Yess I am very happy my i5 8gb 256 ssd laptop. aren't having the heat and fan issues and cooling system. impression keyboard and quality screen perfect. doesn't heat and throttle.
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Are you happy with your 2020 MBA?
- Thread starter supernet33
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I got round to trying the speakers. Massive improvement over my old MBA. This 2020 MBA has real noticeable stereo and very reasonable sound quality for such a small speaker system. I will happily play music on this.
Many people were eagerly awaiting the renewal of the MBP 13/14 at the time of the MBA release and jumped on the MBA which sounded great (or garnered greater expectations) on paper. I include myself in this group.
If you compare now, after both MBA and MBP has been released, the lineup seems more linear in performance/specs but, at the time of the release the MBA seemed like a MBP-Lite .. while it failed some of those expectations.
The MBA met MY personal expectations .. and I guess exposed me for the spec-over-doer that I am
, because I probably would have gone with the higher spec MBP if I did not have real-life experience with the MBA first.. including how the "short-comings" affected me.As great a marketing company as Apple is, I think they may have underestimated the anticipation for the MBP 13 refresh.
By the way, some "short-comings" are overblown IMHO. Codec wars aside, I don't personally change youtube auto-resolution settings to watch 4K videos on a 13 inch screen (with limited color pallet) .. I just don't see the point. It is like trying to listen to DSD audio on a mid-tier audio-rig. You may be able to do it, but .. the rest of your system (including your eyes/ears) can't do justice to the resolution anyway. Very personal opinion/rant of an admitted audiophile and, I respect that others have different views on this.
Yeah, I may be a luddite from the days when video recording involved magtape, but I've just not felt any draw to the 4K bandwagon. Particularly on a sub-4K display. I don't own any external 4K displays (other than a TV), just 1440p & 1080p.
A local weekly paper publishes their rag in PDF format with something like 6 point font when doing full screen. On my 2015 MBA I have to zoom and pan, otherwise the text is difficult to read (made worse with italics). On the 2020 I could simply read as it was totally clear. Retina display does make a difference.
Agreed with all the above. The '4k on YouTube' thing was basically just a 'test' of little practical value dreamed up by a couple of YouTube celeb reviewers for clicks. Who in the real world actually plays 4k video on an (effectively) 1440x900 screen? It's completely pointless...
Not to mention what is the true benefit of watching 4K on the MBA? Nothing. The reality is that while the lizard video is cool it doesn't somehow not allow you to take in the actual material you are consuming because it is in 720p or 1080p.
All a few seem to do here and on youtube is let me push it until I can break it and then call it flawed.
I dislike my 2017 MBP. It’s 16gb but I don’t do any video or music editing.
I do a lot of Keynote work though, and video calls/screensharing.
A friend will buy it off me for a good price. I love the form factor of MBA.
Is it sensible to upgrade to an i5 MBA? I want to, but just getting 3rd opinions in case I experience a big downgrade.
I do a lot of Keynote work though, and video calls/screensharing.
A friend will buy it off me for a good price. I love the form factor of MBA.
Is it sensible to upgrade to an i5 MBA? I want to, but just getting 3rd opinions in case I experience a big downgrade.
@erasr my suggestion is get an MBA from a place you can return it to easily, and hold off on selling your MBP until you've seen if the MBA works for you.
We're seeing varied experiences with different folks - some seem to be fine with what you describe, some have reported fan running audibly. Unsure as to the cause of this differential.
What software are you using for the video calls and screen sharing?
If Zoom, I saw an article from a few months ago suggesting reducing the screen-sharing frame rate to 4fps to reduce CPU load.
We're seeing varied experiences with different folks - some seem to be fine with what you describe, some have reported fan running audibly. Unsure as to the cause of this differential.
What software are you using for the video calls and screen sharing?
If Zoom, I saw an article from a few months ago suggesting reducing the screen-sharing frame rate to 4fps to reduce CPU load.
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I made a similar move
2016 NTB to 2020 Air i5
love it, main downgrade is screen but the screen is still really nice just not P3 and not as bright.. .but you get True Tone which I find valuable
I received my i5 MBA today. Have set it up and have been using it as I'd normally use, except I did go on chrome for a bit to show off 4k video on the screen to my husband. I didn't notice anything weird with fans or heat. Although it's been on a table mostly. But when on my lap I didn't feel a thing.
I'm really surprised to see how zippy this is. I actually didn't think my late 2013 MBP was slow. I thought it was still fast and I think it is, but this is noticeably faster. Browsing the web, opening apps are just quick here.
I should note, my normal usage on this is basically safari and word. I don't do video editing or anything, but of course, it's why I got an air. I will be typing on it a lot and want to write on it, so for me, honestly this is amazing.
Only thing I didn't like when I opened it was the colour (I got gold) but now I like that it's a bit different.
I'm really surprised to see how zippy this is. I actually didn't think my late 2013 MBP was slow. I thought it was still fast and I think it is, but this is noticeably faster. Browsing the web, opening apps are just quick here.
I should note, my normal usage on this is basically safari and word. I don't do video editing or anything, but of course, it's why I got an air. I will be typing on it a lot and want to write on it, so for me, honestly this is amazing.
