Does anyone else feel like the M1 MBA is now an even better deal?

[throAU]

As an aside... I've been tossing up between a new air and a new pro for a while, and the new 14" pro looks very very nice.

However.... Monterey seems to have made my 2020 i7 based air run a lot smoother (And thermal management seems to be much more sane for a laptop - I hear the fan far, far less.)... which makes me think I might be able to hold out for an MBA update in 2022...

 

[tis]

As an aside... I've been tossing up between a new air and a new pro for a while, and the new 14" pro looks very very nice.

However.... Monterey seems to have made my 2020 i7 based air run a lot smoother (And thermal management seems to be much more sane for a laptop - I hear the fan far, far less.)... which makes me think I might be able to hold out for an MBA update in 2022...

You have a computer than is one year old. I think you will be ok.

 

[tonywalker23]

Being back in college, I could get the M1 Air for $899 when it first came out through the edu store. I traded in my intel MacBook pro and got $750 credit. That made the M1 only $149. And since it was an instant trade in, the tax was only on the 149 and not the full price. And using my Apple card and instant trade in, it basically made the M1 Air for me 12 months at $12.41 a month. And I got the 3% apple cash back. And with a phobio problem that was indeed a headache and a half, I actually got a little more more than $750 credit, think it ended up being $775 so basically the Air for 125ish.

all that to say, I have watch a lot of the new videos, excited like everyone else, but still happy with my M1 with no remorse. I do wish it had a bigger SSD instead of 256 but I went with that knowing my imac with 1tb has everything. The power sounds fancy but in real life I surf the web, check email, a few spreadsheets for youth ministry, photos a little, a couple of short videos clips a year for church kids camp. the 'biggest' power I need is my Logos Bible Software for sermons, lessons, and school research papers. it is about 70gb of books and digital research, but by no means needs anything extreme.

all that to say as others have, I'm another who feels that my m1 air was a very very wise move--esp considering I traded in and upgraded for less than $150.

 

[StoneJack]

Being back in college, I could get the M1 Air for $899 when it first came out through the edu store. I traded in my intel MacBook pro and got $750 credit. That made the M1 only $149. And since it was an instant trade in, the tax was only on the 149 and not the full price. And using my Apple card and instant trade in, it basically made the M1 Air for me 12 months at $12.41 a month. And I got the 3% apple cash back. And with a phobio problem that was indeed a headache and a half, I actually got a little more more than $750 credit, think it ended up being $775 so basically the Air for 125ish.

all that to say, I have watch a lot of the new videos, excited like everyone else, but still happy with my M1 with no remorse. I do wish it had a bigger SSD instead of 256 but I went with that knowing my imac with 1tb has everything. The power sounds fancy but in real life I surf the web, check email, a few spreadsheets for youth ministry, photos a little, a couple of short videos clips a year for church kids camp. the 'biggest' power I need is my Logos Bible Software for sermons, lessons, and school research papers. it is about 70gb of books and digital research, but by no means needs anything extreme.

all that to say as others have, I'm another who feels that my m1 air was a very very wise move--esp considering I traded in and upgraded for less than $150.

What is your experience compared to Intel macbook?

 

[throAU]

You have a computer than is one year old. I think you will be ok.

It's also been a disappointment for my use case. The thermal behaviour (noise/heat) is the worst in any Apple machine I've ever owned. Scratch that - its amongst the worst in any portable from any manufacturer that I've ever used in the past 25 years.

Can I make do? Sure. But its not really been an upgrade despite the 5 years between my MBP 2015 and this.

Monterey has at least quietened it down a bit.

 

[tonywalker23]

What is your experience compared to Intel macbook?

The few things that stand out:
No fan noise. But the only time I heard fans really was when Logos creates an index when I bought new books or commentaries for my library.

Great battery life. If I used the intel it wouldn’t last all day usually.

Cool. If I did a zoom video for class in my storage building (four small kids and wife at home) in warm weather the intel would get blazing hot. The M1 will be some warm but nothing like the intel.

Never liked the Touch Bar. Minus is a plus.

