MacBook Air (2021) with Apple silicon M1 processor: technical sheet

The MacBook Air has been catching your eye since it switched from Intel processors to the famous M1 designed by Apple directly? You are not the only one. We too have succumbed to its featherweight design and top-notch performance. Here's everything you need to know about the Apple brand's most iconic laptop, 2021 version.

Design: you don't change a winning team

The MacBook Air M1 is available inthree colorsdifferent: gold, silver or space gray. It's the most compact laptop Apple offers to date. This is verified in its dimensions, since they measure 30.41 cm for width and 21.24 cm for depth. The thickness, for its part, does not exceed 1.61 cm and reaches at its lowest level only 4.1 mm. Like a notebook, you can store the MacBook Air 2021 in a school bag. As for the weight, it is1,29 kg: here too, it is suitable for any nomad eager to travel or to avoid damaging the backs of schoolchildren.

In terms of pure design, the MacBook Air M1 is a clear example of the best. Indeed, without embellishment, it only reveals a simple apple on the back of its screen, in the center to be precise. This is the manufacturer's logo, which no longer lights up unlike previously released editions. The bezels around the MacBook Air M1's screen are relatively thin. Their black contrasts very well with the rest of the structure. In short, we can therefore say that the MacBook Air 2021 offers linesrefinedin the spirit of the times, which most often go unnoticed without disappointing.

The power of the Apple M1 chip

As we saw above, the MacBook Air is therefore equipped with the brand newproprietary processorM1. With this chip, Apple has chosen to free itself from its historic partnership with Intel, which lasted around fifteen years. Instead, the MacBook Air M1 now owes its chip to the brains of Cupertino, themselves supported by TSMC. The Taiwanese firm is in fact responsible for mass producing the M1 processor for the MacBook Air, which other subcontractors then install in the beast. It is the main component responsible for the speed of the computer. Its architecture is similar tothe fourth generation iPad Air.

If you choose a MacBook Air M1, you have two options in terms of memory. The first is8 Go to RAM, compared to 16 for the second. Please note, however, that if you opt for double, the price of the MacBook Air 2021 will be impacted by… + 230 euros. On the storage side, the device is not left out since it counts here on aSSDof 256 GB. The latter is expandable, again your choice when purchasing: 512 GB for + 230 euros, 1 TB for 460 euros more or 2 TB for 920 euros. The bottom line is that the MacBook Air M1 is certainly powerful, but it will be even more so if you choose to pay the price for it.

MacBook Air (2021) screen

The MacBook Air M1's screen is -of course- a Retina screen. Backlit by LED, it has a diagonal of13.3 incheswith IPS technology. Its resolution, for its part, reaches 2,560 x 1,600 pixels: this is the2Kin all its splendor. Therefore, we can benefit from 227 pixels per inch. It's very comfortable for watching series, some would even say for video games. The 2021 MacBook Air also supports millions of colors, and also offers three other resolutions in scale but less qualitative than the original.

The MacBook Air M1 screen offers a luminance of 400 nits. This means you can use it in direct sunlight. Sure, you might have to squint a little, but the text displayed on your MacBook Air will remain legible just enough. Furthermore, the wide range of colors is sufficient for imaging or graphics professionals: Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator work wonderfully there. To finish with the screen of the MacBook Air M1, let us point out that it also includes the technologyTrue Tone. This means that its display adapts to your eyes depending on your environment. Ideal for those who alternate between indoor and outdoor work stations.

macOS on the MacBook Air M1

As with the Mac mini with the same chip, the MacBook Air M1 is powered by proprietary macOS software. Here, it is more precisely its version 11, also calledBig Surby the developer. It comes with many native applications, including the Safari browser, the Siri voice assistant and the suiteiWork. The latter includes several office software, namely Keynote for creating slideshows, Pages (word processing) or even Numbers, the equivalent of Google Sheets. So many programs as useful in everyday life as on a MacBook Air M1 installed in the office.

If, however, that wasn't enough, then you should know that the 2021 MacBook Air also includes a third-party application store, namelyl’App Store. Bearing the same name as its iPhone counterpart, we sometimes find the same apps there. For productivity, we use the following in the editorial office: Slack, Trello, Spotify, Mactracker and Feedly. Let us also point out that it is obviously possible to also install software that is not from the App Store on the MacBook Air M1. However, it is a little more complicated, because Apple is trying to limit this practice. One way, officially, to guarantee moresecurityto users by validating each platform before putting it online.

Sockets, memory and network

There's one important thing to know if you're planning to buy an M1 MacBook Air: Apple has built in areduced number of shots, which means that you won't be able to plug everything you want directly into it. This is a typical Mac feature that is not found on most other PCs. On the MacBook Air 2021, Apple installedtwo USB-C ports, Thunderbolt 3 compatible up to 40 gigabit per second. They are used both for charging and for connecting accessories, from a simple keyboard to a more complex hub for SD cards and USB keys.

On the MacBook Air M1, there is also a 3.5 mm jack into which you can plug headphones or wired earphones. If, however, you prefer not to bother with cables, then know that the MacBook Air M1 is also compatible with theBluetooth. You can therefore easily pair AirPods Max or a wireless mouse. Added to this is Wi-Fi, which allows AirDrop to work. This feature of the MacBook Air M1 is also found on iPad and iPod touch, and allows you to quickly transfer files between Apple devices. However, we do not find it among the competition, unfortunately.

MacBook Air M1: price and reviews

The MacBook Air M1 isthe most affordableof all Macs. Apple actually offers itfrom 1,129 eurosin its version with “only” 256 GB of storage (in SSD all the same). If, however, you opt for the edition with double the memory, then it will be 1,399 euros. We are therefore in a price range higher than the average of other manufacturers, for the same technical sheet.

Nevertheless, the MacBook Air M1 is the laptop for usmost suitable for studentsand travelers: it is less expensive than other Macs, and its compact format makes it easily transportable. As for its power and its software, there is nothing to complain about.