????3年前，我購買了第一代11英寸MacBook Air筆記本。從那時(shí)候起，我心頭就縈繞著兩大愿望：更強(qiáng)的性能、更給力的電池。

????蘋果（Apple）對(duì)性能問題相當(dāng)關(guān)注。2011年，MacBook Air改用性能更強(qiáng)的英特爾（Intel）處理器和速度更快的Flash固態(tài)閃存。提升效果顯著，應(yīng)用程序的啟動(dòng)和運(yùn)行可謂健步如飛。不過，續(xù)航時(shí)間仍然遭到許多人詬病。蘋果官方宣稱Air的續(xù)航時(shí)間可以長達(dá)5個(gè)小時(shí)。但在實(shí)際使用中，如果你打開WiFi，同時(shí)把屏幕亮度調(diào)至最高，續(xù)航時(shí)間會(huì)明顯縮水，可能只要3小時(shí)就不得不關(guān)機(jī)。如果打算在旅途中使用筆記本，那Air甚至還撐不過從舊金山飛到紐約的一次跨州旅行。（當(dāng)然，大家可以選擇將屏幕調(diào)至最暗，同時(shí)關(guān)閉WiFi以獲得更長的續(xù)航時(shí)間。不過這樣一來，屏幕會(huì)烏黑一片。更重要的是，我們?yōu)槭裁匆@么干？）

????如今，新的MacBook Air登臺(tái)亮相了。外表幾乎沒有什么變化——仍然是纖薄的鋁合金外殼，但蘋果承諾，這一次將滿足旅行家們長久以來的心愿：全天候續(xù)航。13英寸版的續(xù)航時(shí)間長達(dá)12小時(shí)，而11英寸版也有9小時(shí)之久，比上一代產(chǎn)品足足多了4個(gè)小時(shí)。如果一切屬實(shí)，那新款A(yù)ir將輕松滿足用戶朝九晚五的需求，而且還有不少富余。

????蘋果稱，11英寸和13英寸版Air的電池尺寸沒有變化。提升續(xù)航能力的新部件是英特爾最新的Haswell處理器芯片，這個(gè)芯片也是本次硬件升級(jí)中最重大的一個(gè)變化。Air使用了超低功率版Haswell（又稱ULT），型號(hào)包括1.3GHz雙核i5和1.7GHz雙核i7等。得益于新技術(shù)，Air在保證性能的前提下極大地提升了續(xù)航時(shí)間。（確實(shí)，由于新的Flash閃存提速高達(dá)45%，用戶至少在性能方面不會(huì)覺得比上代Air差。）

????我親自評(píng)測了一把。這是一臺(tái)售價(jià)1,199美元的MacBook Air，配備1.3GHz雙核i5處理器、4G內(nèi)存和256GB閃存。目前一切和蘋果的宣傳相當(dāng)吻合。應(yīng)用程序啟動(dòng)、窗口切換、高清視頻播放都比上一代產(chǎn)品快了少許。在打開WiFi，屏幕調(diào)至最亮，開啟鍵盤背光燈和運(yùn)行了Spotify、Evernote等若干應(yīng)用的情況下，MacBook Air的電池指示器顯示還有8.5小時(shí)續(xù)航時(shí)間。如果將屏幕亮度調(diào)至3/4，則顯示還有9.5小時(shí)。當(dāng)然，如果我們繼續(xù)使用，該設(shè)備顯示的續(xù)航時(shí)間可能會(huì)減少。但在實(shí)際使用中，只要MacBook Air的續(xù)航時(shí)間與上述數(shù)字相去不是太遠(yuǎn)，對(duì)蘋果粉絲們而言，這款超薄筆記本電腦幾乎可謂是旅途中的完美裝備。（財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

????譯者：項(xiàng)航

????Ever since buying the first-generation 11-inch MacBook Air three years ago, my wish has been two-fold: make it faster and make it last longer between charges.

????Apple (AAPL) took care of the performance issues in 2011, when it switched to a faster Intel processor. Paired with flash-based storage, apps launched briskly and zipped along. It was fast enough. Still, battery life remained a sore point for reviewers and critics. The company claimed the Air could get 5 hours in-between charges. In reality, with features like Wi-Fi turned on and brightness near maximum, battery life sometimes fell short, running for as little as 3 hours before having to shut down. For a notebook intended as a travel companion, that's not even juice for a cross-country flight from San Francisco to New York. (And sure, you could seriously dial down the brightness and turn off the Wi-Fi to eke out more time, but doing so meant staring at a pretty dark screen. More importantly, why should users have to do that?)

????With the 2013 11-inch MacBook Air, little has changed on the outside -- it's still the same svelte aluminum body -- but Apple now promises what road warriors have wanted all along: all-day battery life. The 13-inch model is rated at 12 hours, and the 11-incher at 9. That's 4-plus hours more than the previous Airs, which if true, means users could use one of these, unplugged, from 9 to 5 and still have juice to spare.

????According to Apple, the size of the battery on both the 11-inch and 13-inch Air remains the same. The new energy-saving component, and really the biggest change in an otherwise minor hardware upgrade, is Intel's (INTC) newest Haswell processor chip. The Air uses an ultra low-power version of Haswell, ranging from a 1.3 GHz dual-core i5 to an optional 1.7 GHz dual-core i7, called "ULT." In doing so, battery life supposedly gets a major boost without performance taking a hit. (Indeed, thanks to flash storage that's up to 45% faster, users should expect performance at least on par, if not faster than last year.)

????I'm sussing out those claims for myself. My review unit is a $1,199 11-inch MacBook Air with 1.3GHz dual-core i5 processor, 4 GB of RAM, and 256 GB of flash storage. So far? It's running like advertised. Apps launch, windows churn, and high-definition video all run a bit noticeably faster. With Wi-Fi on, the display's brightness cranked all the way up, keyboard illuminated, and a few apps open like Spotify and Evernote, the MacBook Air's battery indicator read 8.5 hours of charge left; with brightness ratcheted down to 3/4, the Air predicted 9.5 hours. Chances are those numbers will dip as we continue to put the Air through its paces, but if real-world use ends up anywhere near that, Mac aficionados may have a near-ideal travel companion to consider with this pint-sized notebook.