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MacBook Air (M1, 2020) vs. MacBook Air 13” 2019 - Detailed Specs Comparison

Here is a side by side comparison between MacBook Air (M1, 2020) and MacBook Air 13” 2019 specs including CPU, RAM, storage, battery, display, and more.

BY Conor Banett September 20, 2020 10:43 am

MacBook Air (M1, 2020) vs. MacBook Air 13” 2019

The MacBook Air (M1, 2020) features the 10W Apple M-Series ARM 64-bit 8-core Apple M1 (7 GPU Cores) up to 8-core Apple M1 with a clock speed of 3.20 GHz. While the MacBook Air 13” 2019 features the 7W 8th Generation Intel Amber Lake Y dual-core Intel Core i5-8210Y with the boost speed up to 3.60 GHz.

If you are in the market looking for a laptop and don't know what's the difference between the 13.3″ MacBook Air (M1, 2020) and the 13.3″ MacBook Air 13” 2019 , we have a detailed tech specs comparison between both devices for you to check out here.

MacBook Air (M1, 2020) vs. MacBook Air 13” 2019: Specs Comparison

	Compare With Please enter device name or part of it MacBook Air (M1, 2020) See at Amazon	Compare With Please enter device name or part of it MacBook Air 13” 2019 See at Amazon
Key Features
What's new	Better Performance With the new Apple M1 Chip, it now 3x times faster in exporting a project in iMovie, 5x times faster applying 3D effects in Final Cut Pro, editing multiple streams 4K ProRes video in Final Cut Pro with no frame drop, 2x times faster in exporting photos in Lightroom, and more. Better Battery Life It's a MacBook Air with the longest battery life ever made, with up to 18-hours of watching movies and 15 hours of web browsing. Better FaceTime HD camera With the latest Apple Image Single Processor (ISP) in the M1 chip, image quality is better in noise reduction, greater dynamic range, and improved auto white balance. Better Display It now supports P3 wide color with 400-nits of display brightness. More Supports latest USB 4 Supports latest Wi-Fi 6 Better security with new Secure Enclave in M1 chip	New True Tone Display The technology automatically adjusts the white point of the display to match the color temperature of your environment.
What's missing	Supports only one extended [email protected] display, while the older Intel version supports up to two [email protected] Not supports for external Thunderbolt-3 enabled graphics processors (eGPUs).	Slightly smaller battery, down from 50.3 Wh to 49.9 Wh

Availability	MacBook Air (M1, 2020)	MacBook Air 13” 2019
Released	2020	2019
Release Info	Announced on November 10th, 2020	Available on June 27, 2019
Pricing	$999 Apple M1 Chip (7 cores GPU) \| 8GB RAM \| 256GB SSD $1,249 Apple M1 Chip (8 cores GPU) \| 8GB RAM \| 512GB SSD	$1,099 Intel Core i5 8210Y \| 8GB RAM \| 128GB SSD $1,299 Intel Core i5 8210Y \| 8GB RAM \| 256GB SSD

MacBook Air (M1, 2020) Price
	2020 Apple MacBook Air Laptop: Apple M1 Chip, 13” Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage, Backlit Keyboard, FaceTime HD Camera, Touch ID. Works with iPhone/iPad; Gold By Apple $949.00 Was: $999.00	See at Amazon
	Apple MacBook Air with Apple M1 Chip (13-inch, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) - Space Gray (Latest Model) Z124000FK By Apple $1,166.83	See at Amazon
	Apple MacBook Air 13.3" with Retina Display, M1 Chip with 8-Core CPU and 7-Core GPU, 16GB Memory, 512GB SSD, Space Gray, Late 2020 By Apple $1,349.99	See at Amazon
MacBook Air 13” 2019 Price
	Apple 13in MacBook Air (2017 Version) 1.8GHz Core i5 CPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Silver, MQD42LL/A (Renewed) By Apple $455.05 Was: $485.00	See at Amazon
	(Renewed) Apple MacBook Air MJVE2LL/A 13-inch Laptop 1.6GHz Core i5, 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD By Apple $340.00 Was: $369.00	See at Amazon
	2020 Apple MacBook Air Laptop: Apple M1 Chip, 13” Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage, Backlit Keyboard, FaceTime HD Camera, Touch ID. Works with iPhone/iPad; Space Gray By Apple $949.00 Was: $999.00	See at Amazon

