that too. It's like they really finally threw in the towel on what an Air is and made it a Pro-Lite.
Reminiscent of how awkward it was to have unibody MB's that were for all intents and purposes a unibody MBP just with a garbage contrast screen
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M1 Air people, getting an M2 Air?
- Thread starter thadoggfather
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that too. It's like they really finally threw in the towel on what an Air is and made it a Pro-Lite.
Reminiscent of how awkward it was to have unibody MB's that were for all intents and purposes a unibody MBP just with a garbage contrast screen
I was going to get the M2 Air, until I saw the SSD comparison video for the Pro from Max Tech. I didn't think at first it would make a difference, but boy, it does. Ordered the 14" MBP today instead.
I wonder if its an architectural quirk of M2, or just cheap NANDs used.
Could also be a driver issue of some kind, but I'm doubtful of that. Most likely its the cheap bug.
I would have ordered the M1 Air instead to p*ss them off, because in upselling you a 14" Pro, Apple have totally succeeded in their aim.
Architectural. In basic language (for my benefit not necessarily yours) twice the chips = twice the width of the highway. Like RAID, but not like RAID.
I somehow don't think a sale accurate conveys 'pissing off Apple'
The half speed SSD issue only applies to the 256gb model. SSD speeds are the same as M1 when you upgrade to 512gb and above.
14 inch is a good buy too. Overkill since you were initially buying an Air, but you’ll love the screen.
Well it's less than buying a 14", and imagine if everyone did it. The message would become clear.
You don't give up felling a tree just because the first strike of the axe barely splits the bark.
The message wouldn't be clear imo. It would convey people are cheap / price sensitive even if the top tier had no issues to have reservations about.
In the same way Apple interpreted lackluster mini sales because people dont want mini phones. Theres probably some truth to that in relation to phablet trends, but I think tons of those SE2/3 users would love a X mini at SE price. We wouldn't know though because they havent released a $400 X mini phone, they're released a 'less than $100 for the most popular model' mini.
I liked that 14” MBP, too. It’s not the right machine for me but it’s a good choice. I looked at it. Very nice.
Well, I was going for a 256GB initially. Getting a 512 + 16GB of RAM would put me near the price of the 14 inch pro that my employer offers me. So for just 10 bucks more, I'd rather just get a more powerful machine that'll last me a long time. Besides, at that point it just doesn't make sense to get the Air anymore.
I do edit videos and the like, so not too much of an overkill
I considered that, sure. But if it did, I'd upgrade to the 512GB. With a 10 core + 16GB of RAM that would put the price near the number my employer could get me for the 14 inch pro. So, for 10 bucks extra... at that point it just doesn't make sense to get the air anymore.
Unibody MBs were anything but garbage.that too. It's like they really finally threw in the towel on what an Air is and made it a Pro-Lite.
Reminiscent of how awkward it was to have unibody MB's that were for all intents and purposes a unibody MBP just with a garbage contrast screen
I feel like a lot of informed buyers will be in the same circumstances. I really like the small air form factor and work around the port limitations, but if I was upgrading I'd have to strongly consider a 14" Pro on sale instead of an M2 Air right now. There are enough benefits (for me) to justify a small extra expense. What made the M1 the right buy for me when I bought it was saving almost $800.
It all depends on what you deem important, of course. I want 16GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage. I don't need 10 GPU cores, so the best two options for me are:
M2 Air, 8-core CPU, 10-Core GPU, 16 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD: $1,799, or $1,679 with education pricing (wife is a teacher)
M1 Pro 14, 8-core CPU, 14-core GPU, 16 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD: $2,199, or or $2,029 with education pricing. (The cheapest sale price I have seen on a MBP 14" with 1 TB of storage was $2,250, for the 10-core CPU version.)
I'll take the $350-400 in savings to the bank (or wine cellar) every time. I also greatly prefer the lighter weight; even if the computers were the same price, I'd likely opt for the Air simply because of the weight savings.
I look at it this way: the 14" Pro is loaded with premium features, of course, and you pay for them. I also consider the lighter weight and slimmer profile of the M2 Air to be premium features as well, however, and put greater value on them than the additional power of the 14" Pro, particularly since the M2 has more than enough power for my needs. That's where I am willing to put my money.
Admittedly the screen of the 14" Pro is alluring, but since I don't watch much video on laptops, it's really not worth $350-400 and additional weight to me.
First, I was really eager to get the M2. Then I configured it. For the price it was $200 less than a MBP. I actually ordered the Pro...but cancelled it. Why? I love the portability of my Air and its battery life. I use my Air as a tool for work and do not do intensive work on it.
After hemming and hawing, I think I am going to keep my Air and just put the money towards a Mac Studio.
