MBA M1 or M2 for College?

[xboxbml]

I have twins heading off to college this fall. Different schools, but both are business majors (one accounting, one marketing). Myself being an engineer, I can't see either of them really needing a super-powerful laptop for their studies. Would the M1 MBA be fine for at least the next 2-3 years? Or is it worth it to pony up for the newer M2 coming out next month with the hope it lasts all 4 years?

I'd almost rather get the M1 and pay for extra RAM maybe, but then again, I thought 8gb was too little 6 years ago. Apparetnly Apple thinks its still plenty for most use (and honestly, they are probably right).

EDIT: I plan to wait for the back to school deal and hopefully some free airpods for them too. Pricing via the education store is:

• 2020 M1 MBA w/16gb RAM: $1079
• 2022 M2 MBA w/8gb RAM: $1099

I haven't read all the responses here. I see alot about 8gb vs 16gb.. You list RAM here but not storage. Yes, I would always go for more RAM if possible, but, I would also go for more storage for future proofing as well. You can't add storage either once you buy it. Storage and RAM is soldered on the board-non-upgradable since 2018. I guess it would all depend on perceived usage, but I would do at least 512gb storage. 256gb might be ok depending on usage. If they have iPhones and do alot of pics and vids for projects, or just because for personal use, and have lots of iTunes movies locally, those can eat up space pretty quick. I upgraded my 2015 MBA with 2TB storage as those SSD's are removable. I have all my iTunes movies, music, personal pics and vids stored locally full size on my machine. I don't need wifi to use them. Obviously school usage may differ. There are 1TB and 2TB options on those but do bump the price up quite a bit. All depends on usage and what you're willing to spend. Good luck.

 

[dmk1974]

I haven't read all the responses here. I see alot about 8gb vs 16gb.. You list RAM here but not storage. Yes, I would always go for more RAM if possible, but, I would also go for more storage for future proofing as well. You can't add storage either once you buy it. Storage and RAM is soldered on the board-non-upgradable since 2018. I guess it would all depend on perceived usage, but I would do at least 512gb storage. 256gb might be ok depending on usage. If they have iPhones and do alot of pics and vids for projects, or just because for personal use, and have lots of iTunes movies locally, those can eat up space pretty quick. I upgraded my 2015 MBA with 2TB storage as those SSD's are removable. I have all my iTunes movies, music, personal pics and vids stored locally full size on my machine. I don't need wifi to use them. Obviously school usage may differ. There are 1TB and 2TB options on those but do bump the price up quite a bit. All depends on usage and what you're willing to spend. Good luck.

I think 256gb will be ok though. They barely use much space on their current Macbooks (70gb and 90gb per my last chheck) and we use OneDrive and iCloud for cloud storage. Their iPhones auto-backup their photos to OneDrive as well. Worst-case, if they somehow fill up their storage, maybe I'll just send them one of these: https://www.westerndigital.com/prod...-dual-drive-go-usb-3-1-type-c#SDDDC3-256G-G46

 

[Populus]

The M2 chip is kinda ********. It's the same as the M1 just unnoticeable faster. Like the A15 was really the same as the A14 too.

The good thing about the M2 is not the gain in CPU power, the improvement on CPU is focused on the efficiency of the efficiency cores, just like on the A15. The improvements of the M2 come with bigger cache memories, and bigger memory bus and speed thanks to DDR5. Also, the dedicated encoding/decoding media cores. And maybe the improved Neural Engine and bigger GPU. But definitely, the raw CPU performance improvement is not a fair evaluation of the M2.

That said, between those two machines OP is deciding between, I’d choose the M1 with 16GB of RAM for the same price.

