I love my 11" air -- only complaint maybe would be the screen but it doesn't bother me at all. I just WISH I could use my 21" LG UltraFine 4k with it!
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Apple Surveys 12-Inch MacBook Users for Opinions on Size, Features, and More
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There's a very strong market for 2lb devices.
When you get down to that weight category a half pound is substantial. A pound is huge.
Yet this is't widely excepted; hence the 'Why not the Air' comments.
Samsung makes (of course) a pretty nice 2lb machine that I have. The Galaxy Book Pro. It's got thunderbolt and OLED (albeit 1080), and the screen is 13"!. They use magnesium, which is a great material (feels like plastic). It's got a normal 2.4ghz 11th gen i5, and not a ultra chip. I had the S version which is 2lbs, but it had those 1.7ghz ultra chips. It also is a great 2lb laptop, btw.
Point is: Apple drops ball, Samsung picks it up. Who's the champ now? LOL
Note: the 15.6" version of the GBP weighs 2.31 lbs! this is remarkable.
When you get down to that weight category a half pound is substantial. A pound is huge.
Yet this is't widely excepted; hence the 'Why not the Air' comments.
Samsung makes (of course) a pretty nice 2lb machine that I have. The Galaxy Book Pro. It's got thunderbolt and OLED (albeit 1080), and the screen is 13"!. They use magnesium, which is a great material (feels like plastic). It's got a normal 2.4ghz 11th gen i5, and not a ultra chip. I had the S version which is 2lbs, but it had those 1.7ghz ultra chips. It also is a great 2lb laptop, btw.
Point is: Apple drops ball, Samsung picks it up. Who's the champ now? LOL
Note: the 15.6" version of the GBP weighs 2.31 lbs! this is remarkable.
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At the time, it was the prettiest, lightest, newest design with a retina display and a brand new keyboard. Compared to everything else on sale in 2015 it was night and day. It's still my main computer but I'm definitely looking forward to replacing it. As a frequent traveller, low weight and innovative design is something I'd pay a premium for.
Apple's choice to replicate the MacBook design across all their computers essentially made the MacBook obsolete.
Apple's choice to replicate the MacBook design across all their computers essentially made the MacBook obsolete.
This would certainly help the terribly underpowered iPadOS conundrum for M1 iPad Pros...
However, weight-wise I would not be happy. The 11" iPad Pro with smart keyboard weights -more- than the 12" MacBook. And the latter has a noticeably bigger screen on top.
Also the speakers on the 12" MacBook are louder, more full-bodied and just better than even 4 speakers on the iPad Pro. No comparison, really, as the MacBook speakers face the viewer/listener while the iPad speakers send all sound to the sides.
And frankly, I love having a -real- headphone jack.
We got the 11" shortly after it was released so it's served us well. I can't fault it for not supporting more modern accessories or OS features, especially when it still works like it's brand new. I did get her 12.9" iPad Pro back in March and it was only by having that device that she started to notice it wasn't as zippy as it once was. I'd get her an M1 air, but I am a firm believer that to maximize Apple product ownership you need to get the item as soon as it's released.I love my 11" air -- only complaint maybe would be the screen but it doesn't bother me at all. I just WISH I could use my 21" LG UltraFine 4k with it!
Macbook 12" is my favourite Apple product ever, perfect size and weight. Also it has the best screen i have ever seen on an Apple laptop.
Those suggesting an iPad is a replacement to a MacBook must be mad, MacBook is miles better than any iPad.
Those suggesting an iPad is a replacement to a MacBook must be mad, MacBook is miles better than any iPad.
I am afraid, like the original poster, that this is Apple's understanding too.
Afterall, to them the iPad is a full computer.
... really depends on what you do. I have both a 12" MacBook and a 11" M1 iPad Pro, and the latter sucks in comparison. It is -not- a computer in comparison. And hence no usable "successor".
If Apple these days is run by people who truly think the 11" iPad Pro is a perfect successor to the 12" MacBook - then I think Apple is doomed. This cannot end well.
My SO and I looked at the 12" MacBook and considered it before buying our 2015 MacBook Airs - 11" and 13" respectively. We liked the MacBooks' size, weight, screen, trackpad and speakers but thought it way underpowered with only 1 port and comparably high price. If Apple updates it with the M1 and better specs, we'd think about it seriously. Some software we use regularly is not available with the iPad OS, another factor for us.
That is really the conundrum for Apple.
Small size does not equal cheapest price. They can manage that with the 13" MacBook Air.
But the 12" MacBook required a lot more miniaturization to save 50% weight compared to the Air. Therefore this cannot be cheaper than the 13" MacBook Air, sadly.
The 12" MacBook will never be the budget laptop, you think it should be. That will always be the 13" MacBook Air.
Unless Apple dumbs it down so much, that the 12" MacBook becomes useless... Like with 64GB storage and 4GB RAM.
I do really like my 2017 "m7", performance is more than I really need, never cared much about having more ports, battery life is still more than enough and the KBD hasn't crapped out yet (fingers crosssed) so.....
My idea/dream:
- MBP will come in 14 and 16"
- make a colorful MB/MBA with that same 14" display as seen in the leaked designs
- make a MB/MBA just wide enough for a full size KBD with smaller bezels ( 12.whatever")
- for all it's worth that 12" might even be downgraded to some sort of M2-x (lets say 2/2/4 instead of 4/4/8 cores) to make it work.
