MacBook Air M1 (2020) Review

Last year, Apple released the game-changing MacBook Air M1, including the 13-inch MacBook Pro and Mac Mini, pushing Apple ahead of its competitors. Along with the new Monterey OS update, Apple discontinued its use of Intel chips favouring its exclusive silicon solution, the M1 chip. Read on our review of the MacBook M1, which has outperformed its predecessors.

Design

Apple made no changes to the exterior of the MacBook this time, as it did with the previous model of MacBook Air. The MacBook Air M1 features the iconic tapered design, sturdy aluminium build, and excellent finishing that you’ve come to expect from the tech giant. It also comes in three distinct colours, namely gold, space grey, and silver. If there’s anything new, it’s the new Magic keyboard, which is lovely and comfy to type on. The trackpad is huge and highly responsive, making it easy to use without a mouse.

Furthermore, a fingerprint sensor serves as a power key as well, so you won’t have to enter passwords every time you want to access it. Another design change is that there is no longer a fan inside. You won’t be able to hear the noise or feel the warm air on your lap. The laptop does get warm at times, but not excessively so. The Thunderbolt 4 and power ports are accessible via two USB-C connectors on the left side. On the other side, you’ll find a 3.5mm headphone jack for your audio needs.

Performance

The new MacBook Air is quite speedy for a mid-priced, lightweight laptop. The MacBook Air M1 outperforms the 16-inch MacBook Pro, with a Geekbench 5 score of 1704 in single-core and 7404 in multi-core. Also, the MacBook Air SSD is twice as fast as the previous model, with 2190 MB/s writes and 2675 MB/s reads. This makes previewing large photographs and importing large files faster than ever before.

Since the M1 chip is built differently from Intel chips, all apps are customised and designed specifically for M1 laptops. However, you need not be concerned because many developers are rapidly developing them for your comfort.

The graphics are equally impressive, with M1 chips that are like mid-level discrete graphics chips. Most games run smoothly on this laptop, even if the chip hasn’t been optimised for it yet. You’ll be pleased to learn that the MacBook Air M1 can run iPhone and iPad apps in addition to Mac software. You can now use the App Store on your laptop to download the same apps that you have on your phone or tablet. This ecosystem expansion would have benefited Apple users.

Battery Life

Apple’s battery game never disappoints. The MacBook Air M1 has the longest battery life compared to other MacBook Air models. According to Apple, it has a battery life of up to 15 hours of wireless web browsing or up to 18 hours of video. Even after a few hours of work and browsing the internet, the battery only dropped a few per cent. If you leave it on standby for a day, the battery level will remain high when you return to it.

Verdict

To conclude, the Apple MacBook Air M1 is a thin and light laptop that’s convenient to carry and has a battery that can power through an entire day of light productivity. Students and those doing light work, especially, would enjoy using this laptop because it not only has a solid keyboard but also a decent touchpad and a bright screen. Its M1 chip is also powerful enough to handle most tasks, and its fanless design ensures that it is silent. If there’s one thing to complain about, it’s the two USB-C ports, where you’ll probably certainly need to carry adapters.