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MacBook Air Q&A
Update Published December 1, 2021
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Which SD Card Slot storage solution is best for the MacBook Air? Which models are compatible? Is this kind of storage safe?
If you ever found yourself transferring photos from an SD card to your MacBook Air and wondered if you could just store files from your computer on an SD card for a bit of extra space, you're not alone.
Most users should consider upgrading the internal SSD in their Late 2010, Mid-2011, Mid-2012, Mid-2013, Early 2014, Early 2015, or Mid-2017 MacBook Air for more storage.
However, as the capacity of microSD cards has increased, companies have released storage solutions specifically designed to slide into the SD Card Slot on all 13" MacBook Air models with SD Card slots. These solutions are not as protected as an internal SSD and should not be thought of as permanent storage, but they are quite convenient and still can be useful.
Identification Help (Skip)
As SD Card Slot storage solutions are compatible with each 13" MacBook Air model with an SD Card slot (and 11" MacBook Air and later 13" MacBook Air models do not have an SD Card slot at all), identification assistance practically is unnecessary for this particular upgrade.
However, just for confirmation, compatible MacBook Air models have Model Numbers A1369 or A1466.
These models also can be readily identified in software by Model Identifier:
MacBook Air |
Subfamily |
Model ID |
Late 2010 |
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Late 2010 |
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Mid-2011 |
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Mid-2011 |
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Mid-2011 |
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Mid-2012 |
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Mid-2012 |
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Mid-2012 |
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Mid-2013 |
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Mid-2013 |
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Early 2014 |
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Early 2014 |
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Early 2015 |
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Early 2015 |
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Mid-2017 |
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Mid-2017 |
Subsequent 13" MacBook Air models do not have an SD Card slot and cannot use this upgrade method accordingly.
EveryMac.com's Ultimate Mac Lookup feature also can uniquely identify these models by their Serial Number, which is listed on the underside near the model number and within the operating system alongside the model identifier. More details about specific identifiers are provided in EveryMac.com's extensive Mac Identification section.
Best MacBook Air SD Card Storage Solutions
Some SD Card storage options on the market are low quality knockoffs or from inexperienced startup companies with products burdened by questionable software, but two products worth considering are the Transcend JetDrive Lite 130 and the Nifty MiniDrive Air (subsequently discontinued).
As SD Card storage products for different Apple notebooks are different physical sizes be sure that you buy the correct one for a MacBook Air.
Photo Credit: Transcend Information Inc. (Left), Nifty Drives (Right)
Although the two products look similar, they actually are quite different.
Established in 1988, Transcend is a well respected manufacturer of RAM and trusted for quality products. The JetDrive Lite 130 is created as single piece and designed to fit snuggly into the MacBook Air with the end sticking out just enough to be able to remove it conveniently. It is sold with either 64 GB, 128 GB, or 256 GB of integrated flash storage.
The now discontinued Nifty MiniDrive Air, on the other hand, was a simple aluminum and plastic adapter designed to hold an existing microSD from another company of your choosing. It fits flush with the MacBook Air and ships with a small "hook" tool to remove it. It is no longer available for sale new, but it remains available on the used market.
This brief commercial from Transcend shows their product in action:
Effectively, these products function like a compact high capacity USB stick or a tiny version of an "old school" floppy disk. Stick it in the SD Card slot and it pops up on the desktop like any other removable storage. Easy.
Using SD Card Storage Solutions Safely
Although all media can fail, whether it is a hard drive, an SSD, or a SD Card -- and it is important to backup your data regularly -- using a quality SD Card solution from Transcend should be safe. The Transcend JetDrive Lite 130 is rated to last for 10,000 insertion/removal cycles. Likewise, the Nifty MiniDrive Air with an installed high quality microSD card from a trusted manufacturer should be safe, as well.
There was at least one product from an unproven startup that used flash memory of unknown quality as well as proprietary software of unknown quality to "pair" the storage from your internal SSD and the SD card together on a "permanent" basis and any solution of this type should be avoided to reduce the risk of data loss. This "pairing" method has been shown to cause data loss and compatibility problems with macOS updates, as well. Should any of these pop on the used market, they should be avoided.
Ultimately, keep in mind that (1) an SD Card is a removable card and should be thought of as removable storage rather than permanent storage, (2) only use an SD Card from a quality, known manufacturer, and (3) backup your data regularly regardless of the type of media you use. If you follow these three steps, your data should be as safe as it can be.
MacBook Air SD Card Storage Purchase Options
In the UK and Ireland, site sponsor Flexx sells the full range of Transcend JetDrive Lite models for the MacBook Air series with free shipping. The company provides flat rate shipping to France, Germany, and Switzerland and inexpensive shipping for all of Europe, too.
Also see:
- How do you replace or upgrade the SSD storage in the "Late 2010" and "Mid-2011" MacBook Air models? Is it even possible?
- How do you replace or upgrade the SSD storage in the "Mid-2012" MacBook Air models? Is it even possible?
- How do you replace or upgrade the SSD storage in the "Mid-2013" and subsequent MacBook Air models? Is it even possible?
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