Macbook Air 2016 vs Macbook Air 2017

[jahanzaibk]

Hello!

I am considering buying Macbook Air. Confused between 2016 and 2017 versions. Both have same RAM, Screen Size and Resolution apart from Processing Speed which is 1.8 Ghz.

Please suggest which option should i choose to buy Early 2016 MBA or Mid 2017 MBA


Best,

Jahanzaib

 

[ZapNZs]

There is a minor difference in the processor between the 2015 model and the 2017 model (which could also be termed the 2015 revision 2 because it uses the same generation of CPUs and NOT the newer Kaby Lake.)

How will you use this computer and what will you use it for? How important is value? In Pakistan, is it the same as in the US where the (original) 2015 model is on amazing sales? In the US, the savings between the two different models are so significant that I think most commonly the money saved justifies buying the original 2015 release, in my personal opinion.

 

[jahanzaibk]

There is a minor difference in the processor between the 2015 model and the 2017 model (which could also be termed the 2015 revision 2 because it uses the same generation of CPUs and NOT the newer Kaby Lake.)

How will you use this computer and what will you use it for? How important is value? In Pakistan, is it the same as in the US where the (original) 2015 model is on amazing sales? In the US, the savings between the two different models are so significant that I think most commonly the money saved justifies buying the original 2015 release, in my personal opinion.

In Pakistan, they are selling like Early 2016 in $995 and Mid 2017 in $1115 (128GB RAM)

I am a Product Manager and manages idea/concept development, documentation, digital marketing campaign etc. I am a fan of its compactness and battery life.

 

[ZapNZs]

In Pakistan, they are selling like Early 2016 in $995 and Mid 2017 in $1115 (128GB RAM)

I am a Product Manager and manages idea/concept development, documentation, digital marketing campaign etc. I am a fan of its compactness and battery life.

If it were me, personally, for standard-use software as such I would get the $995 1.6 GHz Early-2015 (to my knowledge there is no 2016 model) and put the extra $120 towards either an external solid state drive or a Transcend JetDrive Lite.

 

[Boyd01]

According to EveryMac (which many people consider the definitive source about Macintosh models) there's no such thing as either 2016 or 2017 MacBook Air. They are both "early 2015" models that are identical, except one has a 1.6ghz Broadwell i5 processor and the other has a 1.8ghz Broadwell i5.

I would buy whichever is less expensive in your country, it's unlikely that you would notice much difference. Here in the US we can get Apple refurbished MacBook Airs that have the same warranty as new machines but are less expensive; that's what I would get if they are available.

Here are the specs, they don't have the 64bit geekbench scores for the 1.8 ghz model, but the 32 bit benchmark shows about an 8% increase in CPU performance.

http://www.everymac.com/systems/app...book-air-core-i5-1.6-13-early-2015-specs.html
http://www.everymac.com/systems/app...book-air-core-i5-1.8-13-early-2015-specs.html

 

[ChrisChaval]

Ssd speed in 2017 model should be way faster

Disk speed might be important to you based on your needs

Please refer to reviews and benchmarks

 

[Boyd01]

Ssd speed in 2017 model should be way faster

I know the ssd in Apple's newest machines is much faster, and Apple bumped the ssd speed on the 2015 13" MBA (but not the 11"). However I have not seen anything to indicate that the speed of the recent update is "way faster" than the 2015 model. Can you provide a link that confirms this? The Everymac link above says that the only difference is the slightly faster CPU.

 

[ChrisChaval]

I stand corrected ... seems my statement was way exaggerated

On the contrary, according to crystal disk benchmarks performed by notebookcheck.net, the 2017 ssd seems to be slower than the 2015 one ...

here is the link (you can add the 2015 air model manually)

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Apple-MacBook-Air-13-2017-Laptop-1-8-GHz-Review.230010.0.html

It was in fact the 2015 review I had in mind ..

 

[Saturn007]

That link -- well, at least the section on the storage devices and speed -- did NOT compare the 2017 and 2015 models!

What it did find as to CPU performance, was that the 2017 base model (well, i5) does as well as the 2015's top model!

"Taking a closer look at the benchmarks, we were surprised to see the new i5-equipped MacBook Air 2017 perform almost exactly as well as the Core i7 model from two years ago."

 

[CaptRB]

I own a 2015 i7 MacBook Air and just picked up a 2017 i7 Air as well.

For what it's worth, the newer machine is clearly faster when handling large photo files. It's not a HUGE difference, but the new machine does have an edge.


R.

 

[Boyd01]

I own a 2015 i7 MacBook Air and just picked up a 2017 i7 Air as well.

There is no such thing as a "2017 i7 MBA". They only changed the CPU in the i5 model, there was no change to the i7, they are still selling the 2015 i7 model. So why would a new one be faster? http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/macbook-air/index-macbook-air.html

 

[maerz001]

I own a 2015 i7 MacBook Air and just picked up a 2017 i7 Air as well.

For what it's worth, the newer machine is clearly faster when handling large photo files. It's not a HUGE difference, but the new machine does have an edge.


R.

They have the exact same internals. But that's a good example of how placebos work

 

[ChrisChaval]

That link -- well, at least the section on the storage devices and speed -- did NOT compare the 2017 and 2015 models!

What it did find as to CPU performance, was that the 2017 base model (well, i5) does as well as the 2015's top model!

"Taking a closer look at the benchmarks, we were surprised to see the new i5-equipped MacBook Air 2017 perform almost exactly as well as the Core i7 model from two years ago."

yes, regarding the storage you may add the 2015 air model manually for comparison

the part about the 2017 i5 air CPU performance is nice, thank you - didn't read that!