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Apple MacBook Air 13″ (M5) vs Apple Macintosh PowerBook 190

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

Better figure, where one is clearly better

AppleMacBook Air 13″ (M5)AppleMacintosh PowerBook 190
Overview
ReleasedMarch 2026August 1995
Display
Screen size13.6″9.5″
Resolution2560 × 1664640 × 480
PanelIPS LCD–
Refresh rate60 Hz–
Brightness500 nits–
TouchscreenNoNo
Display typeLiquid Retina display; LED-backlit with IPS technology9.5-inch backlit FSTN passive-matrix LCD, displaying 16 shades of grey at 640 × 480
Pixel density224 ppi–
Colour rangeWide colour (P3); 1 billion colours–
Display featuresTrue Tone–
Performance
ProcessorApple M5Motorola 68LC040 66 MHz (PowerBook 190)
CPU cores101
Graphics8-core GPU or 10-core GPU–
Memory16 GB, 24 GB or 32 GB8 MB
Storage512 GB to 4 TB500 MB
CPU10-core CPU with 4 super cores and 6 efficiency coresMotorola 68LC040 running internally at 66 MHz with a 33 MHz bus; no floating-point unit
GPUNeural Accelerators; hardware-accelerated ray tracing; Media Engine with H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAW acceleration and AV1 decode–
AI engine16-core Neural Engine–
Memory typeUnified memory8 MB in Apple's Japanese configuration, expandable to 40 MB with a third-party card
Memory bandwidth153 GB/s–
Storage typeSSD, configurable up to 4 TB500 MB internal IDE hard drive and removable 1.4 MB Apple SuperDrive floppy module; IDE expansion bay supports other modules
CoolingFanless–
Battery and size
Battery life (maker's claim)Up to 18 hoursUp to 5 hours
Battery capacity53.8 Wh–
Weight1.23 kg2.7 kg
Thickness11.3 mm51.4 mm
Width × depth304.1 × 215 mm293 × 217 mm
Battery life detailUp to 15 hours wireless web; lithium-polymer batteryRemovable nickel-metal hydride battery; Apple stated 2.5–5 hours per charge
ChargerSold separately in the UK (30 W, 35 W dual-port or 70 W Apple USB-C adapters offered); needs at least 30 W over USB PD–
Fast chargingWith a 70 W or higher USB PD power source–
Materials100% recycled aluminium enclosure; 55% recycled content overall–
ColoursSky Blue, Silver, Starlight, Midnight–
Connections
Ports2 × Thunderbolt 4, MagSafe 3, headphone jack–
Wi-FiWi-Fi 7–
Bluetooth6–
Webcam12MP Center Stage–
Operating systemmacOSmacOS
Port detail2 × Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) with charging, DisplayPort, Thunderbolt 4 and USB 4 (up to 40 Gb/s); MagSafe 3; 3.5 mm headphone jack with high-impedance headphone supportADB, RS-422 serial/LocalTalk, HDI-30 SCSI and stereo headphone output; two Type II or one Type III PC Card slot; video and infrared available as optional upgrades
External displaysUp to two at 6K 60 Hz or 4K 144 Hz, or one at up to 8K 60 Hz, 5K 120 Hz or 4K 240 Hz, alongside the built-in displayOptional video output upgrade supports up to 256 colours on Apple and VGA/SVGA monitors
KeyboardBacklit Magic Keyboard, 78 (ANSI) or 79 (ISO) keys including 12 full-height function keysBuilt-in keyboard with solid-state trackpad below the keys
TrackpadForce Touch trackpadBuilt-in solid-state trackpad
SpeakersFour-speaker sound system; Spatial Audio with Dolby AtmosBuilt-in speaker and microphone; 16-bit stereo output through headphones
MicrophonesThree-mic array with directional beamforming; Voice Isolation and Wide Spectrum modes–
BiometricsTouch ID–
In the box13-inch MacBook Air, USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable (2 m); power adapter sold separatelyApple's Japanese configuration included the removable battery, power adapter, System 7.5.2 CD-ROM, PowerBook Mobility Bundle and ClarisWorks 2.0

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