M1 Air enough or wait for M1X?

[mosh.jinton]

I currently have a 2012 15-inch Pro (non-retina) which has served me really well but is well in need of replacing. I'm a software developer, mostly mobile stuff, and also do quite a bit of video and photo editing and design work. I'm currently torn between getting an M1 MacBook Air in the education sale, or waiting for the M1X MacBooks. Until Monday, I can get an M1 Air 512/16GB for £1150. We don't know prices for M1X Macs but it seems like it's very unlikely they'll start below £1800 (same price as the Intel MacBook Pro 13 inch) and could well be higher than that?

For my purposes -- coding all day and editing videos as a hobby / ocassional side work -- would an M1 Air be enough, or would I notice the advantages of the M1X day-to-day? Am I likely to notice any limitations with the Air for my purposes or is it capable of that sort of work? I realise that the M1X hasn't been revealed yet -- I'm asking now because I'd save over £300 on the Air by using the education deal which ends on Monday -- hence the question more being the appropriateness of the M1 Air in a 512/16GB config.

 

[jdb8167]

If you are currently using a 2012 MBP then obviously the M1 performance is a huge upgrade. The SSD performance is going to be significantly better too. If your current MBP is adequate then I don't see how an M1 MBA wouldn't suffice. It is likely that any new Apple silicon MacBook Pro models are going to be a lot more expensive (probably close to an additional £1000).

 

[mikeschr]

I also code all day, and I edit videos shot in 1080p. My M1 Air (8 GB RAM) breezes through any task I throw at it and renders the videos about 10 times faster than my maxed-out 2017 MBP did. It doesn't sound like you'd have a problem.

 

[KaliYoni]

do quite a bit of video and photo editing and design work.

If you use or are planning to use an external monitor, have a look at this:

Apple Silicon is Still a Pain to Use with Color Accurate Monitors

It's not the best experience.

petapixel.com

 

[JustAnExpat]

I did a quick research on Mactracker:

The 2020 MacBook Air has a processor that's 3 times faster, a far faster hard drive (especially if you were a 5400 SATA drive), much better battery, and can run the latest version of MacOS.

The 15" 2012 Macbook Pro has a larger screen, and an Intel processor.

The M1X (or whatever it's called) will be faster than the M1. It will not be three times faster.

Buy the 2020 Macbook Air. It should last you until the end of the decade.

 

[hobowankenobi]

Do consider 16GB of RAM though.

Even if it is not essential now...odds are it will extend the usable life of the machine, as RAM requirements have typically crept up over time.

 

[jdb8167]

Do consider 16GB of RAM though.

Even if it is not essential now...odds are it will extend the usable life of the machine, as RAM requirements have typically crept up over time.

They are doing software development. 16 GB is really not optional for that.

 

[mosh.jinton]

Thanks for your advice all! I've decided to go for an M1 Air for now with the education discount, but if the M1X Pros are really special I'll still be able to return it and get one.