The decision between the Apple MacBook Air (2022) and the HP Stream 14" hinges on your needs and budget. The MacBook Air typically offers better performance, a higher quality display, longer battery life, and a more robust build quality, making it suitable for demanding tasks like video editing, graphics design, and running complex software. It is also lighter and often more portable, which can be beneficial if you move around a lot. In contrast, the HP Stream 14" is considerably more affordable, but it typically has lower performance, making it suitable for basic tasks such as web browsing, word processing, and media consumption. If cost is a major factor and your computing needs are modest, the HP Stream may be sufficient. However, if you require more power and can afford the premium, the MacBook Air is likely the better choice. 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 (2022)
Good for general use
Good for engineering and design
Very good for software development
Good for content creation
Good overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Excellent portability
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the HP Stream 14"
The HP Stream 14" has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Air (2022).
Key differences
General Use
7.9/10
6.5/10
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
TN
486.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
220.0 nits
15.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
7.5 Hours
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.0/10
9.4/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.1/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) is good for general use, while the HP Stream 14" is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) offers a more powerful CPU, better screen quality, longer battery life, and greater portability, which are crucial for general use, while the HP Stream 14" has less processing power and a lower quality display, making it less suitable for demanding tasks though it may still be adequate for basic functions.
Gaming and AI
6.4/10
5.7/10
4.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.5/10
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.7/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) is only fair for gaming and AI, while the HP Stream 14" is poor.
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) features a better integrated GPU and has a higher-resolution display than the HP Stream 14", which provides fair performance for 3D tasks and improved image clarity. However, the MacBook's MacOS can limit the availability of popular games, while the HP Stream 14", equipped with a basic GPU and a lower-resolution display, offers poor gaming and 3D performance overall, but runs on Windows, typically supporting a broader range of games.
Engineering and Design
7.5/10
5.7/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
3.4/10
4.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.5/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) is good for engineering and design, while the HP Stream 14" is poor.
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) is better suited for engineering and design because it offers a more powerful Apple M2 processor, a higher quality GPU, and a superior IPS display with higher resolution and color accuracy, which are crucial for such tasks.
Content Creation
7.9/10
6.7/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
3.4/10
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
TN
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) is good for content creation, while the HP Stream 14" 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
8.0/10
6.5/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
3.4/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) is very good for software development, while the HP Stream 14" 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
7.6/10
5.2/10
13.6in
SIZE
14.0in
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
TN
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
486.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
220.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air has a better screen than the HP Stream 14" for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) boasts a high-resolution display, offering crisp visuals and vibrant colors suitable for general use and professional design tasks, with a wide color gamut that's essential for accuracy in engineering and design. However, it lacks a high refresh rate which is crucial for smooth visuals in 3D applications. In contrast, the HP Stream 14" has lower resolution and limited color range, leading to underwhelming performance for any of the mentioned uses, and its standard refresh rate does not suffice for optimal 3D experiences.
Battery
15.0 Hours
7.5 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The HP Stream 14" has 7.5 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
Excellent
Very Good
13.6in
SIZE
14.0in
2.7 lbs
WEIGHT
3.5 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has excellent portability, while the HP Stream 14" has very good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
5.5/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has best in class build quality, while the HP Stream 14" has poor build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$899
$299
$0
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has a price of $899 and the HP Stream 14" costs $299.
"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."
"With half of the main system memory and a fraction of the storage that we recommend in any budget Windows laptop, the HP Stream 14 does not impress. Perhaps it doesn't need to, depending on your reference point. For the price, you're getting a functional laptop with Windows 10, which already places the HP Stream 14 above most Chromebooks on that merit alone. Still, in this price range, you can't do much worse, but you can do better. In fact, for just $100 more, you can grab the much superior budget option, the Lenovo IdeaPad 1 14."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2022) or the HP Stream 14"
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 HP
HP, also known as Hewlett-Packard, is an American technology company that develops personal computers and computer peripherals. In the laptop industry, HP is known for its entry level Essential series laptops, its mid-range Pavilion, Envy, and Victus series, and high-end Omen and Spectre series, in addition to its business-oriented EliteBook, ProBook, and Dragonfly series laptops. HP laptops generally undercut other mainstream competitors in terms of price, placing itself as the value-oriented mainstream brand.
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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