The 2020 MacBook Air, at $999, is the cheapest MacBook that Apple sells, but it’s still a great computer. It runs on an M1 chip, and it’s powerful enough to handle the things most people need but is slower for tasks such as video editing.

The 2020 MacBook Air has an 18-hour battery life, similar to the 2022 MacBook Air.

You miss out on a few features in this year’s upgrade, which we’ll talk about next. But this should be your go-to if you “just need a computer.”