SEE ALSO: 22 Best Mac Apps of 2012
We tested the base model mid-2013 13-inch MacBook Air. It comes equipped with a 1.3GHz Intel i5 processor (2.6GHz turbo), 4GB of RAM and a 128GB solid-state drive. This model retails for $1,099, down $100 from the base 2012 13-inch MacBook Air. Customers can further customize the machine to include up to 8GB of RAM, a 256GB or 512GB SSD and bump of the processor from Core i5 to Core i7. As with previous generations, the MacBook Air is not upgradeable after purchase, so if you want to have more RAM or a bigger SSD, you need to make that decision when you buy.
My daily driver is a base model mid-2012 13-inch MacBook Air, which means I was able to directly compare the two laptops on speed, battery life, graphics performance and in real-world application tests.
CPU Speed: On Par With 2012
The 2012 MacBook Air has a 1.8GHz Core i5 processor, which clocks higher than the 1.3GHz Core i5 in the 2013 MacBook Air. In theory, you might think that that means the new models are slower than last year. In practice, that's not really true. While it's true the processor is clocked lower (in part to help with battery life), the max turbo is the same and CPU benchmarks for the two notebooks are nearly identical.Running Geekbench 2 benchmarks, the 2012 MacBook Air comes in at 5,812 while the 2013 model reports 6,707. When using CPU-intensive apps, it was nearly impossible to tell a difference.
The CPU is only part of the performance story, however. The real improvements to the 2013 MacBook Air are to battery life, SSD speed and integrated graphics.
Battery Life
The big story with the 2013 MacBook Air is the battery life. Apple promises up to 12 hours (compared with 7 hours on the 2012 13-inch MacBook Pro) and up to 10 hours of movie playback. According to its website, the new battery tests were done at 75% brightness.I tested the video claim head-on and was able to watch two full movies and an episode of Master Chef on Hulu Plus, all on 75% brightness, before the machine shut down.
And although I didn't do a full repeating website test, I did put the MacBook Air through what I consider to be its toughest test — a full workday as my daily driver. With my 2012 MacBook Air, I usually can get 4 to 4.5 hours of battery life under heavy use. That means Safari and Chrome with dozens of tabs each, Photoshop, Dropbox, iTunes or Spotify, a constantly chugging Mail app and any other littany of apps and services.
With the 2013 MacBook Air,
I was easily able to go more than 8.5 hours doing the same tasks and with the same apps running.I was easily able to go more than 8.5 hours doing the same tasks and with the same apps running. That's a big deal, effectively doubling the battery life I get under heavy use.
The battery improvements are largely due to the new features in the Haswell chipset. Teardown reports also suggest the battery itself is slightly larger.
One area I did find taxing on the battery: Flash games. Playing Candy Crush Saga (don't you judge me!) for over an hour was enough to dip the battery more than 20%. My guess is that if Adobe Flash player was more optimized for the Intel HD 5000 integrated graphics (and had better general OS X support), the battery impact wouldn't be as severe.
As long as you stay away from Candy Crush, this is the sort of laptop that will easily last all day and then some.
Blazing SSD Speeds
In addition to the new processor, the new MacBook Air also has a new type of SSD. Rather than using a standard SATA connection, the new MacBook Air uses a PCIe connection for the drive.This is the same type of storage that will be used in the Mac Pro and the results are nothing short of stunning.
The 2012 MacBook Air was no slouch when it comes to hard disk speeds. Even my overly-full and year-old MacBook Air can do read speeds of 429MB/s and write at 265MB/s in Blackmagic Disk Speed Test. The 2013 model puts out read speeds of 721MB/s and writes speeds of 453MB/s.
Using the benchmarking app Quick Bench, I got similar results, with read speeds nearing the 800MB/s mark.
Users who opt for a larger SSD may get even faster speeds. Early reports from AnadandTech indicate over 700MB/s read/write speeds on the 256GB variant.
Anand Shimpi theorized with me over Twitter that the faster write speeds are linked to simply having more space.
@film_girl at certain points in the curve, peak sequential write performance is directly linked to number of NAND die— anandshimpi (@anandshimpi) June 18, 2013
@film_girl so more capacity can == better performance since the controller can split writes across more NAND Flash— anandshimpi (@anandshimpi) June 18, 2013
This means that tasks such as copying files to disk and accessing big blocks of data is even faster. It also made a differnece in my tests for tasks such as Handbrake exports.
