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What is it about the M1 Air?
- Thread starter bobjonesco
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Best value Mac ever released.
A 15in. wedge shaped Air would have been very cool!
In this day and age an expensive laptop smaller than 13 ins. is absurd.…they need to bring back the 12" Macbook. Or better yet, the 11" Air!
Why is it more absurd today vs. xx years ago?
Plan to keep using my M1 1TB/8Gb Macbook Air I got in 2021 until at least 2030 or beyond. The only machine I loved more was the Power Mac G3 Desktop I got while in high school.
If I were able to upgrade the RAM someday, maybe I'd love it even more.
If I were able to upgrade the RAM someday, maybe I'd love it even more.
because bezel reduction fits a 13-inch screen into the same dimensions as an 11-inch laptop from the past. Making a computer smaller than 13 inches now would result in a cramped keyboard and a retina display size that's too small for comfortable use with modern apps and macOS. It's simply not practical for mainstream audiences.
My 11" MBA was smaller than my 13" M1 Air, and smaller bezels just means that I'd gain that much more real estate in the smaller frame. I never felt the keyboard was cramped - I'm not even sure the main typing area was any smaller. And a modern OS and modern apps? The 11" was around in 2015 - we're not exactly talking a PowerBook from the System 7 days.
Now that said, I'm happy to concede that my desire for a smaller laptop is in the minority. But absurd? I don't think so, or at least I don't think I'm being any more absurd than I'd be for this opinion in 2015!
Do you have the measurements? There might be 1cm difference at most from what I’ve seen on this.My 11" MBA was smaller than my 13" M1 Air, and smaller bezels just means that I'd gain that much more real estate in the smaller frame. I never felt the keyboard was cramped - I'm not even sure the main typing area was any smaller. And a modern OS and modern apps? The 11" was around in 2015 - we're not exactly talking a PowerBook from the System 7 days.
Honestly, I can't tell. I have a MacBook Air and a MacBook Pro (with promotion). I can't tell.
I love using my 11” Air! I sold my 12.9” iPad “Pro” with peeling keyboard case for it, and I enjoy using it more than my 2017 MBA and my 15” MBP.Just goes to show that they need to bring back the 12" Macbook. Or better yet, the 11" Air!
Not offhand (I'll look it up in a bit), but I remember the depth being considerably shorter, which was great for modern airplane tray tables. The tradeoff being noticeably less palmrest room and a smaller trackpad. It doesn't matter now, but back then the size also made the TSA consider it to be a tablet, so I never had to pull it from my bag at security.
Of course I also loved the iPhone mini, so clearly my tastes for smaller devices isn't reflected in the overall market, at least as Apple sees it!
14” MacBookPro does the trick for me, 16” is just too big and heavy. It’s funny how even being bigger and heavier than the MacBook Air, it’s still smaller and lighter than the original 13” MacBook even with a bigger screen.
Ah, you're right, I had overlooked the fact that the 11-inch model had a different aspect ratio, more like 16x9 compared to the 16x10 of larger screens.Not offhand (I'll look it up in a bit), but I remember the depth being considerably shorter, which was great for modern airplane tray tables. The tradeoff being noticeably less palmrest room and a smaller trackpad. It doesn't matter now, but back then the size also made the TSA consider it to be a tablet, so I never had to pull it from my bag at security.
Of course I also loved the iPhone mini, so clearly my tastes for smaller devices isn't reflected in the overall market, at least as Apple sees it!
Apple could potentially release a 16x9 screen with a shorter trackpad, but that seems like a niche offering.
Yeah, it absolutely is. I'm sure Apple would argue the iPad fills that niche, but there are a few things I do that require a full fledged OS.
I do too, my friend. But Apple isn’t very interested, apparently
It was absurd then, but even more so now. If you’re paying premium money for a device why should you forego a fullsize keyboard, decent display and small battery when the same money will get you a fullsize Windows laptop. Sure, some Apple devotees will go for it, but not the majority. And it certainly won’t entice many newcomers over from Windows.
This.
It must be said that if Apple silicon had existed back in the day it might have been different. But today Apple could just as easily have renamed the now defunct M1 MacBook Air as the MacBook SE, cut the price and call it a day. A sub $1000 (CAN) MacBook like the now discontinued M1 MacBook Air would sell.
But that was the entire point - I didn't want a fullsize laptop. IIRC the keyboard on the 11" Air wasn't a problem - certainly not like typing on a tablet keyboard. I look the M1 Air I'm typing on now, and the reduction of the bezel and area to the left and right of the keyboard could turn this thing into the old 12" Macbook without much compromise. I don't think Apple will ever go smaller than 13" again - that's tablet territory in their eyes - but there are those of us that really enjoyed the smaller form factors.
Agree.
I don’t prefer the older design over the M2 one.
But the M2 design overhaul is too similar to MacBook Pro.
The M2 and M3 Airs are just “MacBooks Pro Air”
I’ve noticed that too. At first I thought it was because the screen is bigger, but that made no sense cause I notice it on my tv while gaming. I wonder if it has something to do with how one navigates MacOS
I do those tasks and some on my 11” iPad Pro. Great balance between screen estate, ability to hold with two hands, and portability. Only draw back is some keys are squished So a bit hard to press.
No regrets moving to a 15'' M2 Air for work
But my 13'' M1 is still used every day at home. I vastly prefer it for sitting on the couch (or in my case in my recliner).
But my 13'' M1 is still used every day at home. I vastly prefer it for sitting on the couch (or in my case in my recliner).
I used to carry the 2014 MacBook Air 11” around. A huge fan of the size and portability Over performance. I think part of me still want that form factor and find out 11” iPad Pro resembles that form factor very well.
I would not use M1 MacBook Air for any sort of power hungry stuff though. Case in point, M1 cannot even handle 2 games running simultaneously. One of them had substantial stutter and frame drops it was unplayable, the other one ran much slower than before second game running too.
To me, MacBook Air is always the device where you get light stuff done in a nice macOS interface, not something that I run Final Cut Pro or 3D rendering software (or any other similar grade software) regularly.
I would not use M1 MacBook Air for any sort of power hungry stuff though. Case in point, M1 cannot even handle 2 games running simultaneously. One of them had substantial stutter and frame drops it was unplayable, the other one ran much slower than before second game running too.
To me, MacBook Air is always the device where you get light stuff done in a nice macOS interface, not something that I run Final Cut Pro or 3D rendering software (or any other similar grade software) regularly.
MacBook Prairs, if you will
I prefer the wedge design. I think the current design is more efficient for internal components and batteries, and it still looks nice — but I still prefer the wedge.
Just curious, why would you want to run 2 games at once?