Not something to worry about. The power adopter that comes with the MacBook Air M1 (and the Powerbook G4 12"... so probably true for the MacBook Air M2) can easily be swapped out without any tools. Apple should sell the plugs that fit in the power adaptors.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Can M2 Air 8/10/16/512 get my daughter through College?
- Thread starter Ay-Yo-Its-Edge
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
My opinion...
*MAYBE*. There is a risk that her school won't let her use the computer on the network if it's not supported or updated though. There may be some software that requires a newer version of MacOS as well, or potentially needs an updated version of Chrome/ Safari.
Using a 2012 MacBook Air *MIGHT* be possible *NOW*. It won't be possible in four years.
Plus, MacBook M2s can run apps that are not on the Apple Store as well.
Attempting to use a laptop with outdated hardware and an unsupported operating system, is horrible advice - especially for your daughter's critical studies.
Don't even contemplate it.
Don't even contemplate it.
Last edited:
Never, ever, ever pay Apple extra for more storage. --It's the worst "deal" in town, the literal "You want fries with that?" upcharge. Nobody on this planet should be paying an extra $300 to $500 for a 1tb SSD over a 500gb. Instead, get an EasyStore external 5tb for $110 from BestBuy.
Please. These schools also have to cater to students with Windows, Linux, and Android computers; they're not going to just arbitrarily declare that you need one manufacturer's lastest techno-woo in order to check your curriculum schedule online or plug chem analysis numbers into a spreadsheet. I know of at least two web-browsers capable of running on MacOS Yosemite that are still taking updates in 2023: Vivaldi and Opera, as well as at least one office-suite (OpenOffice). 90% of used Macs out there are in the 2009 to 2020 range (i.e., all the non-M chip models), including the ones currently sitting on the professors' desks -- because everybody loves those sweet 27" iMacs that Apple doesn't make anymore. No school is going to eff over their own faculty with such stringent upgrade requirements.
It's not the model that matters so much (aside from its OS requirement), it's the OS disabling that functionality by default. Sort of like having your hard-drive icons appear on the desktop, which is something that has been off by default for about fifteen years now, meaning that most younger users don't even know how to "drag and drop" files anymore (which was the literal selling-point of GUI operating-systems in the first place back in the 1980s).
I'll bite: What "hardware" in an old Macbook will be "outdated" in 2025? intel microprocessors (like the ones in every *current* Windows laptop, many of which also still have optical-drives)?
"Upsupported" meaning Apple arbitrarily obsolesces its own built-in rubber-room ecosystem apps (primarily Safari) by denying them updates. Solution: never use Safari in the first place. Drop-kick it right off the dock, and install Vivaldi, Opera, Brave, or any number of other browsers. Install Adblocker Ultimate and uBlockOrigin extensions (because virtually all malware comes through fake ads).
A more likely scenario is that your brand-new computer will be too far ahead of the "curve" of your school's current systems. (Example: a year ago, unpaid beta-testers <ahem> Apple consumers who (in the throes of security-panic hypochondria) heedlessly updated to Monterey 3rd release suddenly discovered that their big Cinema Display external monitors wouldn't work anymore. Gee, thanks, Apple!)
Last edited:
I have 2 kids who recently studied Engineering and one who is still in college studying Art History. Engineering required a Windows computer with minimum 8GB, recommended 16GB+ memory (or I guess Parallels on a Mac) to run Autodesk Inventor and other CAD products. Art History has no requirement. Students who do not have their own computer can use one in a library or other study area. The network has safeguards in place to detect and block viruses, trojans and unsafe hardware.
True - but for non-technical users, sometimes biting the bullet and paying a bit more is worth the simplicity of storage on the Macbook itself.
BAD RECOMMENDATION - carrying an old-style EasyStore spinning hard drive is a recipe for quick disaster...knowing how people throw their bags around and plop things down on tables. Her data won't survive a week or two with this.
GREAT RECOMMENDATION: a portable SSD, like this one: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/crucial-x6-se-2tb-external-usb-c-usb-a-portable-ssd-black/6457934.p
BEST RECOMMENDATION: a RUGGED portable SSD: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/sabren...ssd-with-ip67-water-resistance-gray/6521015.p
Only STEM students would dare to be seen on campus toting an external hard drive 😂
Step 1: teach the non-technical user how to Finder > Preferences > (checkmark the box for "Hard Drives").
I was thinking more on the order of leaving that in the dorm room rather than carrying it around. (That said, the anti-shock technology in the 2.5" rotationals is vastly better than it was fifteen years ago when they were in all the laptops which somehow made it through the day. I definitely wouldn't cart around a 3.5" spinner.)
That's goofy, like putting bumpers on a tank. But price is reasonable.
Why does every question on Macrumors have to end up a long-winded argument??? Jeez...FFS
Because everyone has an opinion, as with other anatomical parts 🍑 *cough*, and hardcore techies like myself have to help steer folks away from bad advice.
Last edited:
Depends. If you want a system that just works without having to haul around external storage, if you want to have Apple fix any problems then it can be worth it. That extra cost isn't just for the storage, it also includes having Apple taking responsibility for any problems which can be an issue for those not technically inclined. Hundreds of posts about problems using external storage. It is, as always, a tradeoff.
As the other guy said, "hardcore techies like myself have to help steer folks away from bad advice."
I am not an unemployed beta-tester, ever. Apple has a demonstrated long and repetitive history of NOT "taking responsibility" for problems arising by happenstance or deliberation.
(If you think I'm bad, you should listen to Louis Rossmann rail. And why, apart from my seething hatred of Apple's newer castrated operating-systems from Catalina onward, why I will never trust a 2016 or newer Macbook, and especially none with T2: He tells you right here (part 2; part 3) why you should avoid this evil company like the plague now.)
Last edited:
The prices would also likely be much higher in NZ, so there is that to take into account.
As long as Apple has stores and servicing near her, Apple will cover any warranty work.
When I worked at a large University repairing computers and saving data for students, the documents folder was a couple gigs. The music and video folders were much larger. But with the cloud for data and apps, and Apple TV or Apple Music, you need almost no space. Times have changed.
Came here to echo those who suggested speaking with the school. My first kid went into school as a computer game design major, and the school was fine with anything. My daughter is in school for social work, and her school has very specific requirements, including the need to run Windows, so we had to get her an Intel Mac.
Definitely speak with the school before purchasing.
Definitely speak with the school before purchasing.
Sadly, the apps themselves have exploded in size though. Microsoft Office was around 10 gigs last time I tried to install it. (Granted, that's probably not a good example. Office 365 and Google Docs are just about ubiquitous nowadays.)
Install OpenOffice and OfficeLibre (both free), and kick Microsoft out of your life.
Bad advice for a student. Most schools have O365 or Google licenses anyway.
Use what the school uses. Don't overcomplicate things. The business world uses Office and Acrobat.
I don't use MS office today, plenty of great alternatives. I did when I was in university (they gave us a free license), but I probably wouldn't buy a license with my own money today.
It's a great office suite, I'd probably buy it again if it weren't as expensive as it is. But Libreoffice is more than good enough for the kinds of stuff I'd need it for today.
Apple's own Pages/Numbers/etc are a great alternative, if you really do not want to purchase Microsoft's office.
ALSO: it is free to use Microsoft's free web OFFICE.COM online, which are Word/Excel/etc. You just have to upload & download documents, if you need to send them to someone.
ALSO: it is free to use Microsoft's free web OFFICE.COM online, which are Word/Excel/etc. You just have to upload & download documents, if you need to send them to someone.