Bowers & Wilkins first introduced the Px7 noise-canceling headphones in 2019, effectively replacing the PX in its personal audio line. Now the British company that's perhaps best know for its high-end home speakers has returned with a new version of the over-ear model. With the Px7 S2, Bowers & Wilkins has completely overhauled the Px7, from the design to the sound and the active noise cancellation (ANC). What's more, the company offers all of the upgrades with the same $399 price tag.
The Px7 S2 features an "all-new construction" that Bowers & Wilkins says will keeps things comfy during longer listening sessions. More specifically, the company has opted for a slimmer shape and better cushioning in the earpads while trimming the overall weight. This new model is also available in three new color options: grey, blue and black. Physical controls are still available on the headphones, with buttons for power, volume, track controls and calls on the right side. A customizable button on the left earcup gives you quick access to noise canceling settings or a voice assistant.
Inside, the company says it has built a new acoustic platform that powers 40mm drivers. Bowers & Wilkins further explains that the speakers were specifically built with "ultra-fast response" that's capable of hitting "every nuance" of the music you're listening to. The drivers are also angled to kepp "consistent distance" from your ear for a more natural soundstage. The company has developed its own digital signal processing (DSP) that can handle 24-bit streaming from your go-to music services with support for aptX Adaptive, aptX HD, aptX, AAC and SBC codecs.
In terms of ANC, the Px7 uses four microphones: two that measure the driver output and two that monitor ambient sound. The company says it has revised the noise-canceling algorithm as well for better performance. When it comes to calls, Bowers & Wilkins has changed both the microphone position and tweaked the digital signal processing to compete with noisy venues. ANC settings and transparency mode can also be activated in the company's Music App for the first time on its headphones, along with the ability to adjust the EQ as you see fit. Soon, the software will also allow you to stream music via an in-app player with an upcoming update.
Bowers & Wilkins says the Px7 S2 will last up to 30 hours on a charge, though it doesn't specify if that's with ANC on or off. The company did explain that it upgraded the quick-charge feature from the previous model, giving you seven hours of listening time in 15 minutes. That's two more hours than before, in the same amount of time.
Lastly, Bowers & Wilkins has teased its upcoming flagship headphone model, the Px8. Details are scarce for now, but the company says you can expect "reference-level" sound and "luxurious materials" for $549 later this year. If you can't wait for a new set of cans, the Px7 S2 is available starting today from the company's website and select retailers.
Gallery: Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2 | 45 Photos
Gallery: Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2 | 45 Photos
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Samsung is currently the number one seller of foldable smartphones, accounting for nearly 80 percent of sales, but with competition heating up and rumors alleging that Apple will also release a bendable handset down the road, it's clear that the South Korean giant will have to fight harder to keep that spot. One way to do that would be by introducing cheaper foldable phones and it looks like Samsung is already on it.
The OG Fold that was introduced in 2019 retailed for $1,980 and although Samsung has since brought down the price to $1,800, the company's book-like bendable handset is still out of reach for most consumers.
Similarly, the clamshell Z Flip has gone down from $1,380 to $1,000 but is still in the premium range.
Between 2020 and 2021 there were rumors that Samsung would launch a stripped-down version of the Galaxy Fold. The rumors were reignited this month by a leaker who claimed that affordable Samsung phones were back on the table but hinted that they would be a part of the affordable Galaxy A range instead of the Z family of foldable phones.
That rumor has been backed up by Korean outlet ET News, which has a semi-accurate track record when it comes to leaks. The publication says that Samsung is working on an entry-level foldable smartphone that will be priced at under 1 million won (~$771).
Considering the phone will likely be pricier in other markets because of taxes and duties, we can assume that it will retail for more than $800. This is roughly in line with those earlier rumors that had said the Galaxy Fold Lite could start at around $900.
The report adds that Samsung will cut corners by excluding premium features and the Galaxy A foldable lineup will only include core functionalities. Previous reports had said that the company's affordable bendable phones would not include the Ultra Thin Glass layer that's included with Samsung's best foldable phones.
The report also suggests that Samsung will release affordable versions of both the Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy Z Flip. The project is currently in the planning and development stage and the company is eyeing a release date of 2024.
In addition to increasing the competitiveness of its foldable phones, Samsung also apparently wants to grow the sales share of the form factor within its overall lineup from single-digit to double digits. Samsung is clearly betting big on this form factor, the biggest sign of which is that it has stopped making the iconic Galaxy Note phones.
