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Should I buy a M1 MacBook Air?

iPad Bro

iPad Bro

macrumors 6502
Original poster
May 2, 2021
393
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Yeah, so I have never owned any kind of Mac or MacBook in my life, so I have zero experience with them. I have been a long time iPad user, most notably the iPad Pro 2018, 2020, and 2021 models. I just sold my M1 12.9” iPad Pro and I have heard great things about the M1 MacBook Air.

But in comparison, how is the display on the MBA? How about the speakers? I like to do graphic design and write creatively, but I also plan on using it for media consumption and I’m a heavy music aficionado, so I am curious how it stacks up to the iPad Pro.

I am not expecting it be better than Mini-LED spec wise, but I thought it was overrated in the first place and I generally didn’t notice it much in my viewing experience, so maybe the MBA’s display is more than enough for me?

Also, if there’s anything else you’d like to recommend about the MBA, I’d love to hear it!

If the speakers aren’t quite as good as the iPad Pro’s, I could opt for some headphones. That’s not a deal breaker. I can work around that.

But yeah. Thank you for reading and helping me out with this one. I really appreciate it! 🙂👍
 
I'd suggest trying to borrow one to see if it works for you. Or buying one if you can't borrow one - as you have a return window if you don't like it.

I think that it's a great machine (daughter has one) but I'm waiting for the MacBook Pro along with all of the other longsuffering MacBook Pro customers this year.
 
iPad Bro said:
Yeah, so I have never owned any kind of Mac or MacBook in my life, so I have zero experience with them. I have been a long time iPad user, most notably the iPad Pro 2018, 2020, and 2021 models. I just sold my M1 12.9” iPad Pro and I have heard great things about the M1 MacBook Air.

But in comparison, how is the display on the MBA? How about the speakers? I like to do graphic design and write creatively, but I also plan on using it for media consumption and I’m a heavy music aficionado, so I am curious how it stacks up to the iPad Pro.

I am not expecting it be better than Mini-LED spec wise, but I thought it was overrated in the first place and I generally didn’t notice it much in my viewing experience, so maybe the MBA’s display is more than enough for me?

Also, if there’s anything else you’d like to recommend about the MBA, I’d love to hear it!

If the speakers aren’t quite as good as the iPad Pro’s, I could opt for some headphones. That’s not a deal breaker. I can work around that.

But yeah. Thank you for reading and helping me out with this one. I really appreciate it! 🙂👍
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The speakers aren’t as good on the M1 MacBook Air as the iPad Pro. They are adequate but not great.

The screen also isn’t as good. Not only is it dimmer at 400 nits, it also lower dpi at 227 dpi vs 264 dpi of the iPad Pro.

The M1 Air has more ports, longer battery life, better multitasking, and much more software flexibility.
 
The M1 MacBook Air is the best notebook computer I have ever owned. Full stop. I've owned MacBooks and Windows laptops many times before. I've owned all but the latest generation of iPad Pro, always with a keyboard case and Pencil. I currently also have a 15" Intel MacBook Pro from work that I use daily.

The M1 MacBook Air beats them all, including the iPads. The portability, functionality, lack of heat and fans, and crazy long battery life are just icing on the cake. It's the speed and power for the price that makes it such an incredible machine. It just absolutely runs circles around everything else I've ever owned. I was a die hard iPad Pro user all the way up until the M1 MBA came out. Now I'm back on an iPad mini and never touch it.
 
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The battery Life on Mac Book Air M1 is almost 10 hours running audio equipment! That really impressed me especially I always turn down the brightness when on battery!
 
You'll get much more functionality out of the M1 MacBook. I came from, and still own a 2020 iPad Pro and if I had to keep one, I'd 100 percent go with the MacBook.

The iPad is versatile, but there are way too many software limitations for me to use it as my main device. But, it all of course comes down to the user.r
 
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Wolff Weber said:
As a whole system MBA M1 is very good.
If You can afford go for 16GB version with at least 512 GB SSB.
I personally have 8/512 version but 16GB of RAM would be more futureproof.
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Yep, that's what I have. I bought it back in the spring, as I needed a newer Mac laptop that can run Mac OS 11 Big Sur and later, and so I figured I may as well take the plunge and get an M1 Mac laptop (I initially planned to get one of the higher-end 13" Intel MacBook Pros, but among hearing great things about the M1 Macs like the higher speed and processing power, the increasing compatibility from third-party applications, and the lower price point, I couldn't resist.) This MacBook Air even edits and renders 1080 HD video pretty well, certainly faster than my quad-core i7 Mac Mini from 2012 does (at about half the render time.)
The display is also pretty good, and I also like the sound quality from the speakers. A whole lot better than on my other Mac laptops, even my mid-2012 15" non-Retina MacBook Pro!
 
