MacBook 12” 2016 vs. M1 MacBook Air: Full specs comparison

We have comprehensively analyzed the technical specifications for the MacBook 12” 2016 and M1 MacBook Air models. Our report includes intricate details such as the CPU, memory, storage, battery life, display quality, and other features.

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MacBook 12” 2016 image

MacBook 12” 2016

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M1 MacBook Air

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MacBook 12” 2016 Pros

Reasons that MacBook 12” 2016 is better than M1 MacBook Air.

About 28% lighter

MacBook 12” 2016 weighed 2.03 pounds, 28% lighter than the 2.8 pounds M1 MacBook Air.

WeightMacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
Pound
2.03 lbs.
2.8 lbs.
Kilogram
0.92 kg
1.27 kg

M1 MacBook Air Pros

Reasons that M1 MacBook Air is better than MacBook 12” 2016.

Significantly newer manufacturing

2020 vs. 2016

Much faster CPU performance

Apple M1 (8C, 8G) inside M1 MacBook Air has a 433% better multi-core CPU performance score than the Intel Core m7-6Y75 inside MacBook 12” 2016.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
M1 MacBook Air - Apple M1 (8C, 7G)
7,414
M1 MacBook Air - Apple M1 (8C, 8G)
7,414
MacBook 12” 2016 - Intel Core m7-6Y75
1,390
MacBook 12” 2016 - Intel Core m5-6Y54
1,295
MacBook 12” 2016 - Intel Core m3-6Y30
1,058
Supports larger memory

M1 MacBook Air supports a larger memory capacity than the MacBook 12” 2016. It supports up to 16GB versus 8GB of system memory on the MacBook 12” 2016.

Max system memory size
M1 MacBook Air
16 GB
MacBook 12” 2016
8 GB
10% larger display

M1 MacBook Air has a 13.3-inch screen size 10% larger than the 12-inch MacBook 12” 2016.

Display size
M1 MacBook Air
13.3-inch
MacBook 12” 2016
12-inch

Prices

Here are the latest price updates and offers for both devices.

MacBook 12” 2016 Price
2017 Apple Macbook with 1.2GHz Intel Core m3 (12-inch, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) Space Gray (Renewed)
 2017 Apple Macbook with 1.2GHz Intel Core m3 (12-inch, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) Space Gray (Renewed)
By Apple
$372.34
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Apple MacBook MF865LL/A 12-inch Laptop with Retina Display 512GB, Silver - (Renewed)
 Apple MacBook MF865LL/A 12-inch Laptop with Retina Display 512GB, Silver - (Renewed)
By Apple
$414.98
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Apple Macbook Retina Display 12 Inch Core M-5Y31 1.1GHz 8GB RAM 256GB SSD (Renewed)
 Apple Macbook Retina Display 12 Inch Core M-5Y31 1.1GHz 8GB RAM 256GB SSD (Renewed)
By Apple
$319.68
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M1 MacBook Air Price
Late 2020 Apple MacBook Air with Apple M1 Chip (13.3 inch, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD) Space Gray (Renewed)
 Late 2020 Apple MacBook Air with Apple M1 Chip (13.3 inch, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD) Space Gray (Renewed)
By Apple
$610.64
$647.86 6% OFF
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Apple 2020 MacBook Air Laptop M1 Chip, 13” Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage, Backlit Keyboard, FaceTime HD Camera, Touch ID. Works with iPhone/iPad; Space Gray
 Apple 2020 MacBook Air Laptop M1 Chip, 13” Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage, Backlit Keyboard, FaceTime HD Camera, Touch ID. Works with iPhone/iPad; Space Gray
By Apple
$708.39
$999.00 29% OFF
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Late 2020 Apple MacBook Air with Apple M1 Chip (13.3 inch, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD) Space Gray (Renewed)
 Late 2020 Apple MacBook Air with Apple M1 Chip (13.3 inch, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD) Space Gray (Renewed)
By Apple
$704.68
See at Amazon