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June 29, 2022 at 08:25PM
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Samsung working to bring foldable phones to regular folks with Galaxy A Fold and Flip - PhoneArena
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Preorders for the over 4-foot-long, 1:1 scale blaster will begin July 7th at 10AM PT / 1PM ET, and existing Gjallarhorn owners get dibs. If you’re looking to purchase the prop-grade Nerf LMTD blaster, you need to unlock it in-game in the Destiny 2 Bungie 30th Anniversary Pack before July 7th at 9AM PT before you can join the “virtual waiting room” for your purchase. So, you’ve got just over a week. If there are any left, Bungie will put them up for sale beginning July 21st.
Now for some bad news: the price has gone up $25 without explanation. It’ll now be $185 instead of the $160 that Bungie announced last December. And there’s no word yet on even a rough estimate of when it might ship. A previous Nerf LMTD product took over a year to arrive. Othersare still inbound.
You also shouldn’t expect this Gjallarhorn to fire rockets that split into multiple darts like we’d hoped. In a larger reveal on Bungie’s website, the designers have clarified that you’ll load a shell that houses three of Nerf’s large Mega darts, and you’ll see those three Mega darts simultaneously leave the barrel. Admittedly, that makes a lot more sense for Nerf physics and safety constraints than firing off a rocket.
“With that shell, we’re shooting three of those MEGA darts at once, which gives that visual sense of the Wolfpack Rounds swirling and flying through the air towards your target,” says Nerf senior project engineer Justin Saccone. You get three of those Mega shells and nine darts in total.
The reloading mechanism sounds really cool:
We wanted to integrate how it reloads in the game so the entire top housing of the Blaster itself shifts forward, it opens the loading bay just like it does in the game, you pop the shell in just like the animation, and then you pull it back and you’re ready to blast off a burst of three MEGA darts, which is super awesome. It’s the first time at NERF that we’ve ever done an easily reloadable MEGA dart shell that fires multiple MEGA darts at once.
Unfortunately, Bungie and Hasbro haven’t provided any photos or video of that mechanism in action, so you’ll have to use your imagination for now. They also don’t say how the priming mechanism works — and there’s been no hint at its range or power.
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June 30, 2022 at 03:09AM
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Nerf's Gjallarhorn rocket launcher from Destiny is truly gigantic — preorders begin July 7th - The Verge
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After leaking in full last night, the Galaxy XCover 6 Pro became official today. Samsung took the veil off its new rugged phone today and launched a device store page for the XCover 6 Pro in Germany. Needless to say, every bit of detail, save for pricing, is now known.
Samsung just confirmed that it wants to make the Galaxy XCover 6 Pro available to customers in select markets across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East in July. Previously, the company revealed a July 13 launch date for the XCover 6 Pro and the Tab Active 4 Pro, the latter of which is still M.I.A.
The phone popped up on Samsung Germany’s online store not long ago, but it is not yet available for purchase. Pricing details remain unknown, and rumors hint at a €600 price tag.
Better than the Galaxy A53?
The Galaxy XCover 6 Pro is shaping up to be a great package, especially for a rugged phone. It’s powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G chipset, which means it should be able to outperform Samsung’s fan-favorite mid-range device, i.e., the Galaxy A53.
Samsung’s new rugged phone has a decent camera setup but doesn’t have OLED display technology. Its bezels are thick, and the screen has an Infinity-V notch. But anyone who can look past these design details and doesn’t care too much about OLED will have a lot to gain from the Galaxy XCover 6 Pro.
The phone has a MIL-STD construction with an IP68 dust and water-resistance rating, but more importantly, it’s convenient. The user-removable battery allows for hot-swapping batteries to keep the phone going virtually non-stop, and the device has two programmable physical buttons.
Samsung should unveil more availability and pricing details soon. However, keep in mind that the Galaxy XCover 6 Pro is a device aimed at the enterprise market first and foremost. You might not be able to find it very easily, depending on your region.
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June 29, 2022 at 09:08PM
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Samsung puts an end to leaks, announces Galaxy XCover 6 Pro officially - SamMobile - Samsung news
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Apple's (AAPL) efforts to replace Qualcomm (QCOM) as a supplier of 5G modem chips for its iPhone have hit a developmental snag, a prominent Apple stock analyst said Tuesday. Qualcomm stock rose on the news.
X
In a Twitter thread, TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said Apple appears to have "failed" in its internal development of a 5G modem chip. That means Qualcomm will remain the exclusive supplier of 5G iPhone modem chips through the second half of 2023, he said. Qualcomm had previously estimated that it would supply just 20% of those iPhone chips in late 2023.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment on the report.
