Is it a bad time for 8GB RAM owners to sell their Airs?

[DeepSix]

I've been following what people are asking for their base model 8GB Airs on Facebook marketplace. In the last week, a lot of listings have been posted with considerably lower asking prices than from weeks prior. There are alot of Airs in the marketplace which theoretically drives down the value 2nd hand. I've been thinking of posting my ad right after black Friday specials' is over, hoping I can get a decent offer on it.

And that makes me debate whether or not I should even sell mine if I'm going to be taking too much of a loss on it. I just hate throwing money down the toilet. Mine is only 3 and 1/2 months old and still has warranty which should bring up the value.

I would love to keep both my Pro and my Air but it's redundant to have 2 MacBooks. If I had disposable income then sure why not, I would totally keep both.

 

[russell_314]

It’s always a bad time to sell after newer models come out. What are you getting rid of it after 3 months? Maybe gift it to a relative?

 

[raythompsontn]

makes me debate whether or not I should even sell mine

Is your current machine not doing what you need? Is the machine becoming slow responding? Is the memory pressure consistently going into the yellow?

If the answer to any of those questions is yes, then it may be time to upgrade. If the answers are no, keep your current machine, be happy, and save some money.

 

[russell_314]

Is your current machine not doing what you need? Is the machine becoming slow responding? Is the memory pressure consistently going into the yellow?

If the answer to any of those questions is yes, then it may be time to upgrade. If the answers are no, keep your current machine, be happy, and save some money.

I think he bought both a Pro and Air bit likes the Pro better so he wants to sell the Air. That’s what I got from the post anyway.

It’s always a bad to sell after Apple releases a new version. This is why some people will sell their iPhones before the new one comes out and use a spare phone till they get the new one. Coming off of a recent upgrade and so many black Friday sales it’s going to be hard to get a price even close to what he paid for it. That’s why I suggested maybe giving it to a relative who would appreciate it.

 

[DeepSix]

It’s always a bad time to sell after newer models come out. What are you getting rid of it after 3 months? Maybe gift it to a relative?

Getting rid of it to help pay for my M4 Pro that I picked up 6 days ago. If I had to choose one, it would be the Pro that I keep hands down. I wish I had bought it at Costco as they have a 90 day return policy. I have considered keeping the Air but then I just ask myself, why two MacBooks? It's redundant and it's just going to be another device that I will have to charge, update etc. And am I really going to get enough usage out of both to justify the costs? Not likely.

 

[DeepSix]

Is your current machine not doing what you need? Is the machine becoming slow responding? Is the memory pressure consistently going into the yellow?

If the answer to any of those questions is yes, then it may be time to upgrade. If the answers are no, keep your current machine, be happy, and save some money.

I think he bought both a Pro and Air bit likes the Pro better so he wants to sell the Air. That’s what I got from the post anyway.

It’s always a bad to sell after Apple releases a new version. This is why some people will sell their iPhones before the new one comes out and use a spare phone till they get the new one. Coming off of a recent upgrade and so many black Friday sales it’s going to be hard to get a price even close to what he paid for it. That’s why I suggested maybe giving it to a relative who would appreciate it.

Yes that is correct, I picked up a M4 Pro model this week to see how I would like it compared to my M3 Air and I prefer the Pro for many reasons. Not that I don't like my Air any more (still love how thin and light it is) but the Pro would be the one I would want to keep of the two.

The only use case that I can think of that would somewhat make sense for me to keep both is using the Air strictly as the out of the house device and the Pro stays home unless I need the extra power then I take it out of the house. But it's still redundant.

I just know if I sell the Air that I'm not going to get a good return on it. So then I ask, why even sell it if I'm wasting money on it? I don't give $5 items to my relatives let alone ones worth 100 times that LOL

 

[russell_314]

Yes that is correct, I picked up a M4 Pro model this week to see how I would like it compared to my M3 Air and I prefer the Pro for many reasons. Not that I don't like my Air any more (still love how thin and light it is) but the Pro would be the one I would want to keep of the two.

