M1 MacBook Air vs. 2020 MacBook Pro 16” - Specs Comparison

Here is a comparison between the specifications of the M1 MacBook Air and 2020 MacBook Pro 16”, including differences in the chip, memory, storage, display, battery, ports, and more.

M1 MacBook Air vs. 2020 MacBook Pro 16”

The 2020 M1 MacBook Air features the 10W Apple M-Series ARM 64-bit 8-core Apple M1 (8C, 7G) up to 8-core Apple M1 (8C, 8G) with a clock speed of 3.20 GHz. While the 2020 MacBook Pro 16” features the 45W 9th Generation Intel Coffee Lake 6-core Intel Core i7-9750H up to 8-core Intel Core i9-9980HK with the boost speed up to 5.00 GHz.

If you are in the market looking for a laptop and don't know what's the difference between the 13.3″ M1 MacBook Air (2020) and the 16″ 2020 MacBook Pro 16” , we have a detailed tech specs comparison between both devices for you to check out here.

M1 MacBook Air vs. 2020 MacBook Pro 16”: Specs Comparison

M1 MacBook Air image

M1 MacBook Air

2020 MacBook Pro 16” image

2020 MacBook Pro 16”

Key Features
What's new
  • Better Performance. With the new Apple M1 Chip, it is 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 of up to 18 hours. The new M1 MacBook Air has the most extended battery life ever, 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, has a better dynamic range, and has an improved auto white balance.
  • Better display. It now supports a P3 wide color with 400 nits of display brightness.
  • Improvements
    • It supports the latest USB 4 and Wi-Fi 6.
    • It has better security with the new Secure Enclave in the M1 chip.
New Optional AMD Radeon Pro 5600M
You can now opt for the latest AMD Radeon Pro with 40 compute units, 8GB of High Bandwidth Memory (HBM2), and 394GB/s of memory bandwidth that can deliver performance up to 75% faster than the AMD Radeon Pro 5500M.
What's missing
  • Natively supports only one external display. The new M1 chip supports only one extended 6K@60Hz display, while the older Intel version supports up to two 4K@60Hz.
AvailabilityM1 MacBook Air2020 MacBook Pro 16”
Released20202020
Release InfoAnnounced on November 10th, 2020
  • Announced in June 2020.
  • Available in June 2020.
Pricing
  • $999
    Apple M1 Chip (7 cores GPU) | 8GB RAM | 256GB SSD
  • $1,249
    Apple M1 Chip (8 cores GPU) | 8GB RAM | 512GB SSD
  • $2,399 - Intel Core i7 | 16GB RAM | 512GB SSD | Radeon 5300M 4GB
  • $2,799 - Intel Core i7 | 16GB RAM | 1TB SSD | Radeon 5500M 4GB
DisplayM1 MacBook Air2020 MacBook Pro 16”
Size13.3 Inches16 Inches
InfoRetina 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
  • 16‑inch (diagonal) LED‑backlit display with IPS technology; 3072‑by‑1920 native resolution at 226 pixels per inch with support for millions of colors
  • Supported scaled resolutions:
    • 2048 by 1280
    • 1792 by 1120
    • 1344 by 840
    • 1152 by 720
  • 500 nits brightness
  • Wide color (P3)
  • True Tone technology
  • Refresh rates: 47.95Hz, 48.00Hz, 50.00Hz, 59.94Hz, 60.00Hz
ExteriorM1 MacBook Air2020 MacBook Pro 16”
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)
  • Height: 0.64 inch (1.62 cm)
  • Width: 14.09 inches (35.79 cm)
  • Depth: 9.68 inches (24.59 cm)
WeightStarting at 2.8 pounds (1.29 kg)Starting at 4.3 pounds (2.0 kg)
Colors
GoldSpace GraySilver
Space GraySilver
Keyboard and TrackpadBacklit 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:
  • 65 (U.S.) or 66 (ISO) keys including 4 arrow keys in an inverted‑T arrangement
  • Touch Bar
  • Touch ID sensor
  • 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
PortsTwo 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)
Four 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 SpecsM1 MacBook Air2020 MacBook Pro 16”
Processor
  • Apple M1 (7 GPU Cores)
    8 cores, 8 threads, 3.20 GHz, 10W
