Also a larger touchpad. Not that it’s a major differentiator, but it is a difference.
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Am I Crazy? Videographer who canceled M1 MBP And Ordered an Air
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Those are cons, with the exception of more nits. Everything else changes the form factor.
Width and depth are exactly the same. Maximum thickness is higher on the MBA. Average thickness is higher on the MBP.
Quoting John Gruber from Daring Fireball
"for most tasks for most people, these M1 Macs need less RAM to perform equivalently to, if not better than, their Intel-based counterparts. This sounds like ******** but it’s not. It’s the result of a hardware system architecture whose design aligns with Apple’s software architecture."
Link
The M1 Macs
To acknowledge how good the new M1 Macs are — and I am here to tell you they are *astonishingly* good — you must acknowledge that certain longstanding assumptions about how computers should be designed, about what makes a better computer *better*, are wrong.
Like I said, the MBA is smaller. What is the mm2 difference in touchpad between the models?
Not huge, but noticeable when you see them side by side. The M1 review video in post #8 shows the difference.
Seriously? That's your argument? "They look different in a video."
I think we operate in different circles.
I’m sorry, I guess we do. Enjoy your evening as further dialog is pointless.
In case anyone cares because visual evidence doesn‘t suffice, here are the trackpad dimensions. Whether it’s material depends on your use case.
MBP 5.3“ x 3.3” = 17.49 sq in
MBA 4.8” x 3.2” = 15.36 sq in
MBP 5.3“ x 3.3” = 17.49 sq in
MBA 4.8” x 3.2” = 15.36 sq in
With the education discount, the cost differential between the 8/512 Air and the 8/256 MBP was about $50. For my usage, 8gb is fine, and my last MBP only used ~70gb of the 256 SSD (and that's without trying save space by *not* loading anything on it), so, 256 is again fine for my needs. So, for $50 more, I got a larger trackpad, fan to prevent thermal throttling (which can happen on the Air, though it's, admittedly, minimal), the Touch Bar (for better or worse), and better battery life. Pretty good deal IMO for only $50 more.
Hope this is helpful!
Yet we have already seen individuals such as John Gruber (who knows more about the Mac then most online journalists) state that because of the way UMA works on the M1, it is possible for apps to use less RAM than they do on Intel-based Macs. When you see the base MBA with the M1 (late 2020) handling 94 tracks in Logic Pro with ease and the Intel-based (early 2020) Air choking on anything over 9 tracks, there are clearly significant differences in how the two systems handle both applications and RAM. The problem with your position is that your justifications are entirely based upon how x86 systems handle memory management, which is not something Apple even cares about with their SoCs, since they have nothing to do with x86 standards. AMDs push to introduce their Infinity Fabric setup is the approach rooted in x86 architecture, not Apple's M1 architecture.
I would rather have more drive space. Also, the new Air has a much larger thermal passive cooler compared to its Intel-based predecessor. This gives it a lot more mass to heat up before it has to throttle to keep temps in line.
This video does a pretty in-depth comparison. 8 minutes in they test thermal throttling. 14 min has the conclusion.
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Yeah, actually that video was to what I was implicitly referring when I said throttling, if any, is minimal. ? That’s a pretty good channel, IMO.
Not an expert but I do know a thing or two.
So, there are actually differences between cpu arches when it comes to memory. Notably 64-bit uses distinctly more ram than 32bit code (swollen pointers?) on x86. Now this doesn't mean that arm64 uses less ram, but it most certainly CAN use less ram for the same code.
Now. The issue is, it isn't going to be 8gb less ram. Sorry. You still need a similar amount of ram for similar workloads, especially where the majority of ram is data and not program code.
Why this isn't a problem potentially?
Because the M1 has very fast ram, and a fast SSD. You might not even notice when you are running with 8gb of data swapped out or compressed.
But the 256 MBA has the crippled GPU, not to mention the Pro features it lacks. I think I see what you’re trying to say, though.
If $400-500 is a concern - then this is logical. Otherwise - no, not for your type of work. I would go for the Pro with 16GB and 512SSD.
Think about it this way - how long does it take you to earn $400-500, and if you save them now on buying a lesser machine, will you not regret it, and end up re-buying?
Crippled GPU? Come on.. there's essentially no difference in the real world. ?
Thank you for supplying numbers to facilitate discussion.
Could you let me know the source as I looked through the Apple website and couldn't locate them myself, hence my initial response.
I'd like to know where I missed them, so that I could better look in the future and supply this data on my own.
Have a Monday.
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? I know, that’s was a bit hyperbolic, but I can’t get past how the 8/7 < 8/8. I mean, it’s got a disabled core because it’s not good enough. ??♂️ IMO, 8/7 is like ‘you were soooooo close!’
Your point is taken... but I view these machines as a stop gap for the next year or two until they bring out a real “pro” device that has more than two ports. There is almost no difference in the performance between the two other than minor throttling in some specific situations.
I am no longer worrying about MPB vs AIR... they are almost the exact same performance and machine... I’ll happily save the money there...
I am wonduring if I made a mistake on RAM (8 over 16) though. I have some typical client work I am doing right now, so I will test it out on the AIR when I get it in two days. I will grab some wedding footage and put together a worst case scenario to test out and then make a decision. I have a return policy until January 9th, so that will be enough time to figure it out and return it if I need to.