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It’s a great wee system, I’ve been so impressed by the M1 that I recently invested in a Mac Mini M1 for server duties.

If you can, I’d maybe hold off until the next revision is announced - not that I think you’d be disappointed with the current version. But the next MBA M(whatever) can’t be too far off now.

The display is excellent for an edge-lit LCD. Obviously not up to par with OLED, or even Mini-LED, but not bad by any means. The speakers, while obviously lacking at the low end are perfectly acceptable for such a small, thin device. They’re not unpleasant to listen to at all, if they’re all you have access to.

Even at full whack, I rarely if ever hear distortion with the majority of my music (which ranges from classical to blues, rock, pop, techno, metal and pretty much everything in-between that doesn’t come under free-form jazz :D).
 
I have iPad Pros and an M1 Air. The difference comes down to use cases. The iPads are great for consumption. The Mac is OK for consumption but really shines at creative/work tasks.

I tried to do creative tasks on the iPad and went so far as to get an external keyboard (both Apple and Logitech) and found they made the iPad heavy and bulky. So I got the M1 Air. The difference was night and day. So much easier when writing, doing work, editing, etc.
 
I replaced my 16" with the M1 Air a couple of months ago and I have been really happy. It's an amazing device that doesn't even need a fan, my only recommendation would be getting the 16GB if you are a multi tasking
 
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Loving my M1 Air. 16GB with 1TB SSD. I use it to run MainStage when performing live on keys running MainStage. Plenty of CPU headroom pushing 8 simultaneous voices (three stereo, two mono) per note played plus FX @ 32 Buffer without breaking a sweat. I do keep an umbrella handy for unshaded stages, as direct sun will cook anything.

One great laptop.
 
Since there is talk of a new MBA coming out in the near future, I would advise looking for deals if you plan on getting an M1 even if that doesn't come out for a while. I also recommend getting 16GB RAM for futureproofing and at least 512GB SSD since 256 isn't a lot for any PC.
 
OneGrit said:
Since there is talk of a new MBA coming out in the near future, I would advise looking for deals if you plan on getting an M1 even if that doesn't come out for a while. I also recommend getting 16GB RAM for futureproofing and at least 512GB SSD since 256 isn't a lot for any PC.
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Near future, is at least 6 month away according to macbook air rumors.
 
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OneGrit said:
Thanks, I haven't really been keeping up with Mac news and rumours since I bought my M1 Pro. Last rumours I read were pointing to a Mac announcement this month.
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Yes, that is higher end Macbook Pro's. New redesigned macbook air is expected in 2022. Not sure what is planned for the current M1 Macbook Pro. An easy way to get updated on the latest rumors on a specific Apple device is the Buyer's guide here on this page.
 
Budgiemac said:
wait for the apple event today
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The event is next Tuesday, and no Mac announcements are expected. The only update this year is likely to be the high end MacBook Pros. So, unless you’re wanting to spend close to $2k, I see no reason to wait. Plus, if by the tiny chance they release something better for you, Apple will let you exchange it.
 
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PaladinGuy said:
The event is next Tuesday, and no Mac announcements are expected. The only update this year is likely to be the high end MacBook Pros. So, unless you’re wanting to spend close to $2k, I see no reason to wait. Plus, if by the tiny chance they release something better for you, Apple will let you exchange it.
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Oops my mistake. I honestly thought it was today.They might release a 14 inch thats similar to our m1's right now, no?
 
Budgiemac said:
Oops my mistake. I honestly thought it was today.They might release a 14 inch thats similar to our m1's right now, no?
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The 14" and 16" are likely to be considerably more expensive than the current system. Pushing to $2000 (14") or even $2500 (16") in base configurations. For that, along with the bigger display, you get a more powerful SoC, and no more touchbar.
 
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I am so happy with my M1 MBA, I'm having serious doubts that I will immediately jump to a 2022 model. The design would need to be drastically better than what it is now, and I already think it's close to perfect. That's not to say the new MBP won't tempt me away first though.
 
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iPad Bro said:
Yeah, so I have never owned any kind of Mac or MacBook in my life, so I have zero experience with them. I have been a long time iPad user, most notably the iPad Pro 2018, 2020, and 2021 models. I just sold my M1 12.9” iPad Pro and I have heard great things about the M1 MacBook Air.
Click to expand...

Did you sell the iPad because of OS limitations?

The current gen MacBook LCD panels look great, and represent a fully mature technology. Obviously an M1 Air has the same chip as the iPad you sold.
 
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