The new MacBook Air proves Apple uses software to limit features

[iStorm]

It’s interesting that the latest M3 MBP (none Pro) only support one external screen, while the new M3 MBA supports two.

The MBP will be getting the same support too.

M3 MacBook Pro to Get Multi-Display Support With Software Update

Apple is planning a software update that will add multi-display support to the 14-inch M3 MacBook Pro model, the company confirmed to 9to5Mac. The M3...

www.macrumors.com

 

[mectojic]

As the OP, just wanted to say this has been a very informative thread! It's certainly taught me a thing or two about the inner workings of the M series chips, and some genuine limitations they may have had. Still, the reliability people experienced with 3rd party extra-monitor solutions with their M1/M2 Airs does raise the question of whether Apple was truly constrained by hardware.

And still. Let's not lose perspective.
Dual-display support was there on Intel MacBook Airs for years.

We had the feature, then lost it, now it's coming back. I don't think you congratulate Apple for doing that. Sure, I'm happy they've done it, but it's a bittersweet feeling (especially as an M2 Air owner).

 

[TechnoMonk]

The moment they make 16GB/512GB the base model, I think 99% of complainers will go away, even if every other ram/SSD upgrade costs the same (or even more).

It will start 32GB/1TB complaints. Rinse and repeat from Apple with 2GB/4GB/8GB/16GB..

 

[AlexJoda]

As the OP, just wanted to say this has been a very informative thread! It's certainly taught me a thing or two about the inner workings of the M series chips, and some genuine limitations they may have had. Still, the reliability people experienced with 3rd party extra-monitor solutions with their M1/M2 Airs does raise the question of whether Apple was truly constrained by hardware.

And still. Let's not lose perspective.
Dual-display support was there on Intel MacBook Airs for years.

We had the feature, then lost it, now it's coming back. I don't think you congratulate Apple for doing that. Sure, I'm happy they've done it, but it's a bittersweet feeling (especially as an M2 Air owner).

I am still thinking and hoping that the dual-display support is not a hardware limitation and waiting to get this on the M2 MBA too…

 

[Analog Kid]

Best thing is, Apple doesn't even hide behind marketing language. There is no, "because of the next-generation M3 GPU architecture, this clamshell mode is made possible on MacBook Air."

It's straight up, you want this feature, you need the M3 model. Pay up.

"They didn't even say you need the M3 architecture, they straight up said if you want this feature you need the M3 model"?

Yes. Did you even look at their MacBook Air page? The fact that 2 displays can be connected is now mentioned as if it's a "new feature".

And in the press release, it's also headlined as mentioned above.

Why are we even kidding ourselves? Apple *is* pushing the dual-external-display connectivity "feature" as a differentiator between M3 vs M1/M2 in an effort to push old M1/M2 owners to upgrade. They even increased Mac trade-in value to make it enticing. It is very clear what they are trying to do.

Um, it is a new feature.... And Apple giving you more money for a trade in is a trap? As a rough percentage of users, how many M2 users do you think will upgrade to M3 for this feature?

Features get added over time. Sometimes those features need new hardware, sometimes they need new software (or in this case firmware). That's how progress works: progressively.

Nothing you're pointing to looks anything like Machiavelian intent.

 

[Analog Kid]

It also tells you how desperate Apple is to recover from that 34% loss in sales volume. When was the last time you saw dual-display support as a headline feature for a notebook?

I honestly can't tell if this is sarcasm...


"Sales are in decline, what are we going to do? More capacity? Faster chips? Lower prices?"

"No, none of that. We need to go big. Route the internal display out a second port!"



You guys sure Apple will be able to keep up with demand now that they've unlocked the true potential of the Macbook?

 

[JPack]

I honestly can't tell if this is sarcasm...


"Sales are in decline, what are we going to do? More capacity? Faster chips? Lower prices?"

"No, none of that. We need to go big. Route the internal display out a second port!"



