Apple MacBook Air Apple MacBook Air MVFK2LLA, 13 Inches 1.6GHz Review
The 2018 MacBook Air's 128GB of storage and 8GB of RAM are deal-breakers in 2024. It's a beautiful but frustratingly slow machine that's best avoided.
Overview
This 2018 MacBook Air is a tough sell in 2024. That 128GB of storage is a deal-breaker right out of the gate. You'll fill it up with your OS, a few apps, and a photo library before you even start working. The real story here is the ancient 8th-gen dual-core Intel i5 and 8GB of RAM, which land in the 23rd and 4th percentiles for performance. It's a beautiful, reliable machine, but it's fundamentally underpowered for modern tasks.
Performance
The performance is exactly what those specs suggest: slow. The dual-core i5 struggles with more than a few browser tabs and a basic app. The Intel UHD Graphics are fine for streaming video, but that's about it. The only real surprise is how well the Retina display holds up. At 73rd percentile, it's still crisp and bright, and True Tone is a nice feature. But the screen can't make up for the sluggishness everywhere else.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Incredibly reliable and well-built (96th percentile). 94th
- The Retina display is still gorgeous and a joy to use. 93th
- Lightweight and ultra-portable (94th percentile for compactness). 88th
- Touch ID is convenient for logins and purchases. 70th
Cons
- Pathetic 128GB storage (9th percentile) is unusable for most people. 5th
- Only 8GB of RAM (4th percentile) chokes on multitasking. 5th
- The 8th-gen dual-core i5 is painfully slow by today's standards. 9th
- Port selection is terrible, with just two Thunderbolt 3 ports. 23th
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 |
| 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 $265, it's cheap, but it's not good value. You're buying a machine that feels outdated the moment you turn it on. For the same money, a used Windows laptop from a few years ago will give you way more power and storage. This is only worth considering if you need the absolute cheapest entry into the macOS ecosystem and your computing needs are incredibly basic.
Price History
vs Competition
Forget the high-end competitors like the M4 MacBook Pro. The real question is whether this beats a modern budget laptop. It doesn't. A new Chromebook or a refurbished Windows laptop with a modern CPU and 256GB SSD will run circles around this Air for similar money. Even Apple's own M1 MacBook Air, which you can find used for a bit more, is a generational leap forward in speed, battery life, and usability.
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air Apple MacBook Air MVFK2LLA, 13 Inches 1.6GHz | Apple MacBook Pro Apple 14" MacBook Pro (M5, Silver) | ASUS ROG Strix ASUS ROG Strix Scar- 16" GeForce RTX 5090 Laptop | Lenovo Legion Lenovo 16" Legion Pro 7i Gaming Laptop | MSI Stealth MSI Stealth A16 - 16.0" OLED 240 Hz - GeForce RTX | Microsoft Surface Laptop Microsoft 13.8" Surface Laptop Copilot+ PC (7th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CPU | 1.6 GHz apple_ci5 | Apple M5 | Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX | Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX | AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 | Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite X1E-84-100 |
| RAM (GB) | 8 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 |
| Storage (GB) | 128 | 4096 | 2048 | 2048 | 2048 | 1024 |
| Screen | 13.3" 2560x1600 | 14.2" 3024x1964 | 16" 2560x1600 | 16" 2560x1600 | 16" 2560x1600 | 13.8" 2304x1536 |
| GPU | Intel UHD Graphics | Apple (10-Core) | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti | Qualcomm X1 |
| OS | macOS | macOS | Windows 11 Pro | Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Pro | Windows 11 Home |
| Weight (kg) | 1.2 | 1.5 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 2.1 | 1.3 |
| Battery (Wh) | — | 72 | 90 | 99 | — | 54 |
Verdict
Don't buy this laptop. The combination of 128GB storage and 8GB of RAM on an old Intel chip makes it a frustrating device for anyone in 2024. It's a relic. If you're on a tight budget and need macOS, save up a little more for a used M1 MacBook Air. If you just need a cheap laptop, look at the Windows or ChromeOS market. This 2018 Air's time has passed.