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MacBook Air 2012 vs MacBook Air 2013: Spec Showdown

Brandon Widder
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Image used with permission by copyright holder
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This story is part of our complete Apple WWDC coverage

As expected, Apple unveiled the new Haswell-powered MacBook Air at at its World Wide Developers Conference conference today, flaunting the latest enhancements to the notebook that essentially launched the current Ultrabook craze. It’s not a complete overhaul, but the new system specs offer some noteworthy improvements over the 2012 model, offering improved performance but lacking the much-rumored Retina display we were all hoping for. Check out our spec comparison below for a quick look at how the new 13-inch MacBook Air stacks up against it’s predecessor.

 

2012 MacBook Air (13-inch)

Apple-MacBook-Air-11-6-inch-2012-review-press
Image used with permission by copyright holder

2013 MacBook Air (13-inch)

macbook air 11.6 2012
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Dimensions 12.8” x 8.94” x 0.68” 12.8” x 8.94” x 0.68”
Weight 2.96 pounds 2.96 pounds
Keyboard Backlit w/ ambient light sensor Backlit w/ ambient light sensor
Processor 1.8GHz Intel Dual-core i5-3427U 1.3GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 (Haswell)
RAM 4GB DDR3L SDRAM 4GB of 1600MHz LPDDR3
Graphics Intel HD Graphics 4000 Intel HD Graphics 5000
Screen Size 13.3″ (non-touch) 13.3″ (non-touch)
Resolution 1440 x 900 1440 x 900
Storage 128GB SSD 128GB SSD
Networking 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0
Ports Thunderbolt, USB 3.0 x 2, SD memory card reader Thunderbolt, USB 3.0, SDXC card reader
Webcam 720p HD webcam 720p HD webcam
Operating System Mac OS X Mountain Lion Mac OS X Mountain Lion
Battery Life 7 hours 12 hours
Price $1,200 $1,100
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Apple claims the new Haswell chip will extend battery life from seven to 12 hours on a single charge, while the new GPU and quicker graphics processor will ramp up performance beyond the capabilities of earlier models. The 1440 x 900 resolution display remains the same, but other feaures — such as flash and the 802.11ac Wi-Fi — will see dramatic speed improvements. 

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Apple also dropped the price of the new Air by $100 across all models, but is Apple’s refresh really enough? For those who already own a MacBoo Air, the longer battery life and faster processor are probably not enough to justify buying a new Air. 

What do you think? Are you excited for the new MacBook Air, or do you simply feel let down? Let us know in the comments below.

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Brandon Widder
Brandon Widder
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Brandon Widder is a multimedia journalist and a staff writer for Digital Trends where he covers technology news, how-to…
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