Should I return my MBP 14 and get a MBA?

[Teledatageek]

I know there are variations of this thread and I've read through them. I have been a MBP user for the last few years. I have been using a new MBP 14 for 10 days. My return window is closing.

I went this route as I have a dual monitor set up via a Dell 38" monitor that allows for two inputs and two separate screens. Since I have had the MBP 14, I can't get the dual input to work correctly (causes the screens to shrink), so I have been using as a single screen and find it to work ok for me. I think I may need to get another dock to get this to work (if I stay this route)

I also just got back from my first biz trip in two years (a week on the road) - the MBP 14 did great, but it is a little on the heavy side. Likely overkill for what I do performance wise. I got the base model with 16GB of RAM.

I'm now wondering if I should go the MBA route instead. My prior MBP 13 doesn't perform well for me at all, fan screams all the time, etc. The new MBP has had no trouble keeping up with what I did - which is nothing overly complex - lots of Safari tabs, MS Office, etc. I'm thinking the M1 chip with 16GB of RAM would keep up nicely. I see the rumors of a new MBA next year which would mean another upgrade in all likelihood which is OK. I'm not willing to stay with the MBP 13 any longer though.

So.... wondering what this group thinks/advises. Thank you!

 

[Sheepish-Lord]

If you're not even using the new display on the 14" and don't need the power then probably not worth owning it honestly.

If you're concerned with a new possible MBA which you may or may not like based on the rumors then buy a refurbished MBA from the Apple store. When the new MBA comes out you can trade it in and not feel bad about the price hit or sell it locally. No reason to buy a MBA at full retail price until the new one comes out.

 

[Teledatageek]

If you're not even using the new display on the 14" and don't need the power then probably not worth owning it honestly.

If you're concerned with a new possible MBA which you may or may not like based on the rumors then buy a refurbished MBA from the Apple store. When the new MBA comes out you can trade it in and not feel bad about the price hit or sell it locally. No reason to buy a MBA at full retail price until the new one comes out.

I would be using the display when not in my office - traveling is picking up which is why the weight thing hit me a little. The display on the MBP 14 is beautiful - I don't think the smaller size display of the MBA would be bad, but the display on the MBA isn't as nice as the MBP, right?

Thanks for the refurb tip - looks like that saves $150. Might be worth it if they have the config I would want in stock.

 

[Sheepish-Lord]

I would be using the display when not in my office - traveling is picking up which is why the weight thing hit me a little. The display on the MBP 14 is beautiful - I don't think the smaller size display of the MBA would be bad, but the display on the MBA isn't as nice as the MBP, right?

Thanks for the refurb tip - looks like that saves $150. Might be worth it if they have the config I would want in stock.

Yeah the MBP 14" display is 100nits brighter in SDR compared to the MBA. Weight difference shouldn't be that noticeable, maybe .5lb, but what I would argue is that the wedge shape of the MBA is more comfortable to type on. However, the new MBA is rumored to remove the wedge design and add a white notched bezel BUT be lighter and have miniLED. So the new MBA may not be an improvement in some peoples eyes making the current gen MBA more sought after.

 

[dmr727]

I didn't actually take delivery, but I canceled my order for the 14" MBP and ended up with an Air after playing around with the new MBP in an Apple Store. I liked the MBP, but I came to the conclusion that I'd never come close to using the extra horsepower, so why haul around extra size/weight unnecessarily? I travel a lot and figured that what I really wanted was a lightweight 13" device, and went back to deciding between an Air, a Surface Pro, or perhaps an XPS. Ultimately I went with the Air (reasons for a different thread, I suppose).

So far I've been happy with the decision. The Air is still a really, really fast machine - certainly 99% of the time I won't come close to pushing it. I also think the display is great and plenty bright, but perhaps I'd feel differently if were coming back to it from the MBP, I dunno.

If you're not worried about upgrading to the next Air in a year, I don't think there's much downside to getting an Air now just to see what you think. You can always (re)upgrade to a MBP down the road if the Air ends up being too much compromise for your use case, but based on what you've said, I doubt you'll find that to be the case.

