Thats what I went with i3/16gb..... I rather have double the ram.......
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MacBook Air 2020 USER reviews
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hello
not uncomfortable to use at all. The global temperature and palm rest temperature were ok. At the same level as my MBPR 15
i was more annoyed by the size of the screen (not the MBA fault) and mostly the global impression that it was not powerful enough -> quite slow ssd, and throttled cpu
To reply to people concerned about the Ram, during my review I used the intel widget to check it and cpu+ temperature
it appeared that for : safari web, watching video, photo processing, playing counter go I 720p it never used Mose than 6 GB of Ram and newer swapped memory
to my opinion 8 gb is enough for mainstream use.
regardless RAM, the real problem is this MBA is that : as soon as it is running under load, the fan startups , the thermal goes up to 100 and more more problematic , the CPU works at 1 GH. P
Peak of boost on/off at the beginning, and then, no more boost after several minutes
i often did files copy ,and yes the SSD seems to be pretty slow (or the CPu around) ?
In conclusion. Don’t waste 250$ on memory upgrade in all case, if you need so much memory , I means that you need many calculation power and your CPU won’t be able to provide that in, in the cooling configuration Apple gave to us
In this case do like me. Stay with your MBP or wait for a MBP 14
it appeared that for : safari web, watching video, photo processing, playing counter go I 720p it never used Mose than 6 GB of Ram and newer swapped memory
to my opinion 8 gb is enough for mainstream use.
regardless RAM, the real problem is this MBA is that : as soon as it is running under load, the fan startups , the thermal goes up to 100 and more more problematic , the CPU works at 1 GH. P
Peak of boost on/off at the beginning, and then, no more boost after several minutes
i often did files copy ,and yes the SSD seems to be pretty slow (or the CPu around) ?
In conclusion. Don’t waste 250$ on memory upgrade in all case, if you need so much memory , I means that you need many calculation power and your CPU won’t be able to provide that in, in the cooling configuration Apple gave to us
In this case do like me. Stay with your MBP or wait for a MBP 14
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There are people who are more then qualified on the subject that agree with the armchair experts. Just like the idiots that tried to tell us the butterfly keyboard was fine only to have Apple themselves change back to a traditional design.
So, some thoughts after using my MBA 2020 for around a day.
SG - i5/16/256
Typical apps open/in use - Virtual Box (running/using tools in Kali Linux), Tidal, Safari (maybe 4/5 tabs including YouTube and Udemy), iMessage and Apple TV app. I honestly have no heard fans blowing since the first few hours when iCloud was syncing / indexing and even then they were not even remotely loud - juuuust about audible whereas in comparison to my brand new work laptop (Dell Latitude 7400) is sitting with excel, outlook and a few other things open and it's blowing away.. all the time (I do think there's some issue with it, however).
Overall, this is a cracker of a machine. I have a 2013 MBA and my daily is an iMac 2013 that I gave a bit of an overhaul to late last year. I have no experience with the previous keyboard Apple had out as I avoided the devices once I saw the uproar around the internet. Also, I have an external USB-C external Dell port device (ethernet, HDMI, USB B/C and VGA) and it works a treat on the Air. So that's a handy saving for external ports I won't have to shell out on.
So far, I am super pleased with my purchase.
SG - i5/16/256
Typical apps open/in use - Virtual Box (running/using tools in Kali Linux), Tidal, Safari (maybe 4/5 tabs including YouTube and Udemy), iMessage and Apple TV app. I honestly have no heard fans blowing since the first few hours when iCloud was syncing / indexing and even then they were not even remotely loud - juuuust about audible whereas in comparison to my brand new work laptop (Dell Latitude 7400) is sitting with excel, outlook and a few other things open and it's blowing away.. all the time (I do think there's some issue with it, however).
Overall, this is a cracker of a machine. I have a 2013 MBA and my daily is an iMac 2013 that I gave a bit of an overhaul to late last year. I have no experience with the previous keyboard Apple had out as I avoided the devices once I saw the uproar around the internet. Also, I have an external USB-C external Dell port device (ethernet, HDMI, USB B/C and VGA) and it works a treat on the Air. So that's a handy saving for external ports I won't have to shell out on.
So far, I am super pleased with my purchase.
In the end and after a lot of thought, I have returned my i5/8/256. Not just because of the thermals and poor front camera - though that was part of it. But I also can't help but wonder if this generation is the last Intel iteration, before the leap to ARM based Macs in 2021.
Apple's ARM stuff is incredible performance and I believe will be a stronger long term bet. It is clear that Intel are losing the silicon race to both AMD x86 (esp in desktops) and ARM. The weak thermal solution in the MBA2020 doesn't help.
