Amazed at the power of the macbook air 11inch i5

Paulioo · Apr 28, 2012, 04:03 PM

Had it for a week now, got it off ebay just like new. I am seriously amazed by the macbook air , build quality , portability , screen quality and performance are seriously under advertised

musty345 · Apr 28, 2012, 04:09 PM

I've never used a MacBook air for longer than a few minutes, does it get as hot as the MacBook Pro? Do the fans make as much noise, especially when it's on your lap/bed?

Paulioo · Apr 28, 2012, 04:18 PM

No fan noise at all, doubt there is a fan in here as I've never heard it but I could be wrong and obviously no hardrive noise as its solidstate (no hardrive moving parts) totally silent computing

I am using it for photo editing, basic web design, itunes, and email. It gets warm but not hot at all. I use a imac at work and have used macbook pro's in the past and I expected this air to be a compromise but it really does perform amazingly

daonesteven · Apr 28, 2012, 06:35 PM

there is definitely a fan but on idle, you'd have to put your ears to the side of the computer in a silent room in order to hear the fan

iAppl3Fan · Apr 28, 2012, 08:44 PM

The only time you can actually hear some fan noise is when it is hooked up to a TBD.

Paulioo · Apr 29, 2012, 07:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iAppl3Fan

The only time you can actually hear some fan noise is when it is hooked up to a TBD.

Must be as its using more graphical power when connected to a TBD, as Ive used my macbook air for quite demanding stuff and Ive never heard the fan

bogatyr · Apr 29, 2012, 07:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iAppl3Fan

The only time you can actually hear some fan noise is when it is hooked up to a TBD.

Or watching flash videos.

iAppl3Fan · Apr 29, 2012, 06:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paulioo

Must be as its using more graphical power when connected to a TBD, as Ive used my macbook air for quite demanding stuff and Ive never heard the fan

Quote:

Originally Posted by bogatyr

Or watching flash videos.

Actually, another thing that drives the fan crazy is if you use virtualization software like VM Fusion to run Windows.

Matthew9559 · Apr 29, 2012, 07:21 PM

Yeah, the only time I have heard the fan is when I am watching flash videos for a bit. Beyond that, it never pops on.

As you said, it is an extremely well built machine.

throAU · Apr 29, 2012, 08:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by musty345

I've never used a MacBook air for longer than a few minutes, does it get as hot as the MacBook Pro? Do the fans make as much noise, especially when it's on your lap/bed?

The fans will kick up when working hard and not well ventilated, but no, it gets nowhere near as hot as my macbook pro...

stu.h · May 7, 2012, 11:54 AM

I use a TBD on my 11" air, and it doesn't really add to the CPU fan speed under normal useage.
It certainly ramps up if there is a flash video running as an advertisement in the background. Thats where iStatPro comes to the rescue so I can keep an eye on things.

nuckinfutz · May 7, 2012, 12:05 PM

The Air is an amazing portable.

There's some magic going on here because i've gotten on MBP 13" with SSD in them and the Air still feels as fast.

I think that it offers some advantages in the form of OS or Firmware tweaks that are optimized for SSD.

The Air being SSD only means the OS never has to make assumptions. It knows it's going to get SSD speed access to storage.

This is why i'm bullish on all future Macs having SSD at some level standard.

Navdakilla · May 7, 2012, 12:55 PM

Im on the mission to get a 11" air for cheap. Cant wait for the speedy performance and amazing portability

jojoba · May 7, 2012, 04:04 PM

Yes, the airs are gorgeous. Enjoy

Rorlow · May 7, 2012, 05:26 PM

I just picked up a new 11" MBA with 1.8 I7 & 256GB, and am amazed with the performance of it. I picked this over a new ipad 3 for travel (have a 1st gen ipad) and am really glad I did. I use all the "air" features a lot & love them

gentlefury · May 7, 2012, 05:44 PM

Extremely powerful! I played thru 50+ hours of Skyrim and 40+ hours of Mass Effect 3 on it!

Fans will kick on like jets if you game on it or do anything flash based! But mostly very quiet!

TyroneShoes2 · May 7, 2012, 07:34 PM

"Fast" may be a relative term.

Compared to my 2003 12.1 PB? Blazing.

But it (a 2011 13" 1.7 i5) hardly feels fast when applying filters in Aperture. I had a birthday while waiting for a couple of spot-and-patch routines to render.

LordVic · May 8, 2012, 10:56 AM

its fast.
but yes, fast is relative

if you compare it though to your average desktop computer that you'd buy from a major retail store, it'll be on par or snappier due to things like SSDs.

For your average computer user, it's going to feel like a very snappy powerfull machine. And there's no complaints. it's the fastest and most powerfull lappy i've ever owned.

But if you're a desktop user with a more customized experience, higher end parts and a machine built to be a powerhorse, You'll notice that it's not quite up to speed.

Things that really leverage multiple cores and really use up a lot of CPU cycles and memory will just not compete. Gaming is an example of something the MBA, while it can do, will never keep up. I'm sure we can all think of other examples where the power just isn't there.