 

[Sword86]

I'm sort of in the same boat. I have a 2020 MBA I dislike and was going to replace it with the 14" MB.
I know it will be overkill for my use but I really don't like my MBA.
Now I'm thinking I just ought to trade it in for the newer M1 MBA figuring it's a vast improvement over mine. If the M1 MBA really is an improvement over mine I wouldn't have a problem getting one now.
Anyone owned both and can weigh in?
The OP sounds like his needs are not much different than mine.
S

 

[Sheepish-Lord]

I'm sort of in the same boat. I have a 2020 MBA I dislike and was going to replace it with the 14" MB.
I know it will be overkill for my use but I really don't like my MBA.
Now I'm thinking I just ought to trade it in for the newer M1 MBA figuring it's a vast improvement over mine. If the M1 MBA really is an improvement over mine I wouldn't have a problem getting one now.
Anyone owned both and can weigh in?
The OP sounds like his needs are not much different than mine.
S

What don't you like about your current one that you think the new MBA will have?

 

[JPack]

There's an $800 difference between 16GB MBA and MBP 14. It honestly doesn't sound like you're using that horsepower. Some people dismiss the weight difference, but 310g is substantial in my opinion. That's the weight of a full can of soda. Not to mention the weight of the power adapter (30W vs. 67W), which is another 100g difference.

 

[HellasLEAF]

I actually have the same issue am considering. Was waiting for them to announce the 14 inch MBP and figured I would finally upgrade that route. But the extra weight I am not feeling I already think my 2017 13 inch mbp is heavy at times. Plus the big price.

Might finally be time to go back to the air. I am wondering though when 'abouts' is the rumored refresh? Worth just waiting it out?

 

[yitwail]

I actually have the same issue am considering. Was waiting for them to announce the 14 inch MBP and figured I would finally upgrade that route. But the extra weight I am not feeling I already think my 2017 13 inch mbp is heavy at times. Plus the big price.

Might finally be time to go back to the air. I am wondering though when 'abouts' is the rumored refresh? Worth just waiting it out?

Never hurts to wait if you can wait but you might be waiting until summer.

 

[gollum]

If you're USA, Best Buy has base model for $799 matched by Amazon. Click fast.

 

[smoking monkey]

I’d change for sure. The MBA M1 is a great machine. Screen brightness it totally fine.

 

[Teledatageek]

I’d change for sure. The MBA M1 is a great machine. Screen brightness it totally fine.

Really tempting... $570.00 cheaper than the MBP 14 I have. I think I'm past the single external display limitation. Discovered how to use the options to move programs to the left or right. LOL.

May need to run out to Apple today to compare both side by side.

 

[smoking monkey]

Really tempting... $570.00 cheaper than the MBP 14 I have. I think I'm past the single external display limitation. Discovered how to use the options to move programs to the left or right. LOL.

May need to run out to Apple today to compare both side by side.

Obviously the 14 screen is gonna look better, but in isolation the MBA M1 will look totally fine. I think the biggest differences in favour of the MBA are size, weight and crazy battery life. It never runs out of juice! If you're fine with the monitor situation then a maxed out MBA M1 is a really great option.

 

[jerryk]

I went from a 16" MBP to the M1 Air and am much happier. I move my Air from location to location in my home throughout the day and it is a joy to carry. Also, since it is fanless it is silent.

My workload is similar to the OPs with Machine Learning (not training) added and I have never wanted for more power.

 

[satchmo]

If mobility is not critical, get an M1 Mac mini to tie you over.
Keep or sell it next summer when the revised M2 MacBook Air arrives.

Granted, you might pay a bit more, but not much more.

 

[Beau10]

Yeah the MBP 14" display is 100nits brighter in SDR compared to the MBA. Weight difference shouldn't be that noticeable, maybe .5lb, but what I would argue is that the wedge shape of the MBA is more comfortable to type on. However, the new MBA is rumored to remove the wedge design and add a white notched bezel BUT be lighter and have miniLED. So the new MBA may not be an improvement in some peoples eyes making the current gen MBA more sought after.

I returned a 14" MBP as the extra half pound pushed it over the edge as something maximally comfortable in the lap. I noticed this esp. when comparing against a 2016 13" MBP. Not just the weight, but the thickness, it just took a step back ergonomically. Awesome in every other way though, but if I had the choice, I'd prefer it be lighter/thinner and a bit less powerful, so I'm holding out to see what comes of the next MBA - if I don't like it, will likely pick up a refurb 14" again.

