Macbook Air 2017 in Clamshell mode

[Prayer]

Hi guys, since the non MacBook Air 2017 line of laptops seems to have major keyboard issues I'm looking to buy a 13.3" 2017 MacBook air and plan to use it in Clamshell mode. My only concern is the fan noise in Clamshell mode. Is the laptop loud in Clamshell mode or could you live with it say on a 1440p screen?

 

[Weaselboy]

I had a MBA 13" (I think 2012) and ran it all the time in clamshell and only heard the fans when watching HD videos that stressed the CPU a bit. But in normal usage just web browsing I never could hear the fans. I don't think this will be an issue for you.

I don't see that the new Airs are much changed from the one I had, so I think your experience would be similar.

 

[Prayer]

I had a MBA 13" (I think 2012) and ran it all the time in clamshell and only heard the fans when watching HD videos that stressed the CPU a bit. But in normal usage just web browsing I never could hear the fans. I don't think this will be an issue for you.

I don't see that the new Airs are much changed from the one I had, so I think your experience would be similar.

That sounds awesome, thanks! Do you by any chance remember what display were you using at the time, the resolution I mean. Also a followup question, is the 128GB model enough for basic apps you might additionally install? I plan to use it for browsing the internet and watching movies (all my media is on my 3TB external HDD)

 

[Weaselboy]

That sounds awesome, thanks! Do you by any chance remember what display were you using at the time, the resolution I mean. Also a followup question, is the 128GB model enough for basic apps you might additionally install? I plan to use it for browsing the internet and watching movies (all my media is on my 3TB external HDD)

I was using the Apple Thunderbolt Display and the resolution was 2560 x 1440. It was a really nice setup if you can find one of those displays used for a good price.

I had the 128GB drive and it was fine. I had the usual OS and office apps and still had about 90GB of space left, so plenty if you don't want to store a ton of media on there.

 

[Pugly]

I use my 2015 in clamshell mode whenever I'm home. It works great. The fan rarely turns on. I've gamed and used Logic on it too. The fan turns on doing this of course. But I watch a lot of video and websites with no problem.

The fan turns on faster when in clamshell. It's just not as good cooling it. This isn't usually a problem though. But if I want to do something heavy I'll run it open. I did this when I ripped a bunch of dvds.

 

[Prayer]

I use my 2015 in clamshell mode whenever I'm home. It works great. The fan rarely turns on. I've gamed and used Logic on it too. The fan turns on doing this of course. But I watch a lot of video and websites with no problem.

The fan turns on faster when in clamshell. It's just not as good cooling it. This isn't usually a problem though. But if I want to do something heavy I'll run it open. I did this when I ripped a bunch of dvds.

That was to be expected, but are the fans (in your case) loud when they turn on? I'm planning on doing basic stuff like browsing/listening to Spotify. I can handle the fans being audible but I would really hate for them going full speed while web browsing or watching movies.

Edit: What resolution are you using in Clamshell mode

 

[Pugly]

The fans really never turn on using internet/videos/music. Some terrible website might get the fan to turn on, but that's not really a fault of the Air.

I don't think the fans are very loud at full blast. It's much quieter than the old MacBook I had.

I use 1080p when in clamshell.

 

[Johnny365]

The fans will turn on when browsing a bunch of image sites that have gifs, like instagram, tumblr, etc, but that's with any modern computer/laptop.

 

[burgman]

Only time I hear the fans is when browsing with Chrome on certain websites. Looking at Activity Monitor, the CPU is 90 to 120%, Looking at you Imore. This is on 1440p@60. Movies most everything else never hear the fan.