"I believe Apple will continue to develop its own 5G chips," Kuo said. "But by the time Apple succeeds and can replace Qualcomm, Qualcomm's other new businesses should have grown enough to significantly offset the negative impacts caused by the order loss of iPhone 5G chips."
Qualcomm Stock Jumps
The development is likely to drive Qualcomm revenue and earnings estimates higher for 2023 and early 2024, Kuo said.
On the stock market today, Qualcomm stock rose 3.5% to close at 131.60. Apple stock dropped 3% to 137.44 in an overall down day for stocks.
Qualcomm is shifting its business from making wireless chips mostly for smartphones to making them for a host of devices for the Internet of Things. That includes chips for automobiles, Arm-based PCs, and virtual reality and augmented reality headsets.
Qualcomm stock ranks fifth out of 33 stocks in IBD's fabless semiconductor industry group, according to IBD Stock Checkup. It has an IBD Composite Rating of 72 out of 99. IBD's Composite Rating combines five separate proprietary ratings into one easy-to-use rating. The best growth stocks have a Composite Rating of 90 or better.
Follow Patrick Seitz on Twitter at @IBD_PSeitz for more stories on consumer technology, software and semiconductor stocks.
Google announced today that Material You is coming to Gmail on the web in a redesign that also addresses complaints about the integrated view overhaul from earlier this year by introducing a “Gmail-only” view.
Material You redesign
This redesign primarily involves the default white background being replaced by a faint/light blue of which there are several shades. For example, the left navigation menu is slightly darker, while read emails are blue and unread ones remain white.
The Compose button in the top-left corner drops the pill-shaped container for a rectangle with rounded corners, just like on the Android client, while the list of emails is more pronounced.
This is the most significant expansion of the company’s latest Material You design language to the web yet after Material.io and the Google Search Console. It comes as Gmail for Android got its MY redesign in September of 2021. Google has yet to bring Material You to its first-party iPhone or iPad apps.
‘Gmail-only’ view
Update: Google has clarified that “Classic Gmail” refers to the previous, years-old design before the integrated view. For the moment, that option will remain accessible to end users.
What’s new is how the Material You web redesign supports a “Gmail-only” interface that removes the combined Chat, Spaces, and Meet layout that Google pitched as letting you:
…easily switch between your inbox, important conversations, and join meetings without having to switch between tabs or open a new window. We hope this new experience makes it easier for you to stay on top of what’s important and get work done faster in a single, focused location.
The left bar is gone and you just get a list of default folders and labels at the left. The top search field spans more of the screen since the Chat status indicator has been removed. There’s still a side panel with Calendar Keep, Voice (if eligible), and Tasks at the right.
That said, you can just have Google Chat (with Spaces) or Meet appear from a new customization window.
This Material You web redesign with the Gmail-only view is rolling out starting today and will be:
Available to Google Workspace Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Frontline, and Nonprofits, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers
Also available to users with personal Google accounts, as well as Google Workspace Individual users.
Not available to Google Workspace Essentials customers [which does not include Gmail]
June 29, 2007: A big day for the iPhone and the Schmick family
By Joanna Stern
On June 29, 2007, the first iPhone went on sale. On that same day, a boy named Noah Schmick was born. Over the next 15 years, the iPhone grew…and so did Noah. Through interviews with current and former Apple executives, WSJ’s Joanna Stern traces how Apple’s invention matured and changed all of us—perhaps the youngest generation most of all.
The iPhone Baby: How 15 Years Shaped a Generation
Through exclusive interviews with current and former Apple executives, WSJ’s Joanna Stern traces how Apple’s invention evolved over the next 15 years and changed a generation.
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June 28, 2022 at 01:30PM
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The iPhone at 15: An Inside Look at How Apple Transformed a Generation - The Wall Street Journal
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Arm is announcing its new flagship Immortalis GPU today, its first to include hardware-based ray tracing on mobile. As PCs and the latest Xbox Series X and PS5 consoles are all gradually moving toward impressive ray-traced visuals, Immortalis-G715 is designed to be the Arm’s first GPU to deliver the same on Android phones and tablets.
Built on top of Mali, a GPU that’s used by the likes of MediaTek and Samsung, Immortalis is designed with 10–16 cores in mind and promises a boost of 15 percent over the previous generation premium Mali GPUs. Arm sees Immortalis as the start of a transition to ray tracing on mobile following its success with the 8 billion Mali GPUs that have shipped to date.
