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MacBook Air (2020)
Company ProductName Specs











MacBook Air (2022)
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Advantages of the Apple MacBook Air (2020)
  • The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Air (2022).
Advantages of the Apple MacBook Air (2022)
  • Very good for software development
  • Excellent portability

Key differences

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Screen Quality

7.5
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
7.6
13.3in
SIZE
13.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1664
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
395.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
486.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air has a better screen than the Apple MacBook Air for general use, engineering and design, and content creation.

Cost

$1,309
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
$899
Product image
Product image

$0

$500

$1,000

$1,500

$2,000

The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has a price of $1,309 and the Apple MacBook Air (2022) costs $899.
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Key similarities

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General Use

8.0
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
8.1
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1664
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
395.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
486.0 nits
15.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
15.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
10.0/10
8.9/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
9.4/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both very good for general use.

Gaming and AI

6.4
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
6.5
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.1/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1664
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
10.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both only fair for gaming and AI.

Engineering and Design

7.5
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
7.7
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.7/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both good for engineering and design.

Content Creation

8.0
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
8.1
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.7/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1664
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both very good for content creation.

Software Development

7.9
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
8.2
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.7/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1664
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
10.0/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Air (2022) to be very good for software development, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good.

Battery

15.0 Hours
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
15.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life.

Portability

Very Good
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
Excellent
13.3in
SIZE
13.6in
2.8 lbs
WEIGHT
2.7 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.4in
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Air (2022) to have excellent portability, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) has very good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.

Build Quality

10.0
MacBook Air (2020)
MacBook Air (2022)
10.0
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and Apple MacBook Air (2022) both have best in class build quality.

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How the Apple MacBook Air (2020) and the Apple MacBook Air (2022) compare to other laptops

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Spec Comparison

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Apple MacBook Air (2020)Apple MacBook Air (2022)
Apple MacBook Air (2020)Apple MacBook Air (2022)

GENERAL

Price
$1,309
$899
Release Date
November 1, 2020July 1, 2022
Overall Dimensions
12'' x 8.4'' x 0.63''12'' x 8.5'' x 0.44''
Weight
2.8 lbs2.7 lbs
Width
11.97"11.97"
Depth
8.36"8.46"

INTERNAL

Processor
Apple M1Apple M2
RAM
16 GB16 GB
DDR Memory Version
45
RAM Slots
00
Storage
512 GB256 GB

BATTERY

Battery Life
15 Hours15 Hours
Battery Capacity
49.9 Wh52.6 Wh

SCREEN

Diagonal Size
13.3"13.6"
Display Technology
IPSIPS
Resolution
2560 x 16002560 x 1664
Refresh Rate
60Hz60Hz
Display Brightness
395 nits486 nits

RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS

Build Quality Score
10/1010/10
Portability Score
9/109.4/10
Gaming Laptop Appearance
NoNo
Premium Business Laptop
YesYes
Fan Noise Score
10/1010/10

HARDWARE FEATURES

Keyboard Quality Score
9.5/1010/10
Speaker Quality Score
9.5/1010/10
Webcam
720p1080p
Fingerprint Reader
YesYes
Backlit Keyboard
YesYes
Number Pad
NoNo

CONNECTIVITY

USB Type-A
00
USB-C ports
22
USB-C Charging
YesYes
Display Outputs
11
Thunderbolt Version
33

Shopping

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Apple MacBook Air (2020)

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Dig into reviews and images

NotebookCheck

Andreas Osthoff | July 2022
"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."

Apple MacBook Air (2022)

See more

Dig into reviews and images

NotebookCheck

Andreas Osthoff | July 2022
"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."

Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2020) or the Apple MacBook Air (2022)

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.

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Why trust us

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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
126,195
Recommendations made
27,343
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.

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