You guys sure Apple will be able to keep up with demand now that they've unlocked the true potential of the Macbook?

Can’t tell if you’re serious or just haven’t been paying attention.

MacBook Air M2 launched at $1,199. M3 Air is now $1,099.

Apple added performance. Added better finish. Added what they consider a Pro feature - dual display support. They even added a stock 16/512 configuration for retailers, which will undoubtedly be discounted unlike 16/512 BTO configs before.

 

[MagicBird]

M3 has the same memory bandwidth as M2, 100 GB/sec. Or maybe you mean M3 hardware ray-tracing is needed to drive a second display in clamshell mode? 😆

You did not read: what about all the other components on the main board? Most notably the bus supplying the display signal to the USB-C sockets.

Maybe you forgot but even on older intel MacBooks not all sockets had the same display and thunderbolt capabilities.

Again, nothing to discuss here, there is none wil ploy from Apple…

 

[Analog Kid]

MacBook Air M2 launched at $1,199. M3 Air is now $1,099.

Apple added performance. Added better finish. Added what they consider a Pro feature - dual display support. They even added a stock 16/512 configuration for retailers, which will undoubtedly be discounted unlike 16/512 BTO configs before.

There, that's a much more reasoned argument. Apple is clearly offering a more competitive product with the latest iteration though I do think clamshell mode is the least interesting of the those features, but at least the hyperbolic language is in check.

 

[geta]

Can’t tell if you’re serious or just haven’t been paying attention.

MacBook Air M2 launched at $1,199. M3 Air is now $1,099.

Apple added performance. Added better finish. Added what they consider a Pro feature - dual display support. They even added a stock 16/512 configuration for retailers, which will undoubtedly be discounted unlike 16/512 BTO configs before.

It's fascinating that even when Apple improves the product and lowers the price, people still find something to complain about.

 

[Basic75]

the reliability people experienced with 3rd party extra-monitor solutions with their M1/M2 Airs does raise the question of whether Apple was truly constrained by hardware

It's safe to say that the M1 MBA and MBP can't re-route from the internal display to an external one. The M3 does have both display controllers hooked up to the internal switch giving more flexibility.

Not quite sure whether the M2 is more like the M1 or more like the M3.

And I'm not quite sure which 3rd party extra-monitor solutions you are referring to. If it's DisplayLink then sure, that frequently works, but it uses a completely different, inferior, data flow via USB.

 

[Basic75]

Added what they consider a Pro feature - dual display support.

Apple's use of "Pro" is at times rather meaningless.

 

[Alex Cai]

They want people to buy the new M3 instead of refurb M2

 

[matrix07]

They want people to buy the new M3 instead of refurb M2

I think they actually want people from M1 to upgrade. I believe there are crazy number of people jumping on M1 MBA bandwagon at the time. If only 20-30% of them upgrade that will be huge for Mac sales.

 

[Mainsail]

Interesting take, I assumed that the reason why sales have tanked is because Apple's most popular Mac is the MacBook Air at $1,000, which hadn't seen an update for over 3 years, half it's supported life.
Would you buy a 3 year old car at original price? A 3 year old TV, Fridge, phone?
I know I wouldn't.

Where do you get over 3 years since the last update? The M2 MBA was introduced less than 2 years ago, June 2022 at WWDC. The 15in was introduced about 1 year ago.

 

[Basic75]

Not quite sure whether the M2 is more like the M1 or more like the M3.

M3 Die Shot suggests display engines take up nearly the same area as P-cores

It's 100% likely. As Hector explained, the M1 Mini can drive two displays, but one must be connected to the HDMI port and the other to one of the type C ports. This restriction exists because the HDMI port is driven by a DisplayPort-to-HDMI conversion chip on the Mac Mini's motherboard, and the...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[Timpetus]

Like in 2015 when the base model was 4GB/128GB? Y'all complainers just gonna complain. Buy what you need and let the entry level model come in a price that suits the average user.