Only thing I didn't like when I opened it was the colour (I got gold) but now I like that it's a bit different.
Yeah I've never gotten the 'it can't play 4K video in Chrome without dropping frames' thingo. First, as you said, it's a result of the Codec Wars. Second, unless I'm completely wrong, the MBA's screen isn't 4K.
I've got standard vision and I've never looked at a 1080p 60FPS video on YouTube (which I think is the most frequent auto resolution I'm given) and gone 'urgh, I can't watch this, it's so murky and dull!'
Each to their own, lots of people aren't as annoyed by fan noise as I am, so 🤷♀️
Yes, I am very happy with this purchase.
Configuration: i5 / 8GB / 512GB
Use case: A software developer who pushes his machines to the max (Java, Docker etc.) while having a ton of browser tabs running.
Configuration: i5 / 8GB / 512GB
Use case: A software developer who pushes his machines to the max (Java, Docker etc.) while having a ton of browser tabs running.
Thank you so much! I have been looking for someone who does software development for a living. I’m not a software person but I code to learn new subject (statistics, linear algebra) or coding for Arduino or electronics oriented project. I swear every review on YouTube makes it sound like everyone is ready to render 4K video or edit photos day in and day out. I’m going for i5 but my biggest hang up was the RAM. But if you are good with 8gb. Then I think I’m game.
Extremely happy w/ my MBA 2020. i7/16gb/512gb is fantastic so far. It runs circles around my old MBP 2015 (i5/8gb/128gb).
MBP Geekbench 5 benchmarks: 796 single-core and 1740 multi-core
MBA Geekbench 5 benchmarks: 1235 single-core and 3024 multi-core
A 55% increase in single-core and 74% increase in multi-core.
MBP Geekbench 5 benchmarks: 796 single-core and 1740 multi-core
MBA Geekbench 5 benchmarks: 1235 single-core and 3024 multi-core
A 55% increase in single-core and 74% increase in multi-core.
Does the MBA also have the force click trackpad ?
Does it make a clicking noise even when you turn off the haptic function?
Does it make a clicking noise even when you turn off the haptic function?
I'm wondering if you can elaborate a little more on what you mean by much better. I currently have a 12" macbook & the screen sometimes the pixel are distorted, I'm wondering how much better the air is compared to my 12 inch
I was thinking of upgrading but couldn't decide on the macbook air i5/16gb or the new macbook pro (maybe higher end model). Not sure if the air's heat issue would be a problem or if the i5/16gb is worse than the base model pro?
I also wanted to wait unitl the 14 inch comes out but i don;t think my 12 inch can last that long
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Was the air slow for those tasks and do you get the spinning beach ball? Would the air come on often or get too hot? I'm debating between the macbook air vs pro in the exact same combo
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how is this new air compared to the 12 inch? trying to decide between the new air or pro to replace my 12 inch.
my 12 inch macbook... the screen is starting to get randomly pixelated after less than 3 years and the charging port is flawed. did yours shut off & then you were able to turn it on if the logic board fried?
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I am quite pleased with my 2020 i5/8/512. It replaced a 2012 i5/4/256. I Use a 2012 MBP i5/16/2TB for storing all my music, photos, books, audiobooks. I would have liked to have gotten more space on the new Air but it was just cost prohibitive. I find the new Air thermals to be a non issue and it rarely gets beyond just warm to the touch. Its plenty fast enough for me for the next 3-5 and I am glad I didn't go with the 1700 Pro I was thinking about. The Air is sufficient for most people.
Hey guys,
Need some help in deciding, should I get the i5/8/512 from costco ($1250)with a 30 day return or
i5/16/256 from apple with 14 day return period ($1299).
sorry if we cannot talk price, main concern is the return window. This will be for my wife, who will be using it mainly for MS office, email, browsing etc. and may need to use it as a work laptop with remote VPN etc.
Need some help in deciding, should I get the i5/8/512 from costco ($1250)with a 30 day return or
i5/16/256 from apple with 14 day return period ($1299).
sorry if we cannot talk price, main concern is the return window. This will be for my wife, who will be using it mainly for MS office, email, browsing etc. and may need to use it as a work laptop with remote VPN etc.
I would go w/ the Apple one because it's only a nominal difference for more RAM. Does she need the extra storage? If so, the extra storage would end up being better since 8gb RAM still works pretty well.
If no need for the extra storage due to cloud services? Then she would be better off w/ the more future-proof spec sheet from Apple.
Why do you feel it's worth spending $200 on a 16GB memory upgrade given the stated usage? What does "use it as a work laptop" mean in terms of applications?
As for 256GB vs 512GB storage - buy what you need. If she's comfortable within 256GB there's no need to go up.
As for return window - folks should be able to figure out within two weeks whether the system is a fit for their workload. With Apple mailorder your have two weeks to initiate the return - then typically another two weeks from that point for it to get back to them.
I love mine! Just got my i5/16/512 a couple weeks ago replacing my late 2013 13" MBP, and loving the Air so far. I really like the form factor, and definitely noticing the upgrade in speed