After hemming and hawing, I think I am going to keep my Air and just put the money towards a Mac Studio.
Pretty much same here. When I watched latest Apple venue where M2’s were shown, I was ready to get M2 Air but soon realized there is not really point getting base model as it would not really give me much else than new chassis, plus when seeing first reviews of base Pro M2 and slow SSD was the last thing for me. I considered also getting just base Pro 14” which is practically the same price when it is on sale as upcoming MBA M2 with the same RAM and SSD size.
Anyway, I rarely even need or use laptop so Pro is definitely overkill for my needs but new type of chassis would have been nice to have, maybe (hard to say until I get to try one myself). Also I considered using Pro as desktop but again kinda waste to use that kind of machine 99% of time in clamshell mode.
Maybe I just keep my M1 Air and wait and see if new Mini is coming soon and whether it is a real improvement compared to my current M1 Mini.
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i also have a MBP
- yes, the screen is great, but i'm also very fine with the one in my MBA - but of course the 16" is much bigger, which is great for lots of duties, but it's just not as portable. It is in fact a brick in this regard, while my MBA is almost like carrying a slightly heftier magazine with you - admittedly, iPads are even greater at that
- i never use those speakers anyway - they might be good for a laptop, but i have much better speakers at home in my stereo, or my headphones
- yes, the Pro has more ports, but the MBA is way more portable and while on the go (even just at home) i don't need dozens of dongles docked to my computer anyway.
i actually think my MBA is the best computer i ever had, because of it's portability
but of course certain tasks work better on the Pro due to the larger screen (and in my case more memory too, but i was quite aware of that when i initally got my MBA as a "secondary option" for "everyday tasks" that 8GB are not a lot)
in the end it has become my main system though and i only opt for my Pro if i really need a bigger screen (and yes, be wowed for a couple of seconds by the 120fps and nicer colors, before i stop noticing it) and more RAM.
- yes, the screen is great, but i'm also very fine with the one in my MBA - but of course the 16" is much bigger, which is great for lots of duties, but it's just not as portable. It is in fact a brick in this regard, while my MBA is almost like carrying a slightly heftier magazine with you - admittedly, iPads are even greater at that
- i never use those speakers anyway - they might be good for a laptop, but i have much better speakers at home in my stereo, or my headphones
- yes, the Pro has more ports, but the MBA is way more portable and while on the go (even just at home) i don't need dozens of dongles docked to my computer anyway.
i actually think my MBA is the best computer i ever had, because of it's portability
but of course certain tasks work better on the Pro due to the larger screen (and in my case more memory too, but i was quite aware of that when i initally got my MBA as a "secondary option" for "everyday tasks" that 8GB are not a lot)
in the end it has become my main system though and i only opt for my Pro if i really need a bigger screen (and yes, be wowed for a couple of seconds by the 120fps and nicer colors, before i stop noticing it) and more RAM.
Surely better screen is always a big plus but brightness does not matter to me since even MBA is more than bright enough for me because I rarely use it any higher that 50% brightness. But in 14" Pro battery life likely is much worse, probably something in line with what it was in my Pro 13" 2019 model (Intel CPU) where it simply sucked compared to my MBA M1.
Also if I ended up getting 14" Pro I would likely use it docked as desktop 99% of the time connected to my 32" 4K monitor anyway, so pretty much all features but power (speed) would not be used at all.
waste of money then, you are guessing on battery and you don't even own one lol, ok.
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My hunch with the SSD fiasco with the new “Pro” is that they are not giving chips to a device that few will order and the new Air’s will have the expected Read\Write speeds. It’s a shame, though. Apple could have avoided this mess just by being transparent.
The price was not really even an issue for me until I compared similar build to an M1 Pro laptop. Oh well. Gotta go pick up my new Studio. I’ll get an M2 Air maybe this time next year.
The price was not really even an issue for me until I compared similar build to an M1 Pro laptop. Oh well. Gotta go pick up my new Studio. I’ll get an M2 Air maybe this time next year.
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I don't think so. After all Pro is a pro and I see why they would put faster 256GB SSD in their consumer model.
Again same here, price itself it not an issue, but MBA M2 costing practically the same as MBP 14" M1 Pro base when you bump up SSD and RAM to match each other is an issue here! That will be a terrible value and I'm pretty sure resale value of such MBA is very low compared to MBP.
However, I think price difference outside USA is pending to change as soon as MBP 14" gets any updates. I would not be surprised if price goes up for +600 euros. That's about what happened with MBA M1 > MBA M2 where price bump was +300 euros, so when MBA M1 used to be about 1/2 the price of a MBP 14".
So I'm still considering whether to get MBP 14" now and sell my MBA M1 and Mini M1, and then just use MBP 14" for both uses (I use desktop 99% of the time anyway).