Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar vs. Apple MacBook Air with Retina display

Laptop Comparison, Reviews and Tests
Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar
Apple MacBook Air with Retina display

In depth comparison and review of Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar and Apple MacBook Air with Retina display. Compare sizes, performance, storage capacities, batteries and other important specifications and features to easily choose the right laptop for you. Our goal is to help you uncover differences between the products and find the laptop that will best fit your needs.

Laptop Specifications Comparison

Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar vs. Apple MacBook Air with Retina display Comparison Chart
DESIGN AND DIMENSIONS Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Product Type Notebook Notebook
Dimensions (WxDxH) 30.41 cm x 21.24 cm x 1.49 cm 30.41 cm x 21.24 cm x 1.56 cm
Weight 1.37 kg 1.25 kg
Case Material Aluminum Aluminum
Colour Silver | Space grey Space grey | Gold | Silver
DISPLAY Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Screen Size (Type) 13.3" - IPS 13.3" - IPS
LCD Backlight Technology LED backlight LED backlight
Screen Resolution 2560 x 1600 (WQXGA) 2560 x 1600 (WQXGA)
Pixel Density (ppi) 227 227
Widescreen Yes Yes
Image Aspect Ratio - 16:10
Image Brightness 500 cd/m² -
Features BFR/PVC-free, Mercury free, Wide Colour Gamut, arsenic-free glass, beryllium free, Retina display, True Tone display BFR/PVC-free, Mercury free, beryllium free, arsenic free, Retina display
PROCESSOR Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
CPU Intel Core i5 (8th Gen) 1.4 GHz Intel Core i5 (8th Gen) 1.6 GHz
Max Turbo Speed 3.9 GHz 3.6 GHz
Number of Cores Quad-Core Dual-Core
Cache - L3 - 4 MB
64-bit Computing Yes Yes
Features Intel Turbo Boost Technology Intel Turbo Boost Technology
MEMORY Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
RAM 8 GB (provided memory is soldered) 8 GB (provided memory is soldered)
RAM Type LPDDR3 SDRAM LPDDR3 SDRAM
Speed 2133 MHz 2133 MHz
STORAGE Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Main Storage Size (HDD/SSD) 128 GB SSD soldered 128 GB SSD soldered PCIe
AUDIO & VIDEO Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Graphics Processor (GPU) Intel Iris Plus Graphics 645 Intel UHD Graphics 617
Camera Yes - 720p Yes - 720p
Camera Features FaceTime HD camera FaceTime HD camera
Sound Stereo speakers, three microphones Stereo speakers, three microphones
COMMUNICATIONS Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Wireless 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.0 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.2
BATTERY Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Technology Lithium polymer Lithium polymer
Battery Capacity (Size) 58.2 Wh 50.3 Wh
Battery Life Up to 10 hours Up to 12 hours
Battery Run Time Web browsing over Wi-Fi: up to 10 hours
Video playback: up to 10 hours
Standby time: up to 30 days
Web browsing over Wi-Fi: up to 12 hours
Video playback: up to 13 hours
Standby time: up to 30 days
AC ADAPTER Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Input AC 100-240 V (50/60 Hz) AC 100-240 V (50/60 Hz)
Output 61 Watt 30 Watt
INPUT Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Type Keyboard, Force Touch trackpad, Touch Bar Keyboard, Force Touch trackpad
Keyboard Backlight Yes Yes
Features Pressure sensitivity, multi-touch touchpad, Multi-Touch Gesture Recognition, ambient light sensor, force click, Touch ID sensor Pressure sensitivity, multi-touch touchpad, Multi-Touch Gesture Recognition, ambient light sensor, force click, Touch ID sensor
CONNECTIONS & EXPANSIONS Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Interfaces 2 x USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 (supports Thunderbolt 3, DisplayPort Alt Mode) (Power Delivery)
Headphone output
2 x USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 (supports Thunderbolt 3, DisplayPort Alt Mode) (Power Delivery)
Headphone output
SOFTWARE Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Operating System (OS) Apple macOS Catalina 10.15 Apple macOS Big Sur 11.0
Software Included Drivers & Utilities, Apple QuickTime, Apple iTunes, Apple Mac OS X Mail, Apple Mac OS X Chess, Apple iMovie, Apple DVD Player, Apple Safari, Apple GarageBand, Apple Dashboard, Photo Booth, Apple Time Machine, Apple Mac App Store, Apple FaceTime, Apple Automator, Apple Launchpad, Apple Mission Control, Apple Preview, Apple Calculator, Apple Dictionary, Apple Image Capture, Apple Stickies, Apple TextEdit, Apple System Preferences, Maps, Reminders, Contacts, Notes, Calendar, Apple AirDrop, Siri, Notification Center, Messages, Dictation, iCloud, Game Center, Apple AirPlay, Apple Font Book, Apple iBooks, Apple Keynote, Apple Pages, Apple Numbers iTunes, Apple iMovie, Apple Safari, Apple GarageBand, Photo Booth, Apple Time Machine, Apple FaceTime, Apple Preview, Mail, Maps, Photos, Reminders, App Store, Contacts, Stocks, Notes, Calendar, Siri, Messages, Apple iBooks, Apple Keynote, Apple Pages, Apple Numbers, News, Voice Memos, Home
MISCELLANEOUS Apple MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Apple MacBook Air with Retina display
Included Accessories USB-C power adapter USB-C power adapter
Cables Included USB-C charge cable USB-C charge cable
Security Fingerprint reader Apple T2 Security Chip, fingerprint reader
Features T2 Security Chip T2 Security Chip
SAR Value 0.79 W/kg (body) 0.71 W/kg (body)
Repairability Index 5.5 (out of 10) 6.1 (out of 10)
ENERGY STAR Certified Yes Yes
EPEAT Compliant - EPEAT Gold
Max Operating Temperature 35 °C 35 °C
Min Operating Temperature 10 °C 10 °C
Humidity Range Operating 0 - 90% (non-condensing) 0 - 90% (non-condensing)
Manufacturer Warranty Limited warranty - 1 year
Technical support - phone consulting - 90 days
Limited warranty - 1 year
Technical support - phone consulting - 90 days
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