I have a late 2010 MacBook Air with 2GB ram and 64GB flash storage...basically the most basic Air with 1.4GHz processor...I did not install Lion, but would consider doing a clean install just to make sure the machine still runs well...but I was wondering how many people with this similar machine will update to Mountain Lion when it comes out? I will most likely be doing a clean install of this myself when it comes out. Anyone who will update...do you expect...better performance...similar performance...or less performance?...given that this is the most basic machine.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Late 2010 MacBook Air...updating to ML
- Thread starter byziphone4
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I am in the same position as you as I also have a 2010 base MacBook air running SL. I dont think im going to upgrade to ML because I'm worried I will take a hit on performance and I'm not unsatisfied with SL. I think the 2 GB of ram will hold us back.
I picked up the same unit as you, last June, and, while it's been running fine w/out any issues, I'm outgrowing the ssd. I updated to Lion w/no hiccups and will be updating to Mountain Lion once it's released. I ordered a used Samsung 128gb SSD off of eBay, not for Mountain Lion, but because I've been using the Air for more tasks than originally intended. I wouldn't think ML would cause too many issues, I read the min requirement is 2GB ram, so we should be good.
If you're content then there's no need to, but with the recent outbreak of viruses, ML is going to be much safer than SL.
Also, if you own any other devices (Mac/iOS) they're going to work better together and be much better in sync.
And if you're using iCloud/MobileMe, MobileMe is ending in a few days and some legacy stuff with SL/MobileMe might break (not 100% sure, but it's something to think about).
Also, if you own any other devices (Mac/iOS) they're going to work better together and be much better in sync.
And if you're using iCloud/MobileMe, MobileMe is ending in a few days and some legacy stuff with SL/MobileMe might break (not 100% sure, but it's something to think about).
I have the 1.6/4gb/128 model (2010 ultimate), and I downgraded from Lion after about a week. It wasn't as quick, quiet, or cool running Lion, and Coolbook (undervolting program) ceased to function. In my experience Apple products tend to run the best on the original software they were designed for, so unless you have a specific reason to upgrade to ML I would suggest sticking with SL. I think your overall experience will be more positive.
I am completely satisfied with SL. In fact I think my machine works great! Before I had this MacBook I had a PC with 4GB of ram...64-bit Windows...Duo Core 2.4 GHz processor..so yes I downgraded for this machine..but this machine even though downgraded, runs better, faster, and years ahead of Windows! So yes...I am very satisfied!
Than you hear of stories like this that turn out good from people who have updated to Lion...
----------
Than you hear of stories from people that experience this!
I have a 2010 13" Air 4G 256G ... have upgraded this and an early MBP 13 (2.6 4GB 320GB) to the latest ML P4 ...
and its apple version of the Vista -> Win 7 ... both perform much better and cooler than on Lion ...
really give them both a new lease of life and it even improved with the Security Patch 2 a couple of days ago...
So much so that I really struggle to see why I need to upgrade the Air to a 2012 only to get BL Keys and USB 3
This is like the early days of OS X where old hardware just got better with each new release
Just for the record I actually cloned my drives with CCC , then did a clean install using the Downloadable Installer, followed by the migration wizard.. just my way to ensure no issues..
your milage may vary ..
and its apple version of the Vista -> Win 7 ... both perform much better and cooler than on Lion ...
really give them both a new lease of life and it even improved with the Security Patch 2 a couple of days ago...
So much so that I really struggle to see why I need to upgrade the Air to a 2012 only to get BL Keys and USB 3
This is like the early days of OS X where old hardware just got better with each new release
Just for the record I actually cloned my drives with CCC , then did a clean install using the Downloadable Installer, followed by the migration wizard.. just my way to ensure no issues..
your milage may vary ..
I have my Late 2010 11" 1.4ghz 4GB ram running Lion and plan to update to ML. I have to admit that SL ran faster, but this is still very usable for me. I dont regret updating. And with SL you wouldn't get any of the iCloud features. I would think many people dont have a 11" MBA as their main machine, and in that case having iCloud to share all your bookmarks, calender, etc between your systems is very helpful. (This also applies if you have an iPhone.)
Unfortunately the reselling price of this machine is not very high, so I'm not sure if I'm able to get rid of this when I need to upgrade..
Does anyone know if the upcoming GPU support in Safari includes the 320m? I heard that is one of the new features of ML. But knowing Apple I wouldnt be suprised if it only applies to the sandy/ivy brige GPUs
Unfortunately the reselling price of this machine is not very high, so I'm not sure if I'm able to get rid of this when I need to upgrade..
Does anyone know if the upcoming GPU support in Safari includes the 320m? I heard that is one of the new features of ML. But knowing Apple I wouldnt be suprised if it only applies to the sandy/ivy brige GPUs
I couldn't agree with you more. I was pricing out if it was worth putting this on ebay/craigslist to sell to upgrade to either a heavier optioned 2011 refurb or a 2012 and the value of the base 11 inch 2010 model is pretty low, IMO. That's why I opted for a bigger, used, SSD on ebay. That should hold me over until at least the next refresh, then i'll see what's available.
I use a 2010 1.4/4GB/128GB 11" as my main machine and it runs great. I've been running Lion on it since last year without a problem, and will upgrade to ML when it's released. I think iCloud is really nice even if you don't have other Macs. I use it all the time between my MBA, iPhone, and iPad.
I agree with you about the resale value of the 2010s; it definitely doesn't seem to be that great. There are a lot of uses for these computers though beyond reselling them, and they'll be great for basic tasks for years to come. After I upgrade when my Apple Care expires next December, I'll probably keep my 2010 as a backup computer, give it to a family member, or use it as a guest computer.