I guess the only plus I’d give the intel was the form factor. I like the mbp shape more than wedge of the air. But that’s a small complaint. Oh yea, I liked having ports on both sides rather than the air just in the left side.

 

[StoneJack]

The few things that stand out:
No fan noise. But the only time I heard fans really was when Logos creates an index when I bought new books or commentaries for my library.

Great battery life. If I used the intel it wouldn’t last all day usually.

Cool. If I did a zoom video for class in my storage building (four small kids and wife at home) in warm weather the intel would get blazing hot. The M1 will be some warm but nothing like the intel.

Never liked the Touch Bar. Minus is a plus.

I guess the only plus I’d give the intel was the form factor. I like the mbp shape more than wedge of the air. But that’s a small complaint. Oh yea, I liked having ports on both sides rather than the air just in the left side.

Thanks for sharing your experience! I am looking towards receiving my MBA M1 so this is valuable evidence of M1 usage...I don't play games on it neither do video - for that I have i9-10900 desktop with dGPU, but I need MBA to be mobile, lighter, resistant, with good battery life, I don't want to have super expensive multicore GPU in that mobile notebook and I like very much what you shared I am looking towards better camera software (I am aware that it is 720p but with better software), good sound, 13.3 inch screen with P3 and truetone (and I don't watch anyway on full brightness so difference between screen brightnesses is less important for me)

 

[mr_jomo]

It's also been a disappointment for my use case. The thermal behaviour (noise/heat) is the worst in any Apple machine I've ever owned. Scratch that - its amongst the worst in any portable from any manufacturer that I've ever used in the past 25 years.

Can I make do? Sure. But its not really been an upgrade despite the 5 years between my MBP 2015 and this.

Monterey has at least quietened it down a bit.

I can echo that - and I had the i3 model, which was thermally a bit better - but still a total disaster in that respect.

Had the M1 Air since launch in Nov. 2020, and can't even conceive upgrading before 2023.

 

[nquinn]

After playing with the M1 Pro models in the Apple store, I'd actually also say that I realize I don't need the power and a boring M1 would really be fine.

Main issues for me though:
1. Only 13.3" screen size is too cramped. I doubt it would ever happen but wish Apple would bump this to 14", or offer other air variants for people who want 15-16" screens but don't need to spend $2500+ on performance
2. the old chassis w/ thick bezels is sort of dated
3. I probably don't need it, but 32gb of ram would be a nice option just for occasional virtual machine use

Very curious to see what they release summer next year - mostly if they move to 14" or not. (Guessing not - Apple loves to use size to differentiate things for stupid reasons)

 

[MrAperture]

I finally got a chance to go to the Apple Store today to check out the new Pros.

The new Pros are great. But they also show how much more value you get out of an Air as well.

For most folks the Air is perfect. I’m really glad I picked one up from Best Buy when they had it for $750 (student deal) a couple of months ago. It’s my first Mac system of any kind (I’ve been using PCs forever) and I just love using it.

 

[jerryk]

Thanks for sharing your experience! I am looking towards receiving my MBA M1 so this is valuable evidence of M1 usage...I don't play games on it neither do video - for that I have i9-10900 desktop with dGPU, but I need MBA to be mobile, lighter, resistant, with good battery life, I don't want to have super expensive multicore GPU in that mobile notebook and I like very much what you shared I am looking towards better camera software (I am aware that it is 720p but with better software), good sound, 13.3 inch screen with P3 and truetone (and I don't watch anyway on full brightness so difference between screen brightnesses is less important for me)

Your setup sounds like mine. I have a 9700K and RTX 3070 GPU as my main desktop. I went with a M1 Air as a replacement for my MBP 16" Intel which sounded like a jet too many times and was too bulky. I was shocked to see that for my mobile computing needs the M1 Air was more performant than the 16" MBP. And no fan noise!!! Enjoy your M1 Air

 

[avalon68]

After playing with the M1 Pro models in the Apple store, I'd actually also say that I realize I don't need the power and a boring M1 would really be fine.