“The challenge is that Ray Tracing techniques can use significant power, energy, and area across the mobile system-on-a-chip (SoC),” explains Andy Craigen, director of product management at Arm. “However, Ray Tracing on Immortalis-G715 only uses 4 percent of the shader core area, while delivering more than 300 percent performance improvements through the hardware acceleration.” It’s not clear if a 3x speedup over software-based ray tracing will be enough to tempt game developers, but when Nvidia introduced hardware accelerated ray tracing in its RTX 2080, it advertised a 2x-3x boost at the time. “It’s the right performance point for now to get this technology into the market,” says Arm’s Paul Williamson, adding that it may also come in handy in augmented reality applications where RT could be used to match virtual lighting to the real-world environment around you.
Arm is already delivering software-based ray tracing in last year’s Mali-G710, but the promise of hardware support means we will start to see flagship smartphones with this chip at the beginning of 2023. Samsung also announced its Exynos 2200 chip with hardware-based ray tracing earlier this year, so manufacturers are getting ready for the games to arrive.
“We decided to introduce hardware-based Ray Tracing support now on Immortalis-G715 because our partners are ready, the hardware is ready, and the developer ecosystem is (about to get) ready,” says Craigen. Arm is only providing a couple of examples of ray tracing on its mobile GPUs today, and there’s no clear commitment from any game developers just yet. “We believe this technology has a strong place, but it’ll take time,” says Williamson, hinting that we should see “some interesting experiences on mobile over the next year or so.”
Arm also has an update to its main Mali line with the Mali-G715. This GPU includes variable rate shading (VRS) to boost gaming performance and energy savings on mobile. VRS essentially renders the parts of a scene in a game that require more detail, so details in the background don’t need as much rendering power. “When enabling Variable Rate Shading on gaming content, we have seen improvements of up to 40 percent on frames per second,” claims Craigen. Other improvements mean these latest Arm GPUs will see a 15 percent energy efficiency improvement over its previous Mali-G710 GPU that was introduced last year. Arm wouldn’t say how much more expensive an Immortalis device might be compared to a Mali-based one.
Arm’s move to support hardware-based ray tracing on its GPUs is a significant step for mobile Android gaming. Ray tracing is currently limited to powerful GPUs that are typically found in gaming PCs or the latest Xbox Series X and PS5 consoles. Nvidia has previously demonstrated ray tracing in conjunction with Arm last year, but it was an RTX 3060 GPU paired with a MediaTek Kompanio 1200 Arm processor. That effort is focused on PCs and likely Chromebook-like laptops, but Arm’s new Immortalis is focused squarely on Android.
Arm also shared a chunk of its roadmap, which you can view above, suggesting it’ll follow up Immortalis with a flagship “Titan” GPU in 2023 and “Krake” in 2024. Arm declined to tell us if Titan or Krake will expand ray tracing support, though.
Epic Games is putting its support behind Immortalis with its Unreal Engine, alongside MediaTek and Unity. This is the type of industry support you’d expect for a new mobile GPU like this, but the real test will be how many mobile game developers start implementing ray tracing. (Arm says its ray tracing will use the Vulkan API.) It’s still incredibly rare to see ray tracing on console games, so it’s unlikely we’ll see a flood of mobile games moving to ray tracing anytime soon.
Additional reporting by Sean Hollister.
Correction, June 28th 11:50AM ET: Article updated with more details on Immortalis, and to make it clear this is Arm’s first hardware-based ray tracing chip, not an industry first.
There aren't many options when it comes to consumer 360 cameras these days, so when Insta360 launched its more powerful One RS modular camera back in March, I was a little disappointed with its 5.7K "360 Lens" option — it's basically on par with the Sphere, One X2, One R and the One X. Don't get me wrong, they all do well for their form factors (not to mention the computational improvements), but after three years or so, it's about time for a major upgrade. As it turns out, Insta360 was saving its "one more thing" for today: a "1-inch 360 Edition" One RS co-branded with Leica.
As the name implies, this new kit comes with a chunkier 360 lens module powered by two 1-inch CMOS sensors, and these are capable of capturing at higher resolutions — up to 6K for 360 videos, or up to 21 megapixels for 360 photos. This should guarantee a boost in image quality, especially in low light. This also happens to be the world's first 360 camera to be "co-engineered with Leica," following the two companies' earlier collaboration on the One R's 1-inch Wide Angle Mod.