Improved Graphics
The integrated graphics on the 2013 MacBook Air use the new Intel HD 5000 chipset. In my Cinebench OpenGL tests, I saw a 30% improvement over the 2012 MacBook Air.Moreover, the HD 5000 chipset is supposed to be good for displays with up to 4K resolution. This means that if and when Apple does release a 4K monitor, the current MacBook Air will presumably support the full resolution.
Faster Wi-Fi
The 2013 MacBook Air is the first Apple product to ship with 802.11ac Wi-Fi. I didn't have an 802.11ac router to test so I'll have to withhold how much faster the so-called "Gigabit WiFi" really is.I imagine that paired with one of the new AirPort Extreme or Time Capsule routers, the results will be similar to the move from 802.11g to 802.11n.
Better for FaceTime
The only cosmetic change that is new on the 2013 MacBook Air is the addition of a second microphone to the left side of the machine. This is to improve noise cancellation and voice quality with FaceTime calls.I didn't test this feature, but Mashable Editor-in-Chief Lance Ulanoff did — and here's what he had to say.
If you, as I did, connect the new MacBook Air to your existing iCloud account, all your contacts will end up in the pre-installed FaceTime app. This proved quite convenient when I wanted to make a quick, cross-country video call to my wife. I found her contact info, she picked up via her iPad 2 and soon we were having a near crystal-clear (audio and video) conversation. The MacBook’s Air’s new stereo microphone (two tiny holes on the left side side) picked up my voice perfectly. It was nice to conduct a FaceTime call without using my iPhone headphones.
Keyboard, Trackpad, Screen, Connections
The chassis of the 2013 MacBook Air remains identical to the 2012 model. For me, there is no better laptop keyboard than the chiclet-style one Apple has adopted for its notebook line. The glass trackpad is multi-touch and truly has no equal on any other Ultrabook or hybrid laptop.Like last year, the 2013 13-inch MacBook Air has two USB 3.0 ports, a Thunderbolt port and a card reader.
Ironically, the screen, once one of Apple's strongest points with the MacBook Air, is now starting to fade a little compared to the competition. The TN panel is still great to look at, and the 1,440 x 900 resolution is more than acceptable for my computing needs, but it does lack the razor-sharpness of the retina MacBook Pro line or even something like Google's Chromebook Pixel.
I've talked to some users who say they won't buy a MacBook Air until it has a retina display. I can understand that sentiment. To them, I say: Your best bet is to get the 13-inch MacBook Pro with retina. It's not as light and its battery life isn't nearly as good, but it will give you the desired performance.
Right now, Apple has to make a tradeoff between battery life and screen resolution if they want to keep the featherlight frame of the MacBook Air intact.
Given the choice between up to 12 hours of battery life and a retina display, for my uses, I'm inclined to go with battery life. Still, the screen resolution is the one area that Apple trails some of the Ultrabook competition in, and it's worth noting.
The Best Ultraportable Keeps Getting Better
With the 2013 MacBook Air, Apple has managed to make an already incredible notebook even better. If you're in the market for an Ultrabook or Ultrabook-like device, the MacBook Air is fantastic across the board.The machine runs fast, the hard drive is screaming and the battery life actually lives up to its claims. In short, this is an all-around great notebook for anyone who doesn't need the full power of discrete graphics or the thrill of an ultra-high resolution display.
For new buyers, the 2013 MacBook Air is a no-brainer.For new buyers, the 2013 MacBook Air is a no-brainer. If you bought a MacBook Air in the last year, the upgrades (including battery life) probably aren't significant enough to warrant a new machine. If you're using a 2010 or 2011 vintage MacBook Pro or MacBook Air, the upgrade is a lot more compelling.
My one comment for buyers — and this comes from a year of experience with the 2012 MacBook Air — is to consider springing for a bigger SSD. The 13-inch MacBook Air now starts at $1099 and for another $200 you can double the size of the SSD.
For me, 128GB of internal storage just isn't enough, and I'm constantly having to juggle files and Dropbox folders in order to keep the disk to keep it in check. I'd like to see Apple make 256GB the standard SSD size in the future.
All told, Apple continues its reputation as making the best ultraportable on the market, and this time, it even gets significantly better battery life.
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