Apple MacBook Pro 15 (2019) vs Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020)

Compared 2 laptops: Apple MacBook Pro 15 (2019), vs Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020). Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Processor - Intel Core i7 9750H
- Intel Core i9 9880H
- Intel Core i9 9980HK
n/a
Storage - 256 GB
- 512 GB
- 1024 GB
- 2048 GB
- 4096 GB
- 256 GB
- 512 GB
- 1024 GB
- 2048 GB
RAM - 16 GB
- 32 GB
- 8 GB
- 16 GB

Review

Key Specs Apple MacBook Pro 15 (2019) and Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020)
System Performance
System and app performance
Gaming Performance
Graphics in popular 3D games
Display
Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
Battery Life
Estimated real-world battery life
Connectivity
Ports, webcam, and interfaces
Case & Design
Appearance, materials, durability, comfort
NanoReview Score
Overall score by NanoReview
Adjust each parameter’s importance to find the best match for you.
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Function
Importance (Weight)
Performance:
Gaming:
Display:
Battery life:
Connectivity:
Portability:
Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

Tests & specs

Specs & test comparison

Body

Design and ergonomics comparison
Weight 1.83 kg 1.29 kg
Pixel size 349.3x240.7x15.5 mm 304.1x212.4x16.1 mm
Area 841 cm² 646 cm²
Screen-to-body ratio 81.8 % 79.4 %
Side bezels 8.8 mm 8.8 mm
Colors - Silver
- Gray
- Silver
- Gold
- Gray
Material Aluminum Aluminum
Transformer No No
Opening angle 135 ° 130 °
Cooling system
Cooling typeActivePassive
Vapor chamberNoYes
Cooler count2n/a
Cooler speed6500 RPMn/a

Display

Display quality comparison
Diagonal 15.4 in 13.3 in
Type IPS LCD IPS LCD
Refresh rate 60 Hz 60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate n/a No
Pixel density 221 ppi 227 ppi
Aspect ratio 16:10 16:10
Resolution 2880x1800 pixels 2560x1600 pixels
HDR support Yes, HDR10 Yes, HDR10
Sync Tech No No
Touchscreen No No
Coating Glossy (Anti-Reflective) Glossy (Anti-Reflective)
Light sensor Yes Yes
Display test
Max brightness
Apple MacBook Pro 15 (2019)
500 nits
Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020)
400 nits
Contrast1650:11069:1
DCI-P3 gamutn/a98.6 %
sRGB gamut100 %99.8 %
Adobe RGB gamutn/a85.9 %
Response timen/a35 ms

Battery

Capacity 83.6 Wh 49.9 Wh
Voltage 11.4 V 11.4 V
Full Charge Time 2:00 h 2:23 h
Battery Type Li-Po Li-Po
Removable No No
Fast Charging Yes Yes
USB PD Yes Yes, 65 W
Charge Port Location Left, Right Left
Charge Power 87 W 30 W
Cable Length 2 m 2 m
Charger weight 369 g 172 g

Processor

Processor Intel Core i7 9750H Apple M1
Base frequency 2.6 GHz 3.2 GHz
Turbo Frequency 4.5 GHz n/a
Cores 6 8 (4P + 4E)
Threads 12 8
L3 Cache 12 MB n/a
Integrated Graphics Intel UHD Graphics 630 Apple M1 GPU
Process tech. 14 nm 5 nm
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Apple MacBook Pro 15 (2019)
1322
Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020)
2331
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Apple MacBook Pro 15 (2019)
5576
Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020)
8630
Cinebench
Cinebench R23 (Single-Core)
Apple MacBook Pro 15 (2019)
1113
Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020)
1469
Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)
Apple MacBook Pro 15 (2019)
6884
Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020)
7548

GPU Model

GPU Model Intel UHD Graphics 630 Apple M1 GPU (8-core)
TGP 15 W 15 W
Graphics Type Integrated Integrated
Process tech. 14 nm 5 nm
GPU Frequency 350 MHz 450 MHz
Boost GPU Frequency 1150 MHz 1278 MHz
FLOPS 0.4 TFLOPS 2.6 TFLOPS
Memory Type DDR4 LPDDR4X
Tire Width n/a 128 bit
Memory speed 2.4 Gbit/s 4.27 Gbit/s
Shader Units 192 1024
TMUs 24 64
ROPs 3 32

RAM

RAM Size 16 GB 8 GB
Channels 2x8 GB 2x4 GB
Frequency 2400 MHz 4266 MHz
Type DDR4 LPDDR4X
Replaceable No No

Storage

Bus Custom Custom
Type SSD (M2) SSD (M2)
Channels 1x256 GB 2x128 GB
Replaceable No No
NVMe Yes Yes
Storage Capacity 256 GB 256 GB

Sound

Audio Formats 2.0 2.0
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Max Volume n/a 79.6 dB
Microphones 3 3

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version v5 v6
Bluetooth version 5 5
Fingerprint sensor Yes Yes
IR sensor No No
CD drive No No
Webcam Above Display Above Display
Webcam Resolution 1280x720 1280x720
Ports
USB-ANoNo
USB-C4x3.12x3.1
ThunderboltThunderbolt 3Thunderbolt 3
HDMINoNo
DisplayPortNoNo
VGANoNo
3.5 mm Audio JackYesYes
Ethernet (RJ45)NoNo
Card ReaderNoNo
Charging PortNoNo

Keyboard & Touchpad

Key Type Island Layout Island Layout
Numeric Keypad No No
Backlight Yes Yes
Key Travel 0.6 mm 1 mm
Touchpad
Size15.4x9.9 cm12.1x8.1 cm
SurfaceGlassGlass
Windows PrecisionNoNo
* Attention! Ports, display type, speakers, and specs may differ by model or country.

Results

After analyzing the data, we consider Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020) the clear winner in this comparison.

Survey

Which laptop would you pick?
1 (25%)
3 (75%)
Total Votes: 4

User comments

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