The only use case that I can think of that would somewhat make sense for me to keep both is using the Air strictly as the out of the house device and the Pro stays home unless I need the extra power then I take it out of the house. But it's still redundant.

I just know if I sell the Air that I'm not going to get a good return on it. So then I ask, why even sell it if I'm wasting money on it? I don't give $5 items to my relatives let alone ones worth 100 times that LOL

You are absolutely correct that keeping both would be extremely redundant. It would be like having an iPad Air and an iPad Pro.

Buying something at a place that has an extended return policy is good if you know you’re not sure you’re going to like it. It’s also good if you’re indecisive. It’s a bit too late for that now, though, but perhaps consider that if you decide to buy another Mac.

Since you don’t have relatives that you would give it to, you have two options from what I can tell.

You can keep it and maybe find some use for it, but I really don’t see that. Have one in the kitchen and the other in the living room? If you can find a legitimate use for it then it makes sense but otherwise this is a bad option.

The other option is to sell it. You’re going to take a loss but if you keep something you’re not using you’re taking a 100% loss. Even if you take a 50% loss, that’s 50% less than you would take by keeping it. Black Friday and cyber Monday are not your friends so wait till all this cools down. Don’t wait too long though because starting in December people look for Christmas presents. Perhaps you’ll find someone looking for a good deal on a MacBook Air. It would make a great Christmas present for someone.


Make sure to reset the device to factory and remove it from your Apple account. I’ve heard too many horror stories of people forgetting to do this and it always makes me nervous when I sell a Mac. I double check this, then double check it again.

 

[JPack]

It became a bad time the moment Apple started offering 16GB as base. Not sure there will be a good time again since retailers will be clearing out 8GB models. Apple adjusted pricing in their refurb store for 8GB and treats it as worth $100 less. In spring, the M4 model will be out.

 

[DeepSix]

You are absolutely correct that keeping both would be extremely redundant. It would be like having an iPad Air and an iPad Pro.

Buying something at a place that has an extended return policy is good if you know you’re not sure you’re going to like it. It’s also good if you’re indecisive. It’s a bit too late for that now, though, but perhaps consider that if you decide to buy another Mac.

Since you don’t have relatives that you would give it to, you have two options from what I can tell.

You can keep it and maybe find some use for it, but I really don’t see that. Have one in the kitchen and the other in the living room? If you can find a legitimate use for it then it makes sense but otherwise this is a bad option.

The other option is to sell it. You’re going to take a loss but if you keep something you’re not using you’re taking a 100% loss. Even if you take a 50% loss, that’s 50% less than you would take by keeping it. Black Friday and cyber Monday are not your friends so wait till all this cools down. Don’t wait too long though because starting in December people look for Christmas presents. Perhaps you’ll find someone looking for a good deal on a MacBook Air. It would make a great Christmas present for someone.


Make sure to reset the device to factory and remove it from your Apple account. I’ve heard too many horror stories of people forgetting to do this and it always makes me nervous when I sell a Mac. I double check this, then double check it again.

Still on the fence. I mean, once the Cyber Monday sales end in a couple of days, I will see what I can get for it (doesn't hurt) but from what I believe I would get, I would rather just hold onto it. Not willing to take a 50% loss on it, would rather just keep it even if it's not being used a lot. I would still use it but it won't see as much use as if I just had one macbook.

But the Air is thinner and lighter than my Pro, making it more portable so that would be my main reason if I do keep it. If I chose one to take with me everywhere it would be the Air.

 

[DeepSix]

So the sales on the airs are over now. I put up my ad this morning and the offers I got so far are just ridiculous. People acting like this base model now is worth nothing.

I'm not going to just give it away. I will have to be patient on this sale. And worse comes to worse I just keep it.

 

[phoenix-mac-user]

Where are you looking to purchase? Best Buy and Apple both have trade in programs that offer fairly reasonable trade in values, though not sure about something that is 3 weeks old.

 

[DeepSix]

Where are you looking to purchase? Best Buy and Apple both have trade in programs that offer fairly reasonable trade in values, though not sure about something that is 3 weeks old.

I'm looking to sell my 3 and 1/2 month old M3 Air. The best buys here won't even take the M3 model. But yet they will take the M2 model and it's insulting, it's like $300 CAD.

