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race4life

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 17, 2022
4
16
So, I switched to an iPhone this week, and I've been looking at ordering an M1 MacBook. I was looking on Amazon this morning, and somehow, I scored a new MacBook Air M1, 8 GB, 256 SSD for $690. It's being sold by Amazon, not a 3rd party supplier. I ordered it as fast as I could, and when I went back to confirm, the price was now listed as $956. I got my order in at the $690 price, and it will be delivered tomorrow. Super excited to join the Apple ecosystem.

 
Awesome price. I love it when Amazon makes mistakes. I bought a large thermal coffee carafe that was normally $45, but Amazon had added a subscribe & save option to it for only $17. Who needs to get new carafe every month? Cancelled the s&s once I received it, and noticed that option was gone and the price was back to $45.
 
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I wouldn't trust this price until I have the computer in hand. Even then, is it a brand new computer or one that Amazon has discounted because someone returned it? My guess is, it's a return and you bought the only one, which is why the price went back up to $956. Let us know when you get it.
 
I wouldn't trust this price until I have the computer in hand. Even then, is it a brand new computer or one that Amazon has discounted because someone returned it? My guess is, it's a return and you bought the only one, which is why the price went back up to $956. Let us know when you get it.
I could be wrong, but I thought all Amazon returns are sold via Amazon Warehouse, unless they're in bad shape.
 
I wouldn't trust this price until I have the computer in hand. Even then, is it a brand new computer or one that Amazon has discounted because someone returned it? My guess is, it's a return and you bought the only one, which is why the price went back up to $956. Let us know when you get it.
I'll let you know. It's showing up today. Per the copy of the order below, it looks legit.

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I'll let you know. It's showing up today. Per the copy of the order below, it looks legit.
You can actually take that serial number and plug it into https://checkcoverage.apple.com/ to see if anything comes up for it before it arrives.

When it does come, check for battery cycles by going into About This Mac > System Report > Power, or use Coconut Battery to get the details about the age of the Mac and the battery.
 
I am sure you got a legit new machine. If anything it may be a warehouse deal where the box is damaged or the packaging is different but the device itself is new and in perfect condition.

You scored a great deal. I got a deal like this on a new Windows laptop from Best Buy. It is a 2022 model and it was over 50% off and it was on sale for like 12 hours and went back up to normal price.

Sometimes you get lucky. I would be interested in your feedback once it arrives. i.e. is it new with a perfect box, damaged packaging, etc.
 
I've found a used MBA M1, 512/15 with low battery cycles for $900. And a MBA 256/16 FOR 820. I regret not picking them off FB marketplace.

Some Mac Minis, M1 512/16 for 700. sigh..
 
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I've found a used MBA M1, 512/15 with low battery cycles for $900. And a MBA 256/16 FOR 820. I regret not picking them off FB marketplace.

Some Mac Minis, M1 512/16 for 700. sigh..
Great price on FB Marketplace means noting. Those Macs could have hidden damage and or hardware problems that aren't readily seen. And worst of all, if that happens, you have no real recourse or protection. In my opinion, it is best to buy from Apple retail, Apple refurbished, Best Buy, or other established retail places with a known return policy and customer service that has a great track record.
 
Great price on FB Marketplace means noting. Those Macs could have hidden damage and or hardware problems that aren't readily seen. And worst of all, if that happens, you have no real recourse or protection. In my opinion, it is best to buy from Apple retail, Apple refurbished, Best Buy, or other established retail places with a known return policy and customer service that has a great track record.
Totally agree. Buying second hand is always a gamble. Swappa would be the only thing I would trust and I still would avoid used.

Amazon was selling base model M1 air for $799 this morning.
 
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Great price on FB Marketplace means noting. Those Macs could have hidden damage and or hardware problems that aren't readily seen. And worst of all, if that happens, you have no real recourse or protection. In my opinion, it is best to buy from Apple retail, Apple refurbished, Best Buy, or other established retail places with a known return policy and customer service that has a great track record.
I bought my MBP 2015' 15", Used on FB Marketplace and Have had no issues. I think it's good to be worried about buying used tech or used anything, really. But I am willing to take the gamble.
 
Totally agree. Buying second hand is always a gamble. Swappa would be the only thing I would trust and I still would avoid used.

Amazon was selling base model M1 air for $799 this morning.
You can't get anything done with 8 GB. I'm using 12 GB or Ram just having Firefox web browser, Google calendar on Safari and running an external monitor. Imagine using 8 GB. What's a refurb 512/16 going to cost off Apple reburbished? $1200?