Main issues for me though:
1. Only 13.3" screen size is too cramped. I doubt it would ever happen but wish Apple would bump this to 14", or offer other air variants for people who want 15-16" screens but don't need to spend $2500+ on performance
2. the old chassis w/ thick bezels is sort of dated
3. I probably don't need it, but 32gb of ram would be a nice option just for occasional virtual machine use

Very curious to see what they release summer next year - mostly if they move to 14" or not. (Guessing not - Apple loves to use size to differentiate things for stupid reasons)

I feel like they are missing out on a huge market segment of people who want a 15/16 inch screen but don’t want the power or expense of the pro models. I would buy a 15inch air immediately if they released one. 13 inch was fine when I was younger- now it’s just cramped when trying to work on multiple documents.

 

[applesed]

I feel like they are missing out on a huge market segment of people who want a 15/16 inch screen but don’t want the power or expense of the pro models. I would buy a 15inch air immediately if they released one. 13 inch was fine when I was younger- now it’s just cramped when trying to work on multiple documents.

Yea, the line for the 15 inch m2 air would be long.

 

[JPack]

I feel like they are missing out on a huge market segment of people who want a 15/16 inch screen but don’t want the power or expense of the pro models. I would buy a 15inch air immediately if they released one. 13 inch was fine when I was younger- now it’s just cramped when trying to work on multiple documents.

There are plenty of 15" ultrabooks on the PC side, but people don't buy them. Once you exceed 14", the footprint is too large to carry around as a real portable computer. Apple's insistence of using aluminum chassis means a 15" Air would be around 3.5 lbs, which is hardly an Air.

 

[DenisK]

Agree with all the good points above. Still struggling between a maxed-out MBA and the 13 MBP.

 

[yitwail]

Agree with all the good points above. Still struggling between a maxed-out MBA and the 13 MBP.

Just my opinion but unless you love the Touch Bar, I think MBA is the better choice.

 

[gabo864]

Just my opinion but unless you love the Touch Bar, I think MBA is the better choice.

It definitely is. I ended up canceling my MBP pre-order, and I was debating between the (2020) MBP and MBA M1, and The touch bar is just not appealing to me. So I ended up getting the MBA, and I'm so freaking happy with this little machine. It is just what I needed.

 

[Hunter5117]

It definitely is. I ended up canceling my MBP pre-order, and I was debating between the (2020) MBP and MBA M1, and The touch bar is just not appealing to me. So I ended up getting the MBA, and I'm so freaking happy with this little machine. It is just what I needed.

Same reason for me but reversed. I do like the Touchbar so I went with the M1 MBP. Amazing little machine.

 

[Adenitz]

Hello guys, do you have experience with open box items from BestBuy? I wonder if they are carefully examined before put back to sale after thay are returned.
This open box MBA M1 can be a very good deal, but I afraid that previous owner could spill water on it, cleaned and returned. Liquid damage can show itself weeks or even months due to corrosion.
I wonder if open box "certified" means that Bestbuy technicians opened and examined the inside of the laptop before turning it back on the shelf again?

 

[avalon68]

There are plenty of 15" ultrabooks on the PC side, but people don't buy them. Once you exceed 14", the footprint is too large to carry around as a real portable computer. Apple's insistence of using aluminum chassis means a 15" Air would be around 3.5 lbs, which is hardly an Air.

Thats not true though. Almost everyone I work with has a 15 inch laptop. If you want to have two or 3 documents open at once then 15 inch is much better than 13inch. it’s still plenty portable, just more useful for many of us. Besides - if they weren’t selling, do you really think they would keep making them? I want a bigger screen and macOS. I don’t need the power of the pros, and definitely can’t afford a 16 inch one. A similar sized, cheaper air would be perfect for me and many others.

 

[thadoggfather]

Hello guys, do you have experience with open box items from BestBuy? I wonder if they are carefully examined before put back to sale after thay are returned.
This open box MBA M1 can be a very good deal, but I afraid that previous owner could spill water on it, cleaned and returned. Liquid damage can show itself weeks or even months due to corrosion.
I wonder if open box "certified" means that Bestbuy technicians opened and examined the inside of the laptop before turning it back on the shelf again?

