There is nothing that indicates it isn’t selling well. Oddly enough 15 MBA timing was weird, most of the users probably have bought 13 MBA M1 and M2. Not many outside of macrumors will upgrade in short time. When the 15 MBA and 13 MBA are oh M3 launches next year. It will be interesting to see how they do.
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The 15" MacBook Air is Excellent! Why isn't it more popular?
- Thread starter Adelphos33
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FWIW, there's a similar thread here: Buying Advice 15" MBA vs 14" MBP
I've agonized over this. Before this year I'd never bought a laptop for myself and didn't much enjoy using them. Earlier this year I bought an on-sale base model M1 MBA (8/256) to see if working on the floor would relieve the lower back pain I get when sitting at a desk too long. For that purpose, it worked very well. But, it's not quite enough machine for me.
In an attempt to improve things I put together an external 1TB SSD (Samsung 970 EVO Plus) and made it a boot drive. That improved things quite a bit, but it turns out to be a real PITA to be tethered to a hot SSD while working on the floor.
So, what next? I like the idea of the larger 15" screen on the MBA (16/512), but would I find it awkward to balance something that large on my lap while sitting on the floor? For just a bit more money I could get the 14" M3 MBP (16/512), but that seems a bit heavy and bulky for real laptop use. On the other hand, the better performance and stunning display are impossible to ignore.
It's a tough one.
I've agonized over this. Before this year I'd never bought a laptop for myself and didn't much enjoy using them. Earlier this year I bought an on-sale base model M1 MBA (8/256) to see if working on the floor would relieve the lower back pain I get when sitting at a desk too long. For that purpose, it worked very well. But, it's not quite enough machine for me.
In an attempt to improve things I put together an external 1TB SSD (Samsung 970 EVO Plus) and made it a boot drive. That improved things quite a bit, but it turns out to be a real PITA to be tethered to a hot SSD while working on the floor.
So, what next? I like the idea of the larger 15" screen on the MBA (16/512), but would I find it awkward to balance something that large on my lap while sitting on the floor? For just a bit more money I could get the 14" M3 MBP (16/512), but that seems a bit heavy and bulky for real laptop use. On the other hand, the better performance and stunning display are impossible to ignore.
It's a tough one.
I don't find the 15" MBA to be too bothersome on my lap. It is a wide laptop, but thin, so the weight spreads out. I imagine the 14" MBP would feel fine too - it looks chunky, but I don't know how that really impacts overall feel/use.
The fact that Apple is discounting the MacBook Air this year by $200 (and allowing me to get value out of my trade in) while not offering a discount on the MBP actually sealed the deal for me. I'm financing it over Apple Pay, and $300 isn't a huge difference, but with Apple's pricing and big depreciation, I feel like keeping initial costs low is how you end up ahead over time with Apple. A $1,699 15" MacBook Air with 16 GB RAM and 1 TB storage is an excellent long term value, IMO. You get more RAM than the base M3 ($1,599) and more storage than the base M3 Pro ($1,999).
60 Hz displays in late-2023 are a really bad deal.
Doesn't matter if is a notebook display, a smarpthone, or a tablet. Even a TV.
Totally showstopper.
It's like buying a 8 GB RAM computer these days...
Doesn't matter if is a notebook display, a smarpthone, or a tablet. Even a TV.
Totally showstopper.
It's like buying a 8 GB RAM computer these days...
Not really. High refresh rates are nice, but not at all necessary. For most uses they don't even add any meaningful benefit.
My guess would be that the people who want an Air want a really portable computer, and since the 15" doesn't offer any meaningful improvement over the 13" aside from the slightly larger display, most people just go for the 13".
It probably doesn't help that it launched so much later than the 13" M2 Air either.
We don't know any of that. Apple doesn't breakdown the sales between models.
Me neither. I have a 16" Pro which is even bigger & I don't have any lap issues with it. All subjective of course!
Your guess is good in that regard but my comment was geared more toward the latter half of your post on timing. It makes sense but Apple's so stingy at reporting time.
I don't know what launch dates have to do with reporting.
To be clear, I have no idea how well either of these machines have sold. I'm operating under the assumption that the 15" is selling worse than expected since that's the premise of the thread.
So, not really on my lap; sort of perched between my protruding gut and my skinny legs. Could I do that with a 15" MBA?
But the Macbooks already have a notch specifically for the webcam. Also, the Pros have smaller bezels than the Airs. So my point was that Airs having larger bezels is a meaningless, artificial separation between the product segments. It's no longer "the best laptop that we can make" anymore. It's a device purposefully compromised to get you to pay more to get a Pro.
It has always been „the best laptop we can make at this price point“. No change there.
The number of people getting a MBP over an MBA because of the bezels is certainly negligible.
The timing is prevent me buying 15” mba. I bought 13” m2 just few weeks before 15” release date. I may wait for next iteration.