Specs Comparison

Availability

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
Released20162020
Release Date
  • Announced on April 19, 2016
  • Available on April 19, 2016
Announced on November 10th, 2020
Pricing
  • $1,299
    Intel Core m3-6Y30 | 8GB RAM | 256GB SSD
  • $1,599
    Intel Core m5-6Y54 | 8GB RAM | 512GB SSD
  • $999
    Apple M1 Chip (7 cores GPU) | 8GB RAM | 256GB SSD
  • $1,249
    Apple M1 Chip (8 cores GPU) | 8GB RAM | 512GB SSD
Generations-

Exterior

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
Dimensions11.04” x 7.74” x 0.14 - 0.52” (280.5 mm x 196.5 mm x 3.5 - 13.1 mm)
  • Width: 11.97 inches (30.41 cm)
  • Depth: 8.36 inches (21.24 cm)
  • Height: 0.16–0.63 inch (0.41–1.61 cm)
WeightStarting at 2.03 pounds (920 g)Starting at 2.8 pounds (1.29 kg)
Colors
Silver Space Gray Gold Rose Gold
Gold Space Gray Silver
Keyboard and TrackpadFull-size backlit keyboard with:
  • 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) individual LED backlit keys, including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys with ambient light sensor
  • Force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and pressure-sensing capabilities; enables Force clicks, accelerators, pressure-sensitive drawing, and Multi-Touch gestures
Backlit Magic Keyboard with:
  • 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) keys including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys in an inverted-T arrangement
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and pressure-sensing capabilities; enables Force clicks, accelerators, pressure-sensitive drawing, and Multi-Touch gestures

Display

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
Size12 Inches13.3 Inches
InfoRetina display
  • 12-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit display with IPS technology
  • 2304-by-1440 resolution at 226 pixels per inch with support for millions of colors
  • 16:10 aspect ratio
  • Supported scaled resolutions:
    • 1440 by 900
    • 1280 by 800
    • 1024 by 640
Retina display
  • 13.3-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit display with IPS technology; 2560-by-1600 native resolution at 227 pixels per inch with support for millions of colors
  • Supported scaled resolutions:
    • 1680 by 1050
    • 1440 by 900
    • 1024 by 640
  • 16:10 aspect ratio
  • 400 nits brightness
  • Supports wide color (P3)
  • True Tone technology

Ports

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
One USB Type-C port with support for:
  • Charging
  • USB 3.1 Gen 1 (up to 5 Gbps)
  • Native DisplayPort 1.2 video output
  • VGA output using USB-C VGA Multiport Adapter (sold separately)
  • HDMI video output using USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter (sold separately)
M1 MacBook Air Ports
Image Source: Apple
Left (2)
  • 2 x Thunderbolt 3
    40 Gpbs, USB 4.0 (40 Gbps), Charging, DisplayPort
Right (1)
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone

Internal Specs

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
Processor
  1. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ m3-6Y30
    2 cores, 4 threads, 0.90 → 2.20 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 4.5W
  2. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ m5-6Y54
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.10 → 2.70 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 4.5W
  3. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ m7-6Y75
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.20 → 3.10 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 4.5W
  1. Apple M1 (7 GPU Cores)
    8 cores, 8 threads, 3.20 GHz, 10W
  2. Apple M1
    8 cores, 8 threads, 3.20 GHz, 10W
Integrated Graphics
  1. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ m3-6Y30
    Intel® HD Graphics 515
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 850 MHz
  2. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ m5-6Y54
    Intel® HD Graphics 515
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 900 MHz
  3. 6th Gen Intel® Core™ m7-6Y75
    Intel® HD Graphics 515
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz
  1. Apple M1 (7 GPU Cores)
    Apple M1 iGPU
    7 Graphics Cores, 1280 MHz
  2. Apple M1
    Apple M1 iGPU
    8 Graphics Cores, 1280 MHz
Memory
8GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3 onboard memory
  • 8GB
    unified memory
  • Configurable to 16GB
Storage
256GB 512GB
PCIe-based onboard flash storage.
  • 256GB 512GB
    SSD
  • Configurable to 1TB or 2TB

Connectivity

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
Wi-Fi
  • 802.11ac Wi‑Fi wireless networking
  • IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n compatible
  • 802.11ax Wi‑Fi 6 wireless networking
  • IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac compatible
BluetoothBluetooth 4.0 wireless technologyBluetooth 5.0 wireless technology

