Is a brand new 2020 i3 Air worth it at any price?

[lambertjohn]

Costco just started a sale today for the base 2020 i3 Air--$799 brand new. Lowest price I've ever seen, even lower than an Apple refurb ($809 I think.) Curious if you think that's a "must buy" price or if forking out $200 more for the base M1 Air is worth the extra cash spent.

 

[daabido]

It would want to be half the price of the M1 to be worth it. Even then I wouldn't buy it.

 

[Apple_Robert]

If you would be using the Air for mail, web surfing and other light duties and don’t care about having the latest and greatest, the Air would be fine for the price (budget wise). If I were going to buy, I would get the M1.

 

[lyngo]

What’s your scenario for using it? Need windows on it? I think it all depends on your work flow. The i3 is a great machine and that’s a good price, but in my case I would still get an M1. Also something to consider, do you like to be an early adapter for something?

 

[1221320]

Costco just started a sale today for the base 2020 i3 Air--$799 brand new. Lowest price I've ever seen, even lower than an Apple refurb ($809 I think.) Curious if you think that's a "must buy" price or if forking out $200 more for the base M1 Air is worth the extra cash spent.

M1, all the way.

 

[Audit13]

It all comes down to the MacBook's intended use. You can always spend more but why would you when technology is changing so fast. I don't believe you can future-proof a a laptop purchase.

 

[MacCraig Pro]

Not worth it, they are extremely slow and limited machines.

 

[LeeW]

Curious if you think that's a "must buy" price or if forking out $200 more for the base M1 Air is worth the extra cash spent.

Without any information on what you are going to use it for it is difficult to say, but given the lack of information, I am going to assume you are a casual user with no real workflow needs so it will probably do you just fine at $799.

 

[MacCraig Pro]

Without any information on what you are going to use it for it is difficult to say, but given the lack of information, I am going to assume you are a casual user with no real workflow needs so it will probably do you just fine at $799.

I’d say no amount of money is worth one of these abominations! Even if a casual user. Much better cheaper used macs on the market for the same price. I had an i3 air for 2 weeks and it was awfully slow And it replaced a 9 year old MBP and it felt slower than that!

 

[Zazoh]

Young teen to use for school. Budget conscious. Someone who doesn’t measure workflow in portions of a second.

If you are not benchmarking and want Apple experience, it’s a good deal, in some cases.

 

[Audit13]

I see people buying a used 2017 13" Air in my city of Toronto for not much less than the cost of this i3. I'd extra and take the i3.

 

[circatee]

Cheapest I have seen the Intel MBA. Seems like a good price, to me...

 

[fitcious]

Maybe $50

 

[CheesePuff]

You can get the M1 for 899 educational pricing and has no fan, no heat issues, performs much faster, better WebCam quality, microphones, and display

 

[jerryk]

I would not touch it. It is a clearance on a system that is known to have some thermal issues. The M1 base Air is a much better buy

 

[BornAgainMac]

If they sold for $75 dollars and I can find someone that would pay $199 for it, I would do it and resell it to the person willing to pay $199 for it.

 

[Buck987]

Office apps, accounting apps, surfing, shopping all will work fine. It's still a solid computer that just not nearly as fast as the M1 or as long lasting on battery.

Not everyone is video makers. Just need to charge it more often. If your budget is $800 for a new notebook it still beats the others out there at that price point.

 

[circatee]

Honestly, I have to concur with a few others. Your personal budget will certainly be a key factor in your decision...

 

[fitcious]

I have a 2020 MBA with AC+ and it expires in 2023. I hope it takes a crap on me in 2022/2023 abs Apple replaces it with a M1 one

 

[Jack Neill]

The 2020 Intel Airs were decent machines but in the age of M1 they would need to drop more than 200$ from the base M1 to make it worth it.

 

[ian87w]

Costco just started a sale today for the base 2020 i3 Air--$799 brand new. Lowest price I've ever seen, even lower than an Apple refurb ($809 I think.) Curious if you think that's a "must buy" price or if forking out $200 more for the base M1 Air is worth the extra cash spent.

The only situation it's worth it is if you need to run Windows or some x86 only virtualizations on it. Even then, I'd just get a Windows laptop.

I have watched many teardowns of the intel MBA and its fan is not even connected to anything, making the device suffers from thermal throttling. The chassis was definitely designed for the M chips or lower powered chips.

 

[Six0Four]

No way. It's too hot and loud when doing medium tasks. I have the i3 and the M1.

 

[Wehrwolf]

If "free" is an option, then yes, it might be worth it.

If you need something inexpensive to run Windows only apps then I'd get a cheap Windows laptop from one of the big box stores, not a MBA.

 

[Shanghaichica]

It depends on whether you need the latest and greatest and what you're going to use it for. Personally I would buy it because when it comes to computers they get such light use. I use them occasionally for simple things like web browsing and emails. Sometimes to watch a few videos and read Apple News articles on. So the 2020 iPad Air, even the base model is overkill for what I need.

 

[Supra Mac]

I have the base I'm about to put up for sale soon as I get my M1 tomorrow. I'm sure someone getting a gift for someone else this Christmas will not know or care of the difference.