Hands-On With the M2 MacBook Air: All Your Questions Answered

[Isamilis]

For their uses, that disk speed won't really be a factor though. And if they go with 16GB RAM, they'll be swapping a lot less too.

I agree to pick up 16gb ram first, if there’s no speed issue on SSD, which is not the case.
Even simple operation like file copy was affected. There are some youtube video testing this. The performance impact will be noticeable since you start using the machine (boot the machine, due to read speed is 50% slower compared to 512gb version). It’s not like 16gb ram where the benefits start showing when you open many apps.
You may use external disk, but it won’t be practical as you need to move boot disk from this slow internal SSD to the external SSD to gain the benefit - which is complicated process for average users.

 

[aevan]

You've just described most all YouTubers

They do it because it seems to work

Yeah, true 🙂 One could even say it goes beyond YouTube and that most media is like that. In fact, in my next reply, I will tell you what I learned about it, and YOU WON'T BELIEVE what the truth is! IS INTERNET LYING TO YOU?

Be sure to subscribe, so that you don't miss any of my future posts.

 

[HowardEv]

Wow what are the dimensions of that motherboard? Hopefully the new Mini will be that size footprint, with a passive heat sink on top and those batteries underneath, so it doesn’t need a ups and can be used all day away from the desk. And a new ultralight to use wirelessly as the front end.

 

[k27]

Wow what are the dimensions of that motherboard? Hopefully the new Mini will be that size footprint,

A smaller case has no real added value. But for this it can cause problems.

with a passive heat sink

I don't want a MacMini with really crappy cooling. What is this nonsense about passive cooling? You will also be able to cool an M2 passive properly. But then the heatsinks have to be much bigger. I don't want a Mac mini that overheats and throttles. I expect a Mac mini to throttle by 0 percent at 100% CPU and 100% GPU at the same time and not get too hot. For that, it needs descent cooling. The MacBook Pro 14" does not manage that. However, this is also a portable device, so you can rather accept suboptimal cooling (We don't even need to talk about the MacBook Air). On a desktop Mac, I don't want the cooling to be made worse in order to make the device smaller and lighter.

 

[Warped9]

I suspect the base model M2 MacBook Air will easily satisfy 90% of those who buy them, despite the shrieks of condemnation on these pages.

 

[asdfjkl;]

SSD though please, not a spinning hard drive

Silly me. I should have specified 10GB/s hard drive throughput.

 

[smoking monkey]

He does a good job of talking about the computer for the typical user and barely mentions video editing. Great! I wish we could ban YouTubers from focussing on VIDEO EDITING as the most important aspect for a new mac. Yes, if you do video editing it's quite important, but the vast majority of people aren't doing that or only do it sometimes. But do we need every single person on Youtube crapping on about how long it took to render their 8k youtube video? Stop the wankery!

 

[Randel.D]

I've got to defend the sound quality! Dan said it wasn't better than the M1, just different... I think it is WAYYYY better. I played music side-by-side with the M1 air and I think the M2 is significantly better.

 

[XsfChaos]

I am continually amused by people who say the slower SSD is “crippled”. Wow. So much faster than many recent machines. The CPU is the fastest single core score EVER for a Mac, which is where the majority of most tasks will live. No fan. 2.7 pounds. Long battery life. People’s expectations have become insane.

Thin, light, fast, silent. Maybe not perfect, but an amazing machine. If you need faster, get the 14-inch MBP. Faster still? 16-inch MBP. More horsepower? Mac Studio. But wow, the M2 MacBook Air is a marvel of engineering and far exceeds my expectations. With 24GB RAM and 2TB SSD it manages to deal with the majority of my daily tasks better than my FULLY LOADED Mac Studio. Damn.

 

[masotime]

the M2 MacBook Air...With 24GB RAM and 2TB SSD it manages to deal with the majority of my daily tasks better than my FULLY LOADED Mac Studio

You managed to get it before August? Where is this? Genuinely curious - I thought all build-to-order options would only be available in August.

 

[k27]

I suspect the base model M2 MacBook Air will easily satisfy 90% of those who buy them, despite the shrieks of condemnation on these pages.

