The sleek and slim MacBook Air has long been a flagship product for Apple, demonstrating to the world that it led the way in innovative notebook design. While the look remains the same, Apple's not resting on its laurels with the MacBook Air, announcing an update to the familiar ultraportables during today's WWDC keynote.
The 11- and 13-inch MacBook Airs are being updated with Intel's just announced 4th-gen processors, better battery life, and larger, faster flash storage.
Haswell Processors
Apple announced that the newest MacBook Airs feature Intel's 4th-gen ULT dual-core processors, the ultrabook class of Intel's Haswell platform. Like the late 2012 models, the new 11- and 13-inch MacBook Air models come standard with a 1.3-GHz Intel Core i5 processor. For $150 more, you can configure the same system with a 1.7-GHz Core i7, and both come with 4GB of RAM standard.
Improved Graphics
Thanks to Haswell's improved graphics capability, the new MacBook Air models also offer the improved Intel HD Graphics 5000—with up to twice the number of execution units found in the previous Intel HD Graphics 4000. The result is a 40 percent improvement in graphics performance, providing performance on par with an entry-level discrete GPU.
Better Battery Life
The biggest gain to be offered by Intel's new hardware, however, is in battery life. Apple promises several hours more usable battery life; the 11-inch MacBook Air steps up from 5 hours of battery life to an all-day 9 hours. And even notoriously fast draining activities last longer—Apple promises 8 hours of iTunes movie playback.
The 13-inch MacBook Air's larger chassis provides space for a larger battery, and this too will see a large improvement, extending the battery life from 7 hours to 12 hours. Movie playback is stretched to 10 hours. Though details weren't discussed during the keynote at WWDC, Apple's product information page also claims that the 30-day standby time offered by the previous MacBook Air will be the same.
802.11ac Wi-Fi
For a blazingly fast Internet connection, the new MacBook Air models have stepped up to 802.11ac Wi-Fi, the newest wireless standard, offering up to three times the speed of the current 802.11n standard. This switch to the newer, faster standard will also provide a measure of future proofing to keep the newest MacBook Air feeling fast over the next three to five years.
Because 802.11ac isn't commonly available on the market yet, Apple is also releasing a new 802.11ac version of the AirPort Extreme.
Bigger, Faster Storage Standard
Finally, while the base price of the 11- and 13-inch MacBook Air models are staying the same, the amount of storage included has doubled. Where the 11-inch and 13-inch MacBook Air models previously came with 64GB standard, it now offers 128GB of flash memory. In addition to larger capacity, however, Apple has also upgraded to faster performing flash memory, up to 45 percent faster than the flash storage in the previous-generation MacBook Air.
Pricing and Availability
The new 11-inch MacBook Air, with Intel 4th-Generation hardware and 128GB memory, is available for $999. The 13-inch MacBook Air, also with a 4th-Generation processor and 128GB flash storage, starts at $1,099. Both are available for order today through the Apple online store
.The thinnest, lightest member of the Mac family now has more power, and the ability to last longer. The newly updated 11-inch MacBook Air starts at $1,000 for 128GB of storage, and the 13-inch starts at $1,100 for 128GB of storage. Both start shipping today from the Apple store.
The new Air boasts “all-day battery life” (Apple’s words). The new Air will have an Intel Haswell ULT processor inside that improves the battery life from five hours on the 11-inch and seven hours on the 13-inch, to nine hours for the 11-inch and a full 12 hours on the 13-inch. Onstage at WWDC, Apple SVP of marketing Phil Schiller joked that we can now watch almost the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy in one sitting with the new 10-hour movie playback capabilities of the Air. Only it’s not really a joke — we actually could, and we might.
Another feature of the Haswell chip is the Iris Graphics technology. A major upgrade from the previous HD Graphics 4000, it delivers twice the 3-D performance at a 45 percent faster rate, according to Apple. That means you’ll now be able to do some real gaming on the Air with the improved graphics power.
Apple added 802.11AC Gigabit Wi-Fi chips to the Air, giving it three times more speed to the machine’s throughput capabilities. To go along with this update, Apple also announced two new base stations, AirPort Extreme and AirPort Time Capsule. Both sport new features like beam-forming, which sends more energy straight to an 802.11 WiFi device.
These upgrades show that Apple wants to make the Air more of a staple for all users, not just those who are buying a hyper-portable machine. The Air has been the obvious choice for people who travel a lot, or those who only need a computer for light tasks throughout the day. Now that the innards of the Air have been beefed up with a more powerful processor, faster Wi-Fi chips, and especially a real-deal battery, the Air can be a choice for people who want all the power of a standard computer, in a sleeker, lighter frame.
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