In the past I’ve always known exactly which Mac to buy; from my very first in the Summer of 1984 through the Intel iMac I bought in 2017.
But now I’m stumped. And, the more I read the very rational opinions in this thread the more unsure I become.
But now I’m stumped. And, the more I read the very rational opinions in this thread the more unsure I become.
Worst case scenario this was an exercise to test the market and they discontinue it with the next chip update because it hasn't sold well. I hope that's not the case. I'm not really a laptop guy, but should I buy one, this would be it. 13" screen is too small for anything I'd use it for, yet I don't need the raw computing power of the Macbook Pro models so I don't want to pay for it.
TLDR;
Until you can plug 2x external monitors into the MBA it’s kind of a dud for a ton of people willing to spend this much.
Basically every desk at any office since 10(?) years back has a dual monitor setup these days.
(I would not be surprised if the number of people who use double monitors at home as well has risen exponentially since 2020).
95% of people working at these desks could do their job perfectly with any of the MBA’s.
The 15” MBA would be perfect for all the millions of people who really only move their laptop around the house or between their office desk, meeting rooms and the occasional remote day from somewhere.
Apple clearly don’t want that.
So they strategically removed dual monitor support from the MBA to sell more MBP’s.
The extra CPU/GPU power of the MacBook Pro 14/16 is not really needed for sending emails, using a few web apps and working on spreadsheets all day.
But if you want dual external monitors you have to buy one anyway.
(Edit: clarification on the value proposition of the mbp).
Until you can plug 2x external monitors into the MBA it’s kind of a dud for a ton of people willing to spend this much.
Basically every desk at any office since 10(?) years back has a dual monitor setup these days.
(I would not be surprised if the number of people who use double monitors at home as well has risen exponentially since 2020).
95% of people working at these desks could do their job perfectly with any of the MBA’s.
The 15” MBA would be perfect for all the millions of people who really only move their laptop around the house or between their office desk, meeting rooms and the occasional remote day from somewhere.
Apple clearly don’t want that.
So they strategically removed dual monitor support from the MBA to sell more MBP’s.
The extra CPU/GPU power of the MacBook Pro 14/16 is not really needed for sending emails, using a few web apps and working on spreadsheets all day.
But if you want dual external monitors you have to buy one anyway.
(Edit: clarification on the value proposition of the mbp).
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Well then all of the MacBook Air and Pros are in weak demand because they’re all on sale and have been on sale for months.
I personally think the MacBook Air 15” is a great computer and I’m definitely considering one.
Well I don’t need MBP power but I am considering the 15” MBA vs base 14” M3 Pro. The Air is plenty powerful, but I love the 120Hz display, Space Black color, extra ports, and better speakers of the MBP, so even though I don’t need the power of the Pro, the other features provide a lot of extra value for me.
I have both: one for personal (15” air) and one for work (14” pro). I prefer the 15” air for pretty much everything; as far as I’m concerned the only downside is the air’s limitation of 1 external display.
Even if i had to decide Today i would presumably again buy the MBA M2 13,6".
I am absolutely into the 14" Category and last Year in the Summer it was also the first possibility to get an M2 with 40% faster Neural Engine 50% More Memory Bandwidth 35% faster GPU 18% faster CPU than the M1 MBA beside the many more differences for the better against MBA M1.
+ to get a Powerful Laptop with "no Noise"
+ not an 13" Display but almost 14" and not bulky 15"
+ even better because the Ratio is a bit better than that annoying Space wasting Movie Format........
I would not buy the MBA 15 but they could have sold more i guess if they not released it 1 Year to Late when M3 was on the Doorstep.
@uller6
i have the 13,6 Inch Internal Display with an external 27" Display and if needet for Meetings a 40" TV connected via AirpPlay which i can also share in Online Meeting or use as OBS Preview ........
So effectively 3 Displays.
I am absolutely into the 14" Category and last Year in the Summer it was also the first possibility to get an M2 with 40% faster Neural Engine 50% More Memory Bandwidth 35% faster GPU 18% faster CPU than the M1 MBA beside the many more differences for the better against MBA M1.
+ to get a Powerful Laptop with "no Noise"
+ not an 13" Display but almost 14" and not bulky 15"
+ even better because the Ratio is a bit better than that annoying Space wasting Movie Format........
I would not buy the MBA 15 but they could have sold more i guess if they not released it 1 Year to Late when M3 was on the Doorstep.
@uller6
i have the 13,6 Inch Internal Display with an external 27" Display and if needet for Meetings a 40" TV connected via AirpPlay which i can also share in Online Meeting or use as OBS Preview ........
So effectively 3 Displays.
My husband and I LOVE our 15" MBAs. We each had and also loved the 16" MBP prior, but found it was a little clunky for our travels. We love the combination of size and light weight of the new Air and don't miss our 16s so much (other than that brighter screen). To us it's the perfect portability.