A wedge issue…

[Saturn007]

Perhaps, for our MacRumors community, I should have titled this,

​

The Wedge Issue

I'm a fan of the wedge, finding it much easier to type on than the MacBook Pro models whose rectangular front edge digs into my palms.​

That meant my reaction to the new “MBA” was decidedly mixed, especially without the expanded iMac color palette and even the white! (I need to finally escape space gray and silver!)​

——> However, it suddenly occurred to me that the palm rest could be deeper than that of the 13” MBPs and that the front edge is lower in height than the MBPs of yore!!

That could mean that “palm digging” is much less of a problem — or, not one at all.

Until the machines come out, and the hands-on (palms-on) reviews come out, we won't know for sure.​

However, in the meantime, what do you all think? Any and all insights or speculations, random or otherwise, welcome!

 

[turbineseaplane]

You've hit on my #1 love about the wedge.

The way it got the front edge down low and sloping lower as it got closer to you was so wonderful for typing and hand/wrist comfort.

Hopefully the new ones are just so low in general that it's ok, but it still won't be a "sloping slightly towards you", as the wedge was/is

I'll remain open until I try one, but a bit pessimistic about it

 

[jav6454]

The boxy MBAs are just hard on the eyes. The wedge thou... add to that the slimmering down towards the palms.

 

[eicca]

Now that you mention it I do really like how the wedge further adds to the slim and light persona of the M1 Air. I'm typing on mine right now. SO much more comfortable than my old 2011 MBP.

 

[Ray2]

I haven’t had an MBP for 5 years. However, I am still reminded how much more comfortable my Airs are for typing. I feel the wedge is better looking and has a stiffer chassis as well. But it’s not new. So it can’t be worthy.

 

[Saturn007]

It's true that how a laptop looks matters almost as much as how it feels!

The new M2 MBA looks like a "BIG mini" version of the MacBook Pro rather than the Air we know and love!

Was struck the other day by how "bulky", even "heavy", a 2015 MacBook Air feels when picking it up or having it in one's lap. The reason? It is much bigger than a 2019 Intel MBA or the 2020 M1 MBA.

Just looked up the specs for several models. It's striking.

See https://www.apple.com/mac/compare/?modelList=MacBook-Air-2017,MacBook-Air-Retina,MacBook-Air-M1

The "original" 13" MBA was almost 13" wide by 9" deep vs. only 12" wide and only 8 1/3" deep for the more recent ones! The weight also dropped a tad from 3 pounds to 2.8.

Now, as to my hope (fantasy) that maybe the loss of the wedge wouldn't matter in the "thinner" M2 MBA.

The new M2 MBA is only .1" deeper (8.4" vs. 8.3"), which means it won't have a larger palm rest as I had hoped.

Its front edge height is an issue, too!

13" MBA … … .11”
2020 M1 MBA .16”
2022 M2 MBA .44”
2022 M2 MBP .61”
(also older ones)

Notice how vanishingly small the front edge of the classic 13" MBA is! Only .11"

The front edge height of the 2022 M2 MBA, however, is almost 3x that of the 2020 M1! And, 4x that of the classic MBA.

Don't think it's going to work!

P.S. One other calculation. The 2020 M1 MBA goes from .16” to .63”. Average is a tad under .40”. That makes it less than the .44” M2 MBA rectangle! (That's assuming a steady slope — and it is close to it!)

To me, that makes the claim that the M2 MBA is “thinner” a tad misleading!

On average, it's not — and it's definitely not thinner for much of the front half (depth) of the laptop!

The M1 MBA is also slightly less deep (.1”).

 

[erkanasu]

Perhaps, for our MacRumors community, I should have titled this,

​

The Wedge Issue

I'm a fan of the wedge, finding it much easier to type on than the MacBook Pro models whose rectangular front edge digs into my palms.​

That meant my reaction to the new “MBA” was decidedly mixed, especially without the expanded iMac color palette and even the white! (I need to finally escape space gray and silver!)​

——> However, it suddenly occurred to me that the palm rest could be deeper than that of the 13” MBPs and that the front edge is lower in height than the MBPs of yore!!

That could mean that “palm digging” is much less of a problem — or, not one at all.

Until the machines come out, and the hands-on (palms-on) reviews come out, we won't know for sure.​

However, in the meantime, what do you all think? Any and all insights or speculations, random or otherwise, welcome!

same man. only machines that work for me are 13" air or 16" MBP (due to huge area). 13" MBP / 14" MBP HURT MY HANDS!

I'm guessing we are f'd with the new air.

long live the m1 air

 

[Yr Blues]

The wedge made it so it had a smaller battery. Now it can go up to 18 hours. That's why I like the squared version. It also looks better now, in my opinion.

 

[jav6454]

The wedge made it so it had a smaller battery. Now it can go up to 18 hours. That's why I like the squared version. It also looks better now, in my opinion.

