Apple MacBook Air 13-inch Review & Rating | PCMag.com

The original MacBook Air ($1,799 direct, 3 stars) took the concept of thin to a whole new level, but ended up sacrificing too much in the process. Just when you thought the MacBook Air was about to collapse under its shortcomings, Apple, inspired by what it did with the Apple iPad, breathes new life into the MacBook Air 13-inch ($1,299 direct). We all knew Apple had the design chops to push the boundaries of thin, but what it added in terms of features and performance set the precedent for what's to come. After all, Steve Jobs called the latest MacBook Air, "the future of MacBooks." The 13-inch version adds an extra USB port and an SD slot-features it desperately needed to compete as a laptop. It completely transitions to flash storage (SSDs), which, in addition to enabling the Air's zippy wake-from-sleep times, made room for a bigger 50Wh battery and its over 5 hours of battery life. But for those who complained about the MacBook Air's steep prices, they' read more...