Apple has quietly given its MacBook Air a little speed bump in the form of Intel's 1.4 GHz Core i5. This is a slight upgrade for the 2013 MacBook Air, which launched last year with 1.3 GHz under the hood. Turbo Boost speed jumps from 2.7 GHz on the 2013 MacBook Air to 2.6 GHz on the 2014 version of the notebook.
Processor aside, there isn't much else Apple has changed with the 2014 MacBook Air. In fact, the company has only changed one other aspect of the laptop, but it's probably the most important detail: the price. With the addition of a faster processor, Apple has slashed the price of the MacBook Air by $100. That means the entry-level 11-inch MacBook Air can now be picked up for $899 in the United States. Those of you looking to pick up a 13-inch model can expect to pay $999.
While the price puts a little bit of distance between the MacBook Air and the Retina display-toting MacBook Pro, it's possible Apple is preparing for the introduction of a Retina display MacBook Air. Right now, anyone buying a MacBook and trying to choose between the Pro and the Air is going to be swayed by a couple of obvious differences, and one of the biggest is probably the difference in screen resolution. If the MacBook Air does get a Retina display, then the choice becomes a bit harder.
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