 

[phoenix-mac-user]

I'm looking to sell my 3 and 1/2 month old M3 Air. The best buys here won't even take the M3 model. But yet they will take the M2 model and it's insulting, it's like $300 CAD.

That sucks. But I'm a little confused. You have an M3 Air with 8GB? Thought they started at 16GB with the M3 Air that was released earlier this year.

I would just leave it up and ignore the low ballers. If you had a 16Gb version people would low ball you. When I post anything 90% of the offers are insulting. You'll probably take a hit but I would boost the fact that it is still under warranty but I'm guessing you already did that. Good luck!

EDIT: Nevermind, just found an 8GB M3 Air easily searching so I'm an idiot.

 

[DeepSix]

That sucks. But I'm a little confused. You have an M3 Air with 8GB? Thought they started at 16GB with the M3 Air that was released earlier this year.

I would just leave it up and ignore the low ballers. If you had a 16Gb version people would low ball you. When I post anything 90% of the offers are insulting. You'll probably take a hit but I would boost the fact that it is still under warranty but I'm guessing you already did that. Good luck!

EDIT: Nevermind, just found an 8GB M3 Air easily searching so I'm an idiot.

So far my best offer is $900CAD / $640USD. With tax I lose about $480CAD. Ouch 😫

I was hoping to get $950CAD. It does come with a brand new laptop bag and hard case too.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

Yeah, you're gonna take a bath on it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ less than 4 months old, but new stuff is out there now. Would you rather have CA$900 or two laptops? If the answer is CA$900 then... there's your answer.

 

[DeepSix]

Yeah, you're gonna take a bath on it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ less than 4 months old, but new stuff is out there now. Would you rather have CA$900 or two laptops? If the answer is CA$900 then... there's your answer.

Honestly I would love the $ but on the other hand I can also think of a use case for having both.

 

[phoenix-mac-user]

The problem with keeping it is the resale value is never going to go up on it, it will only go down, especially now that Apple has done away with 8GB on all new Macs.

But you can keep it posted and wait to see if you get an offer that is more palatable to you. Someone may meet your price. Or you could look back at the $900CAD and regret not taking it. Its always a tough decision.

I had one of the 2018 Intel Mac Minis that I maxed the RAM out and bought an external thunderbolt video card and then the silicon Macs came out and ended up not getting even close to what I paid. Thankfully the silicons were so powerful that it did not cost me nearly as much as my old system so I sort of broke even overall.

 

[JPack]

Every day, there are more and more 16GB M2/M3 owners. That increases the number of used 8GB M1/M2 units available on the market. Prices aren't going to get better just because it's past Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

 

[DeepSix]

The problem with keeping it is the resale value is never going to go up on it, it will only go down, especially now that Apple has done away with 8GB on all new Macs.

But you can keep it posted and wait to see if you get an offer that is more palatable to you. Someone may meet your price. Or you could look back at the $900CAD and regret not taking it. Its always a tough decision.

I had one of the 2018 Intel Mac Minis that I maxed the RAM out and bought an external thunderbolt video card and then the silicon Macs came out and ended up not getting even close to what I paid. Thankfully the silicons were so powerful that it did not cost me nearly as much as my old system so I sort of broke even overall.

You're very fortunate that you were at least able to break even from the good deal that you got. Too bad you couldn't return the Intel Mac mini when you got it and the Apple silicon came out soon after.

I decided to give it more time. I have to be patient. I mean I just posted it this morning and already had about 10 people contact me. Most were lowballs though. This is a good deal that Im offering. Guaranteed mine is the mintest second hand Air on sale in my area. It's fairly easy to sell any Apple products so someone will come along and give me what I would like.

If not then I just keep it. If I find that my use case for two MacBooks is valid then I will just keep it, that way I don't throw $400+ down the toilet. I hate wasting money.

 

[geta]

MBA with 8GB RAM are a dying breed... especially when Apple upgraded its base model to 16GB RAM.

No idea what you're asking for it or what the full spec, but the longer you wait, the less you'll get for it...

 

[DeepSix]

MBA with 8GB RAM are a dying breed... especially when Apple upgraded its base model to 16GB RAM.

No idea what you're asking for it or what the full spec, but the longer you wait, the less you'll get for it...

I may not sell it to be honest but I still have my ad up so open to offers. I just love the form factor of the Air and how thin and light it is. It's just in a different league compared to the Pro. Im carrying it around with me a lot more now and just love how portable this thing is.

 

[EugW]

I have been tempted to pick up a used M1 or M2 8 GB unit, but keep forcing myself to hold off for a spring M4 16 GB release. However, I'm not sure if I'll buy M3 or M4 at that point. It's for the wife, and truthfully all she needs is M1 8 GB.

The bigger concern for me isn't the RAM, but the age of the machine, not because I'm worried it will break, but because older machines will lose OS updates sooner.

 

[DeepSix]

I have been tempted to pick up a used M1 or M2 8 GB unit, but keep forcing myself to hold off for a spring M4 16 GB release. However, I'm not sure if I'll buy M3 or M4 at that point. It's for the wife, and truthfully all she needs is M1 8 GB.

The bigger concern for me isn't the RAM, but the age of the machine, not because I'm worried it will break, but because older machines will lose OS updates sooner.

Personally, I'd just buy her a new one. Used laptops, you don't know how it's been treated, if it's ever been stepped on and it's got germs on it. Used you get no warranty.

 

[phoenix-mac-user]

Personally, I'd just buy her a new one. Used laptops, you don't know how it's been treated, if it's ever been stepped on and it's got germs on it. Used you get no warranty.

Nah Macs are solid and I have bought a lot used and none have had any issues. Obviously you have to look at the condition and test but there are a lot of people who consider themselves "professionals" who are really just rich who have to have the latest and sell their high end macs a year later cheap.

Only recently started buying new because I have Best Buy Total which gives me AppleCare on everything for 2 years, and even then I buy open boxed because it gets the AppleCare and most of them are Macbooks that were used for one day and returned. Got my Macbook Air M3 24/515 for $1100USD last week from Best Buy and it was open boxed and it had a battery cycle count of 2.

And I traded in my 16" M1Pro 16GB/512GB that I paid $1100 for open boxed clearance 18 months ago that's AppleCare was expiring soon for $775 so I got the new computer for $500 with tax.

If you trade in right and purchase right it can actually be very inexpensive to own Macs because they hold their value so well.

 

[EugW]

Personally, I'd just buy her a new one. Used laptops, you don't know how it's been treated, if it's ever been stepped on and it's got germs on it. Used you get no warranty.

I hear ya, and back in the G4 days I got some less than perfect used Macs, but...

Nah Macs are solid and I have bought a lot used and none have had any issues. Obviously you have to look at the condition and test but there are a lot of people who consider themselves "professionals" who are really just rich who have to have the latest and sell their high end macs a year later cheap.

Yeah, I bought a 2017 13" MacBook Air in 2021 off Kijiji, and it was pristine. I could tell by the serial number that it was an Apple refurb, but I didn't care about that since as well all know, Apple refurbs are excellent.

I also bought a 2015 13" MacBook Pro off eBay in 2021 and it was essentially perfect. I opened it up to install a bigger SSD, and it looked brand new inside with zero dust, as did the keyboard and screen. The battery only had 30 cycles too. I think for that one it probably had the battery replaced, which involves replacing the battery, keyboard, and top case, which would explain why all of that looked brand new and the very low battery cycles.

And I bought an M1 Mac mini 16 GB 1 TB off ebay in 2022, and despite having a manufacture date of 2 years prior, it only had 1 week of power on time according to the SSD info, and it also looked brand new. And it still does... Anyone want to buy an M1 Mac mini, since I've upgraded to the M4?

All were for very good prices too. So while there are no guarantees, I've had good luck on the used market in recent years.

That said, I'm inclined to wait until the Back-To-School promotion to buy a new MacBook Air. I qualify for the edu pricing, and while I'm not sure if I'd get the m3 or the M4, I believe both the M3 and M4 will be eligible for the gift card promotion anyway.