Anyone regret getting the 2015 MBA ?

[alpinadvl]

I have had the purchase page open on my browser for a maxed out build to order MBA 13" / 512GB / 8Gb for the last week....

somehow.. I can't seem to pull the trigger...

I have had the MBA's since the first (what a dog) one... but have loved them since... I can't shake the feeling that this notebook is being EOL'd ... and that there will be a slimmed down rMBP to echo the design cues of the current MBA ...

Currently, I have a 2011 (mid) MBA, 4gb, 256gb SSD ...

(I know updates are always around the corner... I am wondering about the big updates / platform refreshes ... )


What are your experiences? Did you / Are you hesitating? did you get a new MBA (what options) ? How is it ? Any regrets ?


Ahhhhhh ..... !

 

[Adolf]

i have macook air 11inch

 

[deepakvrao]

Same boat here.

Hoping that Apple comes out with something like that Dell XPS 13. Small footprint, with more connectivity options and bigger screen than the new Macbook.

 

[keysofanxiety]

Same boat here.

Hoping that Apple comes out with something like that Dell XPS 13. Small footprint, with more connectivity options and bigger screen than the new Macbook.

More connectivity options isn't likely to happen unless they did a 15" MacBook Air.

I wish they did 13" & 15" rMBP, all with quad-core.

Then maybe 11", 13" & 15" MBA with dual-core, so it's affordable for people who want a bigger screen but can't afford a 15" rMBP or don't need the power of the 15".

 

[Queen6]

Owned both 11" & 13" however the display is the "deal breaker" for me, am still considering an upgraded 11" as a secondary machine in the field, equally once again the display is the defining factor.

Very much prefer the performance and ports of the upgraded 11" offers over the new Retina MacBook. If I was in the market for a 13" Mac I would skip straight to the MacBook Pro with Reina display as it offers more in virtually the same form factor, assuming price is not an issue.

Q-6

 

[Check 6]

Slightly off topic, but I have a one year old 11" MBA and could not be happier. Easy to travel with and will the screen resolution is not as good as either my matte screen MBP or my 20" Cinima display it is high enough quality to be comfortable on the eyes. I'm very happy with its speed, quickness to boot and portability. Great little computer to take anywhere. If it had cellular data I would never use my iPad

 

[dollystereo]

hold to your 2011, it's a nice machine!

 

[intervenient]

Nope. I got a baseline 11" for $700 and couldn't be happier. I'll probably update next year when the rMB is worth getting, but as of now the 11 is more than suitable to my needs.

 

[Kg4zlb]

Just got a 2015 MBA 11" as a compliment to my iMac 27" - price was right thanks to Best Buy. Whilst I have an iPad, i just really could not get on with doing the stuff I want to do remotely using the iPad and iOS - now I have the MBA and it makes my life easier when away from home - especially the Back to my Mac feature.
The iPad I still use but now its my iPhone/MBA/iMac in that order and the iPad when I am in front of the TV or cooped up in the passenger seat of the car etc.
Back to the price - I really could not justify spending in excess of $1k on a laptop/notebook so the MBA is just right and only slightly larger than my iPad - perfect!

 

[SusanK]

I love mine

 

[Saturn1217]

I am also waiting for a slimmed down 13" rMBP. The difference is that I currently have the 2013 13" MBA which, for my purposes, is equivalent to the 2015 version.

My advice to you: Buy a new macbook air if you want. The battery life difference from 2011-2012 to 2013+ (I had a 2012 13" MBA before this one) is amazing. The increase in SSD speed from PCIe (even without the 2015 increase) is amazing. But do NOT buy a brand new 2015 MBA. I'm just really not convinced that Apple has made any significant improvements to that computer since 2013.

I bet you could get a discount 2013/2014 version to last you until you are certain you want to pull the trigger on the 13" rMBP. In my opinion it is better to be shopping for a computer when you aren't desperate. If a slimmed down 13" rMBP has early issues you'll be able to wait more happily with a newer (but not newest) MBA rather than your current 2011 MBA.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[alpinadvl]

i think THAT is what i needed to hear !

I am also waiting for a slimmed down 13" rMBP. The difference is that I currently have the 2013 13" MBA which, for my purposes, is equivalent to the 2015 version.

