Apple MacBook Air unibody 13-inch Mid 2012 Pro Reviews

This revised 13in MacBook Air is a little bit faster in general speed, a lot faster in graphics speed – if only catching up with 2010’s Air – but with approaching an hour of extra battery life. We also appreciate the even quieter fan. This is the original ultrabook, and with extra details and quality touches it still beats all Ultrabooks we’ve seen so far.

Overall, I found the combination of weight, features and performance to be ideal. Used constantly over several weeks, it made itself a strong candidate to be the nicest laptop I’ve ever used. It’s just a shame that even the 256GB Core i5 model can’t accommodate my iTunes and iPhoto libraries…

In the review of Apple's 2011 MacBook Air we wrote: "Overall there is not much new to report about the latest MacBook Air, and that is a good thing." That is basically also true for the MacBook Air 13 Mid 2012. However, there are a few improvements worth mentioning as well as things that could still be improved in our opinion. But one thing at a time. The MacBook Air 13 convinces, as before, with flawless workmanship and timeless, elegant design. The low build height is still unmatched. However, the display lid could be a bit stiffer. The Americans have fortunately stuck to the illuminated keyboard and the great touchpad that clicked a bit in our test device. The reason for the new generation is Intel's Ivy Bridge processors. And the hardware refresh has had a really positive effect on the MacBook Air 13. While the new processor architecture only promises minor progress on paper, the system's performance has increased significantly compared with the 2011 Air. The interplay of all components, like the much faster SSD hard drive, is responsible for this. The upgrade to USB 3.0 is also beneficial for the device.

At first blush, the MacBook Air doesn't appear to have changed much between 2011 and 2012: it looks exactly the same, save for those USB 3.0 ports and new MagSafe2 connector, and even the 50Wh battery remains unchanged. As for those faster Ivy Bridge processors, well, every PC maker is refreshing their Ultrabooks with Intel's new chips, if they haven't already. We can see where you might expect similar performance across the board, especially with other specs being more or less equal. But you'd be wrong: those tweaks Apple made on the inside amount to some significant performance enhancements, and place the Air at the head of the (very crowded) pack. The battery life is about an hour longer than it was last year, making this the most longevous 13-inch lightweight on the market. By several metrics, too, it steamrolls the competition in terms of speed, even when pitted against another Ivy Bridge machine. Just as important, the Air continues to have the best keyboard-and-trackpad combination of any ultraportable -- something Ultrabook makers are still struggling to get right.

The MacBook Air is in its third iteration of the current design and it's tangibly better than the two that came before it. The 2010 (and older) models are just plain slow by comparison. Thanks to architectural, frequency and thermal improvements, one of the cores from a 2012 MacBook Air ends up being faster than two from a 2010 MBA. In other words, the 2012 models end up being more than twice as fast as the 2010 models in many of our CPU bound tests.

The mid-2012 MacBook Air is a very solid offering and continues to be a target for many notebook manufacturers, and for good reason. Four years after its unveiling, the Air is still one of the sexiest notebooks on the market and with the recent slight price adjustment, it seems to be competing well even on value terms. Intel is likely to put some extra pressure on the Air with second and third generation ultrabooks, many of which are shaping up to be real contenders, at least on paper. But even still, the Air is the system that all other Windows ultrabooks strive to be like and that’s quite the complement.

Intel Ivy Bridge processors and faster storage give the MacBook Air a welcome performance boost

Last year, the MacBook Air Air won 7 rounds to 4 for the ASUS, and tied in the remaining two categories. This year, Apple won 7 rounds, Asus won 5, and tied in one category. So ASUS has made progress, and it shows in the improvements the company has made. The UX31A’s keyboard and touchpad are miles better than last year’s model, and this machine’s 1080p display easily trumps that of the Air. There’s a reason why the Zenbook Prime is our Editors’ Choice Ultrabook. Still, Apple’s Air offers a faster boot time, better graphics performance, louder speakers and a more reliable touchpad. What tips this battle in the Air’s favor is its more than 8 hours of battery life, which allows Apple to repeat as champion in this head-to-head match.

This year's MacBook Air opts for gradual improvements rather than anything revolutionary, but lowered prices continue to make it the go-to mainstream recommendation for any MacBook owner-to-be.

The same flawless design, now with Ivy Bridge and more RAM – all at a lower price

The new Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (Mid 2012) is a simple upgrade of the class-leading line, with a $100 price drop. Although a new processor gives you a little extra performance and some tests, the real additions are things like the new (for Mac) USB 3.0 ports and free upgrade to OS X Mountain Lion.

There will undoubtedly be some disappointed that the Retina Display hasn’t made it to the MacBook Air range yet. It’s true that the massively pixel-dense display is one of our favorite features of the new MacBook Pro, but for the moment it’s an expensive addition. In contrast, Apple has actually reduced the price of entry to the MacBook Air club, with the 11-inch starting at $999 and the 13-inch at $1,199. That’s no small achievement for a machine that delivers not only extreme portability but the sort of performance that, only two years ago, would’ve demanded a top-spec MacBook Pro. The addition of USB 3.0 and an HD webcam addresses two of the most common feature requests, and there’s minimal impact on runtime despite the more powerful processors.

There are certainly more powerful laptops available at higher prices than the MacBook Air (hello, MacBook Pro). And bulkier Windows laptops with more CPU and graphics power abound in the Air's $1,200 price range. But for common computing tasks—even heavy-lifting activities such as video and complex image editing—the 13-inch Air's underlying components are powerful enough to perform without getting completely bogged down. Media professionals and serious gamers should look elsewhere, as you're limited to a dual-core CPU and integrated graphics here. But for everyone else, the Air strikes a great balance between performance and portability. So, however, does Sony's VAIO T Series. It should be noted that the VAIO lacks a true all-solid-state storage system, relying instead on a hybrid storage system that combines a 500GB hard drive with 32GB of solid-state cache. The hybrid drive won't be quite as fast in all applications as the Air's drive, but it's still speedy, and you get about five times the storage space. So which is better really depends on your needs.