Richard Lai/Engadget
Unlike the regular One RS kit (with either the new "4K Boost Lens" or the regular "360 Lens"), this "1-inch 360 Edition" uses a vertical assembly to accommodate the bigger lens module. From top to bottom: lens, core (with a touchscreen), then a vertical battery.
The One RS core benefits from an upgraded processor to support onboard "FlowState Stabilization" (which is faster than the app) as well as "Active HDR" video capture for action sports. As for battery life, this whole kit is rated for up to 62 minutes of 6K@30fps video recording.
The core and battery are inserted into a housing, which then clips to the lens to secure the entire device (thus enabling IPX3 water resistance, which is good enough for rain and snow). You'll still have access to the 1/4-inch standard screw mount at the bottom of the battery. To disassemble this kit (especially when you need to access the microSD slot), you'll have to first open the USB port flap on the housing, then press the two clips under the lens to detach. It's obviously best to keep the soft protection case (included) on the lens while doing so.
Richard Lai/Engadget
The Insta360 One RS "1-inch 360 Edition" is now available for $800, which is quite a jump from the $550 "Twin Edition" (which comes with a "4K Boost Lens" and a "360 Lens" instead). A company rep explained that this new kit is targeting the prosumer market, such as users who want to create virtual tours for museums or real estate properties.
That said, if you already own a One RS, you can buy the same "1-inch 360 Edition" kit sans core for $650, thus saving you $150. This also applies to those who have the older One R, as this lens is backward compatible.
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Remember that when buying a PS5 from Sony, you must log in to your PlayStation Network account, and each account can only buy one console. These queues can last up to an hour or more, and the estimated time remaining may jump a little. The key is to stick to it and see if you get lucky. You don’t have to refresh the page at all, so just let it tick away and cross your fingers.
If you get beyond the queue, you’ll have your pick of the available consoles and bundles on offer as well as accessories — like colorful controllers or a wireless headset. Be sure not to waste any time and check out right away to minimize the chance of errors or somehow missing out. And, of course, good luck!
While you hang out in the queue
Here are some accessories and games we always suggest for new PS5 owners, many of which Sony will have on offer if you get through the queue.
Back in November 2009, I was getting ready to attend the Montreal International Games Summit, and I panicked — it was my first major event as a member of the press, and I had no way to record an interview. This was a problem because I was scheduled to talk with Yoichi Wada, then president of Square Enix, along with several other notable industry people. So I rushed to Radio Shack and picked the cheapest voice recorder I could find, a little grey rectangle made by RCA that was locked up in a glass display case. I have no idea what model it is, but it went on to follow me through my entire professional career to date — now, nearly 13 years later, it’s finally being retired.
I hung on to that gadget for one main reason: I trusted it. The RCA recorder didn’t have any especially notable features; the sound quality was just OK, and it was actually pretty annoying having to keep a bunch of AAA batteries on deck. But I’ve always been paranoid about losing an interview and wasting both my time and — even worse — that of someone who agreed to talk to me for a story. So, as long as the recorder worked, I had no real reason to replace it. And it always worked. Even when the “erase” button fell off, I stuck by it. But earlier this month, while attending Summer Game Fest, I came to a sad conclusion: the rewind button didn’t function, which pushed the recorder past the point of usefulness.
With the proliferation of video calls and the lack of in-person events over the last few years, the recorder hasn’t gotten much work. It’s spent around 36 months tucked into a desk drawer. But earlier this month, I had a chance to use it again when Summer Game Fest put on its first-ever in-person event in Los Angeles. And it was as reliable as always; I used it to record interviews with the directors of The Callisto Protocol and Street Fighter 6 and to capture my first hands-on experience with Peridot. But, without a rewind button, actually transcribing those conversations was far too time-consuming.
It’s not clear when I’ll be going back to another in-person event, so I have time to decide what’s next. It’s not easy replacing a steady companion of more than a decade. I know I won’t be using my phone to record interviews; again, I’m paranoid, and I’d much prefer something simple and straightforward so that a dead battery or software update doesn’t mess up an interview. But I also love the idea of a single-purpose device. The RCA recorder is something I associate completely with the act of conducting an interview, a key part of my job, and as it turns out, that means that it’s become an object imbued with memories. If I’m lucky, I’ll find something that’ll help me capture even more.