Display	MacBook Air (M1, 2020)	MacBook Air 13” 2019
Size	13.3 Inches	13.3 Inches
Info	Retina display 13.3-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit display with IPS technology; 2560-by-1600 native resolution at 227 pixels per inch with support for millions of colors Supported scaled resolutions: 1680 by 1050 1440 by 900 1024 by 640 16:10 aspect ratio 400 nits brightness Supports wide color (P3) True Tone technology	Retina display 13.3-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit display with IPS technology; 2560-by-1600 native resolution at 227 pixels per inch with support for millions of colors Supported scaled resolutions: 1680 by 1050 1440 by 900 1024 by 640 16:10 aspect ratio True Tone technology

Exterior	MacBook Air (M1, 2020)	MacBook Air 13” 2019
Size Comparison
Dimensions	Width: 11.97 inches (30.41 cm) Depth: 8.36 inches (21.24 cm) Height: 0.16–0.63 inch (0.41–1.61 cm)	11.97” x 8.36” x 0.16 - 0.61” (304.1 mm x 212.4 mm x 4.1 – 15.6 mm)
Weight	Starting at 2.8 pounds (1.29 kg)	Starting at 2.75 pounds (1.25 kg)
Colors	GoldSpace GraySilver	GoldSpace GraySilver
Keyboard and Trackpad	Backlit Magic Keyboard with: 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) keys including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys in an inverted-T arrangement Ambient light sensor Force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and pressure-sensing capabilities; enables Force clicks, accelerators, pressure-sensitive drawing, and Multi-Touch gestures	Backlit Magic Keyboard with: 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) individual LED-backlit keys, including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys Ambient light sensor Force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and pressure-sensing capabilities; enables Force clicks, accelerators, pressure-sensitive drawing, and Multi-Touch gestures
Ports	Two Thunderbolt / USB 4 (USB‑C) ports with support for: Charging DisplayPort Thunderbolt 3 (up to 40Gb/s) USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10Gb/s)	Two Thunderbolt 3 (USB‑C) ports with support for: Charging DisplayPort Thunderbolt (up to 40Gb/s) USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10Gb/s)

Internal Specs	MacBook Air (M1, 2020)	MacBook Air 13” 2019
Processor	Apple M1 (7 GPU Cores) 8 cores, 8 threads, 3.20 GHz, 10W Apple M1 8 cores, 8 threads, 3.20 GHz, 10W	8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8210Y 2 cores, 4 threads, 1.60 → 3.60 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 7W
Integrated Graphics	Apple M1 (7 GPU Cores) Apple M1 iGPU 7 Graphics Cores, 1280 MHz Apple M1 Apple M1 iGPU 8 Graphics Cores, 1280 MHz	8th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-8210Y Intel® UHD Graphics 617 24 Execution Units, 300 → 1050 MHz
Discrete Graphics		Support for Thunderbolt 3–enabled external graphics processors (eGPUs)
Memory	8GB 4266 MHz LPDDR4X onboard memory Configurable to 16GB	8GB Configurable to 16GB 2133MHz LPDDR3 onboard memory
Storage	256GB512GB SSD Configurable to 1TB or 2TB	128GB256GB Configurable to 512GB or 1TB SSD

Connectivity	MacBook Air (M1, 2020)	MacBook Air 13” 2019
Wi-Fi	802.11ax Wi‑Fi 6 wireless networking IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac compatible	802.11ac Wi‑Fi wireless networking IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n compatible
Bluetooth	Bluetooth 5.0 wireless technology	Bluetooth 4.2 wireless technology

Battery	MacBook Air (M1, 2020)	MacBook Air 13” 2019
Size	49.9 Wh lithium‑polymer battery	49.9 Wh lithium‑polymer battery
Battery Life	Up to 15 hours wireless web Up to 18 hours Apple TV app movie playback	Up to 12 hours wireless web Up to 13 hours Apple TV app video playback Up to 30 days of standby time
Power Supply	30W USB‑C Power Adapter	30W USB‑C Power Adapter