Battery

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
Size41.4 Wh lithium‑polymer battery49.9 Wh lithium‑polymer battery
Battery Life
  • Up to 10 hours of wireless web
  • Up to 11 hours of iTunes movie playback
  • Up to 30 days of standby time
  • Up to 15 hours wireless web
  • Up to 18 hours Apple TV app movie playback
Power Supply29W USB-C Power Adapter30W USB‑C Power Adapter

Software

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
OSShipped with OS X El CapitanShipped with macOS Big Sur
Built-in Apps
Photos iMovie GarageBand Pages Numbers Keynote Safari Mail Messages FaceTime Calendar Notes App Store iTunes iBooks Maps Contacts Reminders
Photos iMovie GarageBand Pages Numbers Keynote Siri Safari Mail FaceTime Messages Maps News Stocks Home Voice Memos Notes Calendar Contacts Reminders Photo Booth Preview Music Podcasts TV Books App Store Time Machine Find My QuickTime Player

Camera & Audio

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
Camera480p FaceTime HD camera720p FaceTime HD camera
Audio
  • Stereo speakers
  • Dual microphones
  • 3.5 mm headphone jack
    • Support for Apple iPhone headset with remote and microphone
  • Stereo speakers
  • Wide stereo sound
  • Support for Dolby Atmos playback
  • Three-mic array with directional beamforming
  • 3.5 mm headphone jack

Misc

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
Sensors-
  • Touch ID sensor
  • Ambient light sensor
Security-
  • Touch ID sensor
  • Apple T2 Security Chip
In the box
  • MacBook
  • 29W USB-C Power Adapter
  • USB-C Charge Cable (2 m)
  • MacBook Air
  • 30W USB‑C Power Adapter
  • USB-C Charge Cable (2 m)
WarrantyLimited Warranty and ServiceYour MacBook comes with 90 days of free telephone support and a one-year limited warranty. Purchase the AppleCare Protection Plan to extend your service and support to three years from your computer’s purchase date. Only the AppleCare Protection Plan provides you with direct telephone support from Apple technical experts and the assurance that repairs will be handled by Apple-authorized technicians using genuine Apple parts. For more information, visit Apple Support or call 800-823-2275. Your MacBook Air comes with 90 days of complimentary technical support and a one-year limited warranty. Purchase AppleCare+ to extend your coverage to three years from your AppleCare+ purchase date and add up to two incidents of accidental damage coverage, each subject to a service fee of $99 for screen damage or external enclosure damage, or $299 for other repairable damage, plus applicable tax.
MoreVideo Support
  • Intel HD Graphics 515
  • Dual display and video mirroring: simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display and up to 3840 by 2160 pixels at 30Hz on an external display, both at millions of colors
Video Support
  • Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display at millions of colors and:
    • One external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz
  • Thunderbolt 3 digital video output
    • Native DisplayPort output over USB‑C
    • VGA, HDMI, DVI, and Thunderbolt 2 output supported using adapters (sold separately)

Key Features

MacBook 12” 2016M1 MacBook Air
At Glance
Released in Early
2016
16:10 QHD
12”
1440p 60Hz
Weight
2.03 lb
0.92 kg
Up to
Intel Core m7-6Y75
2C/4T, 1.20 → 3.10 GHz
Geekbench 5
639
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,390
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® HD Graphics 515
24 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz
8GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3
Released in Late
2020
16:10 QHD
13.3”
1600p 60Hz
Weight
2.8 lb
1.27 kg
Up to
Apple M1 (8C, 8G)
8C/8T, 3.20 GHz
Geekbench 5
1,705
Single Core
Geekbench 5
7,414
Multi-Core
With integrated
Apple M1 iGPU
8 Graphics Cores, 1280 MHz
Configurable up to
16GB
Unified Memory
M1 MacBook Air Ports
Starting at
$999
M1 (7 GPU Cores), 8GB, 256GB SSD
Up to
18 Hours
Battery Life
Built-in
Touch ID
With T2 Chip
Dual
USB-C
USB4 & Thunderbolt 3
Wi-Fi 6
Bluetooth 5.0

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