Apple MacBook Air Apple 2019 MacBook Air with 1.6GHz Intel Core i5, Review
The 2019 MacBook Air's 128GB of storage is a deal-breaking joke in 2025. Here's why you should avoid it and what to buy instead.
Overview
Look, this 2019 MacBook Air is a beautiful paperweight for 2025. The one thing you need to know is that its 128GB of storage is a joke. You'll fill that up before you finish installing your basic apps and syncing a photo library. It's a classic case of Apple selling you a gorgeous chassis with specs that were already on life support when it launched. The Retina screen is still nice, and it's incredibly thin and light, but that's about all it has going for it.
Performance
The performance is exactly as bad as the specs suggest. That dual-core i5 is in the 23rd percentile for CPU power, which means it feels slow for anything beyond basic web browsing and document editing. The integrated Intel UHD Graphics 617? Forget about it. It scores a 6.8/100 for gaming for a reason. The only thing that surprised me was how snappy the SSD still feels for booting up and opening apps, but that's a tiny silver lining on a very cloudy day.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Incredibly thin, light, and portable (94th percentile for compact). 94th
- The Retina display with True Tone is still beautiful and easy on the eyes. 94th
- Build quality and reliability are top-notch (96th percentile). 91th
- Touch ID is a nice convenience feature for logging in. 73th
Cons
- The 128GB SSD is criminally small and nearly unusable today (9th percentile). 5th
- Only 8GB of RAM is a major bottleneck for multitasking (4th percentile). 7th
- The dual-core i5 processor is painfully slow for any real work. 11th
- Port selection is a joke—just two USB-C ports (7th percentile). 27th
Specifications
Full Specifications
Processor
| CPU | 1.6 GHz apple_ci5 |
| Cores | 4 |
Graphics
| GPU | UHD Graphics |
| Type | integrated |
| VRAM Type | Shared |
Memory & Storage
| RAM | 8 GB |
| RAM Generation | DDR3 |
| Storage | 128 GB |
| Storage Type | SSD |
Display
| Size | 13.3" |
| Resolution | 2560 (QHD) |
Connectivity
| Bluetooth | Yes |
Physical
| Weight | 1.2 kg / 2.7 lbs |
| OS | macOS |
Value & Pricing
At a current price of around $366, it's a terrible value. You're paying for the Apple logo and a nice screen, but you're getting a machine that's functionally obsolete. For the same money, you could find a used Windows laptop with way more power and storage, or save up a bit more for a used M1 MacBook Air, which is lightyears ahead.
Price History
vs Competition
Don't even look at the competitors listed like the MacBook Pro M4 or gaming laptops—they're in a different universe. The real comparison is against Apple's own M1 MacBook Air from 2020. For maybe $150-$200 more on the used market, you get a machine that's faster, has better battery life, and doesn't thermal throttle. Compared to any modern budget Windows laptop, this 2019 Air loses on specs but wins on portability and macOS. It's a trade-off of ecosystem for actual capability.
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air Apple 2019 MacBook Air with 1.6GHz Intel Core i5, | Apple MacBook Pro Apple 14" MacBook Pro (M5, Silver) | ASUS ROG Zephyrus ASUS - ROG Zephyrus G14 14" 3K OLED 120Hz Gaming | Lenovo Legion Lenovo Legion Pro 5i Gen 10 Intel Laptop, | MSI Creator MSI Creator M14 A13V A13VF-081US 14" 2.8K Laptop, | HP ZBook HP 14" ZBook Ultra G1a Multi-Touch Mobile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CPU | 1.6 GHz apple_ci5 | Apple M5 | AMD Ryzen AI 300 Series | Intel Core Ultra 7 255HX | Intel Core i7 13620H | AMD Ryzen AI Max Pro 385 |
| RAM (GB) | 8 | 32 | 32 | 16 | 32 | 32 |
| Storage (GB) | 128 | 4096 | 1000 | 1024 | 2048 | 1024 |
| Screen | 13.3" 2560x1600 | 14.2" 3024x1964 | 14" 2880x1800 | 16" 2560x1600 | 14" 2880x1800 | 14" 2880x1800 |
| GPU | Intel UHD Graphics | Apple (10-Core) | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 | AMD Radeon |
| OS | macOS | macOS | Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Home (MSI recommends Windows 11 Pro for business) | Windows 11 Pro |
| Weight (kg) | 1.2 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 1.6 | 2.6 |
| Battery (Wh) | - | 72 | - | 80 | - | 74 |
Verdict
I can't recommend buying this in 2025. It's a trap. The storage and RAM are immediate deal-breakers. If you absolutely need a super-light Mac and your budget is rock-solid at $400, look for a used M1 Air. If you need more ports, storage, or power for the money, a refurbished business Windows laptop is a smarter buy. Skip this one.