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Apple MacBook Air 13″ (M5) vs Apple Macintosh PowerBook Duo 280c

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

Better figure, where one is clearly better

AppleMacBook Air 13″ (M5)AppleMacintosh PowerBook Duo 280c
Overview
ReleasedMarch 2026May 1994
Display
Screen size13.6″8.4″
Resolution2560 × 1664640 × 480
PanelIPS LCD–
Refresh rate60 Hz–
Brightness500 nits–
TouchscreenNoNo
Display typeLiquid Retina display; LED-backlit with IPS technology8.4-inch backlit active-matrix colour LCD; 256 colours at 640 × 480 or thousands of colours at 640 × 400
Pixel density224 ppi–
Colour rangeWide colour (P3); 1 billion colours–
Display featuresTrue Tone–
Performance
ProcessorApple M5Motorola 68LC040 66 MHz (PowerBook 540c)
CPU cores101
Graphics8-core GPU or 10-core GPU–
Memory16 GB, 24 GB or 32 GB4 MB
Storage512 GB to 4 TB320 MB
CPU10-core CPU with 4 super cores and 6 efficiency coresMotorola 68LC040 with 66 MHz internal processor speed and 33 MHz bus interface; integrated memory management without an FPU
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 memory4 MB fitted, expandable to 8 or 12 MB with Apple's memory kits and up to 40 MB using third-party cards
Memory bandwidth153 GB/s–
Storage typeSSD, configurable up to 4 TB320 MB internal SCSI hard drive; optional external 1.4 MB Apple SuperDrive through a floppy adapter or dock
CoolingFanless–
Battery and size
Battery life (maker's claim)Up to 18 hoursUp to 4 hours
Battery capacity53.8 Wh–
Weight1.23 kg2.1 kg
Thickness11.3 mm38 mm
Width × depth304.1 × 215 mm277 × 216 mm
Battery life detailUp to 15 hours wireless web; lithium-polymer batteryRemovable high-capacity Type III nickel-metal hydride battery; Apple claims 2–4 hours. Maker TIL gives 2.1 kg and 4.8 lb together; the stated metric weight is retained without converting the inconsistent pounds figure
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 support152-pin docking connector, RS-422 serial/LocalTalk, power input and optional internal 14,400 bps fax/data modem; ADB, SCSI, video and floppy connections available through compatible docks
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 displayVideo output through an optional Duo Dock, Duo Dock II or Duo MiniDock
KeyboardBacklit Magic Keyboard, 78 (ANSI) or 79 (ISO) keys including 12 full-height function keys–
TrackpadForce Touch trackpad19 mm trackball with two buttons
SpeakersFour-speaker sound system; Spatial Audio with Dolby AtmosBuilt-in mono speaker and omnidirectional microphone; 8-bit sound input at 11 or 22 kHz
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 separatelyNotebook with 4 MB RAM and 320 MB storage; desktop docking hardware and external floppy drive sold separately

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