What's your opinion on the MBA releasing in 2016.

[thnzus]

Well, I'm going to college this fall, so I have to get a new laptop soon.
I would really like to get a MBA, but wouldn't mind waiting for 6 months if the 2016 MBA is going to be a new design and/or comes with a retina display.
I already have a windows laptop with pretty good specs, so I'm only planning on getting a MBA because it's just easier to carry around and taking to classes.
I'm not sure whether I should get a MBA now or get a notebook like the HP stream 13 that costs under 300 and wait for the 2016 MBA, so I would really like to get your opinion on this

 

[Mac-lover3]

I'm afraid the 2016 version of it may never going to exist..
The MacBook replaced it actually, so it will probably be a very small update or they just kill it.
The MacBook Air are really great computers (apart from the screen).

 

[theluggage]

but wouldn't mind waiting for 6 months if the 2016 MBA is going to be a new design and/or comes with a retina display.

Nobody knows - but my guess would be that the 11" Air will disappear and the 13" be obsoleted by the next generation of the MacBook Pro 13 possibly sporting an Air-like tapered design.

 

[T'hain Esh Kelch]

I agree with the above. If you want an MBA, you might as well get it now.

 

[Boyd01]

My opinion is that the predictions on this forum are not very reliable. If you don't need a new computer yet, don't buy one. When you actually need it, buy whatever best meets your needs. But since you asked for opinions, mine is that you probably won't get a new design or retina display. The current MBA is already a great machine, I will be using my 2013 i7/8gb/512gb for a few more years.

 

[motrek]

Nobody knows - but my guess would be that the 11" Air will disappear and the 13" be obsoleted by the next generation of the MacBook Pro 13 possibly sporting an Air-like tapered design.

The classic MBP has been around for a long time, and is even still around after several years of theoretically being obsoleted by the 13" rMBP.

There's no reason to expect that the MBA will just vanish within a year of the rMB being released. I mean, maybe. But it could also stick around for years just like the cMBP.

 

[newellj]

I don't know whether the MBA will vanish (no one here does). Logic favors the theory above about the 11" disappearing and the 13" going into a status like the cMBP until Apple can bring the price on the rMB down and/or introduce a 14" screen on a scaled-up rMB.

The post about buy it when you need it is right on. Honestly, any of the Apple laptops provide more than enough power for almost everything that almost everyone here needs, and the few for whom that's not true don't need to post questions like this.

If you agree with the logic that says that the MBA is basically at the end of its development life cycle, then the most you'd see would be very modest updates that wouldn't affect performance much.

I will point out that, very notably IMHO, the MBA line did NOT get the new trackpad that the rMBP line and the rMB got. Since it's clear that Apple intends to get developers to find uses for the new trackpad, the fact that Apple didn't include it in the early 2015 update says a lot to me about how Apple views the future of the MBA.

 

[bap3221]

Yea I really think that the Macbook is just a replacement for MBA. Its thin like the MBA but has a retina display. I don’t see why they would upgrade the MBA to be the same just different sizes.

Im happy with more ports and better battery life on my MBA 13” 2013. Im gonna wait for them to upgrade the battery, add more ports, and fix their butterfly mechanism on their keyboards (people say they jam when a something gets stuck inside).

 

[DavidLynch]

I think if there is a 2016 model that keeps the same format it will keep the trend of a very modest update and possibly even another $50-100 price cut. I see Apple keeping the MBA around as their entry-level computer and I don't think they'll make any changes that would raise the cost.

 

[Meister]

Apple will keep the Air around as a classic for the price point.

 

[motrek]

Apple will keep the Air around as a classic for the price point.

Processor supply issues might force Apple to update MBAs to newer Intel chips. Those updates might come with chipset updates that translate to e.g. the addition of USB-C ports.

Otherwise I can't think of why anything else might be updated in the future, if Apple just wants to keep selling them for a while.

 

[newellj]

Processor supply issues might force Apple to update MBAs to newer Intel chips. Those updates might come with chipset updates that translate to e.g. the addition of USB-C ports.

Otherwise I can't think of why anything else might be updated in the future, if Apple just wants to keep selling them for a while.

I think you could be right about chip updates and port changes, but all basically just treading water to keep something in the lineup at a sub-$1K price point. That is obviously just one person's guess.

 

[redheeler]

Processor supply issues might force Apple to update MBAs to newer Intel chips.

They have managed keep an Ivy Bridge-based non-Retina MBP around all this time without updating the CPU, so I wouldn't count on it.

 

[Orr]

Apple can't give the Air a retina display. Then no one would buy their vastly overpriced and much less capable rMB. The Air had a great run, and will rapidly fade into the ether.

 

[Tork]

Agree with those saying it'll stick around. It's just too powerful a brand name and too much an all-around fantastic computer with very little drawback for a vast majority of users. It's literally the laptop benchmark. The screen is the only thing ever cited as a negative in reviews. And if Apple can figure out a way to put a retina screen in it while preserving the battery life (tapering?) and price (which is perfect for such an awesome machine), they will, since they already sell like crazy and that's removing literally the last drawback. But most people probably don't care that much about the screen anyway. Apple doesn't care if it'll take sales away from the MB. Who would, if it means more sales of your hottest selling computer? I'm sure it's more profitable than the MB anyway. The current MB is just too limited at this point to be the only consumer-named laptop -- they need the Air right now. It'll get more powerful and USB-C will be enough in 4-5 years or so. No way they ax the Air until then, if they ever do. The MB sets Apple up nicely for the future, especially when a 14" with 2-3 USB-C ports and 12+ hour battery comes along, but that's when USB-C is a bona fide "thing," and when the little chipsets become a bit more powerful.

