Apple MacBook Air M1 - Late 2020

There will be some people who need a Windows machine to run certain software, and there will be some people who prefer to stick with a known quantity, too. For everyone else, the MacBook Air is now the ultraportable laptop to beat. It’s simply the best laptop you can buy.

This is a ridiculously capable laptop offering fantastic battery life – it's an instant recommendation for anyone looking for a MacBook Air.

Nonetheless, it’s dramatic just how good this first-generation outing for Apple Silicon is. I usually wouldn’t recommend being an early-adopter when it comes to big, evolutionary changes in platform like this switch away from Intel is, and yet Apple seems to have avoided not only the obvious pitfalls but the nuances as well. That I could move from an old Mac to this new MacBook Air and have the biggest takeaway be just how much nicer the experience was speaks volumes.

But as an everyperson computer, there is nothing like this MacBook Air. It has very good battery life, incredible performance for its class, and yes, a good keyboard. Too bad about the webcam, though. It’s the main reason we couldn’t give this laptop a 10/10, which we were considering.

Apple’s new MacBook Air is its most refined ultraportable yet, mostly due to the new M1 system-on-a-chip. It’s incredibly fast and completely silent, since it has no fan. It’s the first step towards unifying Apple’s hardware and software on Macs, and just like the iPhone and iPad, the result is a sleek and polished experience.

However, if pro-grade work is all you do, I would wait if possible until Apple releases a higher-tier MacBook Pro with an M-series chip. That will give developers time to release better-optimized apps, and considering how much of a jump the M1 MacBook Air has made over its eight-month-old predecessor, the stage is set for another dramatic leap.

Apple's stunning new M1 chip breathes new life into its most affordable laptop, giving it dramatically better performance and battery life along with iPhone and iPad app compatibility.

The MacBook Air now has the speed and battery life to beat the best PCs.