This is an interesting notion, but we will only find out until iFixit does their usual teardown.

 

[Saturn007]

The rated battery lives of the M1 and M2 MBA are identical! 15 hours web and 18 hours on movies.

See https://www.apple.com/mac/compare/

The different shapes have NO impact whatsoever on the expected battery life.

It's the new 13” MBP M2 that gains “up to” 2 hours more web and video… but the M1 and M2 MBAs are no slouches.

Who is going to spend 15 hours on the web or 18 hours watching movies in a single stretch, anyway?! 😎

 

[fisherking]

i have always disliked the look of the air, and preferred the pro design (and mostly, my 12" macbook). so i for one am happy about the new airs, the first one in that line i am going to buy.

but like all things apple, we adapt (or keep what we have, or complain...).

 

[jav6454]

The rated battery lives of the M1 and M2 MBA are identical! 15 hours web and 18 hours on movies.

See https://www.apple.com/mac/compare/

The different shapes have NO impact whatsoever on the expected battery life.

It's the new 13” MBP M2 that gains “up to” 2 hours more web and video… but the M1 and M2 MBAs are no slouches.

Who is going to spend 15 hours on the web or 18 hours watching movies in a single stretch, anyway?! 😎

Well, that is not something you should be jumping up and down. Basically, by getting of the wedge, Apple opened up space for more battery cells. In other words, to sustain same battery life the change was required due to the M2 consuming more power.

 

[JPack]

Keep in mind the M2 MBA display grew by 5.4 sq. inches and the battery gained 2.7 Whr.

That's about half the area of iPhone SE and about 1/3 the battery Whr.

In short, what Apple gained in battery capacity was used to power the larger display.

 

[Saturn007]

Jav, no jumping up and down here 😎 — save to note that the M2 has not gained battery life!

My post was in response to Yr Blues's assertion that the squared design of the M2 offered MORE battery life than the M1 — and was NOW up to 18 hours!

I was pointing out that's untrue. They are both rated for 15 hours web and 18 hours video. It's the M2 MBP that has gained battery life, not the M2 MBA.

The different shapes have not affected the expected battery life of the MBAs.

See the posts above!

As I concluded, though:

”Who is going to spend 15 hours on the web or 18 hours watching movies in a single stretch, anyway?!“ 😎​

 

[Saturn007]

A new observation about the tapered design…

I'm a big fan of it, finding it comfortable and easier to type on than the squared front edge MBPs. However, today, I realized that most of my typing is now done with the MBA propped at an angle in my lap. The front edge is hidden or buried.

It got me thinking that the M2 MBA just might work, if similarly propped up! An interesting consideration… it wouldn’t apply to typing on the MBA when it's sitting on a desk — but, for my routine, it likely could work just fine!

 

[Yuukon]

The wedge is great, but don't forget that the thinnest part of the laptop is hanging above your desk in the air. The level at which your hands are at now, might very well be the same level (or even lower) when the new MBA arrives to our desks. At first I worried about the edge, but when I realised this, I stopped. I'd be in way more discomfort with the MBP 14" and 16" edges.

 

[dizmonk]

You've hit on my #1 love about the wedge.

The way it got the front edge down low and sloping lower as it got closer to you was so wonderful for typing and hand/wrist comfort.

Hopefully the new ones are just so low in general that it's ok, but it still won't be a "sloping slightly towards you", as the wedge was/is

I'll remain open until I try one, but a bit pessimistic about it

100% this. In addition... I've always liked the fact that the Air LOOKS different than the MBP.

 

[Saturn007]

The wedge is great, but don't forget that the thinnest part of the laptop is hanging above your desk in the air. The level at which your hands are at now, might very well be the same level (or even lower) when the new MBA arrives to our desks. At first I worried about the edge, but when I realised this, I stopped. I'd be in way more discomfort with the MBP 14" and 16" edges.

Would you please explain a bit more? Not sure I understand how our hands could be *lower* with the M2 MBA than with the M1 MBA!

The new M2 MBA has a .44” height. The M1 MBA has only .16” height! The M2 seems far more likely to dig into one palms or wrists.

Plus, from the photos, it seems they redesigned the feet, too, and the M2's may well be slightly higher!

The most crucial measure, however, and likely the determinative one, is that the M2 MBA's height is much closer to the .61” height of the MacBook Pros than it is to that of the M1 MBAs! .44” vs. .61” vs. .16”

Odds are that the typing experience and comfort of the M2 MBA will be similar to that of the MBPs. For many, that won't matter; for others, it will.

Again, though, the size of one's hands, palms, how one types, angle of the laptop, sensitivity to such issues, etc. also play big roles!

 

[Chateaunole-du-Pape]

Would you please explain a bit more? Not sure I understand how our hands could be *lower* with the M2 MBA than with the M1 MBA!