Apple's got a confusing set of names with their lightest laptop not being the "Air," of course too. Maybe they'll eventually pull a switcheroo and rename it the Air, while the current Air becomes the MB. They've done something like that before when the low end 13" aluminum "Pro" became the "MacBook" before it became the "Pro" again -- i.e., the current non-retina MBP.

 

[Boyd01]

It's literally the laptop benchmark. The screen is the only thing ever cited as a negative in reviews.

Well I still love my MBA and am keeping it for awhile. But I just read this article in the Wall Street Journal. Interesting to see the change of opinion…

http://www.wsj.com/articles/which-m...-speed-and-style-in-apples-laptops-1433875992

“Just get a MacBook Air.”

For as long as I can remember, that’s been my unequivocal answer to anyone looking to buy a new laptop. A cutting-edge design, an unparalleled balance of performance and battery life—the choice was as obvious as picking an airplane aisle seat.

But the latest Apple laptops make the one I once declared the best in the world feel like a good fit for my grandma’s living room.

The 13-inch Air is still a very good laptop, but it no longer feels great, even for the $1,000 starting price. (The 11-inch model starts at $900.) The Air is for someone who values battery life above all else

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wall street journal which macbook? choosing between stamina, speed

 

[newellj]

Well I still love my MBA and am keeping it for awhile. But I just read this article in the Wall Street Journal. Interesting to see the change of opinion…

http://www.wsj.com/articles/which-m...-speed-and-style-in-apples-laptops-1433875992





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wall street journal which macbook? choosing between stamina, speed

I think the WSJ article is a pretty fair discussion of the tradeoffs right now among the rMBP, the MBA and the rMB. I don't think it's possible to say that the MBA is a benchmark, or as a recent video tries to suggest, the gold standard, in 2015, and it is pretty clear that Apple doesn't think so, either. It presents itself capably only because it's pushing so few pixels. Apple needs to clean up the performance issues that affect too many users with OS X with 10.11 or they may well see migration to Windows. Win 8.1 is fast, light and very stable, and Win 10 is going to give Windows a UI reset that will probably be very attractive to many users.

 

[willmac]

One hint to the MBA's lifespan might be to look on Apple's web site at the El Capitan preview - http://www.apple.com/osx/elcapitan-preview/ Not an Air to be found.

 

[Boyd01]

It presents itself capably only because it's pushing so few pixels. Apple needs to clean up the performance issues that affect too many users with OS X

That certainly isn't my experience. I use my 2013 11" i7/8gb/512gb MBA most of the time with either a 1080x1920 or 1200x1920 monitor and sometimes run software like Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro. It is a very fast little computer. Don't really have any OSX performance issues, but am still running 10.8, which was what my machine shipped with. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it", and I don't see any must-have features in newer versions of OSX.

 

[jdechko]

Longstanding wisdom is to buy a computer if you need a computer. There's always something newer/faster/better/shinier coming just around the corner. The Air was just released in April, so it's fairly early in the release cycle. The back-to-school sales will start soon, so that's probably a good time to buy if you're set on purchasing.

One hint to the MBA's lifespan might be to look on Apple's web site at the El Capitan preview - http://www.apple.com/osx/elcapitan-preview/ Not an Air to be found.

There aren't any desktop macs either. Would you say those are going away?

 

[Cheffy Dave]

Well, I'm going to college this fall, so I have to get a new laptop soon.
I would really like to get a MBA, but wouldn't mind waiting for 6 months if the 2016 MBA is going to be a new design and/or comes with a retina display.
I already have a windows laptop with pretty good specs, so I'm only planning on getting a MBA because it's just easier to carry around and taking to classes.
I'm not sure whether I should get a MBA now or get a notebook like the HP stream 13 that costs under 300 and wait for the 2016 MBA, so I would really like to get your opinion on this

It's rumored death is greatly exaggerated.This fall 11/13" Airs get Skyline,Retina Screens,but no Haptic Keyboards or Force Touch Trackpads

 

[placidity44]

I don't know why they'd get rid of the MBA. Most tech reviewers have it as the best rated laptop for most people just cite a lower resolution display. For most people it's the best laptop they can buy. Also they have a lower cost of entry into the mac ecosystem. They're not going anywhere until apple can get more battery life out of the rMB and lower the cost of assembly, and add a little more power. I don't see the MBA going anywhere for a while. The rMB is an amazing feat of engineering and is gorgeous but I would've been more than happy if they added a retina display and force touch into the current chassis...maybe shave a little off. Don't see why they didn't just redesign the Airs a little bit instead of adding an entire new category.

 

[SusanK]

If they kill off the MBA I'm going to cry

 

[Mike MA]

I'm afraid the 2016 version of it may never going to exist..
The MacBook replaced it actually, so it will probably be a very small update or they just kill it.
The MacBook Air are really great computers (apart from the screen).

Not sure about that. They will kill the 'Air' label, that's for sure. Else it would habe been adopted by the new Macbook. But it could coexist with additional ports and some other features.

 

[sracer]

I don't know why they'd get rid of the MBA. Most tech reviewers have it as the best rated laptop for most people just cite a lower resolution display. For most people it's the best laptop they can buy. Also they have a lower cost of entry into the mac ecosystem. They're not going anywhere until apple can get more battery life out of the rMB and lower the cost of assembly, and add a little more power. I don't see the MBA going anywhere for a while. The rMB is an amazing feat of engineering and is gorgeous but I would've been more than happy if they added a retina display and force touch into the current chassis...maybe shave a little off. Don't see why they didn't just redesign the Airs a little bit instead of adding an entire new category.

It is most likely, IMO, that the 13" MBA is going to disappear soon.

They'll keep the 11" MBA for the "under $1000" segment, 12" rMB, and 13"rMBP.