My advice to you: Buy a new macbook air if you want. The battery life difference from 2011-2012 to 2013+ (I had a 2012 13" MBA before this one) is amazing. The increase in SSD speed from PCIe (even without the 2015 increase) is amazing. But do NOT buy a brand new 2015 MBA. I'm just really not convinced that Apple has made any significant improvements to that computer since 2013.

I bet you could get a discount 2013/2014 version to last you until you are certain you want to pull the trigger on the 13" rMBP. In my opinion it is better to be shopping for a computer when you aren't desperate. If a slimmed down 13" rMBP has early issues you'll be able to wait more happily with a newer (but not newest) MBA rather than your current 2011 MBA.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Beachguy]

I really haven't been able to convince myself to update my 2011 MBA. It's my secondary machine that I bring to work to use in certain circumstances. But its performance still is very good.

As to the future of the MBA, whether they make new ones or not doesn't mean yours will suddenly stop working or fulfilling your needs. Not worth worrying about.

 

[Chrissybear]

What are your experiences? Did you / Are you hesitating? did you get a new MBA (what options) ? How is it ? Any regrets ?

Well I was in your shoes! Couldn't decide between 11" Air, 12" rMB & 13" rMBP...

Ordered the maxed out 2015 11" Air from the Apple Store recently - loved it - I wanted a mix of performance and portability and it was really smooth, great performance, lovely form factor, great size and weight...

...and then one morning, I opened it up...

...and the screen didn't quite do it for me any more... I don't know why, I was so happy with it till then. No-one influenced me, it just "happened" - Maybe using my iPad Air 2 in-between using it played a part. Blast that lovely display...

So I returned it within the 14 days return period and went for a 13" Pro - I hate to say it but the screen does make a huge difference. But I still feel pangs of "want" when I see the 11" Airs in the Apple Store near us! I do miss the light weight though the Pro is hardly a heavyweight itself. And bizarrely I quite like the quirky 16:9 screen too...

Battery life is great on the Pro though, not that the Air was bad! Even though I own the Pro, I still miss the Air, and now.... ....I am developing feelings for the rMB.

I may end up with one of those too I suspect...

Sod Apple! Making stuff so nice that you want it ALL!!!

I hate them, hate them, hate them...

 

[Newtons Apple]

About 6 months ago I purchased a new fully loaded i7 MBAir as my primary notebook. I love it. It replaced my 2015 MBPro retina which was horrible for running Windows Pro 7. The non retina MBA 13 does it perfectly and fast.

Not looking for retina here, the MBA 13 is just right.

 

[newellj]

Bought an 11" MBA right after they arrived. It was my third MBA but I really could not deal with the display. Bought an rMB but could not get used to the keyboard. Back to the rMBP...

 

[Melrose]

Can a 2.2Ghz/8GB 11" MBA compete with an entry-low-level 13" rMBP? If it has the power, would it offer the same slick work when attached via HDMI to a 20" or so external monitor?

My workload is sometimes print-res Photoshop, otherwise web development and SEO.

I absolutely love the Air's tiny size, but given the monitor deal I'm hesitant to actually pull the trigger and buy it.

Thx!

 

[motrek]

Can a 2.2Ghz/8GB 11" MBA compete with an entry-low-level 13" rMBP? If it has the power, would it offer the same slick work when attached via HDMI to a 20" or so external monitor?

My workload is sometimes print-res Photoshop, otherwise web development and SEO.

I absolutely love the Air's tiny size, but given the monitor deal I'm hesitant to actually pull the trigger and buy it.

Thx!

According to the benchmarks, the upgraded MBA is almost exactly as fast as the base model rMBP.

Don't worry about driving an external display. You don't need a computer that's physically large to drive a display that's physically large, just like you don't need to use bigger DVDs with a larger TV.

 

[jmoore5196]

Can a 2.2Ghz/8GB 11" MBA compete with an entry-low-level 13" rMBP?

I'd say it will surpass the MBP in some respects. The MBA and MBP lines are studies in compromise: The MBA caters to users who need the raw processing power and long battery life but are willing to forego the MBP's admittedly excellent display. The MBP, on the other hand, sacrifices both processing power and battery life to pump out to the gorgeous display.

