, lolol

 

[manuel.s90]

This seems like a really great update.
I'm considering selling my MBP 13" 2018 2,3 GHz 16 GB RAM and getting this updated Air.

One of the main reasons would be the new keyboard. I'm worried that mine will break at some point and I also love the MacBook Air doesn't have the touch bar and that the arrow keys are in an inverted T shape.

However, I can't find the maximum brightness of the new Air's display anywhere...do you guys know more about that?

 

[Jury]

ok. I'm on it. Oh yeah, and while I'm here, which side did you want the magsafe port?

the Magsafe port is usually left side.

 

[f4k3g0d]

The all intel code names you can see in all web is not true but,
I found out the exact intel processors for macbook air 2020.

Essentials	Intel® Core™ i3-1000NG4	Intel® Core™ i5-1030NG7	Intel® Core™ i7-1060NG7
Product Collection	10th Generation Intel® Core™ i3 Processors	10th Generation Intel® Core™ i5 Processors	10th Generation Intel® Core™ i7 Processors
Processor Number	i3-1000NG4 (f4k3g0d.)	i5-1030NG7 (f4k3g0d.)	i7-1060NG7 (f4k3g0d.)
Status	Launched	Launched	Launched
Launch Date	Q2'20	Q2'20	Q2'20
Lithography	10 nm	10 nm	10 nm
# of Cores	2​	4​	4​
# of Threads	4​	8​	8​
Processor Base Frequency	1.10 GHz	1.10 GHz	1.20 GHz
Max Turbo Frequency	3.20 GHz	3.50 GHz	3.80 GHz
Cache	4 MB Intel® Smart Cache	6 MB Intel® Smart Cache	8 MB Intel® Smart Cache
Bus Speed	4 GT/s	4 GT/s	4 GT/s
TDP	9 W	10 W	10 W
Max Memory Bandwidth	58.3 GB/s	58.3 GB/s	58.3 GB/s
Processor Graphics ‡	Intel® Iris® Plus Graphics	Intel® Iris® Plus Graphics	Intel® Iris® Plus Graphics
Graphics Base Frequency	300 MHz	300 MHz	300 MHz
Graphics Max Dynamic Frequency	900 MHz	1.05 GHz	1.10 GHz

p.s: you can share this info everywhere, if you mention about me(f4k3g0d.) when sharing is caring

 

[MacBH928]

iPad Pro will be faster, better battery, and has replaceable keyboard along with touch screen and stylus capability.

one isn’t really better than the other though. It’s like saying my stapler is better than my hole punch.

Different tools for different jobs

I am not convinced that someone can do work better on iPad over Macbook given that Macbook has a lot more capable software and system. Of course, other than the use of stylus.

 

[chucker23n1]

Well. The base MBP 13" is 128 GB. So...

Yup. So it's really $1,099 vs. $1,499. Those $400 give you…

worse battery life
the Touch Bar
slower RAM
a brighter display
wide color
a bit more thickness and weight
worse speakers
worse mics

We don't really have benchmarks for the Air's CPUs yet. The Pro does come with stronger thermals (15W vs. presumably 9W, possibly 12), so it should sustain performance for longer. But where just a week ago, that upgrade was a no-brainer, the Air has not only gotten cheaper but surpassed the Pro in many ways (I've made those bold).
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I will be upgrading from a 2015 MacBook (12.GHz / 512GB SSD / 8GB) which I bought in April 2015 and have used for five years.

I am definitely buying this machine as mine is on its last legs, but am stuck on deciding between two things:
- Processor: i5 or i7 (difference of £120 = $140)
- Hard Drive: 1TB or 2TB (difference of £320 = $373)

Information for my use case:
- I currently use almost 90% of my hard drive
- I am paying for this machine
- I am based in Kenya (Africa) so the connection to the cloud is often challenging
- I plan / hope to keep these machine for as long as possible

My gut instinct is to max it out, and use this for as long as possible.

What do you all think?

Buy at least the mid-range (i5) CPU. The difference between it and the i3 is huge. The high-end i7 CPU probably doesn't make that much of a difference.

The hard drive is pricey. Just get an external disk instead.
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Is it worth the $150 to go from the i5 to i7?

It's definitely worth the $100 (it'd be worth $250, if you ask me) to go from the i3 to the i5. The i7 I find less compelling. I don't think you'll feel the difference much.
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I'm in agreement with some of the other folks here that this new MacBook Air is close enough to spitting distance to the two-port version of the 13" MacBook Pro (which is effectively the modern day successor to the 2010-2017 MacBook Air in terms of under-the-hood specs) that there's no point for that model to exist other than to force-feed people a TouchBar they didn't want in the first place.

Furthermore, other than having more power (but not enough to make that severe of a difference), I'm kind of wondering what the point of the 13" MacBook Pro in general is anymore. In most workloads where the difference between the current higher-end (four-port model) 13" Pro and the new Air would be noticeable, one is far better suited for a 16" MacBook Pro instead.

That seems very premature.

A week ago, the low-end 13-inch MacBook Pro was a no-brainer. For $200, you got a much better machine. Unless you really needed the Air's slightly thinner and lighter case, the Pro was so much better.

It's only now that the Air has caught up and even outperforms it in some ways.

If the next Pro is Ice Lake (that still seems a big if to me), the game changes yet agian.

EVEN FURTHERMORE, when Apple switches to ARM, a 13" MacBook Air will likely be able to fully cannibalize the 13" Pro entirely. People just don't buy as many computers as they used to. A modern and simplified lineup of light 13" laptop for casual users and standard (light by four years ago standards) 16" laptop for Pros, would, at the very least, restore much-needed simplicity to the MacBook lineup (much like the Pre-2003 iBook/PowerBook combo was).

I really don't think the 2003 era was complicated. There was the iBook in two sizes, and the PowerBook in three sizes. Pick a size, and pick your intensity of use. Done. Want a small laptop? Get the iBook. Also a heavy user? Get the 12-inch PowerBook.