It is a lovely machine though and if I didn't have alternative ways of working, then I would have kept it. It was a hard decision.
Apple's ARM stuff is incredible performance and I believe will be a stronger long term bet. It is clear that Intel are losing the silicon race to both AMD x86 (esp in desktops) and ARM. The weak thermal solution in the MBA2020 doesn't help.
It is a lovely machine though and if I didn't have alternative ways of working, then I would have kept it. It was a hard decision.
This crossed my mind too, however I think I'll do I'll do a trade-in when/if they come around.
I have been trying out a 2020 MBA i5/16GB/512GB for the last few days.
I have loaded 273 ~25MB .dng files into the latest version of Lightroom Classic with an iPad Air 3 sidecar as the secondary display.
I had the same collection open side by side on my 2017 iMac 5K i7/64GB/2TB.
Performing operations such as Auto Exposure on all the files was reasonably quick. Scrolling is usable, although hitting the forward arrow 60 times at the same time on both machines it took the MBA about 45 seconds to catch up to the iMac and replace the embedded preview.
I have a VirtualBox Windows 10 image on an external SSD, it takes about 30 seconds to boot on the iMac and 55 seconds on the MBA.
I have compared the MBA physically to my wife's 13" 2016 MBP, and there really is no differences in size/feel. The wedge shape goes from thinner to thicker than the MBP, I think I prefer the uniform shape. Weight difference is negligible.
The speakers on the MBA aren't great, and I really think I'd like P3 and a brighter (and bigger if possible!) display. The fans are constantly spinning when I use it, which isn't ideal. Additional CPU and graphics performance would also be very welcome.
The 2020 MBA is fine, and I could absolutely use it, but I think I'll pass on this one and wait for the 2020 13" MBP. (What I really want is a 11-12" ARM MacBook!)
Before purchasing the Air, I was greatly torn between getting it and the Surface Laptop 3. The biggest factor that I found that deterred me is past experiences with Microsoft's support of Surface products and some of the issues we have experienced with them at work. Granted, I am definitely biased as my entire job is wrapped around managing client workstations, developing images, and supporting their hardware. The bad apples quickly draw resentment when you do that everyday, though I hear they have improved greatly in newer iterations.
I ordered the same specs as you are proposing for $1179 out the door. Overall, the machine performs beautifully and was a great buy in my books. While macOS does a fantastic job of memory management, Windows is not as friendly and quite frankly with the minimal costs to upgrade it was worthwhile for me simply for using Boot Camp.
No. The amount of RAM will not discernibly help the battery life. You may notice a slight benefit from running a dual core CPU rather than a quad core however. It is noteworthy that Apple makes no differentiation in their quoted battery specs between models.
Based on past experience, the Pro will feature a higher wattage CPU, which will be faster even if it were a few iterations behind. This is going to be a critical time for Apple once the new Pro is released, as if they bring in an i5, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB storage option for $1299 ($1199 with Education Discount), there will be very little incentive to get the Air.
If you have to modify your usage to use a computer effectively, it is not the right computer for you. The MacBook Air is a fantastic machine and does everything I ask of it. However, I am sure by the fact that we have such a long thread there is validity to the complaints voiced by many users. My recommendation would be to go to a Best Buy or Apple Store and stress test the machine. If it meets your requirements, you have a clear victor to buy right then and there.
Yes. Most of the time when running Parallels on any system the fan is running due to the increased CPU usage. However, the Air seems to maintain temperature quite well (from the feel of the case at least).
That is the one thing I am thoroughly surprised about with the MacBook Air is that the case actually remains a healthier temperature than any of the Pros. There is no debating that the Pro has superior cooling capabilities, but I certainly have felt a few of them get hot to the touch in comparison to the Air.
What people have to understand is simple :
If you already have a MBA, upgrade to the next MBA
If you have a MBP, please upgrade to to the next MBP.
I don't understand why people get from a better Mac to a lower Mac and still expect something to happen.
You'll always be disappointed. It's like I have Volvo and I downgrade to a Toyota. Come on guys !
My humble opinion !
If you already have a MBA, upgrade to the next MBA
If you have a MBP, please upgrade to to the next MBP.
I don't understand why people get from a better Mac to a lower Mac and still expect something to happen.
You'll always be disappointed. It's like I have Volvo and I downgrade to a Toyota. Come on guys !
My humble opinion !
What people have to understand is simple :
If you already have a MBA, upgrade to the next MBA
If you have a MBP, please upgrade to to the next MBP.
I don't understand why people get from a better Mac to a lower Mac and still expect something to happen.
You'll always be disappointed. It's like I have Volvo and I downgrade to a Toyota. Come on guys !
My humble opinion !
Exactly. Two different product lines oriented at different users / use cases.
