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What we think
The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated January 10, 2024·
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) offers a high-resolution display, lightweight design, and silent, fanless operation, suited for someone who values a sleek form factor and macOS ecosystem. Conversely, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i has a larger storage capacity, more memory, and a variety of ports, making it more suitable for multifaceted use and users preferring the Windows environment. 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)
- Very good for software development
- 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 Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i
- The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Air (2022).
Key differences
Screen Quality
7.6
6.9
13.6in
SIZE
14.0in
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
486.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
340.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air has a better screen than the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Air boasts a high-resolution display with excellent brightness and vivid colors, making it suitable for general use and visual tasks in engineering and design where color accuracy is crucial. However, its screen refresh rate is not optimized for 3D applications, which often demand faster visuals to render smoothly. The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i, while offering a quality display for everyday tasks and sufficient color range for most design work, falls short in gaming and 3D performance due to a lower refresh rate that can lead to less fluid motion and responsiveness.
Battery
15.0 Hours
11.5 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i has 11.5 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.
Build Quality
10.0
7.8
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has best in class build quality, while the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$769
$899
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has a price of $769 and the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i costs $899.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.9
7.7
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
486.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
340.0 nits
15.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
11.5 Hours
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
9.4/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.9/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i are both good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Air, with its Apple M2 chip and efficient battery life, delivers a robust performance for general use and portability, complemented by its impressive screen quality. In contrast, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i offers more storage, double the RAM for multitasking, and a powerful Intel i7 processor, while also featuring a high-contrast display and effective heat management, yet it has a shorter battery life and is slightly heavier, which may affect its portability.
Gaming and AI
6.4
6.2
4.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.7/10
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
9.5/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i are both only fair for gaming and AI.
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) with its M2 chip has a tailored GPU that provides fair performance for 3D applications, complemented by a high-resolution IPS display and 60 Hz refresh rate, but it may not support many popular games available on Windows.
Engineering and Design
7.5
7.1
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.5/10
4.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.7/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i are both good for engineering and design.
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) is highly suitable for engineering and design due to its Apple M2 chip providing strong CPU and GPU performance, along with a high-quality IPS screen ensuring accurate colors and detail. The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i, on the other hand, offers double the RAM for handling complex tasks and a robust Intel CPU with Iris Xe graphics, but its screen and graphics may fall short compared to the MacBook's capabilities for design work.
Content Creation
7.9
7.7
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.5/10
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i 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
8.0
7.5
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.5/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Air (2022) to be very good for software development, while the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i is good.
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
Excellent
Very Good
13.6in
SIZE
14.0in
2.7 lbs
WEIGHT
2.9 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.5in
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Air (2022) to have excellent portability, while the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i has very good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
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How the Apple MacBook Air (2022) and the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Apple MacBook Air (2022) | Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$769 | $899 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | July 1, 2022 | October 1, 2020 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 12'' x 8.5'' x 0.44'' | 12.6'' x 8.2'' x 0.59'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 2.7 lbs | 2.99 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 11.97" | 12.62" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 8.46" | 8.2" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Apple M2 | Intel i7-1165G7 | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 8 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 256 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 15 Hours | 11.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 52.6 Wh | 60.7 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 13.6" | 14" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 2560 x 1664 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 486 nits | 340 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 10/10 | 7.8/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 9.4/10 | 8.9/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | Yes | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 10/10 | 9.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 10/10 | 8/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 10/10 | 7.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1080p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 0 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 2 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 1 | 3 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 3 | 4 | |
Shopping
Apple MacBook Air (2022)
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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."
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i
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Dig into reviews and images
PCMag
Ted Needleman
| January 2022
"Among Lenovo's multiple laptop brands, the IdeaPad family is decidedly the one designed for consumers: people who want decent performance at a reasonable price. Consider, then, this laptop a paragon for the pickier members of that crowd. With a 14-inch touch-enabled display, a comfortable keyboard, an Evo-certified Intel Core i7 11th Generation CPU, and the latest Windows 11 operating system, the IdeaPad Slim 7i Pro ultraportable ($1,199 as tested) is a slick mainstream machine at a bit of a premium price, and quite capable for everyday tasks."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2022) or the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7i
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.
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Why trust us
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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Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
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