Software	MacBook Air (M1, 2020)	MacBook Air 13” 2019
OS	Shipped with macOS Big Sur	Shipped with macOS Mojave
Built-in Apps	PhotosiMovieGarageBandPagesNumbersKeynoteSiriSafariMailFaceTimeMessagesMapsNewsStocksHomeVoice MemosNotesCalendarContactsRemindersPhoto BoothPreviewMusicPodcastsTVBooksApp StoreTime MachineFind MyQuickTime Player	PhotosiMovieGarageBandPagesNumbersKeynoteSiriSafariMailFaceTimeMessagesMapsNewsStocksHomeVoice MemosNotesCalendarContactsRemindersPhoto BoothPreviewMusicPodcastsTVBooksApp StoreTime MachineFind MyQuickTime Player

Camera & Audio	MacBook Air (M1, 2020)	MacBook Air 13” 2019
Camera	720p FaceTime HD camera	720p FaceTime HD camera
Audio	Stereo speakers Wide stereo sound Support for Dolby Atmos playback Three-mic array with directional beamforming 3.5 mm headphone jack	Stereo speakers Three microphones 3.5 mm headphone jack

Misc	MacBook Air (M1, 2020)	MacBook Air 13” 2019
Sensors	Touch ID sensor Ambient light sensor	Touch ID sensor Ambient light sensor
Security	Touch ID sensor Apple T2 Security Chip	Touch ID sensor Apple T2 Security Chip
In the box	MacBook Air 30W USB‑C Power Adapter USB-C Charge Cable (2 m)	MacBook Air 30W USB‑C Power Adapter USB-C Charge Cable (2 m)
Warranty	Your MacBook Air comes with 90 days of complimentary technical support and a one-year limited warranty. Purchase AppleCare+ to extend your coverage to three years from your AppleCare+ purchase date and add up to two incidents of accidental damage coverage, each subject to a service fee of $99 for screen damage or external enclosure damage, or $299 for other repairable damage, plus applicable tax.	Your MacBook Air comes with 90 days of complimentary technical support and a one-year limited warranty. Purchase AppleCare+ to extend your coverage to three years from your AppleCare+ purchase date and add up to two incidents of accidental damage coverage, each subject to a service fee of $99 for screen damage or external enclosure damage, or $299 for other repairable damage, plus applicable tax.
More	Video Support Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display at millions of colors and: One external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz Thunderbolt 3 digital video output Native DisplayPort output over USB‑C VGA, HDMI, DVI, and Thunderbolt 2 output supported using adapters (sold separately)	Video Support Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display at millions of colors and: One external display with 5120-by-2880 resolution at up to 60Hz Up to two external displays with 4096-by-2304 resolution at up to 60Hz Thunderbolt 3 digital video output Native DisplayPort output over USB‑C VGA, HDMI, and Thunderbolt 2 output using adapters (sold separately)

MacBook Air (M1, 2020) Price
	2020 Apple MacBook Air Laptop: Apple M1 Chip, 13” Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage, Backlit Keyboard, FaceTime HD Camera, Touch ID. Works with iPhone/iPad; Gold By Apple $949.00 Was: $999.00	See at Amazon
	Apple MacBook Air with Apple M1 Chip (13-inch, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) - Space Gray (Latest Model) Z124000FK By Apple $1,166.83	See at Amazon
	Apple MacBook Air 13.3" with Retina Display, M1 Chip with 8-Core CPU and 7-Core GPU, 16GB Memory, 512GB SSD, Space Gray, Late 2020 By Apple $1,349.99	See at Amazon
MacBook Air 13” 2019 Price
	Apple 13in MacBook Air (2017 Version) 1.8GHz Core i5 CPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Silver, MQD42LL/A (Renewed) By Apple $455.05 Was: $485.00	See at Amazon
	(Renewed) Apple MacBook Air MJVE2LL/A 13-inch Laptop 1.6GHz Core i5, 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD By Apple $340.00 Was: $369.00	See at Amazon
	2020 Apple MacBook Air Laptop: Apple M1 Chip, 13” Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage, Backlit Keyboard, FaceTime HD Camera, Touch ID. Works with iPhone/iPad; Space Gray By Apple $949.00 Was: $999.00	See at Amazon