Apple’s poised to release a slew of new devices between this fall and the beginning of 2023, according to a report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. What Gurman describes as a “deluge” of products will reportedly include four iPhone 14 devices, a set of new iPads, three Apple Watches, several M2 / M3-upgraded Macs, a pair of refreshed AirPods Pro buds, a new HomePod, and a spec-boosted Apple TV model.
Let’s break down these predictions.
Although Apple announced two new Macs with its flagship M2 processor at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) earlier this month, Gurman expects to find the chip — and its variations — in several other devices. This includes an M2 Mac mini, M2 Pro Mac mini, M2 Pro / M2 Max 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pros, as well as an M2 Ultra / M2 Extreme Mac Pro. Of course, there’s Apple’s long-rumored mixed reality headset, which is also expected to come with an M2 chip. If this isn’t overwhelming enough, Gurman says Apple’s M3 processor is already in the works, and will likely appear in the 13 and 15-inch MacBook Air laptops coming next year.
Apple’s also expected to release three new Apple Watch models this fall: the standard Watch Series 8, a new SE, and a more “rugged” watch geared towards people into “extreme sports.” Gurman notes that while the S8 chip present in the upcoming Watch Series 8 will offer the same level of performance as the preceding S7 and S6 chips, the Watch coming next year will reportedly feature an upgraded processor. Gurman also expects Apple to discontinue the Series 3 this fall in favor of the new SE, which could also come with the S8 processor — a jump from the S5 chip that came with the 2020 SE model.
Apple didn’t have much to say about tvOS at WWDC, however, Gurman says the company is supposed to reveal a new Apple TV with an A14 chip and slightly more RAM this fall. This sets the device up for the “additional gaming capabilities” that we could see in tvOS 16, Gurman notes.
Apple’s also set to roll out an upgraded HomePod — but probably not until next year. According to Gurman, the upcoming HomePod will come with a similar size and level of performance as the original HomePod released in 2018. It’s expected to have an S8 chip, refreshed display, and potential support “multi-touch functionality.”
The AirPods Pro earbuds are due for an upgrade as well, with Gurman predicting a new chip and improved sound. Hopefully, this means support for lossless audio, which supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo rumored earlier this year.
Apple’s MacBook lineup has been fully refreshed between the new MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro with M2 chips arriving this summer and the 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro landing last fall. And Apple is keeping the M1 MacBook Air in the lineup too. Let’s take an in-depth look at the difference between MacBook Air and Pro to see what sets these MacBooks apart.
Update 6/24: Orders are open for the M2 13-inch MacBook Pro and Apple has also started its Back to School promotion. But we’re still waiting on the M2 MacBook Air to launch which is slated for July.
Read on for why the new M2 MacBook Air is a better choice over the M2 13-inch MacBook Pro, unless the 14 or 16-inch MacBook Pro is a better fit.
Table of contents
The 2021 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro notebooks feature a fresh design, mini-LED display backlighting, the return of I/O including HDMI, SD card slot, and MagSafe, and the removal of the Touch Bar.
And they have more power than ever with the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips (if you’re on the fence between the 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro, check out our detailed guide).
Now Apple has unveiled the new 2022 MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro running on the upgraded M2 chip. The MacBook Air has received the most changes with an all-new design, larger 13.6-inch display, flat-edged chassis, new midnight color, upgraded webcam, and much more.
Difference between MacBook Air and Pro
CPU, GPU, RAM, more
Apple announced its second-generation base Apple Silicon processor with M2. While it’s a notable upgrade over the M1, the M2 is less powerful than the M1 Pro, Max, and Ultra chips.
M2 enables up to 24GB RAM, up to 10 GPU cores, and comes with a faster 8-core CPU than the M1. Here’s a more detailed look at the M1 vs M2 chips.
Meanwhile, with the 14-inch MacBook Pro, you get the M1 Pro or M1 Max chip with the option for even more CPU and GPU cores, and RAM up to 64GB.
Hardware
2022 MacBook Air
2020 MacBook Air
13″ MacBook Pro(2022)
14″ MacBook Pro (2021)
CPU
M2 – 8-core
M1 – 8-core
M2 – 8-core
M1 Pro or Max – 8 or 10-core
Storage
Up to 2TB
Up to 2TB
Up to 2TB
Up to 8TB
RAM
8, 16, or 24GB
8 or 16GB
8, 16, or 24GB
16 to 64GB
Graphics
Up to 10-core
7-core
10-core
Up to 32-core
Neural engine
16-core
16-core
16-core
16-core
FaceTime camera
1080p
720p
720p
1080p
Speakers
4-speaker system with wide sound
Stereo speakers with wide sound
Stereo speakers with high dynamic range
6-speaker high-fidelity
Mics
3-mic array
3-mic array
Studio-quality 3-mic array
Studio-quality 3-mic array
Thermal management
Fanless
Fanless
Active cooling with fans
Active cooling with fans
Apple says the M2 is up to 18% faster for CPU performance and up to 35% faster for GPU performance than the M1. It has over 20 billion transistors and can handle up to 15.8 trillion operations per second.
