Another Post About When to Buy a New Macbook Air...

[curiousjo]

Another post about when to buy…

I’m debating about whether to buy a new MacBook Air now (with the "entry-level" M5 chip) or wait until year’s end to see if Apple releases a newer model that has either the M5Pro or M5Max. Wondering about the MacRumors community’s thoughts on whether Apple releasing an “improved” MacBook Air is likely to happen and, if so, when?

Out of necessity, in May 2020, during the pandemic, I bought a new 13” MacBook Air Retina Intel Chip with 1 TB/16 RAM only to have Apple release the newer MacBook Air M1 six months later.

I can hold off until the end of the year (not sure when new product releases may be?) but also don’t want to wait if it’s unlikely they will release a newer version. It would make my life easier to buy it now for a variety of reasons (maxed out 1 TB storage, very old 10.15.7 os that needs a clean install of Sequoia to be secure, laptop no longer recognizing my iOS 18.7.1 13r iPhone and no, I don’t want to back it up to iCloud, etc.).

I know there's no way to know for sure, but thought I’d ask. I hate buying “old” technology (especially when it’s this expensive) if I can help it. Should it matter, I'm thinking of a Macbook Air 15" with either 1 or 2 TB and 24 RAM. I could do a clean install of Sequoia on my current laptop, but have never done that and am not sure that I'm up to that task at the moment.

Many thanks for your thoughts in reading the tea leaves.

 

[kitKAC]

M5 Air's have barely been out 2 months, not sure how that is old technology. Also, Airs will never get Pro or Max chips.

 

[chown33]

RAM options are dwindling. For example, just today:

Apple Cuts More Mac Studio and Mac Mini RAM Options as Memory Shortage Worsens

Apple has removed more desktop Macs from its online store as the global memory shortage continues. Mac mini models with 32GB and 64GB of RAM are no longer available for purchase, nor is the M3 Ultra Mac Studio with 256GB RAM. The M3 Ultra Mac Studio is now available only in a 96GB RAM...

forums.macrumors.com

That cut is for desktop Macs, but laptops aren't immune from those pressures. You might be forced to choose from fewer RAM and/or SSD configurations than are offered now. Or the prices could be substantially higher at year's end, even if a Pro or Max processor is available.

 

[curiousjo]

M5 Air's have barely been out 2 months, not sure how that is old technology. Also, Airs will never get Pro or Max chips.

You are right, but I was thinking that the "wave of the future" would be in the higher grade of M5 chips (Pro/Max). Thanks for your perspective on the Airs never getting the Pro/Max chips. That gives me something to think about...

 

[curiousjo]

RAM options are dwindling. For example, just today:

Apple Cuts More Mac Studio and Mac Mini RAM Options as Memory Shortage Worsens

Apple has removed more desktop Macs from its online store as the global memory shortage continues. Mac mini models with 32GB and 64GB of RAM are no longer available for purchase, nor is the M3 Ultra Mac Studio with 256GB RAM. The M3 Ultra Mac Studio is now available only in a 96GB RAM...

forums.macrumors.com

That cut is for desktop Macs, but laptops aren't immune from those pressures. You might be forced to choose from fewer RAM and/or SSD configurations than are offered now. Or the prices could be substantially higher at year's end, even if a Pro or Max processor is available.

Thanks for making me aware about the RAM shortage. So far, at least on Apple's site with just configuring without buying a new laptop, the higher RAM seems still available. From your putting two-and-two together, sounds like I might want to move err on the side of caution and move towards purchase now.

 

[gilby101]

Just to add to post from @kitKAC
1. The MacBook Air does not have adequate cooling for a Pro (or Max) chip. That is a deliberate design choice by Apple. The MacBook Pro can have base, Pro or Max chip. Those with higher performance needs get a MBP.
2. Based on previous releases, the next MBA is likely to contain a base M6 chip and not until early 2027. But the M6 is a significant change in chip design, so this is more uncertain than in past few years.

Unless you are prepared for a wait of up to a year, get a MBA now.

 

[curiousjo]

1. Makes sense what you're describing about design/usages choices. As it is now, I'm not a "performance" user, but current use (lots of browser taps open and occasional Zoom use) seems to tax my current laptop wtih the fan sounding like I'm flogging a dead horse. I figure if I go up from 16 to 24 RAM that should help without having to go for the more expensive MBP.

2. Thanks for providing the projected timeline. Not sure I can wait until "sometime" in 2027. I hate buying "old" technology and with with AI development, I imagine that chip technology will change significantly, but planned obsolescence just is part of the deal now.

Taking into consideration what you and others on this thread have said, it sounds like it would be prudent to just buy a new MBA now. Thanks much.

 

[mblm85]

What's the point of an M5 Pro or M5 Max chip in a fan-less Air?! The Air would throttle performance as soon as heat output increases.

If you need the increased performance, you should be looking at a MacBook Pro.

 

[curiousjo]

What's the point of an M5 Pro or M5 Max chip in a fan-less Air?! The Air would throttle performance as soon as heat output increases.

If you need the increased performance, you should be looking at a MacBook Pro.

Good point, however, I really don't do anything that demanding --- browsing, emails, watching videos, using word processing software (Word, Pages) and financial (Numbers, Excel). I'm not photo/video editing or gaming. So I'm assuming that it's the age of my laptop trying to work with newer software technology.

For example, when I use Zoom, I've taken to closing everything else as the fan goes crazy. While using Zoom, when I check Activity Monitor, I see that the WindowServer CPU % is high. I've looked online and not found any "solutions" so I've just assumed my hardware is having a hard time "keeping up".

I've considered just doing a clean install of Sequoia on my current laptop (instead of buying a new laptop) but that's just not something I can do myself at the moment.

 

[kitKAC]

1. Makes sense what you're describing about design/usages choices. As it is now, I'm not a "performance" user, but current use (lots of browser taps open and occasional Zoom use) seems to tax my current laptop wtih the fan sounding like I'm flogging a dead horse. I figure if I go up from 16 to 24 RAM that should help without having to go for the more expensive MBP.

2. Thanks for providing the projected timeline. Not sure I can wait until "sometime" in 2027. I hate buying "old" technology and with with AI development, I imagine that chip technology will change significantly, but planned obsolescence just is part of the deal now.

Taking into consideration what you and others on this thread have said, it sounds like it would be prudent to just buy a new MBA now. Thanks much.

"Planned obsolescence just is part of the deal now."

How so?

 

[kschendel]

I would buy now. RAM prices and availability are unlikely to get any better for at least a year and maybe many years. (Rather the opposite, I'm afraid.) You will almost certainly not notice the difference between an M5 and M5-whatever, especially with typical usage of an Air. (If you were going to need the difference, you should be looking at the Macbook Pro anyway.)

I use my 15" M2 Air for all sorts of office-y stuff and I can't think of a single thing that I do commonly (or even rarely) where I've thought "Gee I wish I had an M5 instead of this M2."