 

[izzy0242mr]

I haven't read all the responses here. I see alot about 8gb vs 16gb.. You list RAM here but not storage. Yes, I would always go for more RAM if possible, but, I would also go for more storage for future proofing as well. You can't add storage either once you buy it. Storage and RAM is soldered on the board-non-upgradable since 2018. I guess it would all depend on perceived usage, but I would do at least 512gb storage. 256gb might be ok depending on usage. If they have iPhones and do alot of pics and vids for projects, or just because for personal use, and have lots of iTunes movies locally, those can eat up space pretty quick. I upgraded my 2015 MBA with 2TB storage as those SSD's are removable. I have all my iTunes movies, music, personal pics and vids stored locally full size on my machine. I don't need wifi to use them. Obviously school usage may differ. There are 1TB and 2TB options on those but do bump the price up quite a bit. All depends on usage and what you're willing to spend. Good luck.

Yeah I will say i had to use a lot of cloud storage apps because my Air didn't have as much storage (128 gb). You can get expandable storage via like the SD card slot but most people won't think about or know that, and it's less reliable.

512 GB is my minimum these days. 1 TB is nice but not essential.

 

[5105973]

My refurbished M1 Air 16 GB RAM 1 TB arrived a little while ago. Just looking at it and setting it up I can not tell it’s not new! Except a teeny tiny pinhole mark on the back hinge. I’m talking tiny. And I think even new Macs sometimes arrive with those.

Everywhere else it’s cosmetically indistinguishable from new. But I’ve got several days to stress test it and make sure it functions well as new. Battery Capacity is 100% 😁

I’m excited it’s the discontinued 8 core gpu. Every tiny bit helps if I’m going to play Sims 4 on it. Otherwise I have a Windows laptop that could have done everything else I needed it to do, except that. So I’m giving it to my husband for now and then later one of our college bound kids can use it for backup. They’re getting Airs for college, too, when the time comes.

I’m the family guinea pig trying a refurbished computer from Apple. I saved only $200 over new. But I did get the gpu I preferred over the 7 core one that’s the only option sold by Apple directly now.

I saved $400-$500 over the M2 Airs I was originally planning to get. In the end, I realized I didn’t really need one of those. And I love the wedge styling since I’m coming from a boxy 2011 MacBook Pro.

Anyway, so far so good, and I am just chiming in to mention refurbished MacBooks as an option for the students in our lives. Or ourselves!

 

[izzy0242mr]

My refurbished M1 Air 16 GB RAM 1 TB arrived a little while ago. Just looking at it and setting it up I can not tell it’s not new! Except a teeny tiny pinhole mark on the back hinge. I’m talking tiny. And I think even new Macs sometimes arrive with those.

Everywhere else it’s cosmetically indistinguishable from new. But I’ve got several days to stress test it and make sure it functions well as new. Battery Capacity is 100% 😁

I’m excited it’s the discontinued 8 core gpu. Every tiny bit helps if I’m going to play Sims 4 on it. Otherwise I have a Windows laptop that could have done everything else I needed it to do, except that. So I’m giving it to my husband for now and then later one of our college bound kids can use it for backup. They’re getting Airs for college, too, when the time comes.

I’m the family guinea pig trying a refurbished computer from Apple. I saved only $200 over new. But I did get the gpu I preferred over the 7 core one that’s the only option sold by Apple directly now.

I saved $400-$500 over the M2 Airs I was originally planning to get. In the end, I realized I didn’t really need one of those. And I love the wedge styling since I’m coming from a boxy 2011 MacBook Pro.

Anyway, so far so good, and I am just chiming in to mention refurbished MacBooks as an option for the students in our lives. Or ourselves!

Sounds like a great find! And a computer that'll last you a while

 

[Populus]

My refurbished M1 Air 16 GB RAM 1 TB arrived a little while ago. Just looking at it and setting it up I can not tell it’s not new! Except a teeny tiny pinhole mark on the back hinge. I’m talking tiny. And I think even new Macs sometimes arrive with those.

Everywhere else it’s cosmetically indistinguishable from new. But I’ve got several days to stress test it and make sure it functions well as new. Battery Capacity is 100% 😁

I’m excited it’s the discontinued 8 core gpu. Every tiny bit helps if I’m going to play Sims 4 on it. Otherwise I have a Windows laptop that could have done everything else I needed it to do, except that. So I’m giving it to my husband for now and then later one of our college bound kids can use it for backup. They’re getting Airs for college, too, when the time comes.

