Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Worth upgrading i3 2020 MacBook Air to M1?
- Thread starter Elektrofone
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Only Apple really knows, but Apple will want to move away from bloat in a Universal OS as soon as they can. A lot will depend on the success of Silicon and how quickly the user base adopts it. Probably 3 more years of OS updates and 5/6 years of security updates. After switching to Intel Apple only released one more Universal OS before dumping PowerPC, but back then OS was only updated every 2 years or so, rather than annually currently.
Definitely think my M1 Air is the best laptop I've ever owned.
Good choice for you. The 2020 Intel MBA was hot garbage for me as the fan ran constantly and throttled like crazy. Returned it even before the 14 day return window was up. The M1 MBA OTOH replaced a loaded 2020 MBP 13 i7....
Last edited:
I have never owned a Mac computer in my life. I’ve been PC Forever! (I still have PC’s) as I’m a PC enthusiast.
Although, when I needed a laptop I jumped straight in for a MacBook Air M1. Full beast mode from a tiny thin and light laptop. 16GB/1TB, 8 Core GPU, what a machine.
These laptops have made history! You can game on them, run just about any kind of
intensive applications on them. All while
unplugged, and running cool with no fan.
What tiny Mac can do that while
being unplugged with no fan?
So either own an M1 and enjoy it, or sit back and wait for something else as the M1 fades away in to history. Regardless, that something else will be twice as expensive. Because its gonna be a while before something this revolutionary comes out again starting at $899/$999.
Although, when I needed a laptop I jumped straight in for a MacBook Air M1. Full beast mode from a tiny thin and light laptop. 16GB/1TB, 8 Core GPU, what a machine.
These laptops have made history! You can game on them, run just about any kind of
intensive applications on them. All while
unplugged, and running cool with no fan.
What tiny Mac can do that while
being unplugged with no fan?
So either own an M1 and enjoy it, or sit back and wait for something else as the M1 fades away in to history. Regardless, that something else will be twice as expensive. Because its gonna be a while before something this revolutionary comes out again starting at $899/$999.
I've got the i5 version of the same 2020 Air and am thinking the same thing (though I'm not having the slowness issues the OP is having). The main thing holding me back is the possibility that Apple will come out with a thinner and lighter M1 laptop and I'll regret it.
What I'm hoping for is an M1 version of that super thin Retina MacBook, minus the garbage keyboard, and hopefully with more than one USB port. I'd buy that day 1 and I'd vastly prefer it over the comparatively heavy form factor the Air has now.
What I'm hoping for is an M1 version of that super thin Retina MacBook, minus the garbage keyboard, and hopefully with more than one USB port. I'd buy that day 1 and I'd vastly prefer it over the comparatively heavy form factor the Air has now.
Last edited:
The next version of the M1 Air (or its equivalent) will be "twice as expensive"? That will absolutely not be true. If anything, revisions will probably hold around the same price and have better specs. I get that you haven't been buying Macs for long, and if you thought they doubled in price every year, I understand why.
Are you running Google Chrome? The updater installs a piece of software called Keystone which has been known to slow some macs down to a crawl, even when Chrome itself is not running.
The next Air will NOT be twice as expensive. What I’m saying is, the next Apple silicon laptop that is released will be twice as expensive as the M1 Air. (M1X or M2 Pro device)
People keep saying, “I’m gonna wait to see what apple releases next“ “or gonna wait on the M1X”
The M1X will most likely cost $2,000 bucks and be a Pro device.
So someone would have a few options.
(1) Buy a macbook M1
(2) wait for the more expensive Apple M1’s coming soon enough
(3) Wait until a Macbook M1 Air replacement comes for $899-$999. (Might be a while is all im saying)
Regardless the M1 Air/ or M1 pro easily warrants an upgrade for anyone considering a new laptop. These machines are incredible. And what’s funny is that they look almost identical to the previous air models. It is amazing what just a really good CPU can do for a machine and the overall experience.
Last edited:
I'm thinking of the same upgrade - currently have a 2020 i5 MBA that always gives me a tough time with a Thunderbolt dock (USB mouse and keyboard connected to it will stop responding, and then the computer crashes and restarts). However, I need to use 2 external monitors while in clamshell mode and I hear that the M1 MBA does not support 2 external monitors, is that true?
