For general use, the MacBook Air (2020) offers good performance with high build quality and a vivid screen. Its battery lasts longer and it has a higher portability score due to its fanless design, which also renders silent operation. The LG Ultra 13, on the other hand, offers better value as it is generally less expensive, comes with more RAM for better multitasking performance and is slightly more portable due to its lower weight. However, it falls short in battery life and screen color accuracy compared to the MacBook Air. If you need a laptop for more intensive 3D and machine learning or engineering tasks, neither of these laptops are ideally suited for intensive gaming. 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
Good overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the LG Ultra 13
Excellent portability
Key differences
Engineering and Design
7.3/10
6.6/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.7/10
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 LG Ultra 13 is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is equipped with the Apple M1 CPU and integrated GPU, providing strong performance, and its high-resolution screen is suitable for engineering and design tasks. In contrast, while the LG Ultra 13 has more RAM, its AMD Ryzen 7 CPU and Vega 7 GPU offer fair performance, and its lower-resolution screen may not be as optimal for detailed engineering and design work.
Content Creation
7.8/10
7.2/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.7/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and LG Ultra 13 are both good for content creation, though the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is somewhat better.
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.
Screen Quality
7.5/10
6.9/10
13.3in
SIZE
13.3in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
395.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
300.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air has a better screen than the LG Ultra 13 for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has a high-resolution Retina display with bright and accurate colors, making it suitable for general use and tasks that require attention to detail like engineering and design; however, its standard refresh rate isn’t ideal for 3D rendering where smoother motion is needed. The LG Ultra 13 also offers a high-resolution screen that's bright and provides good color accuracy, catering well to general productivity and precision tasks required in engineering and design. While both have high-quality displays, neither is optimized for gaming or 3D applications due to their standard refresh rates, which may result in less fluid motion compared to panels with higher refresh rates.
Battery
15.0 Hours
10.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The LG Ultra 13 has 10 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
7.4/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has best in class build quality, while the LG Ultra 13 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,000
$529
$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 LG Ultra 13 costs $529.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and LG Ultra 13 are both good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) provides an excellent balance of performance and portability for general use with its Apple M1 CPU, sufficient RAM, high-quality IPS screen, and exceptional battery life, complemented by its light weight and silent, fanless design. In contrast, the LG Ultra 13 offers more RAM, which can handle multitasking with ease, and it still maintains a high level of portability and decent battery life, but it has a lower screen resolution compared to the MacBook Air.
Gaming and AI
6.2/10
6.1/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and LG Ultra 13 are both only fair for gaming and AI.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Software Development
7.7/10
7.2/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.7/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and LG Ultra 13 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
13.3in
2.8 lbs
WEIGHT
2.1 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.6in
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers LG Ultra 13 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 LG Ultra 13 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 13.3-inch LG Gram is a fine fit if you need to travel as light as possible for as long as possible without spending a fortune to do it. It might not be particularly sturdy or have an eye-catching design and its webcam is less than ideal, but with its sharp touch display, comfortable backlit keyboard, responsive touchpad and a fingerprint reader for extra security, the Gram makes a respectible everyday laptop for business or school work."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2020) or the LG Ultra 13
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 LG
LG is a South Korean conglomerate company. While LG is mainly known for various products outside of technology, LG also develops laptops. Within the laptop industry, they are known for their thin-and-light Gram series, as well as their value-oriented Ultra series. LG laptops offer very thin and light laptops with phenomenal battery life, 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.
By the numbers
380
Laptops evaluated
48,640
Laptops stats compiled
13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
103,695
Recommendations made
22,468
Consumer hours saved
About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Craig Russell
Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.