That may be so. Nevertheless, one can take note of the problem. And it shows that it would be nonsense to put such a deficient cooling system into a desktop Mac, like the Mac mini.

 

[k27]

He does a good job of talking about the computer for the typical user and barely mentions video editing. Great! I wish we could ban YouTubers from focussing on VIDEO EDITING as the most important aspect for a new mac. Yes, if you do video editing it's quite important, but the vast majority of people aren't doing that or only do it sometimes. But do we need every single person on Youtube crapping on about how long it took to render their 8k youtube video? Stop the wankery!

In the video I posted above, Cinebench was used.
The fact is that the cooling system is not enough to cool the M2. And that has to be said, even if not everyone will notice it because many do not use the MacBook Air that way. The problem is still there.

 

[ProfessionalFan]

The problem is still there

If the customer using it never notices it, it isn't a problem for them. It clearly isn't impacting their workload so no issue for them. And if we're being honest, the majority of people buying this model will match that description.

The "problem" only happens when you try to use the computer for more than it was designed to handle to prove there is a "problem".

 

[chucker23n1]

In the video I posted above, Cinebench was used.
The fact is that the cooling system is not enough to cool the M2. And that has to be said, even if not everyone will notice it because many do not use the MacBook Air that way. The problem is still there.

The performance behavior is measurable, but whether a problem is there is a different question. MacBook Air customers generally don't overlap with people who run the kinds of workloads Cinebench tests.

 

[alongdingdong]

He does a good job of talking about the computer for the typical user and barely mentions video editing. Great! I wish we could ban YouTubers from focussing on VIDEO EDITING as the most important aspect for a new mac. Yes, if you do video editing it's quite important, but the vast majority of people aren't doing that or only do it sometimes. But do we need every single person on Youtube crapping on about how long it took to render their 8k youtube video? Stop the wankery!

I Understand your sentiment, but what do you do with your laptop that requires more power these days? Macbooks are not gaming machines, so you cant use that to messure it`s power.

I bought a expensive 2019 macbook pro to edit videos for youtube, 3 years later i moved away from that hobby and now my expensive laptop is only used for youtube or watching a movie.

I think the majority of people do not get 30% of performance out of their modern machines from doing their daily stuff. So they use video editing as a benchmark to have something to latch onto and also to justify the new hardware.

Truth is that my macbook 2019 is way way way overkill for my usecase and so with me many many more, i am now finding myself using my ipad mini 6 mostly as i am detoxing from youtube as well.

Everytime i see a new macbook air/ipad i think to myself i need that because then i can start to be really creative and highly mobile and get things done, but i am no longer on social media, i spend 10 hours a week training on my bike, and never have mony for nice holidays partially because i have 3 kids

Apple marketing is magical though, love that feeling, but know now by experience i never will get to use the product to full potential and a cheap windows equivelent will do the same, although i never want to admit that

 

[wbeasley]

In the video I posted above, Cinebench was used.
The fact is that the cooling system is not enough to cool the M2. And that has to be said, even if not everyone will notice it because many do not use the MacBook Air that way. The problem is still there.

the problem might still be there but the original comment was 90% of users wouldnt notice it.

two different thought processes.

by all means benchmark and highlight issues but it helps also to reflect on who and how many real users are impacted. As someone else pointed out, if you really need a machine to do heavy lifting all day, this isnt the machine.

Apple would only have make one machine if they could meet everyone's requirements with one device.
but we all use them differently... at a desk, on the go, big screen, small screen, light tasks, heavy tasks.

the price and power of these is remarkable for the average punter.
the two 9 year old Airs I have still work and work well enough to pass along to occasional users for light tasks.
never had any Windows machines that still boot after 5 to 6 years and often fail earlier than that.

 

[alongdingdong]

the problem might still be there but the original comment was 90% of users wouldnt notice it.

two different thought processes.

by all means benchmark and highlight issues but it helps also to reflect on who and how many real users are impacted. As someone else pointed out, if you really need a machine to do heavy lifting all day, this isnt the machine.

