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New MacBook Air Slower Than Older Model?
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If it showed the opposite, would "something be wrong with the tests"?
Come on, guys. You need to snap the **** out of it.
The guy running the test wasn't MPA hater. He loved the things.
And it absolutely IS possible.
Why would it not be?
Apple goes for design, not speed.
The newer iMacs are slower in some areas than the old ones. Even last year, The ATI 2600 kicked the snot out of the upgraded Nvidia 8800 in iMovie.
Whatever, this doesn't matter. I'm sure the people who own a MBA wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Besides, if one is so concerned about speed, they shouldn't be buying a MBA anyways.
Plus, I'm sure he was surprised enough to run the test over again to ensure precision.
Plus, I'm sure he was surprised enough to run the test over again to ensure precision.
How can they be slower
Updates not si bad this time around. That sait I am not surprues it's a Snafu. But seems rather odd given the mac parts are faster.
Thanks for this. I was in the market for the 2.13 but was very much concerned about the Macworld tests. I was esp. pleased to see the score of the MBA under Snow Leopard...
maybe I'm reading the graph the wrong way but there's something weird:
for example in the Compressor MPEG encode test the lower end model is significantly faster than the high end model. How is this possible?? This happens also in other tests like Cinema 4D rendering, iMovie HD, iTunes, and Finder (only the zip archive one). Still the 1.86Ghz model gets an overall score of 156, and the 2.13 of 175.
Does this even make sense?
for example in the Compressor MPEG encode test the lower end model is significantly faster than the high end model. How is this possible?? This happens also in other tests like Cinema 4D rendering, iMovie HD, iTunes, and Finder (only the zip archive one). Still the 1.86Ghz model gets an overall score of 156, and the 2.13 of 175.
Does this even make sense?
I totally agree with you.
Their so-called "testing" is just using some benchmark software. There is no methodology.
A simple explanation is spotlight. If Spotlight is on and doing background indexing of the file system, it can easily slow down the "benchmark".
I have found the online publications do their best on making sure they are comparing apple to apples - same OS, same settings, etc. MacWorld wouldn't even tell what OS they are running on. A simple point release in the OS may make a big difference too.
They should have know that their testing is invalid when the 1.86G 2009 MBA performs better than 2.13G 2009 in most of their tests. They are the same generation. Actually, for most of the tests, the 1.86G 2009 performs better than the 1.86G 2008.
Agreed. I have a couple of MacBook Pro models, and the Air. The Air goes almost everywhere with me. I use it for e-mail, surfing, taking meeting notes, writing up documentation, managing all my photos and documents in "the cloud". It's plenty fast for all of that, and it's a joy to use.
For some, it really could be an "only" laptop, but you need to accept the limitations -- lack of ports, only 2GB RAM, not the fastest processor.
In any case, it'll never appeal to the user who's choosing mostly on price, but for those of use who have bought into the Apple camp, the Air really has a place.
I knew my first and second gen. were better than gen. 3 since they cost more.
Speed? I don't need no stinkin' speed!
I just love the way it fits ever so tightly in my metrosexual man-bag. ohhh, you sexy beast you.
Speed? I don't need no stinkin' speed!
I just love the way it fits ever so tightly in my metrosexual man-bag. ohhh, you sexy beast you.
+1
Form is the whole point with the Air.
And IIRC the Air boasts the best peformance in a notebook of its size. I'm thinking Dell Adamo here as the competitor.
By the way, what happened to the Adamo, anyway?
I must say, however, with the SSD, it is faster than my MBP, even with illustrator. Plays 1080p perfectly, don't get the rainbow cursor in illustrator. Just amazing speed.
Perhaps for RAW editing you need a MBP, but otherwise (iLife, iWork, Mac:Office, 1080, iTunes) I find the Air more than satisfying.
Why not? I do photo editing and even video work on my netbook (Acer Aspire One) with 1.5GB RAM and 160GB HD. I also think you are incorrect on the netbook/tablet computer from Apple. I think they have one ready for production IF they choose to go that direction - and I hope they will.
The computer should NOT be slower than last years model - PERIOD. That said - it is NOT just a second computer as I use one most of the day. If I need to do serious work I use my new(er) '07 MBP with 4GB RAM and 320GB 7200 RPM HD. I do not own a desktop so the MBP is the closest I have to a full-sized computer.
