On January 15, 2008, Steve Jobs unveiled the MacBook Air. Initially intended for people looking for finesse, the MacBook Air has gradually become Apple’s entry-level computer, even if all its iterations have not convinced. 15 years later, even if it was almost abandoned, the MacBook Air remains an essential product.
At Apple, there was a time when the month of January was rich in novelties.
On January 15, 2008, a short year after the iPhone revolution, Apple announced the MacBook Air, the portable computer that was going to help it conquer the general public. How can we forget the announcement of this ultraportable that Steve Jobs described as “so thin it can fit in an envelope “, before just going to get an envelope and take out the famous MacBook Air? A memorable sleight of hand, which is still considered today as one of the most significant in the history of Apple (we also remember hula loop for Wi-Fi announcement).
15 years later, the MacBook Air is still around. Renewed in June 2022 with a brand new design (its fourth), the ultrathin computer has, over time, changed its target. In this article, Numerama looks back at the often complicated history of the MacBook Air, sometimes loved, sometimes hated.
The 4 lives of the MacBook Air
In 2008, Apple bet everything on finesse
The first MacBook Air is impressive. At the time, Apple didn’t seem to want to make it a bestseller. The product presented by the brand on January 15, 2008, the one that comes out of the envelope, is all about finesse. Apple highlights a record thickness of 4 millimeters and conceals the ports of the device in a small hatch, while it abandons the SuperDrive reader (CD, DVD, etc.). What provoke many debates in the computer sphere, convinced that a computer cannot succeed without a disk drive (it needed an accessory or another computer to install its software). The sequel proved Apple right.
While the design of the MacBook Air is incredible in 2008, when laptops were still extremely thick, the characteristics of the first MacBook Air are its weak point. For lack of space, the computer uses a small 1.8-inch hard drive (80 GB) or an optional 64 GB SSD (an option at over 1,000 euros!). The performances are also average, the fault of a sometimes capricious fan. Despite these obvious flaws, the MacBook Air was expensive. You had to spend at least 1,699 euros to take advantage of its finesse, which is more than the MacBook (the white model) or the MacBook Pro. Enough to make it a niche product, for fans of Apple and design.
In June 2009, the MacBook Air has the right to a discreet revision. Its entry price drops to 1,399 euros, but the defects of the original model are still there.
In 2010, Apple cut prices and launched a small model
In 2010, Apple “reinvents” the MacBook Air. For the first time, the ultrathin computer comes out of its niche. It adopts the iconic design of the range — with the shape > — and put an end to the reign of hard drives by becoming the first Apple computer offered only with an SSD. Apple then compares its MacBook Air to the iPad, promising an instantaneous exit from standby with a risk of failure almost zero.
But that’s not all. In addition to being even cheaper (1,299 euros for the 13.3-inch version, which puts an end to the era of the white MacBook Air, abandoned a few months later), the new MacBook Air is available in a miniature version with an 11 inch screen. The ultraportable, sold from 999 euros, becomes the most affordable Apple computer. Extremely practical to carry, it allows Apple to seriously attack the student market.
Until 2015, Apple renewed its MacBook Air every year, continuing to lower prices and improve performance. Very popular, the computer has become a benchmark in the IT market, to the point of imposing itself in many homes. Impossible not to cross into one in the amphitheaters or in the series on television, the MacBook Air has become the star of Apple.
His reign could have ended here. By resurrecting the MacBook in 2015 with an even slimmer 12-inch model with a single USB-C port, Apple moved away from the MacBook Air. Completely abandoned by the brand (it was not entitled to the Retina screen despite a small revision in 2017, which saw the death of the 11-inch version), the MacBook Air was almost completely abandoned. Between 2015 and 2018, no one really believed in their future.
In 2018, Apple is resurrecting the MacBook Air (and boosting it in 2020)
At the end of 2018, Apple announced the return of its flagship computer, which it finally pampered. The new MacBook Air adopts a more modern design with two USB-C ports, a Touch ID fingerprint sensor, a two-tone look and, above all, a Retina display. Only downside: performance. Like the first MacBook Air ten years earlier, the 2018 MacBook Air gets a lot hot, isn’t very powerful, and struggles to justify its $1,349 price tag (and Apple is keeping the model in the catalog at a more aggressive price). So hard to believe in the return of the MacBook Air.
We have to wait until the end of 2020 to see the MacBook Air return to the top level, thanks to the M1 chip.
By being one of the first Apple computers to switch to Apple Silicon architecture, the MacBook Air is once again becoming a reference. The power is there, the autonomy too, it no longer heats up (it doesn’t even have any fans)… In 2020, the MacBook Air once again becomes the best value for money on the market, as during its peak around 2012 -2015. Difficult not to fall under its spell, especially since it is often found at a gun price of less than 1,000 euros.
In 2022, Apple is making the MacBook Air cool
Finally, there is the June 2022 revision. A year and a half after the arrival of the M1 chip, Apple announces the M2 chip dedicated to the MacBook Air. The computer then has the right to the third redesign in its history, with an edge-to-edge screen with a notch, an improved keyboard, the return of the MagSafe port and new colors. It’s hard not to like its design.
Sold from 1,499 euros, this new MacBook Air fails to raise the prices that Apple had nevertheless managed to reduce over time. A first step before a cheaper overhaul? We hope so. In the meantime, the M1 model is still marketed.
What future for the MacBook Air?
After the 2022 redesign, what will happen to the MacBook Air in the future? Logically, the new look should last several years, hopefully with a price drop to get rid of the previous generation. Several developments are possible, such as the adoption of a mini-LED screen to do as well as the MacBook Pro.
According to rumors, after the small model of 2010, the future would be great. Bloomberg speaks regularly a 15-inch MacBook Air designed to appeal to a wider audience, but this product will probably not see the light of day before 2024. In any case, the MacBook Air is once again at the heart of the Mac line, which has been constantly growing since the arrival of chips. Apple Silicon.
Do you like our media? Tell us in this survey!
