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Five Features to Look Forward to in the 2022 MacBook Air

I purchased the Air because of the wedge shape, it is more comfortable to work on. You would think they would have meetings asking themselves what is our most popular laptop, I wonder why that is? They like shooting themselves in the foot for some awful reason.

I was in the Apple store the other day and saw the new MacBook Pro machines, they look a bit dated. But the real bummer is that huge notch.
 
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jaze22 said:
I was in the Apple store the other day and saw the new MacBook Pro machines, they look a bit dated. But the real bummer is that huge notch.
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i have a new MacBook Pro and honestly I think it works great because in practice it is raising the menu bar higher and closer to the edge of the bezel so you are getting more screen area and it looks more attractive.

i agree the style is dated but that is likely deliberate. The new MacBook Airs will be fantastic as they have the best aspects of the new Pro in a lighter package.
 
There is quite a gap between the entry level MacBook Air an the entry level MacBook Pro. Maybe the new redesigned M2 models will be called MacBook and replace the 13 inch MacBook Pro. The existing MacBook Air M1 Models can still be sold as the cheapest entry level model.
 
Feels like the MacBook (Air) is the product Apple should knock out of the park in terms of attractive design. It will be plenty powerful with an M2 chip, that should like M1 be very frugal in terms of power consumption and cooling requirements, so this laptop can be very thin and light, with a long battery life.

You look at the current MacBook Air and if you lose the wedge shape (shame, I like it), it means Apple can stick some battery under the trackpad, cut down the size of the surrounding batteries, stick a low profile fan assembly in instead of the heatsink, etc., etc.. I would bet Apple could could shrink a 13 inch M2 MB down to something a bit closer in size and weight to a 12 inch MB with virtually no compromise.
 
Glad i picked up a MacBook air from 2010
this lil' machine can still perform today and does not look like
the laptop fell from a bubble gum machines!
 
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White bezels are controversial for sure. But the wedge shape was/is ergonomically great, I never understood the need to make thinks boxier.
 
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antiprotest said:
I think the name Air is unnecessary unless they have three lines like they once did. Now it should be enough to have MacBook and MB Pro.
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Imo, they should call it MacBook Air if it has the tapered wedge design or just MacBook if it doesn't. It's the signature look of the Air.
 
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Schnegg said:
White bezels are controversial for sure. But the wedge shape was/is ergonomically great, I never understood the need to make thinks boxier.
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Yeah, the wedge shape was very sexy and maybe more ergonomic. I'm going to miss it. Maybe it was too complicated for them to make maximum use of the space inside it with the odd shape. The plus side is that we might get more battery capacity without the wedge.
 
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If Apple made this MacBook Air with a 15.4” or 16.2” screen, I would buy it. The new 16” M1 MacBook Pro has a beautiful screen, but I don’t need any of the ports and it’s too heavy for me at 5.5 pounds.
 
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Pre-release MR Consensus:

“White notch, white bezels are horrendous. Major mistake. Apple's lost its way. Few will buy them. Terrible decision.”​
​
Post-release MR Consensus:

“Excellent decision. Provides more screen real estate. Aesthetic is wonderful. Colorful Macs + White bezels, White notch are a tour de force. Apple's a design leader. People will buy them in droves.”​
​
Now, as to that White Notch in particular:
​
Tech_Mac_Man said:
Imagine watching a movie and that damn WHITE NOTCH is just staring right back at you...Horrible design!!

View attachment 1921175
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Looks pretty good. Easy to ignore. A lot better than a black notch descending into the actual videos as on iPhones!

Now about that wedge shape... If they really are dropping that, they're losing an iconic feature, one that is ergonomically wonderful. Comfortable to use; a great place on which to rest the palms.

The slab, box shape?! Hard to ignore its rectangular front edge pressing into one's palm, creasing it, and leaving a red line on it for most of the day… It's one of the reasons I returned a 2017 MacBook Pro and kept a 2013 MBA.
 
A hump on the back of the monitor would be a better solution for a decent quality webcam than a notch that eats into the display. I also think the vast majority of people would just prefer having a slightly thicker bezel at the top and no notch.

White bezels are just utterly moronic... a black bezel blends into a black screen, a white bezel doesn't blend into a glowing screen.

I know Apple are set against it, but personally I would like to see a 360 design with Wacom-style pen input... Note-taking/Art is just perfect for this kind of slim and light laptop.
 
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It's going to deviate from the MacBook Pro in terms of ports, though, with Apple only expected to include USB-C ports.
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Good. Although I'll admit an HDMI port would occasionally be useful to me (no more hunting around for an adapter dongle), everything else is just unnecessary nonsense. Especially MagSafe!

An extra USB-C port beats MagSafe, hands down.
 
Apple listened to their customers when we said we wanted useful ports... and function keys, etc.

I wonder if they will listen to us when it comes to the notch and white bezels being an eyesore.
 
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Not sure what is so hard? 2017 MB with latest processor and more ports. Done. I like Space Gray. No bezel you idiots. I don't like it, but a notch is OK. Prior to my MB, I had several 11" MBAs.
 
QCassidy352 said:
1. Bad
2. Very bad
3. Bad (if M1 iMac colors are any indication)
4. Irrelevant
5. Good

I need a new Mac (2015 MBP with dying battery), but this redesign is rumored to hit allll the wrong notes.
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Pay someone (or Apple) to replace your 2015 MBP's battery. You should think of battery replacement as part of ownership, similar to how you replace the battery in your car from time to time. Yes, more complicated than in a car, but still not a very big deal. And if you don't need/want a performance update at this time, drop the $260 or so for a new battery and get another year or two out of your current laptop until you really want/need additional performance. Document your battery replacement (i.e., keep the receipt) and get back half or so of the cost of the battery replacement when you sell your laptop. Or handoff a fully operational laptop to family member or friend.
 
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Only USB-C... so no HDMI? No SD-Card slot? That's one way to convince people to buy the macbook pro's!
 
Wanted797 said:
I used a pro in a store for a little bit and in that time I got used to the notch.
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Me too - and I totally failed to notice the notch. In fact, I went back the following day to “highlight” the notch to see how much it might annoy me. Answer: not at all, although I preferred it “hidden” within a dark wallpaper/menu bar combination.

I didn’t even try it in dark mode as I don’t like that mode anyway.

Whether I could live with a white notch is a different story. There might have to be a masking tape and black nail varnish operation ?
 
I'll wait for the version with a wedge-shaped form factor thanks. The smooth wedge form is vastly superior ergonomically to a discrete rectangular box.
 
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McKodiak said:
The colors should go with a white bezel and keyboard but the silver and, if available, space gray should have a black bezel and keyboard. the white will be a major turnoff for standard users who don't want color where the MacBook Pro is out of reach from a cost perspective.
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I doubt many "standard users" will care. Apple sold millions of entirely white iBooks for years and many of the early generations of PowerBooks/MacBooks had silver bezels.
 
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