The MBA has the ability to be more than what Apple has allowed it to become - they have purposely crippled the system in order to delineate models and specifications. It is NOT (for the price) a second computer and many people who own one at the current price use it as their primary notebook computer - so why should we not expect more from it? It is a GREAT TIME to pick-up a used model form last year at a BARGAIN and get one that is better, faster and generally a fantastic notebook for just about anyone who does not want to play 3D graphics intensive applications.
It is a broad statement to say people will not edit photo or video on it when I do - and do that and more on my Atom based hack-book. Arrogant? Maybe - uninformed - definitely. Why should expect more from our money and hold companies accountable when they do something the customer feels is just plain odd.
I do not care that they reduced the price as it is a new model with technically better specifications yet it does not perform as well as the previous model and that is silly - regardless of the price.
The above is my take on the facts - and as my wife and children often tell me...I am just plain wrong - so take it for what it is worth.
D
Most won't, because they'll stick to their 'ultra-portable' Vaio's keeping complaing about the 'overpriced' Air. Ultra-portable full-function not-lagging pc laptop? With Vista you mean? Don't see it happen.
Not to bash, but comparing the Air with a 'ultra-light' pc laptop is just comparing squares with circles.
You are angry with MacWorld because they did not give you the results you wanted. How do you know that the 1.8 wasn't running spotlight in the background and isn't even faster than the benchmark says it is?
You have a pre-determined expectation, and anything that doesn't validate that expectation if "flawed" because the Apples Church says that Apple Poops gold nuggets with a gold scent.
This outcome is EASILY explainable.
If the thermal management of the newer MBA's are inferior, they will run slower. As processors heat up, they do not run applications as quickly. Period.
There, I just provided a perfectly rational explanation.
The cult members will not be able to wrap there mind around it, but most likely everyone else will.
Heat matters in computing.
A lot.
As a matter of fact, it is arguably the most important limiting factor in semiconductor technology.
You can have a bazillion Ghz processor in a computer, but if it's not cooled, it's going to throttle.
A well-cooled, slower processor, motherboard chipset, etc may very well be faster.
So why are others getting different results?
Every computer is different. They all have different thermal profiles.
You friend's MBA may run faster or slower than yours. Every piece of silicon is different.
If one runs hotter than the other, then it may be slower.
Here's some more smilies for you
When did you last use a netbook from Acer and Asus or Dell or even IBM? They are NOT underpowered and they are NOT loss leaders. They are low profit items but they are not loss-leaders as that would make NO SENSE to sell a netbook at a loss when that segment of the portable market makes up more than 30%. You may not like them but they are not underpowered and they are not loss leaders - Apple should enter the netbook market and they should increase the performance of the MBA to better compete with other machines in this price class. That makes sense along with the introduction of a netbook/tablet computer to be introduced later this summer.
Please see my previous post regarding what can and is being done on a hack-book based on the Atom 270 processor - 1.5gb ram and 160gb hd.
Try it and maybe you will find it performs well enough to output 720P video well - and works for more than just word processing, web-work and other light-duty applications. You might be surprised.
D
I don't think so. There's no way all of those companies out there selling netbooks aren't making a profit.
Exactly how can a netbook be a loss leader, anyway? What are the vendors hoping to sell to customers to make up for the loss of profit on the netbook? The whole idea of a loss leader is to entice customers to purchase additional items (ie: video game consoles are sold at a loss, at least when they first launch, they make up the money on software).
+1
This is exactly the reason for the slower speeds. Earlier versions (I had a rev A) had horrible heat and fan issues. All apple did was throttle the processor. If you can't cool the thing right (something apple has failed to do on all of their laptops) they will go slower.
Bad analogy. The 2600 is a totally different part from the 8800, so even though the 8800 is more advanced overall, nothing guarantees it will beat the 2600 in every aspect. In this case, we're talking about a faster clocked version of the same chip.
The fact that "apple goes for design not speed" (which I'll just accept as true for the moment) really has nothing to do with anything. We're talking about two generations of laptop with the same design and more or less the same internals except that the newer one has a faster clocked processor. And yet it benchmarks slower. Do you see how that's a) inexplicable, and b) not at all related to any point you made?
You can simply order the Adamo right? It isn't gone or something. Btw it looks like it's from another planet.