Without a big announcement, Apple has updated its MacBook Air notebooks with a 100MHz speed boost, extended battery life, and $100 price drop — bringing the 11-inch version down to $899 and the 13-incher to $999.
Each new MacBook Air packs a 1.4-GHz Intel Core i5 (Haswell) processor with Turbo Boost up to 2.7 GHz, Intel HD Graphics 5000, 4GB of RAM, and 128 GB or 256 GB of solid state drive flash storage. If that’s not enough for you, you can choose up to a 1.7-GHz dual-core Intel Core i7, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD.
The new MacBook Airs also promise longer battery life: Apple says the 13-inch model is now rated for up 12 hours of wireless web surfing or movie playback (up from 10 hours) and the 11-inch model should get 9 hours (up from 8 hours). Both the new and older MacBook Air models claim of up to 30 days of standby time.
The $100 price drop puts the 11-inch MacBook Air with 128 GB of flash storage at $899, or $1,099 for 256 GB of storage. The 13-inch model with 128 GB of flash storage costs $999, while the 256 GB version is now $1,199. If you order from Apple’s online store, you’ll get free shipping and a promised ship time of 24 hours or less on weekdays.
The updated Airs look the same too, so if you are hoping for an updated design, you may have to wait until this fall. That’s when Apple is expected to add updates to both its MacBook Pro and MacBook Air laptops. Rumors have been swirling that Apple will unveil a 12-inch MacBook with a buttonless touchpad and fanless design, plus a Retina display MacBook Air and solar-charging back panel. Unlike the MacBook Pro with Retina display, the MacBook Air still has a relatively poor 1366 x 768 resolution, and the 13-inch MacBook Air is only 1440 x 900.
So should you buy now, or wait to see what Apple reveals this autumn? It depends on what you really need from a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro. Either way, you’ll be buying a notebook with great reviews and a high resale value.
