MacBook Air OR MacBook Pro: The Detailed Guide Apple’s products are no doubt quite expensive…
By: Hamza Ali
Tags: Which Is Better, Apple, Computers, MacBook, Laptop

MacBook Air OR MacBook Pro: The Detailed Guide







Apple’s products are no doubt quite expensive; the MacBooks, ridiculously starting from 999$ and flying high above 3,000$ and even more. It’s a challenge to decide which one is worth your money and your requirements even in the current 3 MacBooks: AIR 13 inches and PROs: 13 and 16 inches. Well, in this article, there’s gonna be a detailed comparison among these 3 MacBooks. If you too are confused which one to buy or what to consider when buying, then this article is for you! Make sure you read it to the end.







• Price



The main thing that you have to consider is your budget, which will get you to your desired Laptop or MacBook.











1. MacBook Air



The MacBook Air comes in 2 different prices according to the default specs:



• $999, buy you a MacBook Air with a 1.1GHz dual-core 10th-gen Intel Core i3, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD.



• $1,299 buy you a MacBook Air with a 1.1GHz quad-core 10th-gen Intel Core i5, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD.







2. MacBook Pro 13”



The MacBook Pro 13” comes in 4 different prices:



• 1,299$ buy you a 1.4GHz 8th-gen quad-core Intel i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD.



• 1,499$ buy you a 1.4GHz 8th-gen quad-core Intel i5, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD.



• 1,799$ will buy you a 2.0GHz 10th-gen quad-core Intel i5, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD.



• 1,999$ buy you a 2.0GHz 10th-gen quad-core Intel i5, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD







3. MacBook Pro 16”



The MacBook Pro 16” comes in 2 ridiculously high different prices:



• 2,399$ will buy you a 2.6GHz 6-core 9th-gen Intel i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD.



• 2,799$ will buy you a 2.3GHz 8-core 9th-gen Intel i9, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD.







• Performance



The next basic requirement is overall performance and response; a laggy system is never preferred.







1. MacBook Air



MacBook Air comes with Y-series processors, which are slower as compared to those in Pro models (U-series). The MacBook Air is basically for everyday normal, CASUAL use and relative battery optimization; furthermore, it is not for heavy usages like Photoshop programs, 4k editing mentioned further ahead. MacBook Air has Intel Iris Plus graphics, which are, although, a step-up from standard models, but is not that powerful.



Furthermore, Air’s SSD performance as well as i5 processor is weaker than Pros’. Mentioned above, Air is for casual use, doesn’t mean it is not worth it, instead weaker as compared to other two and is according to the price. Also, the Air model comes with i3 whereas previous models where on i5, which is a step-down. In contrast, Air model does support turbo boost, like Pro models, up to 3.8 GHz.



2. MacBook Pro 13”



MacBook Pro 13” comes with U-series processors, which are relatively faster than the Y-series of the Air models. MacBook Pro 13” is for those who want some a powerful CPU for tasks out of the normal category. MacBook Pro 13” also has the same Intel Iris plus Graphics as in Air, so it is obviously not too graphic-supported.



MacBook Pro 13” being most likely to be in budget is better over air to go for 10 gen CPUs and especially four ports. It also supports a turbo boost up to 4.5 Ghz



3. MacBook Pro 16”



MacBook Pro 16” comes with faster U-series processors. This MacBook is for some heavy usage like 3D Modeling, 4K Editing, Photoshop, etc. MacBook Pro 16” is not specifically for Gamers or Gaming purposes, but still it leaves MacBook Air and Pro 13 in the dust. It is capable of playing heavy games, but still not always. This model, unlike Air and 13 Pro, comes with discrete AMD Radeon Pro graphics, which is a plus point of owning it. Finally, it also supports a turbo boost up to 5.0 GHz



• Ports



The next thing to be considered is the availability of ports as they affect your data handling and traffics.



Keep in mind that 1 of the 2 given ports will be used for charging also, and that no MacBook now includes SD Card slots, i.e. no SD Card slot in Air 2020, Pro 13” 2020, and Pro 16” 2020!! (Card Reader is a solution, in case you don’t know).



1. MacBook Air



The MacBook Air comes with 2 Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) Ports.







2. MacBook Pro 13”



The MacBook Pro 13” comes with 2 (in the starting 2 of lower prices) and 4 (in the expensive models) Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) Ports.



3. MacBook Pro 16”



The MacBook Pro 16” comes with 4 Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) Ports by default on both sides.