I’m the family guinea pig trying a refurbished computer from Apple. I saved only $200 over new. But I did get the gpu I preferred over the 7 core one that’s the only option sold by Apple directly now.

I saved $400-$500 over the M2 Airs I was originally planning to get. In the end, I realized I didn’t really need one of those. And I love the wedge styling since I’m coming from a boxy 2011 MacBook Pro.

Anyway, so far so good, and I am just chiming in to mention refurbished MacBooks as an option for the students in our lives. Or ourselves!

It’s always a pleasure to read you Grumpy Mom! And I’m happy to see that you found such a good deal.

You did well getting the 16GB M1 model, and even the 8-core GPU! I didn’t know that variant was already discontinued.

Enjoy your new computer. I think that’s a much better deal than the new M2 with only 8GB of RAM.

 

[dizmonk]

My refurbished M1 Air 16 GB RAM 1 TB arrived a little while ago. Just looking at it and setting it up I can not tell it’s not new! Except a teeny tiny pinhole mark on the back hinge. I’m talking tiny. And I think even new Macs sometimes arrive with those.

Everywhere else it’s cosmetically indistinguishable from new. But I’ve got several days to stress test it and make sure it functions well as new. Battery Capacity is 100% 😁

I’m excited it’s the discontinued 8 core gpu. Every tiny bit helps if I’m going to play Sims 4 on it. Otherwise I have a Windows laptop that could have done everything else I needed it to do, except that. So I’m giving it to my husband for now and then later one of our college bound kids can use it for backup. They’re getting Airs for college, too, when the time comes.

I’m the family guinea pig trying a refurbished computer from Apple. I saved only $200 over new. But I did get the gpu I preferred over the 7 core one that’s the only option sold by Apple directly now.

I saved $400-$500 over the M2 Airs I was originally planning to get. In the end, I realized I didn’t really need one of those. And I love the wedge styling since I’m coming from a boxy 2011 MacBook Pro.

Anyway, so far so good, and I am just chiming in to mention refurbished MacBooks as an option for the students in our lives. Or ourselves!

Congrats. That's the same model I have. Almost always buy from the refurb store. Good luck and enjoy.

 

[5105973]

Sounds like a great find! And a computer that'll last you a while

Thanks! I sure hope it lasts a long time. They had one in every color as of yesterday. There were a variety of configurations there. 512 GB prices were tempting.

It’s always a pleasure to read you Grumpy Mom! And I’m happy to see that you found such a good deal.

You did well getting the 16GB M1 model, and even the 8-core GPU! I didn’t know that variant was already discontinued.

Enjoy your new computer. I think that’s a much better deal than the new M2 with only 8GB of RAM.

Thank you, what a kind compliment! Yes I didn’t even know at first that there had even been an 8 gpu core variant. I haven’t shopped for a computer since about 4 years ago when I picked out an affordable gaming tower pc for my home office for my birthday during Amazon Prime Day. My knowledge was limited and dated and more Windows oriented.

I put a decent amount of research and thought into this purchase, after initially saving a heavily specced M2 Air in my favorites at the Apple Store. The hype around the M2 is fun and exciting, but I can still enjoy that reading about it. And meanwhile I can still enjoy something a bit more appropriate to my needs.

This discussion here really got me thinking about what I really needed and if I really had to spend $1700 or more to get it. From what I could see from using it today, I’ve got the right machine at the right price.
(Quote got accidentally deleted from formatting):
“Congrats. That's the same model I have. Almost always buy from the refurb store. Good luck and enjoy.”

Thanks for all the kind words!

I got to play Sims 4 on it and it ran smooth and surprisingly cool. My poor Dell had fans running full blast and kept crashing. Even my gaming tower PC can run hot on parts of that game.

I’m sure it will handle my very modest photo and video editing needs.

So far it’s like having brand new. It’s reassuring it also got tested before it was sent out to me.

