Comparatif : MacBook Air (Silicon) vs MacBook Air (Intel)

Comparatif : MacBook Air (Silicon) vs MacBook Air (Intel)

In June, during WWDC, Apple promised to release Macs with custom-designed processors. After a few months of waiting, the Apple Silicon Macs were finally unveiled at the Encore une chose event. As presented by the brand, the first MacBook to ship the M1 chip is the Air. 

How does this compare to the Intel MacBook Air (2020) that precedes it? This is the question we will answer in this comparison.

Price and availability  

With its M1 silicon processor on board, one might expect a slight increase in the price of the new MacBook Air. As surprising as it may seem, the truth is quite different. 

Apple has announced that pricing will start from €1, just like the Intel-based versions shown earlier this year.   

In details:
  

MacBook Air Silicium (2020) 

• MacBook Air Silicon, M1 chip, 256 GB of storage, 8 GB of memory: €1 
• MacBook Air Silicon, M1 chip, 512 GB of storage, 8 GB of memory: €1 

MacBook Air Intel (2020) 

• MacBook Air (2020), 1.1GHz dual-core 3th Gen Intel Core i10, 256GB storage, 8GB memory: €1 
• MacBook Air (2020), 1.1GHz quad-core 5th Gen Intel Core i10, 8GB RAM, 512GB storage, 8GB memory: €1 

As you can notice, the Silicon 512 GB version is cheaper than the one with Intel.  

Now that the MacBook Air Silicon has emerged, the previous models are no longer accessible on the Apple site. However, they are still available from e-merchants and other retailers, such as Fnac, Amazon or Boulanger. 

MacBook Air Silicon can be pre-ordered immediately from Apple, they will officially go on sale from November 17, 2020.

Design and features 

There is no doubt that the main changes made to the MacBook Air are all found among the electronics rather than the design.  

Indeed, appearance-wise, this new Apple laptop is virtually identical to its predecessor, with its slim chassis measuring 304,1mm x 212,4mm x 4,1mm x 16,1mm.

Ports  

On the sides of the MacBook Air (2020), there are two Thunderbolt 3/USB-C ports with support for USB 3.1 (Gen 2). On the other hand, on the most recent devices you will benefit from the USB 4 variant.  

Both Airs have a 3,5mm headphone jack and the Touch ID reader to unlock the device or pay online with Apple Pay. 

Screen 

If the backlit Magic keyboard is the same, the display has been improved on the MacBook Air Silicon. 

It's still a 13,3-inch IPS LED display with 2560 x 1600 resolution, accompanied by True Tone technology. Apple has added support for Wide Color (P3) technology to bring out more vibrant hues. 

No fan 

Another important improvement: the MacBook Air Silicon does not have a fan, which allows it to operate silently.

performances  

There is no doubt that the main feature of the new MacBook Air is the small square M1 processor.  

Featuring 8-core CPUs (4 high-performance and 4 high-efficiency cores) and 7-core or 8-core GPUs, depending on which you buy, the M1 chip is, according to the parent company, the most powerful ever . 

Apple claims that this processor outperforms the Intel version of the previous MacBook Air in several ways. Here are 7 main ones:
 

• Export an iMovie project up to 3x faster. 
• Integrate 3D effects into video with Final Cut Pro up to 5x faster.  
• Play and edit multiple streams of 4K ProRes video in Final Cut Pro with no frame loss. 
• Export photos from Lightroom up to 2x faster. 
• Autonomy of 18 hours. 
• Unprecedented fluidity at all levels.  
• Up to 2x faster SSD performance.
   

The M1 silicon chip even gives the MacBook Air's 720p HD camera a boost, reducing noise and improving image quality. 

Also, WiFi 6 has now become standard and the MacBook Air Silicon integrates macOS Big Sur.  

The old MacBook Air will also be able to take advantage of the features offered by Big Sur, however Apple is directing it more towards devices powered by the M1.

Comparison table between the MacBook Air Silicon and the MacBook Air Intel