Macbook Air 2013 wireless issue question...

[steamengine]

New here, but follow regularly. Longtime mac user but not particularly fluent in computer lingo.

My 2007 Macbook finally bit the dust and I need a new computer ASAP. I'm pretty certain that an Air will suit my needs and I'm ready to pull the trigger, but it seems the wireless issue with these machines has not been resolved, even on custom built recent issues.

My question is: Is this problem software or hardware based? Meaning, is there any chance that I'll get an Air and the wireless issue is something on the hardware side and won't be able to be resolved without replacing hardware or the machine itself? I'm fine if it's a software fix that they will be able to resolve in time with updates, but something irks me about buying an expensive new machine that is likely to be flawed on the hardware side.

 

[ZBoater]

My question is: Is this problem software or hardware based? Meaning, is there any chance that I'll get an Air and the wireless issue is something on the hardware side and won't be able to be resolved without replacing hardware or the machine itself?...

What wireless issue?

I've read some people reporting some problems on all sorts of things. There is a chance you will get a defective MBA. A very, very small chance. But a chance nonetheless. The MBA is manufactured by humans, and as such it is prone to be defective once every few thousand units. It happens.

No one can guarantee you a defect free MBA, but Apple will return your money within 14 days and will repair it and make it right within the first year (some countries have 3 years warranty). If you are risk averse and have only one year warranty, you can get Applecare and extend that to 3 years.

If your MBA exhibits a problem, Apple will make it right. They have the ability and reputation for taking care of customers.

 

[steamengine]

What wireless issue?

I've read some people reporting some problems on all sorts of things. There is a chance you will get a defective MBA. A very, very small chance. But a chance nonetheless. The MBA is manufactured by humans, and as such it is prone to be defective once every few thousand units. It happens.

No one can guarantee you a defect free MBA, but Apple will return your money within 14 days and will repair it and make it right within the first year (some countries have 3 years warranty). If you are risk averse and have only one year warranty, you can get Applecare and extend that to 3 years.

If your MBA exhibits a problem, Apple will make it right. They have the ability and reputation for taking care of customers.

Wow. A little research seemed to yield the result that there are widespread wireless issues with the recently updated line of Macbook Airs. Maybe I'm just mistaken. Either way, I'm typically cautious with money and live and work in far out Brooklyn, so getting back and forth from the Apple store is a pain.

 

[ZBoater]

Wow. A little research seemed to yield the result that there are widespread wireless issues with the recently updated line of Macbook Airs. Maybe I'm just mistaken. Either way, I'm typically cautious with money and live and work in far out Brooklyn, so getting back and forth from the Apple store is a pain.

Weeeellll, widespread is relative. If you go into a hospital, the abundance of sick people will be widespread. Yes, some folks have had issues, but they've had issues with other things as well. It is not a design flaw, like antennagate or anything like that. I read a post that a Genius reseated the aircard inside the MBA and that fixed it. That post pointed to a hardware problem. I've read other posts saying it was router related. At this point it is impossible to tell for sure.

The MBA is a solid product by and large. Apple is a high quality brand. I can't think of any other laptop brand that is of higher quality and on which I would be confident of spending my hard earned money.

When the 2012 MBA came out, it had problems working with Parallels. It was a Parallels driver issue most likely, but I didn't want to wait for a fix, so I returned my MBA for a refund. I bought two Thunderbolt displays (a his an a hers), and my wife's TB display stopped charging the MBA. It took TWO trips to the Apple store, but they finally replaced enough parts (it was the power supply, duh!) to fix it.

I wouldn't worry. The likelihood of you getting a "problem" system is very low. Forums like this attract people with problems, so it looks like the problems are widespread, when in fact only a small percentage of systems is affected. Fact is most people with unaffected systems will never take the time to post their experience. Only the ones with affected systems will. It's how internet forums work.

If it makes you feel any better, take out the MBA at the store and test it there to make sure it works properly. Make sure to allow yourself enough time to play with it while you are at the store. That way you can be even more confident you are getting a "good one".

Good luck!

 

[imjoee]

New here, but follow regularly. Longtime mac user but not particularly fluent in computer lingo.

My 2007 Macbook finally bit the dust and I need a new computer ASAP. I'm pretty certain that an Air will suit my needs and I'm ready to pull the trigger, but it seems the wireless issue with these machines has not been resolved, even on custom built recent issues.

My question is: Is this problem software or hardware based? Meaning, is there any chance that I'll get an Air and the wireless issue is something on the hardware side and won't be able to be resolved without replacing hardware or the machine itself? I'm fine if it's a software fix that they will be able to resolve in time with updates, but something irks me about buying an expensive new machine that is likely to be flawed on the hardware side.

Just buy the machine. if it has the problem, it's defective. so then you would get a exchanged one for no questions asked.

I've went through 3 MBA's in the last 3 weeks and have no wireless problems.