My idea/dream:
- MBP will come in 14 and 16"
- make a colorful MB/MBA with that same 14" display as seen in the leaked designs
- make a MB/MBA just wide enough for a full size KBD with smaller bezels ( 12.whatever")
- for all it's worth that 12" might even be downgraded to some sort of M2-x (lets say 2/2/4 instead of 4/4/8 cores) to make it work.
Only if the iPad could run macOS!
iPadOS is terrible in comparison to macOS. So many limitations, and for every tiny thing you want to do you need to buy and use yet another app, as if every macOS menu item becomes its own little app. Also the UI is very unintuitive in many places. iPadOS really needs a lot more love from Apple to become "a real computer OS".
iPads might work for some applications if those apps are all you usually use, but on the whole even the iPad Pro is mostly a toy in comparison.
It would still be a maybe. Necessary but not necessarily sufficient.
Even using something as straightforward as Excel without a keyboard is a beat down and with a keyboard you’re in laptop range on price and portability, so why?
The iPad is pretty good for consuming information. It’s rather less good for creating it. An actual computer needs to do both.
I got a survey asking for details about the M1 Air I just bought -- what I liked, what I didn't, what my experience was like and what I'd wish for if I could change anything.
I'd love to see a 12" MacBook with Apple Silicon, 2 ports and 🙏 MagSafe. My own 1st Gen 2015 12" rMB has had some issues over the years; faster than expected battery depletion (hot Intel CPU), KB jammed a few times (blew out the dust) & polished up fast, display delamination & loose USB C port. That said the formfactor was perfect for a business portable.
A new 12" with M1 etc, good & reliable keyboard and other issues rectified would be a very strong buy for me, more so than the Air. I bought the 512 model, very far from a powerhouse yet it paid for itself hundred's fold. Still runs on 11.5.1, but not aged well as the Intel CPU M5 struggles with load & temp. People knock the 12" Retina MacBook, yet for the right needs they were a killer solution. I know, as I used one in anger 😆
Q-6
A new 12" with M1 etc, good & reliable keyboard and other issues rectified would be a very strong buy for me, more so than the Air. I bought the 512 model, very far from a powerhouse yet it paid for itself hundred's fold. Still runs on 11.5.1, but not aged well as the Intel CPU M5 struggles with load & temp. People knock the 12" Retina MacBook, yet for the right needs they were a killer solution. I know, as I used one in anger 😆
Q-6
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The 12" is the size it is because Apple insisted on the KBD having normal size keycaps/spacing so no chance it will get smaller (even the 11" Air wasn't smaller it just had bigger bezels).
Very trueMake it so.
If you had ever held one, you would understand.
Was in an informal meeting; one by one everybody closed their notebooks, mate of mine was one of the VP's laughingly said that Mac ever run out of battery, I said rarely. Beauty of consulting no HP or Dell corporate specials. 12" rMB was genuinely good when it was good, however poorly marketed by Apple and problematic for some due to the wrong expectation being set.TBH Apple were too ambitious/aggressive in 2015, equally I think that with M1 the timing is perfect for the return of the 12" MacBook. As the man said "If you had ever held one, you would understand"...
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I like how yow put this: size/weight/portability
It’s all three. 2 lbs vs 2.8 lbs is a big difference. If you look at dimensions, you might think it’s just a little smaller. I worked out the numbers for area (depth x width).
MacBook Air 759 cm^2
MacBook Air M1 630 cm^2
MacBook 549 cm^2
The MacBook is something you can put in a large purse a lot easier than the original MacBook Air.
Fingers crossed that this results in another ultra-portable MacBook. I had a 2015 and a 2017 Model. The 2015 died two weeks ago and I just picked up another 2017 to replace it.
For some people, they really are the perfect computers. And I have zero issues with the speed/usability. They are defintiely starting to show their age, but still work really well. Amazing for how compact these computers are.
For some people, they really are the perfect computers. And I have zero issues with the speed/usability. They are defintiely starting to show their age, but still work really well. Amazing for how compact these computers are.
Given what MacBook Air is today, and how relatively “niche” super portable MacBook is, it makes sense for Apple to make a survey about it and consider either going for MacBook Air lineup as-is or building a new one. Dunno if the old mould is still useable.
Also, mass production drives the cost down. Apple clearly needs to manufacture enough to maintain a price point. It is no secret that Apple devices are notoriously expensive, but selling a M2 12” MacBook with 16GB of RAM and 256GB base storage at $5000 price tag ain’t gonna cut it either.
Me definitely need more ports, so MBP is the way to go, but I do love the extreme portability of MacBook Air 11”, one of my favourite, despite being too slow to run any macOS that is not a clean fresh install. Surprisingly enough, current 13” MBP isn’t too much bigger than 11” MacBook Air in terms of form factor. Screen bezel shrinking has gone a long way.
Also, mass production drives the cost down. Apple clearly needs to manufacture enough to maintain a price point. It is no secret that Apple devices are notoriously expensive, but selling a M2 12” MacBook with 16GB of RAM and 256GB base storage at $5000 price tag ain’t gonna cut it either.
Me definitely need more ports, so MBP is the way to go, but I do love the extreme portability of MacBook Air 11”, one of my favourite, despite being too slow to run any macOS that is not a clean fresh install. Surprisingly enough, current 13” MBP isn’t too much bigger than 11” MacBook Air in terms of form factor. Screen bezel shrinking has gone a long way.