I dont think they're super well inspected but most of the times its not an issue

id roll the dice for the right price. theres a return policy too

 

[JPack]

Thats not true though. Almost everyone I work with has a 15 inch laptop. If you want to have two or 3 documents open at once then 15 inch is much better than 13inch. it’s still plenty portable, just more useful for many of us. Besides - if they weren’t selling, do you really think they would keep making them? I want a bigger screen and macOS. I don’t need the power of the pros, and definitely can’t afford a 16 inch one. A similar sized, cheaper air would be perfect for me and many others.

Are those 15-inch ultrabooks? The largest PC manufacturer, Lenovo, doesn’t offer their ThinkPad X1 in 15-inch. You’ll find 15- and 17-inch workstation and home use notebooks but rarely as ultrabooks. Once you exceed that 14-inch footprint, it’s hard to use on a plane or cafe.

 

[avalon68]

Are those 15-inch ultrabooks? The largest PC manufacturer, Lenovo, doesn’t offer their ThinkPad X1 in 15-inch. You’ll find 15- and 17-inch workstation and home use notebooks but rarely as ultrabooks. Once you exceed that 14-inch footprint, it’s hard to use on a plane or cafe.

Do you mean the X1 carbon? Tbh, the price of those laptops is similar to the macbook pros - they arent average consumer laptops. At the last group meeting the guy on one side of me was on a dell xps 15, guy across from me had another type of Dell 15 inch and the lady on the other side of me had an LG gram which I think was 16 inches. There were a couple of Lenovos about too (not the X1s). Sure, they arent as compact as an air - but they arent exactly tanks to carry about either. I cant see an issue providing a 15inch air - if you want ultra portable get the 13, if you need a bigger screen get a 15. The issue right now is there isnt a 15/16 inch macbook for the average consumer that cant afford to drop crazy money on a 16 inch pro. Im actually probably going to pick up one of those LG grams and see how it goes. The small screen is slowing me down too much now on my mbp. I use it hooked to a monitor at home, but when I travel its becoming a real nuisance.

 

[Jack Neill]

What is your experience compared to Intel macbook?

I have a 2020 i5/8/512 and a 2020 M1/8/512. Both are excellent and I use both daily. The i5 while benchmarks at roughly half the M1 its not noticeable in Air like tasks and works great. They look identical. The M1 has vastly better battery life. The M1 is also 6GB smaller. Both have 500Gb drives but the M1 reports as 494 the i5 as 500. The M1 has the P3 gamut but I honestly don't notice the difference. The storage is also a little more than twice as fast than the i5 and the M1 has TB3/USB4. The M1 is a solid upgrade from the early 2020 Air, given how close they released the M1 is pretty serious jump in gains for pretty much the same launch price. I would pass on any Intel Air at this point and go for an M1 as price point vs value is excellent.

 

[JPack]

Do you mean the X1 carbon? Tbh, the price of those laptops is similar to the macbook pros - they arent average consumer laptops. At the last group meeting the guy on one side of me was on a dell xps 15, guy across from me had another type of Dell 15 inch and the lady on the other side of me had an LG gram which I think was 16 inches. There were a couple of Lenovos about too (not the X1s). Sure, they arent as compact as an air - but they arent exactly tanks to carry about either. I cant see an issue providing a 15inch air - if you want ultra portable get the 13, if you need a bigger screen get a 15. The issue right now is there isnt a 15/16 inch macbook for the average consumer that cant afford to drop crazy money on a 16 inch pro. Im actually probably going to pick up one of those LG grams and see how it goes. The small screen is slowing me down too much now on my mbp. I use it hooked to a monitor at home, but when I travel its becoming a real nuisance.

I guess my experience is different. In our organization, we use purely business products: Lenovo ThinkPad (X1 Carbon or T14/T14s, depending on your role) or Dell Latitude. MacBook Pros for the people who want Macs. None of the home or consumer stuff like Dell XPS or LG.