Idk why people don't trust used. Just buy off a professional and not some shady kid with no profile picture...You have their details. Some people are too lazy to post on Ebay or Swappa and just list their old and/or unused tech.
 
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You can't get anything done with 8 GB. I'm using 12 GB or Ram just having Firefox web browser, Google calendar on Safari and running an external monitor. Imagine using 8 GB. What's a refurb 512/16 going to cost off Apple reburbished? $1200?

Idk why people don't trust used. Just buy off a professional and not some shady kid with no profile picture...You have their details. Some people are too lazy to post on Ebay or Swappa and just list their old and/or unused tech.
I trust Apple refurbished because you get the same warranty as new and you can buy AppleCare which you might not have the option with a used device.

Even a decent seller could have dropped the device once with no apparent damage and you get it just in time for a failure to show up. Shady resellers often spoof their profile to look trustworthy. That is why Swappa is the only site I would even consider. Ebay is scam bay now a days.

Your idea of ram use seems a bit exaggerated to me as I have used devices with 8gb ram just fine with no noticeable difference. If you don't multitask extensively, use memory hog applications or browsers like Chrome you are fine.

I like having as much ram as possible for sure but for an average user 8gb is acceptable. I think the processor is more important than ram at a certain threshold like 8gb.
 
I trust Apple refurbished because you get the same warranty as new and you can buy AppleCare which you might not have the option with a used device.

Even a decent seller could have dropped the device once with no apparent damage and you get it just in time for a failure to show up. Shady resellers often spoof their profile to look trustworthy. That is why Swappa is the only site I would even consider. Ebay is scam bay now a days.

Your idea of ram use seems a bit exaggerated to me as I have used devices with 8gb ram just fine with no noticeable difference. If you don't multitask extensively, use memory hog applications or browsers like Chrome you are fine.

I like having as much ram as possible for sure but for an average user 8gb is acceptable. I think the processor is more important than ram at a certain threshold like 8gb.
Smh. One of the seller that I saw was from Atherton. Do you know where Atherton is and who lives there? Stephen Curry, Google, Apple, Facebook executives, business owners, etc. Highest cost of living in the U.S.

I know there are scammers out there but they are also business professionals or professionals out there with too much on their hands and just want to sell off their stuff. I mean, look and use the Macbook in person and feel them out if they're serious. Use common sense and it's fine. And it's pretty easy to compare their profile picture to their actual face.

Worse case scenario aside from the Mac being a lemon is you waste time (and gas) driving to their house or local Starbucks. Just walk away if something is fishy. But most times than not, people are not shady on FB on their real accounts. Buy off a professional and not some shady kid. And ask allot of questions beforehand and in person.
 
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You can't get anything done with 8 GB. I'm using 12 GB or Ram just having Firefox web browser, Google calendar on Safari and running an external monitor. Imagine using 8 GB.
I run plenty of stuff on my 8GB MBA and don't see any crazy swapping or such like. Could it be Firefox?
 
You can't get anything done with 8 GB. I'm using 12 GB or Ram just having Firefox web browser, Google calendar on Safari and running an external monitor. Imagine using 8 GB. What's a refurb 512/16 going to cost off Apple reburbished? $1200?

Simply not true. I have a 16GB M1Pro and an 8GB Air.

For daily computing tasks (MS Office, surfing w. lots of tabs, email, Apple Photos app etc.) there is no meaningful difference between the two machines. When I open up Activity Monitor, the memory pressure does go yellow and sometime into the red, but the machine doesn't slow down. The only reason I launch Activity Monitor is curiosity.

I haven't installed my heavyweight apps (Final Cut, Logic Pro, Parallels) on the Air, but 8GB is quite adequate unless you start getting into large photoshops, or multiple 8K streams. Apple Silicon is amazing!
 
Simply not true. I have a 16GB M1Pro and an 8GB Air.

For daily computing tasks (MS Office, surfing w. lots of tabs, email, Apple Photos app etc.) there is no meaningful difference between the two machines. When I open up Activity Monitor, the memory pressure does go yellow and sometime into the red, but the machine doesn't slow down. The only reason I launch Activity Monitor is curiosity.

I haven't installed my heavyweight apps (Final Cut, Logic Pro, Parallels) on the Air, but 8GB is quite adequate unless you start getting into large photoshops, or multiple 8K streams. Apple Silicon is amazing!
I so agree. I had an M1 MBA 8/256 and was easily handling Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro files. I tracked the memory pressure regularly and it was all green. It was only when I started doing Blender I upgraded to an M1 MBA 16/512.
 
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Glad to hear! Hope you enjoy your new Mac!

Smart switch from Samsung can help. Move to ios is another app.

Good luck
 
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