A16 11" or 12" MacBook Air

[ian87w]

I agree that Apple needs to make a Macbook that weighs less than 1kg. After sporting the HP Pavilion Aero 13, any laptop feels heavy, even the M1 Macbook Air.

I don't think the SoC is the issue. Apple can put an M1 inside a fanless and thin iPad, so Apple Silicon can definitely be tuned for less TDP. And it doesn't have to be smaller 11". The HP is 13", and it's less than 1kg. The issue is the design and materials.

The upside of the heavier Macbooks is that they feel very solid. But yeah, once you're spoiled with a sub 1kg laptop, it's really hard handling heavier ones.

 

[wonderings]

I disliked using my 13" Macs on the plane in economy class. The 12" is much, much less awkward there and fits in my small travel pack whereas the 13" models don't. I could take a bigger travel pack but I don't want to, and that still doesn't solve the awkwardness issue using it on the plane.

That said, it's moot now since I usually take my 10.5" iPad Pro instead these days.

I had not thought of using it on a plane, I guess if that is a regular part of your work/life then that would certainly make a difference, especially if flying coach. I have been fortunate enough that the last 3 or 4 times I have flown I have been upgraded to first and the space is ample for my "massive" 14" MacBook pro.

 

[Wokis]

* I definitely want to classify the M1/M2 Airs as thin and lights

* I fully support the suggestion of an even smaller, thinner and lighter laptop for those who want it. Heck, if I had a different job with less need for screen real-estate, I'd go for an even smaller one myself.

There are rumors for both a 15" Air and a 12" (Pro?!). Hoping they are both true.

 

[eyetic]

I travel a lot and commute daily with my MBA M1 and its not heavy, its not bulky and in any way find difficulties travelling in economy, specially comparing the space I have now against 20 years ago where I was hitting the front seat with my knees at all time (1.98mts height here).

Having said that I sold my MB 12" to buy this MBA M1, obviously because comparing it to an intel m3 its an abyss of difference between those two proc. but in size and weight I don't find much of a difference, its roughly .90inch x .50inch bigger, 0.02-0.11 inch thicker!! and 300 grams..... (everymac dimension comparing down here)

This is still light and thin to me....300 grams is just a heavy and tiny apple.. one you can actually eat, thats the space and weight we are talking about here...

 

[Digitalguy]

I travel a lot and commute daily with my MBA M1 and its not heavy, its not bulky and in any way find difficulties travelling in economy, specially comparing the space I have now against 20 years ago where I was hitting the front seat with my knees at all time (1.98mts height here).

Having said that I sold my MB 12" to buy this MBA M1, obviously because comparing it to an intel m3 its an abyss of difference between those two proc. but in size and weight I don't find much of a difference, its roughly .90inch x .50inch bigger, 0.02-0.11 inch thicker!! and 300 grams..... (everymac dimension comparing down here)

View attachment 2055541

This is still light and thin to me....300 grams is just a heavy and tiny apple.. one you can actually eat, thats the space and weight we are talking about here...

more like 400gr... I have 2 12in MacBooks, one weighs 925gr, the other 893gr (for some reason, I doubt that the fact that the lighter one is i5 256GB/8GB vs i7 512GB/16GB explains the 30gr difference, but whatever...)
Let's put it another way, between the 12.9in iPad with Magic keyboard and the 11in iPad with Magic keyboard there is around 300gr difference (320 if you take the M1, 280 if you take the previous gen).
If you check the iPad forum everyone says how much heavier is the 12.9 with MK vs 11in with MK, and the difference is larger than that between the M1 MBA and the 12in MacBook, so I wouldn't dismiss it as negligible, given that often people don't carry just their laptop with them.

Another example, the difference between the 14in and the 16in M1 pro is around 500gr. Now if 400gr is nothing, 500gr (half a kg) shouldn't be much either. But again I am sure many people feel the difference, and that also guides their purchase decision...

I am talking weight here, size depends on the size of your backpack or whatever people use to carry (but once it's in, it's more a matter of weight).

On last example, and mid-size iPad (pro or not) is between 400gr and 500gr, so with such a weight difference I can add a iPad to my laptop for "free" (that's what I do to be able to work with two screens, which I much prefer to split screen).

 

[eicca]

OP clearly hasn't used a 2011 MacBook Pro as a daily driver if the M2 Air is "too heavy."

 

[Digitalguy]

OP clearly hasn't used a 2011 MacBook Pro as a daily driver if the M2 Air is "too heavy."

My 2009 17in Windows laptop was even heavier, and back then it was also my on the go device....😬
Times have changed...

 

[EugW]

My 2009 17in Windows laptop was even heavier, and back then it was also my on the go device....😬
Times have changed...

I lasted one year with my 15" Windows laptop. It was far, far too heavy. I despised carrying it around. I then switched to a 13" MacBook Pro in 2009. I also thought that was heavy, but it was more manageable.