Apple would only have make one machine if they could meet everyone's requirements with one device.
but we all use them differently... at a desk, on the go, big screen, small screen, light tasks, heavy tasks.

the price and power of these is remarkable for the average punter.
the two 9 year old Airs I have still work and work well enough to pass along to occasional users for light tasks.
never had any Windows machines that still boot after 5 to 6 years and often fail earlier than that.

I have a very different experience with windows, at my work 9 year old windows workstations still going strong after 9 year abuse. I dont think that statement holding up these days anymore with windows machines.

 

[CoolSpot]

If you are thinking about buying this, don't make a mistake.

Yes, you want 512GB or more of storage.
Yes, you want 16GB of RAM.

Don't hamstring an amazing machine with a too-small SSD that's slower, and don't cheap out on RAM that you can't add later.

M2 lineup is looking great, very excited to see Mini and iMac in the fall.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

By your logic, why didn’t you get the 16” MBP? It’s only a little larger and heavier than the 14” and only a little more expensive. The little differences add up. Maximum performance is not the primary factor for many of us. A noticablly lighter and more compact device that is less expensive (unless one is discounted) has more value than one without those features but more power.

FWIW, I do have a MBP 16. I have both. Unlike the MBP14 vs. MBA M2 with 0.8 pounds difference, there is a full 1.5 pounds difference between the 14 and 16, and the 16" almost 2" wider so it does not fit in backpacks, etc., that are designed for a 13 or 14" laptop.

Not really the same comparison as the MBA M2 and MBP 14.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

There is a noticeable difference on weight in person. The weight could add up for someone who is carrying their laptop the whole day or travelling with it.

It could. But I highly doubt that everyone here claiming the MBA M2 is more portable are constantly traveling or carrying it all day.

 

[throAU]

FWIW, I do have a MBP 16. I have both. Unlike the MBP14 vs. MBA M2 with 0.8 pounds difference, there is a full 1.5 pounds difference between the 14 and 16, and the 16" almost 2" wider so it does not fit in backpacks, etc., that are designed for a 13 or 14" laptop.

Not really the same comparison as the MBA M2 and MBP 14.

This.

The 13" Air, 13" Pro and 14" pro are very similarly sized in terms of external dimensions that matter as far as fitting in bags go.

The weight between the air and the 14" pro is there, but you'd need to hold both in your hands to notice.

I did this myself today when my friend's m2 air arrived at work.


It is of course a trade-off.

Just don't make the mistake of spending huge amounts of money building the ultimate MacBook Air to save 0.8 pounds and losing out on the screen, speakers and ports in the process unless you're really, really sensitive to the weight and actually compare them for yourself (not just assuming the 14" is not very portable).

Even funnier if you skimp on the spec of the air and end up having to carry an external drive around (and/or HDMI dongle, sd card reader, etc.), thereby totally nullifying the weight saving.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

The entire MBA is as thick as the bottom part of the MBP. That’s no tiny amount.

According to Apple specs, the height difference is 0.17 inches.

The person I replied to said the MBA M2 had "superior portability", and I'm just saying that both the 14" and MBA M2 are both HIGHLY portable.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

Why should I carry around almost a pound of computer I have no use for? To satisfy you?

Yes, please.

Did you read the post I replied to? The MBA M2 may be more portable, but doesn't have superior portability over the 14".

 

[throAU]

According to Apple specs, the height difference is 0.17 inches.

The person I replied to said the MBA M2 had "superior portability", and I'm just saying that both the 14" and MBA M2 are both HIGHLY portable.

Yeah for practical purposes they fit in the same bags (unlike a 16" which needs a bigger, heavier bag).

Yes there is a small weight difference, but it is extremely negligible - and partially negated if you need to carry any dongles for ports it doesn't have.

 

[TracerAnalog]

If you want to see a great Teardown of the new M2 MacBook Air, which confirms the single SSD chip slow speed issue on the Base Model of the new M2 MacBook Air, watch Max Tech's Teardown here:

Please, stop pushing Max Tech. Not a fan.