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MacBook Air 13" vs. 13" MacBook Pro Late 2013

Posted October 30, 2013 by Lisa Gade, Editor in Chief (twitter: @lisagade)

The late 2013 MacBook Pro 13 or 2013 MacBook Air, both with Intel Haswell 4th generation CPUs inside and a slim, attractive aluminum unibody casing outside. How do you pick? Since Apple dropped the price of the 13" Retina Mac, the decision is even harder. At $1,699 it was clearly a pricey proposition, but at $1,299 it's only $200 more than the base 13" MacBook Air.

That $200 gets you a faster Intel mobile 28 watt CPU and Iris graphics vs. the ultra-mobile 15 watt CPU with HD 5000 graphics in the MacBook Air. Honestly, the MacBook Air has enough processing power for everyday needs like email, web, video playback, image editing and MS Office. Though we still recommend the i7 version since Apple's base 1.3GHz is clocked a little low for our tastes with future proofing in mind. The 13" MacBook Pro is well suited to those who do full HD video editing (though we'd pick the 15" MacBook Pro with Retina if you do that for hours on end), it's quicker at video export, math calculations including those in huge Excel spreadsheets and running Photoshop filters. The Intel Iris 5100 graphics carries a bit more punch than the Air's HD 5000 graphics, and it's better suited to games, though neither of these are gaming rigs.

I suspect that many folks will get the 13" MacBook Pro late 2013 model not because they need more processing power but because they want the high resolution Retina display that's now standard on Haswell MacBook Pro models. The 2650 x 1600 display is simply stunning with a very wide color gamut, near 180 degree viewing angles and high contrast. The MacBook Air's TN panel is one of the best TN panels on the market but it has nowhere near the clarity, color gamut and viewing angles of the Retina model.

Both have the latest generation Haswell inside and both come with DDR3 RAM and SSD drives. The base model on each has 4 gigs of RAM and a 128 gig SSD drive. Both have excellent backlit keyboards and Apple's big glass trackpad. They both have WiFi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 4.0 and long battery life.

In the MacBook Air's favor, it's a half pound lighter, and yes the difference is noticeable if you carry the laptops with you all day. It's thinner at the front thanks to the Air's signature tapered design. The Air still feels crazy thin and light, while the 13" MacBook Pro is surprisingly light for a powerful machine but not crazy light. The MacBook Air 13" runs longer than other Ultrabooks and it averages 11 hours of use time, while the 13" MacBook Pro late 2013 edition averages 9 hours. That's still extremely impressive, but it won't outlast the Air.

And then there's that $200. The MacBook Air is Apple's most affordable laptop and for those on a tight budget, $200 is a meaningful divide.

Manufacturer web site: www.apple.com

Price: starting at $1,099 for 13" MacBook Air and $1,299 for 13" MacBook Pro

Related Reviews:

13" MacBook Air Review (2013 Haswell)

Late 2013 MacBook Pro 13" Review

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