The MacBook Air balances perfectly, so you can rest it on your legs without the screen causing it to topple over.

Despite the slim build, however, there's precision in its execution. It weighs in at 1.35kg, making it a great choice for those who have to carry a notebook around all day and it's a pleasure to use whether planted on your lap or sitting on a desk or table. It is compact, lightweight, but gives you plenty of space to work. It's a design that works well, giving a great position for setting your fingers on the palm rests, using the keyboard and excellent trackpad. What that means is you have the luxurious aluminium wedge design, only 17mm thick at the back tapering into that distinctive thin leading edge.

That is, perhaps, testament to how well designed the MacBook Air is, because it has stood the test of time, in terms of notebook design at least. It is, perhaps, the de facto image of thin and light, a design that others imitate but want to differentiate from. The MacBook Air design hasn't changed substantially since 2010 and in 2013, it's a familiar sight. Faced with models like the cheaper, but hugely impressive, Sony Vaio Pro, can the MacBook Air still fight its corner? Design Apple no longer sees this as the lightweight alternative, moreover, the MacBook Air is now pitched as a computer you can use every day, and in this latest version, all day.īut facing this latest Air is a reinvigorated run of Ultrabooks and slim and light notebooks, with a driven vision to bring the sexy back to Windows PCs. With either System Information or coconutBattery, you can quickly see how much capacity it’s lost and whether it needs to be replaced.That sees the MacBook Air updating in 2013 facing stronger competition than ever before. If you’ve got an older MacBook, the battery almost certainly holds less charge now than it did when it was new. Losing 15% capacity over almost three years isn’t too bad at all. When it was new, it had a capacity of 8755 mAh. When you run the app, you’ll see something like the screenshot below.Īs well as the cycle count, this app shows us that the battery now has a Full Charge Capacity of 7098 mAh. If you want a little bit more info that’s easier to understand, download the free app coconutBattery. For example, it tells you your battery’s current maximum capacity but not it’s original capacity. System Information has most of the data you need to assess your battery’s health, but it’s not very well laid out and could provide a bit more information. If there is a problem with your battery, the “Condition” entry (which shows Normal in our example) will display something like “Service Battery.” Get a Bit More Information with coconutBattery The battery doesn’t need to be replaced yet, but it probably will need to be done later this year. The MacBook in our example has a cycle count of 695.

Macbook air 13 inch battery life