MacBook Air 2012 vs MacBook Air 2013: Spec Showdown

By Brandon Widder June 10, 2013

macbook-air-vs — Image used with permission by copyright holder

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) Image used with permission by copyright holder	2013 MacBook Air (13-inch) 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

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.

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

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