Apr 28, 2012, 04:03 PM	#1
Paulioo macrumors newbie Join Date: Apr 2012	Amazed at the power of the macbook air 11inch i5 Had it for a week now, got it off ebay just like new. I am seriously amazed by the macbook air , build quality , portability , screen quality and performance are seriously under advertised
	0

Apr 28, 2012, 04:09 PM	#2
musty345 macrumors regular Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: United Kingdom	I've never used a MacBook air for longer than a few minutes, does it get as hot as the MacBook Pro? Do the fans make as much noise, especially when it's on your lap/bed? __________________ MacKeeper Review Owner and editor of http://www.JailbreakZeit.com Twitter 21.5" iMac, iPhone 5, iPod Touch, iPod Classic
	0

Apr 28, 2012, 08:44 PM	#5
iAppl3Fan macrumors 6502a Join Date: Sep 2011	The only time you can actually hear some fan noise is when it is hooked up to a TBD. __________________  2012 15" Retina MacBook Pro + Thunderbolt Display + B&W MM-1  2011 27" iMac + Bose QC15  Unlocked iPhone 5 AWS + Bose QC3 \|  TV \|  Time Capsule \| B&W Zepplin Air
	0

May 7, 2012, 12:55 PM	#13
Navdakilla macrumors 6502a Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Canada	Im on the mission to get a 11" air for cheap. Cant wait for the speedy performance and amazing portability __________________ New convert, and never turning back!!!
	0

May 7, 2012, 05:26 PM	#15
Rorlow macrumors newbie Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Detroit, MI	I just picked up a new 11" MBA with 1.8 I7 & 256GB, and am amazed with the performance of it. I picked this over a new ipad 3 for travel (have a 1st gen ipad) and am really glad I did. I use all the "air" features a lot & love them __________________ 27" iMac 16GB Ram; 24" iMac 6GB Ram; MBP 15"; iPhone 4S; 64GB 3G iPad; 2 aTV3's; 5th gen Airport Extreme, MBA 11" I7 256GB, 2 new gen airport express, 2 TB Time Capsule
	0

Apr 28, 2012, 04:18 PM	#3
Paulioo Thread Starter macrumors newbie Join Date: Apr 2012	No fan noise at all, doubt there is a fan in here as I've never heard it but I could be wrong and obviously no hardrive noise as its solidstate (no hardrive moving parts) totally silent computing I am using it for photo editing, basic web design, itunes, and email. It gets warm but not hot at all. I use a imac at work and have used macbook pro's in the past and I expected this air to be a compromise but it really does perform amazingly
	0

Apr 28, 2012, 06:35 PM	#4
daonesteven macrumors 6502 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Baltimore, MD	there is definitely a fan but on idle, you'd have to put your ears to the side of the computer in a silent room in order to hear the fan
	0

Apr 29, 2012, 07:21 PM	#9
Matthew9559 macrumors 6502a Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Ohio	Yeah, the only time I have heard the fan is when I am watching flash videos for a bit. Beyond that, it never pops on. As you said, it is an extremely well built machine.
	0

May 7, 2012, 11:54 AM	#11
stu.h macrumors 6502 Join Date: May 2010 Location: West Midlands, England.	I use a TBD on my 11" air, and it doesn't really add to the CPU fan speed under normal useage. It certainly ramps up if there is a flash video running as an advertisement in the background. Thats where iStatPro comes to the rescue so I can keep an eye on things.
	0

May 7, 2012, 12:05 PM	#12
nuckinfutz macrumors 603 Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Middle Earth	The Air is an amazing portable. There's some magic going on here because i've gotten on MBP 13" with SSD in them and the Air still feels as fast. I think that it offers some advantages in the form of OS or Firmware tweaks that are optimized for SSD. The Air being SSD only means the OS never has to make assumptions. It knows it's going to get SSD speed access to storage. This is why i'm bullish on all future Macs having SSD at some level standard.
	1

May 7, 2012, 04:04 PM	#14
jojoba macrumors 65816 Join Date: Dec 2011	Yes, the airs are gorgeous. Enjoy
	0

May 7, 2012, 05:44 PM	#16
gentlefury macrumors 68020 Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Los Angeles, CA	Extremely powerful! I played thru 50+ hours of Skyrim and 40+ hours of Mass Effect 3 on it! Fans will kick on like jets if you game on it or do anything flash based! But mostly very quiet!
	0

May 7, 2012, 07:34 PM	#17
TyroneShoes2 macrumors regular Join Date: Aug 2011	Not so fast... "Fast" may be a relative term. Compared to my 2003 12.1 PB? Blazing. But it (a 2011 13" 1.7 i5) hardly feels fast when applying filters in Aperture. I had a birthday while waiting for a couple of spot-and-patch routines to render. __________________ 10 Macs, including the first 128K Mac and a late-2011 MBA, 7 iPods, 2 iPhones, iPad 1, iPad 3, and lord knows how much Apple software over the years.
	0

May 8, 2012, 10:56 AM	#18
LordVic macrumors 6502 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Stouffville, Ontario	its fast. but yes, fast is relative if you compare it though to your average desktop computer that you'd buy from a major retail store, it'll be on par or snappier due to things like SSDs. For your average computer user, it's going to feel like a very snappy powerfull machine. And there's no complaints. it's the fastest and most powerfull lappy i've ever owned. But if you're a desktop user with a more customized experience, higher end parts and a machine built to be a powerhorse, You'll notice that it's not quite up to speed. Things that really leverage multiple cores and really use up a lot of CPU cycles and memory will just not compete. Gaming is an example of something the MBA, while it can do, will never keep up. I'm sure we can all think of other examples where the power just isn't there.
	0

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode