Exactly. The MacBook Air with 7-core GPU. 8GB RAM, and 512GB SSD is $1199. With an 8-core GPU it is $1249.
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Is the 8th GPU Core worth $50 to You?
- Thread starter KPOM
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You guys have strangle pricing or you're not comparing base models and doing some incoherent comparison of optionised models that only a pillock would employ?
I’m comparing an upgraded base model. Take the model on the left and upgrade to a 512 SSD. If the UK pricing is similar to the US, then it will be £1,199.
jav6454
macrumors Core
For me it's always best to go with the highest spec. Mileage may vary for us all.
Why? They appear to be identical except for the 8th GPU core.
I think I've been lear as to why that's a faulty comparison multiple times in this thread. If you can't see it, then it might be time to jog on.
Yup, for the Air, if you start with the $999 (8/256, M1 7-core GPU) and $1249 (8/512, M1 8-core GPU) standard configurations, and then bring them to storage parity at 512GB, you'll find the 7-core GPU version is $50 cheaper, and this price difference holds across upgrade options. This is even more pronounced for the Education pricing, where the 7-core GPU version is $70 cheaper.
To the OP and others who are curious about this difference and if it's worth it… I'm leaning toward no. But, I am worried that this could be one of those Apple things where there are other downgrades that they aren't clear about, or that, at some point down the line, the 7-core versions get cut out of features because all the other M1 machines have 8-core GPUs and features get designed around that. I reviewed the technical specifications and saw nothing that indicated a disparity in capability at this time.
That said, my GPU use is limited to powering external displays (2) and wanting the UI to be smooth. I don't game, and only very occasionally put together a brief video. And on a laptop that is going to be thermally constrained due to its lack of a fan, I figure the cores would be throttled down under load anyway, so the 8th GPU core is unlikely to be missed. And we're talking about maybe a 10% or so difference in benchmarked performance. The A12X (7-core) vs A12Z (8-core) distinction in 2018/2020 iPads Pro provides a basis for speculation. In the 12.9-inch model, the 2018 had a Metal score of 10937 in Geekbench while the 2020 came in at 11754. That's around a 7.5% improvement.
I'd suggest, particularly if you're cash constrained, putting the GPU savings of the base model toward more RAM or storage. And I just really really hope that we don't start seeing "*except MacBook Air models with 7-core GPUs" in the notes for future OS upgrades. 😉🤞
(After much hemming and hawing, I pre-ordered a 16/512/7-core GPU for $1259 on the Edu Store)
To the OP and others who are curious about this difference and if it's worth it… I'm leaning toward no. But, I am worried that this could be one of those Apple things where there are other downgrades that they aren't clear about, or that, at some point down the line, the 7-core versions get cut out of features because all the other M1 machines have 8-core GPUs and features get designed around that. I reviewed the technical specifications and saw nothing that indicated a disparity in capability at this time.
That said, my GPU use is limited to powering external displays (2) and wanting the UI to be smooth. I don't game, and only very occasionally put together a brief video. And on a laptop that is going to be thermally constrained due to its lack of a fan, I figure the cores would be throttled down under load anyway, so the 8th GPU core is unlikely to be missed. And we're talking about maybe a 10% or so difference in benchmarked performance. The A12X (7-core) vs A12Z (8-core) distinction in 2018/2020 iPads Pro provides a basis for speculation. In the 12.9-inch model, the 2018 had a Metal score of 10937 in Geekbench while the 2020 came in at 11754. That's around a 7.5% improvement.
I'd suggest, particularly if you're cash constrained, putting the GPU savings of the base model toward more RAM or storage. And I just really really hope that we don't start seeing "*except MacBook Air models with 7-core GPUs" in the notes for future OS upgrades. 😉🤞
(After much hemming and hawing, I pre-ordered a 16/512/7-core GPU for $1259 on the Edu Store)
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I just read in an article on macg.com (in French) that the reason for the 7 core GPU MBA is "chip binning".
The gist of the story is this: when a SoC is tested with a non functioning GPU core, it may go to the lower end MBA; otherwise it is good for any of the machine. And of course, when it is tested with issues on more than 1 GPU core or on some other parts, it goes to the trash... Based on this interpretation, the expected difference would be little.
Here is the link in French.
The gist of the story is this: when a SoC is tested with a non functioning GPU core, it may go to the lower end MBA; otherwise it is good for any of the machine. And of course, when it is tested with issues on more than 1 GPU core or on some other parts, it goes to the trash... Based on this interpretation, the expected difference would be little.
Here is the link in French.
Totally worth it to me. I have had both on my hands, and I did feel the 8C a bit snappier...no number or benchmarks, my feeling only. Also, I felt a bit short changed on paying for the new M1 and not getting the full chip.