 

[Expos of 1969]

Different users have different needs so one can only speak for oneself. In my case, last year I replaced my 2013 MBP with the new M1 MacBook Air base specs model. I am very pleased with it. The MBP was more than I required but made that choice in 2013 as the Retina screen was in my opinion much better than the dull ones which the MacBook Airs had in those days. My M1 is silent and does not heat up like the MBP did. No complaints for my pretty basic usage.

 

[dmk1974]

Well, we placed the orders this morning. After going back and forth with them a bit and pros/cons of upgrading RAM and storage and M1 vs M2, they both ultimately decided on the base M2 MacBook Air. Son got Space Gray, Daughter got Starlight.

I did kick in the AC+ for each (which I initially did not want to do) but as some posters suggested, accidents can happen away at college and they at least have peace of mind for 3 years (aside from deductible that THEY can pay for if needed).

Ordering went smooth on the site and each indicate they will arrive on 7/15. I still like my M1 MBA...I sure hope these new designs they ordered are reliable and without any "new model" flaws. To be honest, I was hoping that one of them would just take mine so I could upgrade

 

[dizmonk]

We

Well, we placed the orders this morning. After going back and forth with them a bit and pros/cons of upgrading RAM and storage and M1 vs M2, they both ultimately decided on the base M2 MacBook Air. Son got Space Gray, Daughter got Starlight.

I did kick in the AC+ for each (which I initially did not want to do) but as some posters suggested, accidents can happen away at college and they at least have peace of mind for 3 years (aside from deductible that THEY can pay for if needed).

Ordering went smooth on the site and each indicate they will arrive on 7/15. I still like my M1 MBA...I sure hope these new designs they ordered are reliable and without any "new model" flaws. To be honest, I was hoping that one of them would just take mine so I could upgrade

Good luck to you and them. I'll be ordering mine for our kid on our tax-free weekend next month. I have to get her more storage than the base model though.

 

[5105973]

Well, we placed the orders this morning. After going back and forth with them a bit and pros/cons of upgrading RAM and storage and M1 vs M2, they both ultimately decided on the base M2 MacBook Air. Son got Space Gray, Daughter got Starlight.

I did kick in the AC+ for each (which I initially did not want to do) but as some posters suggested, accidents can happen away at college and they at least have peace of mind for 3 years (aside from deductible that THEY can pay for if needed).

Ordering went smooth on the site and each indicate they will arrive on 7/15. I still like my M1 MBA...I sure hope these new designs they ordered are reliable and without any "new model" flaws. To be honest, I was hoping that one of them would just take mine so I could upgrade

Congratulations and I hope they love their new computers!

Out of curiosity I plugged in the 16 GB 8 core 1 TB Starlight I was originally planning to get before getting my refurbished M1 Air and I was pleasantly surprised to see shipping dates at the end of July to first of August. That’s not bad at all considering preorders have been open for hours now.

 

[dmk1974]

Congratulations and I hope they love their new computers!

Out of curiosity I plugged in the 16 GB 8 core 1 TB Starlight I was originally planning to get before getting my refurbished M1 Air and I was pleasantly surprised to see shipping dates at the end of July to first of August. That’s not bad at all considering preorders have been open for hours now.

Thanks! I hope they do too.

Not bad for that upgraded Starlight. I was concerned with timing of any BTO since my daughter leaves on 8/12, but that would have been plenty of time to get it if she needed upgrades. I would have guided them to a 16gb M1 probably if they absolutely wanted more RAM and delivery well before departure.

Aside from chip spec, I figure the brighter screen that is 4% taller and MagSafe connector were good for them as part of the upgrade from M1 model as well.

 

[5105973]

Thanks! I hope they do too.

Not bad for that upgraded Starlight. I was concerned with timing of any BTO since my daughter leaves on 8/12, but that would have been plenty of time to get it if she needed upgrades. I would have guided them to a 16gb M1 probably if they absolutely wanted more RAM and delivery well before departure.

Aside from chip spec, I figure the brighter screen that is 4% taller and MagSafe connector were good for them as part of the upgrade from M1 model as well.

Lol after unplugging and plugging in my power supply several times, I’m a bit wistful for MagSafe myself!