The M2 chip also features a media engine that brings support for hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAW. It also has a video and ProRes encode and decode engine.
Another nice addition to the 2022 MacBook Air is a 1080p webcam like the 14-inch MacBook Pro received. Apple says it has the same “advanced image signal processor with computational video.” Meanwhile, the new M2 13-inch MacBook Pro sticks with the old 720p webcam.
Displays
If screen brightness is important to you, the 2022 MacBook Air gets a nice improvement from 400 to 500 nits brightness.
Another change with the redesign is the new MacBook Air has a larger 13.6-inch screen with slimmer bezels.
While the 14-inch MacBook Pro’s up to 1,000 sustained nits brightness (1,600 peak) is just for HDR content, you’re still getting up to 120Hz refresh rates with ProMotion, mini-LED backlighting, and thin bezels.
2022 MacBook Air
2020 MacBookAir
13″ MacBook Pro (2022)
14″ MacBook Pro(2021)
Actual screen size
13.6-inch
13.3-inch
13.3-inch
14.2-inch
Resolution
2560 x 1664
2560 x 1600
2560 x 1600
3024 x 1964
Aspect Ratio
16:10 + notch
16:10
16:10
16:10 + notch
PPI
224
227
227
254
Nits(brightness)
500
400
500
500 for SDR, 1000 sustained, up to 1600 peak for HDR
Retina display
–
✅
✅
–
Liquid Retina Display
✅
❌
❌
✅ + XDR
ProMotion (up to 120Hz)
❌
❌
❌
✅
mini-LED backlit
❌
❌
❌
✅
True Tone
✅
✅
✅
✅
P3 wide color
✅
✅
✅
✅
The new MacBook Air and the 14-inch MacBook Pro include a notch at the top center of the display for the 1080p FaceTime camera. But unlike the iPhone, the notch doesn’t include Face ID hardware/support.
I/O: Difference between MacBook Air and Pro
The 2022 MacBook Air gains MagSafe charging like the 2021 MacBook Pro notebooks. However, Apple has kept additions like HDMI, SDXC slot, and support for up to 4 external displays exclusive to the 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro.
The new 2022 MacBook Air and 13-inch Pro have support for just 1 external display up to 6K at 60Hz, even with the new M2 chip. That may be a deal-breaker for some.
Along with the two USB4/Thunderbolt 3 ports, the new MacBook Air keeps the 3.5 mm headphone jack.
2022 MacBook Air
2020 MacBook Air
13″ MacBook Pro(2022)
14″ MacBook Pro(2021)
Magic Keyboard
✅
✅
✅
✅
Touch ID
✅
✅
✅
✅
Touch Bar
❌
❌
✅
❌
USB-C/Thunderbolt ports
2
2
2
3
Headphone jack
✅
✅
✅
✅
HDMI
❌
❌
❌
✅
SDXC card reader
❌
❌
❌
✅
MagSafe charging
✅
❌
❌
✅
Bluetooth
5.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 6 (802.11.ax)
Wi-Fi 6 (802.11.ax)
Wi-Fi 6 (802.11.ax)
Wi-Fi 6 (802.11.ax)
External display support
1 external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz
1 external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz
1 external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz
Up to 2 external displays at 6K res at 60Hz (M1 Pro) or up to 3 external displays at 6K res and 1 external display up to 4K res at 60Hz (M1 Max)
Size, weight, and finish
As you’d expect, the MacBook Air remains the lightest machine with the 13-inch MacBook Pro weighing a bit more, and the 14-inch being the heaviest. The new MacBook Air is even 0.1 pounds lighter than its 2020 predecessor.
The new MacBook Air is also super-thin at 11.3 mm (0.44 in). And if the gold or new midnight colors are appealing, those are only available with the MacBook Air.
