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Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (2011)

Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (2011)

737 reviews

Apr, 2024

Positive
performance (396)
portability (281)
usability (206)
design (195)
reliability (90)

Negative
price (68)
connectivity (8)

General overview
Price comparison

alaTest has collected and analyzed 737 reviews of Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (2011). The average rating for this product is 4.4/5, compared to an average rating of 4.0/5 for other products in the same category for all reviews. Reviews about the reliability and design are on the whole positive. The usability and portability are also mentioned favorably. There are some mixed comments about the price, and many are critical about the connectivity.

performance, portability, usability, design, reliability

connectivity

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other products in the same category the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (2011) is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 86/100 = Very good quality.

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Review analysis

(Based on 737 reviews)

Expert Reviews

User Reviews

Review Ratings

(62% of reviews)
Show all 5 star reviews (24% of reviews)
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Show all 2 star reviews (6% of reviews)
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Features

performance
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portability
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usability
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design
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reliability
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Showing 437 review(s)

Expert Reviews User Reviews

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Showing 1 - 357 of 437 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (298)

Consumer review (amazon.co.uk)

Amazon.co.uk review summary for Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (2011)

alaTest has collected and analyzed 29 user reviews of Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (2011) from Amazon.co.uk. The average user rating for this product is 4.0/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.0/5 for other products in the same category on Amazon.co.uk. Reviewers really like the reliability and usability. The design and portability also get good views, but many are less positive about the durability and screen.

performance, portability, design, usability, reliability

price, screen, durability

76% of the reviews on Amazon.co.uk give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Consumer review (amazon.com)

Amazon.com review summary for Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (2011)

alaTest has collected and analyzed 318 user reviews of Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (2011) from Amazon.com. The average user rating for this product is 4.4/5, compared to an average user rating of 3.9/5 for other products in the same category on Amazon.com. Comments about the reliability and design are on the whole positive. The usability and portability also get good feedback, whereas the touchpad and connectivity get mixed opinions.

performance, portability, usability, design, reliability

92% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Expert review by : JoannaStern (theverge.com)

Apple MacBook Air review (13-inch, mid 2011)

The original MacBook Air was more of a status symbol than a computer. Sure, it was a functional laptop that could glide into a manila envelope, but the $1,799 laptop was, by and large, a secondary...

Double the performance of the last gen Air ; Over six hours of battery life ; Best touchpad around ; Backlit keyboard returns

Keys are a bit shallow ; Webcam isn’t HD ; No high resolution or matte screen option

It’s the first Air that’s capable enough to replace not only the old white MacBook but also the MacBook Pro — at least for some

Jul, 2011

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Expert review by : Scott Stein (cnet.com)

Apple MacBook Air (11-inch review: Apple MacBook Air (11-inch

Apple MacBook Air (11-inch

The new 11-inch ; is dramatically faster than last year's version, has a backlit keyboard, and comes with a high-speed Thunderbolt I/O port.

The $999 entry-level Air still has the same limited fixed flash storage and RAM as last year's version, which most people will want to upgrade from--and there's still no SD card slot, Ethernet port, or 3G wireless option.

This year's 11-inch MacBook Air improves on last year's model in several significant ways and is by far the fastest ultraportable you're likely to find, though some users will consider the limited flash storage space to be a hindrance.

Jul, 2011

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Expert review by : Cisco Cheng (pcmag.com)

Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (Thunderbolt)

The Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (Thunderbolt) is a formidable player in the ultraportable space, thanks to a Core i5 processor, backlit keyboard, and Thunderbolt port.

Core i5 processor and 4GB of memory provide a big performance lift. Backlit keyboard is back. Stunning design. Screen resolution is superb. Great clickpad implementation. Quick wake-from-sleep times. Thunderbolt port

Pricey. Battery life could have been longer

Jul, 2011

Partner Source

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Expert review by : Christina Bonnington (wired.com)

Apple 13-Inch MacBook Air

The best ultra-portable computer just got better -- with a new processor and some much-improved battery performance.