• Keyboard



Keyboard is one of the most vital hardware considerations; the butterfly keyboard of the past had some issues, which are now removed. The Keyboard has been improvised, and named as “Magic Keyboard.”



All of the 3 models, including their variants, now come with the Magic Keyboard, with an additional feature, “Touch Bar.”



The Touch Bar has neither been seen VERY USEFUL nor as VERY USELESS: it gives you access to some features, that if you don’t have them it even doesn’t matter.



Note: Only the Pro models: 13” and 16” include the Touch Bar



Touch Bar (For those who don’t know)



Touch bar is a bar at the top of MacBooks’ keyboard; it adapts to your actions and offers shortcut functionality and app controls, also quick commands can be accessed by it. The Touch Bar adapts and changes according to your recent/current usage. Volume sliders, color selectors, etc. are also available.



If you are habitual of the physical traditional row of function keys, go for MacBook without Touch Bar, if you want adaptable, quick access, and multitouch display, go for MacBook with Touch Bar.



• Battery



The next thing that comes to mind is battery timing or life that may provide you with a suitable backup timing and lasts longer.



The battery war isn’t that significant between the 2 consecutives, for example: there is not too difference between Air and Pro 13”, but Air and Pro 16” will have a difference of about 1+ hour(s).



Well, precisely, the battery timing of MacBook Air is the greatest. According to Apple, Air can last 11 hours wireless web, Pro 13” 10 hours, and Pro 16” 11 hours. Well, practically, Air does last longer than all others, but the timings actually fluctuate from assumptions, sometimes 10 hours, sometimes 9.5 hours in same activities. The same matter is for the Pro models, there is no fix result, but if we still rank them over same activities:



MacBook Air – The Winner.



MacBook Pro 16” – The Runner up.



MacBook Pro 13” – The Second Runner up.



• Display



1. MacBook Air and MacBook Pro 13”



The MacBook Air and MacBook Pro 13” both come with 13.3” Retina displays with LED panels with IPS technology, having a resolution of 2560x1600, being of 226ppi pixel density.



The difference is of colors and brightness; accordingly, pro has a brightness of 500 nits while Air has that of 400nits. On the other hand, Pro boasts Wide Color (P3), while Air on sRGB.



2. MacBook Pro 16”



MacBook Pro 16” also has the same IPS technology, but due to its bigger screen, it has a resolution of 3072x1920p with 226ppi pixel density with a brightness of 500nits.



The screens as usual aren’t Touch-supported.



• Design and Weighs



The dimensions and weighs are as follows:



 MacBook Air: 304.1 x 212.4 x 16.1-4.1mm; 1.29kg



 MacBook Pro 13”: 304.1 x 212.4 x 15.6mm; 1.4kg



 MacBook Pro 16”: 357.9 x 245.9 x 16.2mm; 2kg



• Colors



MacBooks support two colors Space Grey and Silver in Pro models, whereas an additional Gold color in Air model.



That’s all for now folks, I really hope I helped you out.



Finally, a quick go-through:



In the article, we covered three available MacBooks: Air and Pro models of 13 and 16 inches.



Quick Specs:



MACBOOK AIR



• 1.1GHz dual-core 10th-generation Intel Core i3 processor



• 256GB SSD



• 8GB 3733MHz RAM



• Intel Iris Plus Graphics



• Magic Keyboard



• Touch ID



• Two Thunderbolt 3 (USB C) ports



• 720p FaceTime HD camera



MACBOOK PRO 13



• 1.4GHz quad-core 8th-generation Intel Core i5 processor



• 256GB SSD



• 8GB 2133MHz RAM



• Intel Iris Plus Graphics 645



• Two Thunderbolt 3 (USB C) ports



• 720p FaceTime HD camera



• Touch Bar & Touch ID



MACBOOK PRO 16



• 2.6GHz six-core 9th-generation Intel Core i7 processor



• 512GB SSD



• 16GB 2666MHz RAM



• AMD Radeon Pro 5300M with 4GB RAM



• Four Thunderbolt 3 (USB C) ports



• 720p FaceTime HD camera



• Touch Bar & Touch ID

In Short



• MacBook Air for everyday casual school usage.



• MacBook Pro 13” for a bit heavy CPU and extra ports and touch bar, but 10 gen and extra ports are only in expensive ones.



• MacBook Pro 16” as an alternative to a desktop for heavy usage graphic work, etc. although expensive, but is worth your money in the case.