MacBook Air (Intel-based)
Steve Jobs showing the first MacBook Air at Apple’s 2008 keynote address | |
| Developer | Apple Inc. |
|---|---|
| Product family | |
| Type | Subnotebook |
| Release date |
|
| Discontinued | November 10, 2020 |
| Operating system | macOS |
| Successor | MacBook Air (Apple silicon) |
| Related | MacBook, MacBook Pro |
| Website | apple |
The Intel-based MacBook Air is a discontinued line of notebook computers developed and manufactured by Apple Inc from 2008 to 2020. The Air was originally positioned above the previous MacBook line as a premium ultraportable. Since then, the original MacBook's discontinuation in 2011, and lowered prices on subsequent iterations, made the Air Apple's entry-level notebook.
The MacBook Air was introduced in January 2008 with a 13.3-inch screen, and was promoted as the world's thinnest notebook, opening a laptop category known as the ultrabook family. Apple released a redesigned MacBook Air in October 2010, with a redesigned tapered chassis, standard solid-state storage, and added a smaller 11.6-inch version. Later revisions added Intel Core i5 or i7 processors and Thunderbolt. The Retina MacBook Air was released in October 2018, with reduced dimensions, a Retina display, and combination USB-C/Thunderbolt 3 ports for data and power.
The Intel-based MacBook Air was discontinued in November 2020 following the release of the first MacBook Air with Apple silicon based on the Apple M1 processor.