BTW, a few years later my boss came to me asking what laptop to buy for travel. She needed Windows so I told her to get one of the 13" ultrabooks that were coming into vogue. In the end she ignored my advice and listened to her teenage son who convinced her to buy a 15" gamer laptop. She too lasted just one year before buying a new ultrabook. Her son was happy having that extra gaming laptop in the house though.

Going to the 2 lb 12" MacBook was a revelation. I waited until 2017 though, because I didn't like the keyboard and performance of the 2015/2016. The keyboard of the 2017 wasn't great, but it was an improvement at least, and the 2017 was noticeably faster. The 2015 felt sluggish even at launch.

 

[Digitalguy]

I lasted one year with my 15" Windows laptop. It was far, far too heavy. I despised carrying it around. I then switched to a 13" MacBook Pro in 2009. I also thought that was heavy, but it was more manageable.

BTW, a few years later my boss came to me asking what laptop to buy for travel. She needed Windows so I told her to get one of the 13" ultrabooks that were coming into vogue. In the end she ignored my advice and listened to her teenage son who convinced her to buy a 15" gamer laptop. She too lasted just one year before buying a new ultrabook. Her son was happy having that extra gaming laptop in the house though.

Going to the 2 lb 12" MacBook was a revelation. I waited until 2017 though, because I didn't like the keyboard and performance of the 2015/2016. The keyboard of the 2017 wasn't great, but it was an improvement at least, and the 2017 was noticeably faster. The 2015 felt sluggish even at launch.

In 2012 I moved for on the go to a 14in ultrabook. It was 1.7kg (slightly more than the current 14in macbook), but a huge upgrade over the that heavy and bulky 17in. In 2014 I bought a surface pro 3, which was 1.2kg with the keyboard. It was a great little machine, but not great on my lap. And over the years and more travelling I started bringing both the 14in and a tablet (either the surface pro or an iPad) as not only I was more productive with 2 screens but I had much more battery life when needed by alternating the 2. But it was heavy. So in 2017 I looked for the lightest 13in laptop in the world and I found out that it was the Samsung Notebook 9 at 1.7 pounds or 788gr. That was my revelation, as I could bring it and the surface pro for the same weight as my 14in, or it and and iPad air for the weight of a 13in Macbook air.
And this year I replaced it with a cellular Thinkpad nano (940gr)
When you have under 1kg you can bring you laptop everywhere you go, even if you go to a place when you might only have to wait 5-10 minutes (or not at all) because you can use those minutes doing something useful instead of wasting them on a phone...
And when I need to be more productive somewhere I bring my 11in or 12.9 iPad pro as a second monitor and always stay under 14in MacBook weight with both.
I will never go back to anything heavier than 1kg for on the go... At home I use desktops

 

[icymountain]

There are many things 11" or 12" laptop do ways better than any iPad so far. Or, I should say, that no iPad so far ever did. The OS and available software are very restricted compared to macOS. I still use every week an 11" MBA for various things including some programming for instance. It also runs some VMs pretty well.
Also, an 11" iPad pro with keyboard is heavier than the 12" rMB was. It has to be thicker and heavier than a similar size laptop due to the back cover and the need to balance the weight of the iPad and not just tip back when put on a table.

Moreover, a thinner and lighter laptop should not need an A16 chip. An M2 should work just fine. The M1 fits in smaller iPads already. Also the battery could be made quite a bit smaller with a smaller and probably more efficient display, especially if giving up a few hours of battery life (10 or 12 hours is already pretty good). So, the design of the last M2 MBA could be put to work in a wonderful 12" laptop for sure.

 

[EugW]

Moreover, a thinner and lighter laptop should not need an A16 chip. An M2 should work just fine. The M1 fits in smaller iPads already. Also the battery could be made quite a bit smaller with a smaller and probably more efficient display, especially if giving up a few hours of battery life (10 or 12 hours is already pretty good). So, the design of the last M2 MBA could be put to work in a wonderful 12" laptop for sure.

M1 would work fine, but A16 is already fast enough for most mainstream users, and would use way less power. If paired with 8-16 GB, it would make for an awesome ultraportable laptop.

I don't see Apple doing that though.

 

[Digitalguy]

M1 would work fine, but A16 is already fast enough for most mainstream users, and would use way less power. If paired with 8-16 GB, it would make for an awesome ultraportable laptop.

I don't see Apple doing that though.

Well, there have been rumours by Gurmann that Apple is considering the possibility. Yes, Young has had no news, but this maybe just because we are in the very early stages. If a 12in Macbook (I believe it will be at least 12.5in) is made it will not be launched before 2024 anyway. At that point 3nm will definitely be a thing... Will it happen for sure? No, but it's a possibility.

 

[ADGrant]

i think an ipad +magic keyboard is already heavier than the M2 Mba ?!

A 12.9" is heavier that an M2 MBA