 

[Teledatageek]

Just got back from the Apple store. We were about to buy the MBA's and return the Pro's. Upon more discussion with the guy at the store - we decided to stick to the Pro's (which is the basic config). I forgot that my wife also uses Parallels and dozens of browser windows open at the same time across Chrome and Safari. Not a $ (Pro is $570 more) thing for us, we just need the best performance.

That said - will definitely be looking at the next generation MBA. Really a tough choice for us.

Appreciate all the comments and input here. I know we ended flip flopping and going against the general consensus.

 

[ignatius345]

I'm sort of in the same boat. I have a 2020 MBA I dislike and was going to replace it with the 14" MB.
I know it will be overkill for my use but I really don't like my MBA.
Now I'm thinking I just ought to trade it in for the newer M1 MBA figuring it's a vast improvement over mine. If the M1 MBA really is an improvement over mine I wouldn't have a problem getting one now.
Anyone owned both and can weigh in?
The OP sounds like his needs are not much different than mine.
S

I had the last Intel Air (2020) and upgraded to the M1 Air a few months ago. It's basically the exact same machine, but with the M1 processor.

It's a night and day difference. The Intel Air was good for maybe 6 hours battery time max, and would frequently ramp up fans if I was doing much at all. The M1 is dead silent, much faster, and gets more than twice the battery life. I've been using Macs for decades, and this is by far the most dramatic change I've seen in performance.

 

[dizmonk]

I went from a 16" MBP to the M1 Air and am much happier. I move my Air from location to location in my home throughout the day and it is a joy to carry. Also, since it is fanless it is silent.

My workload is similar to the OPs with Machine Learning (not training) added and I have never wanted for more power.

Which 16" MBP did you have? Not many downgrade that much. Glad it's working out for you.

 

[jerryk]

Which 16" MBP did you have? Not many downgrade that much. Glad it's working out for you.

Don't remember the exact specs, but it was the upgraded unit with the Intel I9 processor.

I really do not feel that it was much of a downgrade to move to the M1 Air. At least not for my ML workflow. As I said, I do most of the training in the cloud. There I have GPUs and TPUs available, and 8+ server-level CPUs with lots of memory.

 

[hellfried]

I have been rocking the 2017 MBA for some time now and recently traded it in for the M1 MBA. What a difference it made. Its really easy to handle and I like the fact that I can use it in bed. The fact that it remains cool when compared to my previous 'lap'top is a real selling point for me. The 2017 model heats up for no reason and the fans are really annoying in a quiet environment. Battery life is insane and I hardly have to charge it. Its also plenty fast for my usage.

I had the last Intel Air (2020) and upgraded to the M1 Air a few months ago. It's basically the exact same machine, but with the M1 processor.

It's a night and day difference. The Intel Air was good for maybe 6 hours battery time max, and would frequently ramp up fans if I was doing much at all. The M1 is dead silent, much faster, and gets more than twice the battery life. I've been using Macs for decades, and this is by far the most dramatic change I've seen in performance

 

[dizmonk]

I have been rocking the 2017 MBA for some time now and recently traded it in for the M1 MBA. What a difference it made. Its really easy to handle and I like the fact that I can use it in bed. The fact that it remains cool when compared to my previous 'lap'top is a real selling point for me. The 2017 model heats up for no reason and the fans are really annoying in a quiet environment. Battery life is insane and I hardly have to charge it. Its also plenty fast for my usage.

I do really like this MBA... but there are a few things that that the new MBP's have that I want... Better speakers... DEFINITELY more brightness and the better screen. I could live without the extra power, weight and even the ports... I just wish we had better speakers and a brighter screen with the M1...

 

[ghanwani]

I think you should get the MBA just so that you can enjoy a notch-free experience.

 

[Angelus]

I had a similar decision to make. I needed a new laptop and work would contribute up to $3,000 NZD towards it.

Base 14” here in NZ is $3,399.

I initially thought about a 14” with some spec bumps and I’d contribute some $ myself. Instead I went with a refurb MBA M1 and found a fully spec’d out model with 16GB RAM and 2TB SSD for $3050. I spent the remaining dollars that I was going to contribute on AppleCare.