And if you need more power, you can get an eight-core processor, faster graphics, and as much as 64 GB of memory in this modelnone of that is possible with the Air or even with the 13-inch MacBook Pro.

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Learn more Photo: Sarah Kobos Electronics Laptops The Best MacBooks Updated June 2, 2020 The MacBook Air (2020) is still our top pick, but weve added the new Apple MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020, four Thunderbolt 3 ports) as a pick if you need more processing power in a compact package.

Your guide Andrew Cunningham Share this review The best Mac laptop for most peopleand Apples best laptop in at least half a decadeis the 2020 13-inch MacBook Air.

Its more than fast enough for the things most people use a computer for, including Web browsing, working on documents, and light photo and video editing.

Plus, it has Apples new much-improved keyboard, an excellent high-resolution screen, and enough battery life to get most people through a day of work.

Our pick Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, 2020) A well-balanced MacBook Apples best MacBook Air in years has a comfortable keyboard, good performance, and a reasonable amount of storageall things that werent true of the previous model.

Buying Options 1,100 from Apple Recommended configuration Processor: quad-core Intel Core i5-1030NG7 Memory: 8 GB Graphics: Intel Iris Plus Storage: 256 GB SSD We recommend the 1,100 version of the MacBook Air, which gives you a faster quad-core Core i5 processor that will keep your computer feeling quick when youre running multiple apps and opening a bunch of browser tabs.

The 2020 Air includes a much-improved keyboard with a deeper, more satisfying feel and improved reliability compared with previous MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models.

And the cheapest configuration of the Air finally includes 256 GB of storage instead of the more-limiting 128 GB of past versions.

Best For High School Plus A Headphone

The Air includes only two USB-C ports (which support Thunderbolt 3) plus a headphone jackbut Thunderbolt 3 docks and USB-C hubs and adapters are common enough and inexpensive enough that this isnt as big of a problem as it used to be.

The Air also omits the MacBook Pros (situationally useful but largely unnecessary) Touch Bar in favor of a row of physical function keys and a standalone Touch ID fingerprint sensor.

Advertisement Our pick 13-inch MacBook Pro with four Thunderbolt 3 ports More ports, faster processor If you do processor-intensive work like video editing and app development but dont need better graphics (or you just dont want the extra size and weight of the 16-inch Pro), the 1,800 version of the 13-inch MacBook Pro is a big step up from the Air.

Best For High School Upgrade Over A

If you regularly do this kind of work but dont need a fast graphics processor for 3D apps (or you dont want to deal with the cost, size, or weight of the 16-inch MacBook Pro), the 1,800 version of the 13-inch Pro is a worthwhile upgrade over a similarly configured Air.

You wont notice the difference for everyday browsing and document editing, but in our tests the 13-inch Pro could be more than twice as fast as the Air for processor-intensive jobs.

The configuration we recommend has the same improved keyboard as other recent MacBook models, uses a Touch Bar instead of typical function keys, and includes double the memory, storage, and Thunderbolt 3 ports of the MacBook Air we recommend.

We dont recommend the 1,300 version of the 13-inch Pro, which has the improved keyboard but still uses older eighth-generation Intel processors and has only two Thunderbolt 3 ports.

Save money and get the Air, or step up to the four-port version and get the extra performance.

Upgrade pick Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2019) Most powerful, biggest screen The 16-inch MacBook Pro has a larger screen, as well as the fastest, most powerful components Apple ships in a laptop plus a new scissor-switch keyboard thats miles better than the old butterfly version.

Buying Options 2,400 from Apple Recommended configuration Processor: six-core Intel Core i7-9750H Memory: 16 GB Graphics: AMD Radeon Pro 5300M Storage: 512 GB SSD The 16-inch MacBook Pro costs more than twice as much as the Air, and its worth that investment only if youre editing huge photos and videos, connecting to multiple high-resolution 4K or 5K monitors, or working with 3D drafting software.

You wouldnt notice a huge speed boost in everyday computing tasks compared with the Air or 13-inch Pro, but our recommended configurations six-core Intel Core i7 processor can give it a speed boost of nearly 80 over the Air when rendering video or compiling code, and its discrete AMD Radeon GPUs provide better performance when running 3D drafting programs or games.

Best Mac For High School