I sold my fully-spec'd 2014 13" MBP and went back to my 11" MBA. There's a perceptible lag with many of the CC apps I use frequently; the MBA runs them smoothly. The difference lies in the screen.

Incidentally, I frequently tether my 11" MBA to a TBD with absolutely no problem.

 

[Melrose]

I'd say it will surpass the MBA in some respects. The MBA and MBP lines are studies in compromise: The MBA caters to users who need the raw processing power and long battery life but are willing to forego the MBP's admittedly excellent display. The MBP, on the other hand, sacrifices both processing power and battery life to pump out to the gorgeous display.

I sold my fully-spec'd 2014 13" MBP and went back to my 11" MBA. There's a perceptible lag with many of the CC apps I use frequently; the MBA runs them smoothly. The difference lies in the screen.

Incidentally, I frequently tether my 11" MBA to a TBD with absolutely no problem.

Thank you so much for that... that's what I was wondering. I noticed only the 15" got the quad-core processor, and with the optional processor in the MBA, I wondered if there was much of a difference.

The only thing I'm not fond of the lack of 16GB in the Air. I still don't understand AT ALL why Apple made the dumb, dumb, dumb move of making another MacBook "Air" instead of simply bumping the Air to keep up.

 

[newellj]

I'd say it will surpass the MBP in some respects. The MBA and MBP lines are studies in compromise: The MBA caters to users who need the raw processing power and long battery life but are willing to forego the MBP's admittedly excellent display. The MBP, on the other hand, sacrifices both processing power and battery life to pump out to the gorgeous display.

I sold my fully-spec'd 2014 13" MBP and went back to my 11" MBA. There's a perceptible lag with many of the CC apps I use frequently; the MBA runs them smoothly. The difference lies in the screen.

Incidentally, I frequently tether my 11" MBA to a TBD with absolutely no problem.

Processing tasks will favor the 13" rMBP over the 13" MBA. The MBA will be faster in some video tasks. See, for example, this recent comparative test by Ars of the two 2015 refreshes: http://arstechnica.com/apple/2015/0...ook-showdown-should-you-go-pro-or-get-an-air/

 

[jmoore5196]

The MBA is also faster (at least, no lag or latency) with audio- and image-processing applications. I haven't tried a pure "processing task" on either machine, but it's no stretch to imagine that the MBP would win the battle. My point is that both are tradeoffs. As much as I loved the retina display on the MBP, the MBA handled what I threw at it without a hiccup. I wish I could have said the same for the MBP ... I'd have kept it.

 

[nivekr11]

I just got the 11.6 Air and love it. I work in IT and needed the extra ports. Display does not bother me since I'm usually connected to a larger monitor.

 

[darcyjames]

I got the base 2015 MB in space gray. I ordered it at launch and have been using it a ton since it arrived. It has replaced my 2012 13" rMBP and I haven't looked back.

I have also had MBAs since 2008 and loved them all, but once you go retina I don't think you ever go back. I actually had an 11 inch air that I used for traveling and let my kids use, but now I don't need either my Pro or my Air as this is the best of both worlds. I don't do anything that requires major processing or graphics power, but if I do need a little more juice I have my iMac for that.

I haven't missed the ports either. It almost reminds me when MacBook Airs (then later rMBPs) came out, many complained "what will I do without an optical drive" and I think having six ports will also go the way of the dodo bird as well. People that need the ports will live with a dongle and those that don't won't care. The upside is pure joy as this computer is so light and slim it obviously couldn't exist with the same ports as my rMBP (also see the article about Thunderbolt3 via USBc). I did buy a tiny usb-c to usb3.0 from Amazon for like 6 bucks and that has helped me out a couple times.

I absolutely love it, the form factor is so gorgeous, it is so light and so slim and I can carry it around in my briefcase or messenger bag and not even know it's there. Having something slimmer than an Air and with the retina display is what I have been waiting for and it has not disappointed me.

 

[poematik13]

I'm just really not convinced that Apple has made any significant improvements to that computer since 2013.
.

If you actually read the specs, thunderbolt 2, faster SSD, and intel 6000 graphics are fairly substantial additions.