Buying a used 2011 13" MBA

[11fajado]

Hey guys, I currently have a 2011 15" MBP but I've run into the dreaded video card issues...

I'm looking to upgrade to a 15" TB MBP when the second generation hits but I need a laptop to use for now.

I've been looking at some used 2011 13" MBAs as a stop gap to tide me over until then.

Are there any hardware issues similar to those plaguing the 15" MBPs that I should watch out for when shopping around for a used MBA?

 

[rphillipss]

I've had a number of Macs over the past decade or so, and my 2011 13" MBA has definitely been the most reliable by far. Still works perfectly and quite fast, apart from battery wear and tear after 6 years. I now use it as a backup.

 

[Weaselboy]

I've been looking at some used 2011 13" MBAs as a stop gap to tide me over until then.

Are there any hardware issues similar to those plaguing the 15" MBPs that I should watch out for when shopping around for a used MBA?

I had one of those and it was a great laptop and I never had any trouble. Just based on reports here in the forums and following all the Mac news, I have not seen reports of any issues with that model.

 

[ChinkyBob]

I have a 2011 MBA also. Although it will only have 4gb of Ram it has been awesome and runs as well as the day I bought it. Although battery life has halved to approx 3 hours use this still better than any other laptop ive owned in the past.
Its not my main workhorse but is always close to hand. I would call it the almost perfect laptop.
Apple should just relaunch this with a Full HD (even TN) screen and add 1 usb-c and voila, instant sales phenomenon.

 

[Boyd01]

I had a 2011 13" MBA for a couple years and liked it, sold it to a friend in a "sweetheart deal" and she still is very happy with it. Just realize that this model has some significant limitations. The ports are USB 2.0 which limits external disks to about 30MB/sec unless you use thunderbolt (which is more expensive and the same port is also needed for an external monitor). The max RAM in 2011 was 4gb and biggest SSD was 256gb. Arguably the biggest limitation was the battery life. I got 5 to 6 hours when mine was new. In 2013 they upgraded to more efficient processors and battery life almost doubled.

If possible, I would see if you can find a used 2013 MBA. They arguably offer the best bang for the buck and are almost as fast as the current model.