  • Apple M1
    8 cores, 8 threads, 3.20 GHz, 10W
  • 9th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-9750H
    6 cores, 12 threads, 2.60 → 4.50 GHz, 12MB SmartCache, 45W
  • 9th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-9880H
    8 cores, 16 threads, 2.30 → 4.80 GHz, 16MB SmartCache, 45W
  • 9th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-9980HK
    8 cores, 16 threads, 2.40 → 5.00 GHz, 16MB SmartCache, 45W
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
  • 9th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-9750H
    Intel® UHD Graphics 630
    24 Execution Units, 350 → 1150 MHz
  • 9th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-9880H
    Intel® UHD Graphics 630
    24 Execution Units, 350 → 1200 MHz
  • 9th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-9980HK
    Intel® UHD Graphics 630
    24 Execution Units, 350 → 1250 MHz
Discrete Graphics
  • AMD Radeon Pro 5300M with 4GB of GDDR6 memory (20 CUs)
  • AMD Radeon Pro 5500M with 4GB of GDDR6 memory (24 CUs)
  • AMD Radeon Pro 5500M with 8GB of GDDR6 memory (24 CUs)
New
  • AMD Radeon Pro 5600M with 8GB of HBM2 memory (40 CUs)
Memory
  • 8GB
    unified memory
  • Configurable to 16GB
16GB 32GB 64GB
2666MHz DDR4 onboard memory
Storage
  • 256GB512GB
    SSD
  • Configurable to 1TB or 2TB
512GB1TB2TB4TB8TB
SSD
ConnectivityM1 MacBook Air2020 MacBook Pro 16”
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
BluetoothBluetooth 5.0 wireless technologyBluetooth 5.0 wireless technology
BatteryM1 MacBook Air2020 MacBook Pro 16”
Size49.9 Wh lithium‑polymer battery100 Wh lithium‑polymer battery
Battery Life
  • Up to 15 hours wireless web
  • Up to 18 hours Apple TV app movie playback
  • Up to 11 hours wireless web
  • Up to 11 hours Apple TV app movie playback
  • Up to 30 days of standby time
Power Supply30W USB‑C Power Adapter96W USB‑C Power Adapter
SoftwareM1 MacBook Air2020 MacBook Pro 16”
OSShipped with macOS Big SurShipped with macOS Catalina
Built-in Apps
PhotosiMovieGarageBandPagesNumbersKeynoteSiriSafariMailFaceTimeMessagesMapsNewsStocksHomeVoice MemosNotesCalendarContactsRemindersPhoto BoothPreviewMusicPodcastsTVBooksApp StoreTime MachineFind MyQuickTime Player
PhotosiMovieGarageBandPagesNumbersKeynoteSiriSafariMailFaceTimeMessagesMapsNewsStocksHomeVoice MemosNotesCalendarContactsRemindersPhoto BoothPreviewMusicPodcastsTVBooksApp StoreTime MachineFind MyQuickTime Player
Camera & AudioM1 MacBook Air2020 MacBook Pro 16”
Camera720p FaceTime HD camera720p 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
  • High‑fidelity six‑speaker system with force‑cancelling woofers
  • Wide stereo sound
  • Support for Dolby Atmos playback
  • Studio‑quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming
  • 3.5 mm headphone jack
MiscM1 MacBook Air2020 MacBook Pro 16”
Sensors
  • Touch ID sensor
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Touch ID 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)
  • 16‑inch MacBook Pro
  • 96W USB‑C Power Adapter
  • USB-C Charge Cable (2 m)
WarrantyYour 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 Pro comes with 90 days of complimentary technical support and a one‑year limited warranty. Purchase AppleCare+ for Mac 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.
MoreVideo 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:
    • Up to two displays with 6016‑by‑3384 resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors or
    • Up to four displays with 4096‑by‑2304 resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors
  • Thunderbolt 3 digital video output
    • Native DisplayPort output over USB‑C
    • VGA, HDMI, DVI, and Thunderbolt 2 output supported using adapters (sold separately)

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