MacBook Air 2020 review- Is the Core i3 the better choice?

This year’s MacBook Air fixes a lot of our complaints with previous models. It comes with new, more powerful, innards, a drastically improved keyboard and more storage space. However, the screen is a little muted and battery life is average. Still, if you’re an Apple fan looking for an affordable MacBook, we can heartily recommend the new MacBook Air – something we’ve not been able to do with previous versions. Let’s find out the review of MacBook Air 2020 with Topfoodss!

Price and availability

In a pleasant surprise, the MacBook Air (2020) has launched at a new lower price for its entry level model.

The new entry-level MacBook Air comes with a dual-core 10th-generation Intel Core i3 processor, 256GB storage (up from 128GB in the previous model) and 8GB of RAM for $999 / £999 / AU$1,599.

That’s a decent saving considering that the MacBook Air (2019)’s entry level model launched at $1,099 / £1,099 / AU$1,699. In an age of rising costs, it’s really pleasing to see Apple release newer hardware at cheaper prices. Long may it continue.

Apple also launched a higher-end MacBook Air priced at $1,299 / £1,299 / AU$1,999, and this comes with a 10th-generation quad-core Intel Core i5 processor – the first time a quad-core CPU has been included in a MacBook Air – 512GB SSD storage and 8GB of RAM.

As with previous models, you can further upgrade the MacBook Air, adding double the RAM, more storage up to 2TB and a faster 10th generation Intel Core i7 processor.

The fully maxed-out version, then, with a 1.2GHz Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB RAM and 2TB SSD costs $2,249 / £2,249 / AU$3,349.

Design

The MacBook Air (2020) continues with the same design of the 2018 refresh, but is just slightly thicker and heavier. If you’re used to the older non-Retina MacBook Air, like I am, then there’s a lot that’s new. The overall size of the laptop is smaller, making it a lot more portable, and it’s a bit lighter too, starting at 1.29kg. The entire body is built using 6000-series aluminium, which makes it feel very sturdy. The Apple logo on the lid isn’t backlit anymore, but instead features a mirror finish, which complements the matte finish on the rest of the body.

Performance

As with any MacBook, making a firm judgment on performance is tricky as there are multiple options available depending on how much you want to spend. There are two ‘off the shelf’ models available, one with a 1.1GHz dual-core 10th gen Intel Core i3 and another with a 10th-gen quad-core i5. There’s also a 1.2GHz quad-core 10th-gen i7 flavour available directly from Apple.

All models come with fast SSDs, with the base offering 256GB and maxing out at 2TB. You’ll have to pay an extra £600 for that model though, but at least it’s there. Both versions come with 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, with a 16GB add-on available too.

Battery life

If you’re waiting for a huge advancement in battery life on MacBooks, then you’re probably going to want to wait and see what Apple Silicon brings. That’s something I have mentioned a lot in this review, but Apple on the cusp of something entirely new with its own chips so there’s a lot up in the air.

Apple claims you’ll get 11 hours of juice from a single charge if you’re browsing the web, or 12 hours if you’re streaming Apple TV film playback. Looping a downloaded film, I managed to get just about to 11 hours, but no further.

MacBook Air 2020 audio

The laptop might be light like a gentle breeze, but it can get as loud as a hurricane. According to Apple, the speakers deliver “twice the bass and 25% more volume. The Air’s pair of top-mounted speakers filled my smallish living and dining rooms with crisp percussion on Jay-Z’s “Lucifer.” However, the guitar and piano were fighting for a cramped soundstage which only made the rapper and the background singer’s vocals sound distorted.

MacBook Air 2020 heat

The MacBook Air is one cool customer. After 15 minutes of playing a fullscreen high-definition video, we tested key areas on the laptop. The touchpad measured 78 degrees Fahrenheit. The center of the keyboard and bottom of the laptop registered 86 and 92 degrees, respectively. Each temperature is well below our 95-degree comfort threshold.