Phenomenal battery life, over 12 hours in most conditions. Respectable performance thanks to Intel’s new Haswell processor. Same .68-inch thick, super light-chassis. Best keyboard and trackpad out there. Better networking performance with 802.11ac support

No Retina display yet. For some, lack of Ethernet port or optical drive may be a deal-breaker. Gets expensive once you max out the SSD and RAM

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Expert review by : Anand Lal Shimpi (anandtech.com)

The 2011 MacBook Air (11 & 13-inch): Thoroughly Reviewed

I've always liked ultraportables. Back when I was in college I kept buying increasingly more portable notebooks until I eventually ended up with something horribly unusable for actual work. When Apple introduced the first MacBook Air back in 2008 I...

Whereas last year's MacBook Air was a good machine for light work, the 2011 models are true replacements for mainstream portable Macs. There's still no dethroning the MacBook Pro (although the 13-inch model clearly needs a higher resolution display...

Jul, 2011

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Expert review by : J.R. Nelson (NotebookReview.com)

Apple MacBook Air (2011) Review

Apple introduced the first MacBook Air in 2008, taking the industry by surprise. The next evolution of a company that puts design first, the MBA was a thing of beauty - yet it wasn't until 2010 that the internals really matched the exterior. But can...

Unbeatable design ; Thin and very light ; Backlit keyboard ; Thunderbolt port

Slightly worse GPU ; No USB 3.0 ; No SD card slot on 11-inch models ; Price premium ; The best all-around notebook that you can buy. Period.

The best all-around notebook that you can buy. Period.

Mar, 2012

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Expert review by : J. Simon Leitner / Klaus Hinum (notebookcheck.net)

Review Apple MacBook Air 13 Mid 2011 (1.7 GHz, 256 GB SSD) Subnotebook

Turbo Air. After the refresh of the Air's case in autumn of last

Low weight and small size; Outstanding aluminium case; Very good input devices; Backlit keyboard; Very good application performance for a subnotebook

Relatively expensive; Not so many ports; Reflective display; Non-upgradeable system memory

We have to say, as we have said before, that Apple outclasses almost everyone with the Air. Dell’s Adamo XPS 13 was supposed to be a direct competitor but in fact fell far short. Samsung’s current premium 900X3A range is probably the machine that comes...

Aug, 2011

Partner Source

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Expert review by : Vincent Nguyen (slashgear.com)

MacBook Air 13-inch core i5 Review (mid-2011)

Apple's MacBook Air left many mobile users with a difficult decision back in late 2010. The unibody ultraportable was certainly beautiful, but its ULV processor left some wary that OS X might not be able to keep up with their lifestyle. The new 2011...

In short, that difficult decision between prioritizing portability and performance has pretty much been made for you: the MacBook Air grants you both. Build-quality is reassuringly strong, speed and performance are sufficient for most users, and the...

Jul, 2011

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Expert review by : Leo Boon Yeow (hardwarezone.com)

Apple 13.3-inch MacBook Air (2011) - Fruits of Perseverance

The now legendary MacBook Air -- that is more Kate Moss than Brooklyn Decker -- is back in 2011. And it just doesn't get any better than this. For now. Read on to see how the 13.3-inch model fared in our detailed analysis but don't blame us if you end...

Very slimVery lightDesign is goodPremium aluminum bodyAffordable

Slight flex on the keyboardGets hot when doing wireless transfersOS X Lion takes some getting used to

Aug, 2011

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Expert review by : yuga (yugatech.com)

2011 Macbook Air 11.6″ Review

The refresh of the new 11.6″ and 13.3″ Macbook Air last July 2011 has introduced more powerful Intel Core i5 and Core i7 processors into the line-up. I got the 4GB RAM, 128GB SSD Core i5 Macbook Air 11.6″ to test out. See full review after the jump.

(for the 2GB RAM, 64GB SSD). You can also request for custom specs (like 256GB SSD and Core i7) but that will take about 3 weeks to deliver.

Aug, 2011

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