What are the differences between the "Mid-2009" MacBook Air models?

The "Mid-2009" MacBook Air models -- the MacBook Air "Core 2 Duo" 1.86 13" (Mid-2009) and "Core 2 Duo" 2.13 13" (Mid-2009) -- are very similar to one another and quite similar to the "NVIDIA/Late 2008" models that they replaced as well.

Photo Credit: Apple, Inc.

Externally, both "Mid-2009" MacBook Air systems have the same ultrathin case as all earlier models -- and the same 13.3" display, full-size "chiclet-style" back-lit keyboard, and single-button "three-finger" multi-touch gesture trackpad.

Connectivity of each includes AirPort Extreme (802.11a/b/g/n), Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, a single USB 2.0 port, analog audio out, and video out capabilities (Mini DisplayPort). An external 10/100Base-T Apple Ethernet Adapter is provided at no extra charge, but it lacks both Firewire and optical audio in/out.

Internally, both of the "Mid-2009" systems have "Core 2 Duo" processors with a 6 MB on-chip shared level 2 cache running on a 1066 MHz frontside bus, 2 GB of non-upgradable onboard 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM, NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics with "256 MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory" capable of supporting an external display at 2560x1600, and a non-swappable battery.

Essentially, these systems vary only by processor speed, drive type and capacity, and price.

The "Mid-2009" MacBook Air is offered with either a 1.86 GHz or 2.13 GHz Intel "Core 2 Duo" processor and a 120 GB 4200 RPM Serial ATA hard drive or a 128 GB SSD configured as follows:

"Mid-2009" MacBook Air	1.86 13"	2.13 13"
Processor Speed:	1.86 GHz	2.13 GHz
Drive Size:	120 GB	128 GB
Drive Type:	Hard Drive (4200 RPM)	Solid-state
Intro Price:	US$1499	US$1799

Site sponsor PowerMax sells the MacBook Air as well as the MacBook and MacBook Pro.

Please refer to the Ultimate Mac Comparison feature to dynamically compare any MacBook Air model to any other G3 or later Mac.