MBA minimalism

[Mainsail]

For over three years I have owned a base M2 MBA, and it has been terrific. It still runs smoothly on Tahoe. So, I am starting to think all I really need is an MBA and an iPhone to be productive. I primarily use iWork and occasionally MS Office plus the stock Apple apps ( safari, notes, calendar, mail, messages, photos, preview, etc). Anyway, my iPad rarely gets used except vacation. I canned the Apple Watch and EarPods, and just use a regular watch and earbuds. Nothing to charge but my MBA and iPhone 16+.

The MBA is such a great value at $750 on sale. I am wondering if there are others considering going minimalist with just MBA + iPhone. Let me know what you think, and if you have simplified your tech life, how has it worked?

 

[snakes-]

At the moment i am a minimalist too. iPad's don't fit my workflow. Even no external display since a year. When i rebuild my office maybe i buy one second screen or i go to 15 inch mba, not sure what i do. But mba and iphone is all i need.

 

[1BadManVan]

I do have an iPad Air and a MacBook but my use case for the iPad is more niche than most. I pack my iPad in my lunch bag with me as it slides in and just fits in the front pocket of it. I drive trains for a living and stay at a bunkhouse for 10-24 hours at a time so it's purely used when im at work to watch shows or whatever else. But at home it never leaves the bag, I much prefer the MacBook but I dont feel like carrying another bag with me just to bring it along.

If it wasn't for the type of job I have, I wouldnt have any use for an iPad and would be just fine with only my macbook

 

[BigMcGuire]

For over three years I have owned a base M2 MBA, and it has been terrific. It still runs smoothly on Tahoe. So, I am starting to think all I really need is an MBA and an iPhone to be productive. I primarily use iWork and occasionally MS Office plus the stock Apple apps ( safari, notes, calendar, mail, messages, photos, preview, etc). Anyway, my iPad rarely gets used except vacation. I canned the Apple Watch and EarPods, and just use a regular watch and earbuds. Nothing to charge but my MBA and iPhone 16+.

The MBA is such a great value at $750 on sale. I am wondering if there are others considering going minimalist with just MBA + iPhone. Let me know what you think, and if you have simplified your tech life, how has it worked?

Yep. I have an iPhone Air, I've used iPad Airs, and ... I have a MBA for my work laptop and it is doing just fine running Parallels with massive Visual Studio 2022 Pro (C# applications) and Oracle databases.

If my MBP died today, I'd replace it with a MBA for the mobility alone.

Only thing I think I'd miss are the FPS in some old games I play that the M1 Max still dominates in.

 

[ignatius345]

I think we're at the point where a current MacBook Air can easily suffice for all general computer usage, including running a big external monitor if you need one.

 

[CSAppleFan]

I have an iPhone 17 pro ( mainly for the camera's. I have 3 little kids so the camera is important. I have an M4 MBA; I just do basic web browsing, emails, and light video editing. I have the base iPad 11th gen; mainly use that to help with note taking for work and access to teams. I also like to use that for light gaming and YouTube/netflix. I think I am good until 2028 to update one of the devices....at least that is my goal the will tell if I can hold out

 

[Andy_2341]

I started down this path back in the summer. I used to have two iPhones, one for games and one for actual phone stuff, my AirPods pros, my apple watch series 9, an iPad mini 6, and a Mac mini M4. I went down to just my 15 Pro, an Apple Watch Series 10, AirPods pros, and a MBA M4. I sold the mini 6 and let my brother use the Mac mini generally, since the power difference of not throttling thanks to fans isn't noticeable for my uses. The 15 Pro easily covers the mini for 90% of things I used it for, especially since I don't take digital notes anymore. The MBA allows for as much power as my Mac mini but on the go with a great screen and good keyboard. I'm not as minimalist as you, but I appreciate the convince of the AirPods and the watch as a back up to my phone incase it goes dead. Things are definitely more focused and simple though doing work mostly with the MacBook and only using the iPhone for ultra portable tasks instead of having the distracting iPad. I've toyed with getting an iPad A16 but I really have no use for it.

 

[Macbookey]

Totally relate to OP and others here. I have come down to an M2 Air and iPhone 14 Pro Max for the last few years. AirPods Pro 2 and HomePod 2 are my other  gear. I’m a guitarist of close to 40 years now, so the digitalization of music creation made  and the Mac a defacto choice for me, and the iPod was the gateway drug to it. I came from a 27” 5K iMac to an M2 Air to try the more mobile and minimalist life. I had intended to get a Studio Display for Logic Pro, but 3 years on now, it hasn’t happened. I am more focused on a Laptop. It is something that harkens back to the 90’s when my Mom was a systems administrator, before the term “I.T.” was coined. I had the luxury of using an IBM laptop with Corel’s Wordperfect in the early 90’s for University to write my papers, and working on a smaller footprint just meshed with my brain.

I have gone full circle, and although the 5K was great for Logic, I just adapted. Going forward the iPhone Air, if it survives will be my next iPhone, if not the vanilla 17 or 18, and the next generation of MBP will be my computer of choice from the Air.  Silicon has made this possible, and the Midnight M2 Air has been my favourite Mac of all time. AirPods Pro and HomePod (if  keeps making them) are staples for me. The  Watch and iPad don’t jive with me despite trying them. The only thing I miss is the TV, which I stopped using after my most beloved passed. It was our thing to rent movies on iTunes.

 hardware is so good now, and their custom silicon has made so much possible for less, being minimalist has become easier if it something someone aspires to. I am going to be MacBook only going forward, so the Pro has features that are worth investing in for me, but for now, the Air is a joy.