Buy the tool for the job you need to perform.
Doesn't matter how nice that hammer looks, it's gonna suck at driving screws.
Disregard if you just surf the web or only run Apple apps, but the last time Apple jumped CPU architecture it took a couple of years before my main apps were native, by then the Intel based machines were much better then the 1st gen ones. Following the same line of thought, by the time Adobe/Microsoft make their apps native, there will be a much better AXX processor by then.
Fair point. A lot of MBA users will focus on Apple first party apps. I will be interested in what App cross-over from ARM/IOS to ARM/OSX is possible. But that risks ... derailing this thread.
I'll do that for sure, thanks for the insight. I think given my usage, the Air should be really good. However, waiting for the Pro to have its spec line will certainly help. I am clamoring out for hope that it can run at a base of i5/256gb SSD/16gb RAM for $1199. That's certainly being too "hopeful," but for the pricing, it would be a helluva deal compared to the other guys like the Dell XPS or Surface Laptop 3 with similar specs.
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How is the performance?
For $1199, you will likely get 8 GB of RAM, 256 GB of storage, and an i5 in the Pro refresh. The RAM will likely run an additional $200, based on what we see with the current model and the Airs.
Apple is typically slower on the spec sheet updates for base models, right? I remember 4gb RAM used to be the standard for Airs when I was looking at them back in 2015. The MBP had an 8gb RAM base lol. Whatever happened to that in-between model like the 12" MacBook? It was the one that debuted w/ the space grey and gold colors from what I can recall?
Of course.
It's marketing.
Base config that's probably fine for a the lower-intensity user base, but something that a lot of customers will want to upgrade in some way. Make even more margin on the upgrades.
We tend to make our first impression from the base config price. Then that "oh just a little more" effect takes hold with the upgrades and all of a sudden that $999 MBA becomes $1500.
The Pro is usually a pretty stout machine, and thus it would not surprise me if they bump the storage but keep the RAM amount the same in the next base model.
Sadly, I have the future proof mentality lol. So the 16gb RAM seems like a home run for me. If it were 16gb standard and the next up was 32gb, I don't think I would pay up because then that becomes overkill for what I need.
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Yeah, I agree with that. 256gb SSD seems pretty logical. I managed to make a 128gb SSD last, so 256gb will be welcomed. Though I can see more people opting for 512gb SSD space or something more if their usage needs it.
AVOID the i7 option, serious waste of money
It's about 6-7% faster than the i5
works out to $21 per % of improvement...for the $150 upcharge...
Single core test was 374 best of 3 runs on R20
This is the same as the i5. You would think the single core would be better as it should be less limited with a higher frequency with better chip binning. I either got a dud i7 or it's simply a power/heat constrained cpu even at higher grades...
Geekbench puts it in a much better light, but when stressed the i7 will perform the same as the i5 essentially...
It's about 6-7% faster than the i5
works out to $21 per % of improvement...for the $150 upcharge...
Single core test was 374 best of 3 runs on R20
This is the same as the i5. You would think the single core would be better as it should be less limited with a higher frequency with better chip binning. I either got a dud i7 or it's simply a power/heat constrained cpu even at higher grades...
Geekbench puts it in a much better light, but when stressed the i7 will perform the same as the i5 essentially...
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Question- does having swap memory make a noticeable difference in performance? My current 2016 nTB MBP has 8GB RAM and I'm usually using about 6.5-7GB of that with an additional 1-5gb of swap. That sounds like a lot of swap but my Activity Monitor memory pressure is always green...
I haven't noticed that my current machine runs slow but wondering if I should spring for the 16gb. I don't use pro apps but I always have 10-15 chrome tabs open, mail, Excel, Slack, and a remote desktop (not a VM run locally so only uses ~500MB RAM).
I haven't noticed that my current machine runs slow but wondering if I should spring for the 16gb. I don't use pro apps but I always have 10-15 chrome tabs open, mail, Excel, Slack, and a remote desktop (not a VM run locally so only uses ~500MB RAM).
This is a classic "it depends" type question.
If you're thrashing (frequent swapping in and out of stuff) then yes, it'll affect performance - perhaps noticeably but far less so with todays SSD than in the past with spinning HDDs.
If the swap space is quiescent - say for an application or in-memory data sitting there you've not touched for hours and won't go back to for a while - then it's not going to make any noticeable effect.
That your memory pressure shows Green suggests you're more in the latter case than former. That's a good indicator.
Edit - worth a read: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201464
Got it thanks- that makes a lot of sense. If I planned to keep this machine for 4-5 years I'd probably spring for the 16, but knowing me I'll want one of the ARM based machines in 2-3 years so maybe I'll wait til then
