The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is known for its sleek design, long battery life, and excellent build quality, making it a solid choice for general use and portability. It is suitable for everyday tasks, business applications, and light creative work but not for heavy video editing or gaming. The MacBook Air's integration with the Apple ecosystem can be a significant advantage if you already have other Apple devices. On the other hand, the MSI GF63 Thin is designed for gaming and performance-intensive tasks, with a dedicated graphics card and more powerful processors for 3D work, machine learning, and engineering software. It has a shorter battery life than the MacBook Air and is heavier, making it less portable. If you require a laptop for high-performance activities like gaming or graphic-intensive tasks and do not mind the extra weight and shorter battery life, the MSI GF63 Thin is a better choice. However, for everyday productivity, with the benefit of a lightweight frame and longer battery life, the MacBook Air would be more suitable. 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 general use
Good for engineering and design
Good for software development
Good for content creation
Good overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Very good portability
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the MSI GF63 Thin
The MSI GF63 Thin has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Air (2020).
Key differences
General Use
7.6/10
6.0/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
395.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
249.0 nits
15.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.2 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
8.9/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.3/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good for general use, while the MSI GF63 Thin is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) excels for general use with its higher quality screen, exceptional battery life, and excellent portability due to its lightweight design and a powerful CPU that handles everyday tasks smoothly. In comparison, the MSI GF63 Thin, although it has a decent processor and is capable for general use, offers a fairer experience with a lower screen quality, shorter battery life, and less portability due to its heavier build.
Engineering and Design
7.3/10
6.0/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.3/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good for engineering and design, while the MSI GF63 Thin is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is better for engineering and design due to its superior screen quality as indicated by its high pixel density and wider color coverage, which benefits detailed visual work, along with its Apple M1 CPU that integrates seamlessly with its optimized operating system and software ecosystem. The MSI GF63 Thin, however, offers a dedicated GPU, the Nvidia GTX 1650 Max-Q, which can be advantageous for some engineering applications, but its screen's lower color accuracy and pixel density make it less ideal for design work.
Content Creation
7.8/10
6.0/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.3/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good for content creation, while the MSI GF63 Thin is only fair.
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
6.0/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.3/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good for software development, while the MSI GF63 Thin is only fair.
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.
Screen Quality
7.5/10
6.1/10
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
395.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
249.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air has a better screen than the MSI GF63 Thin for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The MacBook Air, with its high-resolution Retina display, offers crisp and vibrant visuals, benefiting general use and precision tasks in engineering and design due to its excellent color accuracy and brightness. However, its standard refresh rate limits its appeal for 3D applications, where smoother motion is crucial. In contrast, the MSI GF63 Thin provides adequate display performance for everyday tasks and some technical work, but its lower color coverage and standard refresh rate may not satisfy gamers or professionals working with fast-paced 3D graphics.
Battery
15.0 Hours
4.2 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The MSI GF63 Thin has 4.3 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.
Portability
Very Good
Good
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2.8 lbs
WEIGHT
4.1 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has very good portability, while the MSI GF63 Thin has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
6.5/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has best in class build quality, while the MSI GF63 Thin has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,000
$599
$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 MSI GF63 Thin costs $599.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and MSI GF63 Thin are both only fair for gaming and AI.
The MacBook Air (2020) has an integrated GPU that is not designed for high-end gaming or intensive 3D work, and while the screen quality is high, many popular games do not run on its operating system. In contrast, the MSI GF63 Thin, with its dedicated Nvidia GPU, is better suited for gaming and 3D applications, but it has a lower screen quality and like the MacBook, a modest refresh rate which could limit the smoothness in fast-paced games.
Give feedback
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How the Apple MacBook Air (2020) and the MSI GF63 Thin 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."
"If you leave aside the meagre port selection (no card reader, no DisplayPort, no Thunderbolt 3 or USB 3.1 Gen2), the fan control that could be improved (idle mode!) and the relatively dark and slow display, the MSI GF63 Thin 9SC does not have any major weaknesses. The 15-inch gamer is compact, has a low weight and offers a good price-to-performance ratio, which should please gamers that are looking for both a portable and an affordable gaming notebook. Input devices, battery life, case quality and performance are all appropriate for this purchase price."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2020) or the MSI GF63 Thin
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 MSI
MSI, also known as Micro-Star International, is a Taiwanese technology corporation. MSI is known for their wide range of gaming devices. Their series include the entry-level Cyborg/Thin and Sword/Katana series, the mid-range Bravo/Delta and Crosshair/Pulse series, and their high-end Vector, Raider, Stealth, and Titan GT series. At every performance level, MSI offers a variety of devices with varying balances between performance, battery life, weight, and price, making them a solid option to consider at every price point.
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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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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