The new M2 MBA has a .44” height. The M1 MBA has only .16” height! The M2 seems far more likely to dig into one palms or wrists.

Plus, from the photos, it seems they redesigned the feet, too, and the M2's may well be slightly higher!

The most crucial measure, however, and likely the determinative one, is that the M2 MBA's height is much closer to the .61” height of the MacBook Pros than it is to that of the M1 MBAs! .44” vs. .61” vs. .16”

Odds are that the typing experience and comfort of the M2 MBA will be similar to that of the MBPs. For many, that won't matter; for others, it will.

Again, though, the size of one's hands, palms, how one types, angle of the laptop, sensitivity to such issues, etc. also play big roles!

The M1 MBA is 0.16" thick at its very front edge, yes, but when placed on a desk, that front edge sits at a much higher level above the desk than 0.16". The top edge doesn't taper down to the table, which would indeed lead to a lower profile against your wrists; rather, the bottom edge tapers up from the point where it rests on the table. So the effective thickness of the laptop when placed on a desk is similar to that of the M2 Air. (Just how similar I do not know, as I don't have one I could measure.)

 

[fisherking]

i have never had an issue typing on my 12" macbook, or my previous macbooks, or my powerbooks. and i've never been a fan of the 'wedge' air design; for me it always looked kinda cheesy (again, just me).

the new air, on the other hand, looks amazing and am getting one as soon as they're there to get; finally a mac to replace my (aging) 2016 MB.

(full disclosure: i'll sell the air in a heartbeat if a new 12" shows up in the next year or so)

 

[jdb8167]

The M1 MBA is 0.16" thick at its very front edge, yes, but when placed on a desk, that front edge sits at a much higher level above the desk than 0.16". The top edge doesn't taper down to the table, which would indeed lead to a lower profile against your wrists; rather, the bottom edge tapers up from the point where it rests on the table. So the effective thickness of the laptop when placed on a desk is similar to that of the M2 Air. (Just how similar I do not know, as I don't have one I could measure.)

I think this is approximately correct. It looks like my M1 MBA front edge is approximately 1/2 inch above the desktop. I'm guessing that a more accurate measure will turn up around 0.4 inches. So same height within a margin of error.

 

[Saturn007]

How could that be correct?

The 2013-2017 MBAs had a front height of only .11” and the 2018-2020 was only .16”.

The M2 MBA comes in at a comparatively large height of .44” — or 4x that of the original series and nearly 3x that of the M1s!

The M2 MBAs will almost assuredly be significantly higher… And much closer to the MacBook Pro!

Whether that matters to any particular person depends upon the size of their hands, including palms, their typing position, whether they are touch typists, how sensitive they are to such issues, etc.

But, for those who found the 2013-2020 MBAs more comfortable to type on — especially compared to the MacBook Pros — they may well find the M2 MBAs similarly compromised. Many people disliked the MacBook Pros because the front edge dug into their wrists and palms…

If you get the chance, measure the front height of the M1 MBA and report back. It's a little tricky because many rulers and tape measures don't start exactly at zero!

 

[Chateaunole-du-Pape]

How could that be correct?

The 2013-2017 MBAs had a front height of only .11” and the 2018-2020 was only .16”.

The M2 MBA comes in at a comparatively large height of .44” — or 4x that of the original series and nearly 3x that of the M1s!

The M2 MBAs will almost assuredly be significantly higher… And much closer to the MacBook Pro!

Whether that matters to any particular person depends upon the size of their hands, including palms, their typing position, whether they are touch typists, how sensitive they are to such issues, etc.

But, for those who found the 2013-2020 MBAs more comfortable to type on — especially compared to the MacBook Pros — they may well find the M2 MBAs similarly compromised. Many people disliked the MacBook Pros because the front edge dug into their wrists and palms…

If you get the chance, measure the front height of the M1 MBA and report back. It's a little tricky because many rulers and tape measures don't start exactly at zero!

Again - yes, the front edge of the M1 Air is only 0.16" thick. But the bottom of that front edge is suspended well above the desk. There's a bunch of air in between the two. This is because the computer actually contacts the table farther back, where the computer is much thicker. So the top of the front edge of the computer is at a much greater height, relative to the table, than just 0.16". See the attached image.

 

[srexy]

I think we're splitting 'airs here...

 

[jdb8167]

If you get the chance, measure the front height of the M1 MBA and report back. It's a little tricky because many rulers and tape measures don't start exactly at zero!

I marked off a piece of cardboard against the height and measured the mark. I wasn't particularly careful but it is close enough to 1/2 inch that I don't care to spend any more time on it. The difference in height at the front edge of the M1 MBA is going to be pretty close to the M2 MBA. The taper to the front might still have some impact on how comfortable it is to type on though.