2022 MacBook Air
2020 MacBook Air
13″ MacBook Pro (2020)
14″ MacBook Pro (2021)
Weight
2.7 pounds (1.24 kg)
2.8 lbs. (1.29 kg)
3 pounds (1.4 kg)
3.5 pounds (1.6 kg)
Thickness
0.44 in. (1.13 cm)
0.16-0.63 in. (0.41-1.61 cm)
0.61 inch (1.56 cm)
0.61 inch (1.55 cm)
Width
11.97 in. (30.41 cm)
11.97 in. (30.41 cm)
11.97 in. (30.31 cm)
12.31 in. (31.26 cm)
Depth
8.46 in. (21.5 cm)
8.36 in. (21.24 cm)
8.36 inches (21.24 cm)
8.71 inches (22.12 cm)
Display size
13.6 in.
13.3 in.
13.3 in.
14.2 in.
Finishes
Silver, space gray, starlight, midnight
Silver, space gray, and gold
Silver or space gray
Silver or space gray
Notably, the new MacBook Air has shifted from the wedge design it’s had for years and now has a flat-edge chassis like the MacBook Pro. But Apple has made it very slim at just 11.3 mm (1.13 cm) thin.
Battery life
Real-world battery life for Apple Silicon MacBooks compared to the old Intel models has been impressive and usually matches Apple’s claims. But that can depend on what you’re doing with your MacBook, screen brightness, and more.
In any case, the power efficiency and battery life come in strong with the new M2 MacBook Air.
2022 MacBook Air
2020 MacBook Air
13″ MacBook Pro (2022)
14″ MacBook Pro (2021)
Wireless web battery
15 hours
15 hours
17 hours
11 hours
Video playback
18 hours
18 hours
20 hours
17 hours
Included power adapter
30W, 35W, or 67W USB-C + MagSafe
30W USB-C
67W USB-C
67W or 96W USB-C + MagSafe
Battery capacity
52.6Wh
49.9Wh
58.2Wh
70Wh
Fast charging
✅
❌
❌
✅
Apple says when using the 67W power adapter, the new MacBook Air can fast charge to give up to 50% battery in just 30 minutes.
Pricing
With a starting price of $1,199, the new MacBook Air comes in $800 less than the 14-inch MacBook Pro which starts at $1,999.
Standard models of the new Air are 256GB SSD/8GB RAM and 512GB SSD/8GB RAM configurations. Models with 16 or 24GB RAM for the 2022 Air and upgraded M2 chip are custom orders.
The 14-inch MacBook Pro base model at $1,999 with an M1 Pro chip, 16GB RAM, and 512GB SSD.
Model/price
2022 MacBook Air
2020 MacBook Air
13″ MacBook Pro (2020)
14″ MacBook Pro (2021)
256 / 8GB
$1,199
$999
$1,299
–
512 / 8GB
$1,399
$1,199
$1,499
–
256 / 16GB
$1,399
$1,199
$1,499
–
512 / 16GB
$1,599
$1,399
$1,699
From $1,999
1TB / 16GB
$1,799
$1,599
$1,899
From $2,199
1TB/ 24GB
$1,999
–
–
1TB / 32GB
–
–
–
From $2,599
Custom builds
Up to $2,499
Up to $1,999
Up to $2,299
Up to $5,899
Difference between MacBook Air and Pro conclusion
Hopefully, now it’s clear which MacBook is right for you. If you have light to medium performance needs – and even some limited intensive needs, and prefer the lightest machine with great battery life, the MacBook Air is the best fit starting at a reasonable $1,199 or $1,099 for students and teachers.
Apple hasn’t shared exactly when the new MacBook Air will launch other than “July” for now.
For those wanting to save some money and have simple workflows (web, docs, media), the $999 M1 MacBook Air is still in the lineup.
But if you value the most power, active cooling for extended heavy workloads, a brighter screen, more ports, and greater external display support, the 14-inch MacBook Pro is the way to go.
While the 13-inch MacBook Pro has been refreshed with the M2 chip, there probably are not many people that should buy it.
The main difference between the 2022 MacBook Air and Pro is the included fans for the Pro and Touch Bar. But if you’re worried about performance and overheating, you should probably be looking at the 14 or 16-inch MacBook Pro. And the new MacBook Air offers many upgrades that the new 13-inch MacBook Pro doesn’t like the larger Liquid Retina display, 1080p webcam, MagSafe charging, midnight and starlight color options, and more.
Technology - Latest - Google News
June 25, 2022 at 02:50AM
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Difference between MacBook Air and Pro: How the redesigned lightweight MacBook stacks up - 9to5Mac
Technology - Latest - Google News
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