I actually just upgraded my wife’s 2020 i5 air to the m1. Cost was not bad at all, luckily apple Canada had some refurbished base m1’s in stock. in all I believe it costed us extra ~$1 (CAD).
some back story for the driver of upgrading. I previously had a 2015 MacBook Pro 13, and decided it was finally time to upgrade. After watching multiple review videos I ended up purchasing a refurb base m1 for myself. First of all the performance is amazing!
After having it for few days, my wife needed me to do some app installs on her i5 air and also check why her laptop slowed down again. After using hers for an hour, I couldn’t believe the difference in performance between the i5 and my m1. She’s notorious for never closing apps nor closing tabs, which was evident when trying to use her laptop. Told her we need to upgrade her laptop right away. Luckily was able to sell her laptop and got her the m1.
after few days of her using the new m1, out of curiosity I wanted to check her performance. As usual she had infinite amount of tabs and multiple apps open. I checked her machine and surprisingly not a single performance impact. Ran some Geekbench benchmark and was showing pretty much same score as mine, which had pretty much nothing running.
she’s much happier, and no longer bugs me saying her laptop is slow again
on that note, it’s worth the upgrade!
some back story for the driver of upgrading. I previously had a 2015 MacBook Pro 13, and decided it was finally time to upgrade. After watching multiple review videos I ended up purchasing a refurb base m1 for myself. First of all the performance is amazing!
After having it for few days, my wife needed me to do some app installs on her i5 air and also check why her laptop slowed down again. After using hers for an hour, I couldn’t believe the difference in performance between the i5 and my m1. She’s notorious for never closing apps nor closing tabs, which was evident when trying to use her laptop. Told her we need to upgrade her laptop right away. Luckily was able to sell her laptop and got her the m1.
after few days of her using the new m1, out of curiosity I wanted to check her performance. As usual she had infinite amount of tabs and multiple apps open. I checked her machine and surprisingly not a single performance impact. Ran some Geekbench benchmark and was showing pretty much same score as mine, which had pretty much nothing running.
she’s much happier, and no longer bugs me saying her laptop is slow again
on that note, it’s worth the upgrade!
I swear to God, the day Apple brings back an M1 in the form factor and approximate weight of the 12" MacBook (smaller bezels would mean a larger screen), I'm buying 10 of them for my team. Apart from the single port and the keyboard, that machine was just about perfect. With an M1 it would last all day long. The new Apple keyboard, two ports — I'd be in heaven.
Last edited:
At this point, the dongle and adapter game becomes ridiculous. My two displays are 1080p each so I might as well just upgrade to a single ultrawide monitor and save myself the headache.
I think it is a great idea, IMO.
I have a 2020 Air I5, 8g, 256 and I have only ever heard the fans spin up ONCE. I didn't even think they existed. However, I think it is a dog. It is laggy. I'm forever waiting for it to 'catch up' after I've initiated a mouse click or a swipe on the trackpad. Not forever in reality of course, but longer than a computer should. I'm talking only a second or so but enough to be annoying.
I'm half thinking about selling it and taking the loss and getting an M1. S
I used Turbo Boost Switcher Pro for last few months. The system is a bit slower but the temp is stable around 45-55 celcius (which is good for battery as well). Agree with Sword86 above, this machine is 'lazy' especially in Big Sur
It is not worth it. You have such a new computer, why are you wasting it? Keep it for 4 more years then treat yourself to a good MacBook. Your wallet will say thank you.
When you first install a new Mac OS spotlight has to index the Hard Disk, which can take a while, if you did a wipe and reinstall then the Mac will also need to download any files in iCloud (including your photo library, if kept in iCloud). I would wait a day to see if you still have the same problem.
That having being said the last gen Intel MBA are infamous for fans kicking in, when not doing much. My daughter has one.
Use activity monitor to identify which App(s) are causing processor load. If you have the battery indicator in the menu bar, clicking that will also show you any apps that are draining the battery.
If you use Chrome you may be better off using another browser like Safari, as Chrome is a known resources hog.
You may want to invest in an inexpensive laptop cooling stand / pad.
Hmmm... That's too bad. Which model does she have?
I was considering a used 2020 i5 MBA for my young kid since performance is not a big concern, just OS support. Usage would be surfing, online interactive websites, Zoom, Messages, and simple stuff like that. (We have older less powerful Macs which handle that workload just fine.) M1 is a consideration too, but the M1 MacBook Airs are considerably more expensive. The (much) longer battery life of M1 would be a bonus, but isn't mission critical as it will be mainly used at home.
Have you cleaned the fan? It might be worth a look inside.