The Apple MacBook Air (2020) offers a balance of performance and portability, making it suitable for general use and multimedia tasks, while excelling in battery life. The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga, with its 360-degree hinge and touch screen, provides versatility for business professionals and users who prioritize flexibility and build quality. If you require superior processing power for 3D, machine learning, or gaming, neither may be ideal, but for engineering software that isn't graphically intensive, they both could suffice. Consider the MacBook Air for a more established ecosystem and longer battery life, and the ThinkPad for its convertible design and business features. Keep in mind, the MacBook Air is generally more cost-effective, while the ThinkPad may come with a higher price due to its premium build and design. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Apple MacBook Air (2020)
Good for engineering and design
Best in class overall build quality
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga
Excellent portability
Key differences
Engineering and Design
7.3/10
6.7/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
3.9/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good for engineering and design, while the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) with its Apple M1 CPU and integrated GPU supports engineering and design tasks on a vibrant and high-contrast screen, while its fanless design ensures silent operation, making it a good choice for users prioritizing a quiet and high-quality display experience. In contrast, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga offers a faster Intel CPU with more RAM and Iris Xe graphics, and a 2-in-1 convertible design with a touchscreen, catering to those who need more power and versatility in a slightly more compact and lighter form factor.
Screen Quality
7.5/10
7.3/10
13.3in
SIZE
13.5in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
395.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
451.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air has a better screen than the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga for engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The MacBook Air (2020) offers a high-resolution Retina display that provides crisp text and vibrant colors, making it suitable for general use and engineering tasks that require accurate color representation, but its standard refresh rate limits its effectiveness for 3D applications which demand faster screen updates. The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga also presents high-resolution with strong color accuracy for tasks in general use and engineering, ensuring detailed imagery and precise color work, but its screen refresh rate is not designed for the high-speed rendering needed in gaming and advanced 3D visuals. Both laptops prioritize display qualities that favor detail and color over fast refresh rates, making them ideal for productivity and creative tasks but less optimal for the high-refresh demands of gaming and intensive 3D applications.
Battery
15.0 Hours
8.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga has 8 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Build Quality
10.0/10
8.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has best in class build quality, while the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga has very good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,000
$725
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has a price of $1,000 and the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga costs $725.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga are both good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) offers a fanless design ensuring silent operation, good battery life, and a high-quality display with wide color coverage, making it a solid choice for general use with minimal distractions. At the same time, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga provides a versatile 2-in-1 convertible design with a touch screen, additional memory and storage, and built-in Windows 11 Pro features that cater well to general business requirements.
Gaming and AI
6.2/10
6.0/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
9.1/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga are both only fair for gaming and AI.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is only fair for 3D applications due to its integrated GPU which is less powerful than dedicated gaming GPUs, and its refresh rate being standard, whereas gaming often benefits from higher refresh rates; additionally, MacOS does not support many popular games which limits its gaming potential. The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga, while also having an integrated GPU which is not ideal for high-end gaming graphics, runs Windows and supports a broader range of games, but like the MacBook, it has a standard screen refresh rate, meaning it's not optimized for the high frame rates that many gamers seek..
Content Creation
7.8/10
7.3/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
3.9/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga are both good for content creation.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
7.7/10
7.3/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
3.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga are both good for software development.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Portability
Very Good
Excellent
13.3in
SIZE
13.5in
2.8 lbs
WEIGHT
2.5 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.4in
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga to have excellent portability, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) has very good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Apple MacBook Air (2020) and the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga compare to other laptops
"The Apple MacBook Air M2 Entry is a very good, but too expensive daily MacBook. The new MacBook Air M2 is undoubtedly once again a very good mobile companion, but we are still a little bit disappointed on a very high level, which is definitely connected with the increased price point. The new chassis is extremely slim and the front edge is no problem during typing, but the bezels are pretty wide for a modern device and in addition with the vertical space required for the notch, the new Air has larger footprint than some Windows rivals."
"The ThinkPad X1 Titanium is a showcase of what Lenovo thinks business computing will look like in the near future. People want thinner, lighter laptops with high-quality screens and enough computing power to get their work done. The X1 Titanium achieves these goals with some controversial but innovative design choices, including a redesigned keyboard and a pared-down port selection."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2020) or the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga
About Apple
Apple, an American technology company, is one of the world’s largest company in terms of market capitalization. Their MacBook laptops feature a slim, minimalistic design, class-leading battery life, and premium display and speaker quality. In 2020 Apple switched from using Intel processors to their own silicon chips which have excellent performance and efficiency. The macOS operating system is the second most widely used OS, after Windows.
About Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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