Right? Yeah it sucks that what I need usually costs $2000-2700 but I only have to pay that much every 8 years or so because Mac laptops last so long. At least the cost of the upgraded models that suit my (moderate power user) needs has stayed about the same over the last couple decades, even as inflation has skyrocketed. Can't say the same about the cost of anything else in life!

 

[steve123]

The best thing that can happen for AS Mac owners is the continuing development of Asahi Linux. Asahi Linux is now a legitimate consideration. Nothing works better than competition to keep Apple in check.

As Asahi Linux evolves it may expose performance and efficiency limitations Apple has imposed. In fact, there seems to be evidence of this already.

New in Fedora Asahi Remix - Asahi Linux

asahilinux.org

At the very least, as mentioned earlier in this thread, we will gain insight into the design decisions Apple made. Asahi Linux might also extend the useful life of AS computers well beyond the support window that Apple provides.

Down the road I see the possibility where people may preferentially install Asahi Linux and run macOS as a VM within Asahi Linux.

 

[bill-p]

Um, it is a new feature....

Unfortunately, it is not.

Video Support​

Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display at millions of colors and:

• One external display with 5120-by-2880 resolution at up to 60Hz
• Up to two external displays with 4096-by-2304 resolution at up to 60Hz

Source:

MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2018) - Technical Specifications - Apple Support

support.apple.com

Oh, and that's without having to go clamshell

Features get added over time. Sometimes those features need new hardware, sometimes they need new software (or in this case firmware). That's how progress works: progressively.

Nothing you're pointing to looks anything like Machiavelian intent.

See above. Even with this "upgrade", we're not on par with a 6-year-old MacBook Air.

 

[bill-p]

It's fascinating that even when Apple improves the product and lowers the price, people still find something to complain about.

See above. Because features-wise, we're still behind a 6-year-old MacBook Air.

 

[BeatCrazy]

See above. Because features-wise, we're still behind a 6-year-old MacBook Air.

Anyone using a 6-year-old Air with two 4K displays, or even a single 5K60 display is not going to be having a good experience wrt to dropped frames and stuttering.

It's like saying the all-you-can-eat Golden Corral buffet is a better dining experience compared to Ruth's Chris, just because there's more food at Golden Corral.

 

[rowlands]

Where do you get over 3 years since the last update? The M2 MBA was introduced less than 2 years ago, June 2022 at WWDC. The 15in was introduced about 1 year ago.

Apple sold the M1 MacBook Air at $1,000 for over 3 years, 3 months. The M2 MacBook Air was a higher priced alternative, same as the 15" MacBook Air. Neither of these were introduced as replacement products, which quite frankly the M2 Air **should** have been.

 

[dukebound85]

Anyone using a 6-year-old Air with two 4K displays, or even a single 5K60 display is not going to be having a good experience wrt to dropped frames and stuttering.

It's like saying the all-you-can-eat Golden Corral buffet is a better dining experience compared to Ruth's Chris, just because there's more food at Golden Corral.

huh? those machines drove those displays just fine....

 

[JPack]

Apple sold the M1 MacBook Air at $1,000 for over 3 years, 3 months. The M2 MacBook Air was a higher priced alternative, same as the 15" MacBook Air. Neither of these were introduced as replacement products, which quite frankly the M2 Air **should** have been.

Well, that's a fresh take. It's like suggesting iPhone 12 wasn't a replacement for iPhone 11, but a only higher priced alternative. I doubt anybody would agree with that.

The base price for MacBook Air was increased to $1,199 in 2022. This year, Apple dropped the base price back to $1,099.

 

[JPack]

Anyone using a 6-year-old Air with two 4K displays, or even a single 5K60 display is not going to be having a good experience wrt to dropped frames and stuttering.

It's like saying the all-you-can-eat Golden Corral buffet is a better dining experience compared to Ruth's Chris, just because there's more food at Golden Corral.

That makes no sense. Plenty of reviewers tested the LG UltraFine 5K by using a MacBook Air.