I have an M1 MacBook Air, 512 GB/ 8GB, and it's a wonderful machine. I can even use FCP to make 10 minute simple videos on it.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Best Buy Selling M1 MacBook Air for $650, a New All-Time Low Price
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
It would struggle with only 8MB!
Thankfully it's 8GB which will be more than adequate for somebody buying a sub $700 computer.
Sure they can thermal throttle under heavy continuous loads - virtually all laptops do even with fans. A MBA is not the right choice for those users or any small for factor laptop for that matter.
I live in a tropical country, temps are 30ºC+ most of the time running a MBA 16/512 - my CPU temperature barely creeps past 50ºC during a workday.
My App usage is far from typical for someone even considering a MBA. At least two browsers open, 5 open chrome profiles, most profiles have Office 365 running, YouTube, FB etc also open across about 100 tabs, Affinity Photo, Libra Office, Skype, Zoom, Spotify, Google & Microsoft ads editor, RDP, XAMPP server and a whole slew of other apps all open simultaneously and there's no noticeable lags switching between them.
Oh and that's with a Display Link Dock connected to two additional 1080p monitors.
The only time I've had any noticeable thermal throttling has been running benchmarks even then the temps don't stay high for very long.
For its footprint, and fanless design these things are incredibly efficient little machines even with "just" 8GB of memory will outpace virtually all 16GB "business-class" laptops with a similar workflow in a much, much nicer form factor.
If I was doing heavy video editing as well I might certainly consider thermal throttling as a factor but for the typical use case of a machine like this, nope.
Killer deal.
Translated: “bla bla bla, I never used an Apple Silicon Mac, so I don’t know what I’m talking about”.
In actual everyday use, Apple Silicon trashes Intel Macs, unless you have a specific use case that it doesn’t do. And it does it silently, with hours and hours of battery life. Yes it thermally throttles, like any other computer WITH fans does… but you’re unlikely to ever notice.
That would be a disaster in a couple of years when they discontinue support for the M1 and customers complain they purchased it only 4 years earlier, yet it by then is a 6-7 year old machine.
Exactly. Moreover, this gentleman Victor is under the impression that “nm” is an actual measurement denoting actual size… it is not. That’s a marketing gimmick.I don't even know where to begin... How about: You think 1 nanometer is the end of the process road? You think instruction set architectures don't matter? You don't think the inefficiencies of x86 don't hinder it vs. ARM-64? You don't think RISC-V and others aren't going to replace ARM?
It's a never-ending cycle, my man. Saying things like "absolute end without quantum computing" sells yourself short. Plus, only a Sith deals in absolutes
We are nowhere near “hitting a wall” and will likely continue to see exponential growth through the decade. The roadmap for 2024-2029 is wild.
Honestly this and the Walmart deal are just okay, nothing special. Amazon regularly had this priced at $749. If I wanted a Macbook Air, I would go with the M3 during the back to school promos where Apple gives you a $150 GC.
You would be very happy with a 14" MBP, or the 16" if you want really nice speakers.
Last edited:
Ram crowd on MR get more hysterical with each new article 😂
Totally agree...my Mac uses 32GB RAM while off.
The price has no effect on whether or not the amount of RAM is adequate for a particular application.
However, it is adequate for general purpose uses; it's even adequate for text based work like front end development and writing.
My problem with the Mac Mini is that it has horrible battery life and the display, which didn't fit in my messenger bag, kept falling off my lap.You can get a better deal at BB. Just picked up a Mac Mini M2 for $499.
Weird cross-shop tho.
Last edited:
Only if you bought an Air when you needed a MacBook Pro. The Air handles plenty of creative workloads without throttling.
Buy a MacBook Pro if you are doing the kind of workload which demands running a fan at full speed.
Buy a computer with the correct amount of RAM for your needs. If you need more displays, get a computer which supports them. I would happily trade one display not to have to listen an Intel MPB with its roaring fans.
I don't believe you. According to all the laptop experts, your Air should throttle simply by turning it on. 🤣
Apple is now a discount computer company like HP. Their products go on sale all the time now. The only difference is they don't build many computers in the price brackets that most people are in.
The Internet: Apple computers are expensive, I wish there were more discounts.
Also the Internet: Apple bad because discounts.
For retailers, there is a huge value in attracting people inside.
Perhaps minimal profit on the MBA, but any other purchase while in the store will result in good profit. Maybe some customers will even buy an HDMI cable.
It has been Apple's practice to discount retired models for a two decades, and Apple has made it clear that they are removing the M1 MBA from their lineup.
this may be off topic so mods forgive me… but speaking of discounts and saving money, etc… when I got my first Mac, a Powerbook 12" G4 back in 2003… I found a calculator online last week that said if I had put what I put into my first Mac into Apple stock I would have about 1.4 million dollars today. I'm also driving the same about-to-break-down truck all these years later. If only I had known that I could buy a house, two cars, some spending money and saving money at the age of 40 if I had bought Apple stock instead of that 867 MHz machine at the age of 20 I would look at every time I went to CompUSA...
One things for sure: I wouldnt be on Macrumors joking about Walmart and Best Buy, but I'd be in another forum posting pictures of maxed out Mac Studios in a cool looking home studio surrounded by XDR $6000 displays.
One things for sure: I wouldnt be on Macrumors joking about Walmart and Best Buy, but I'd be in another forum posting pictures of maxed out Mac Studios in a cool looking home studio surrounded by XDR $6000 displays.
For sure, AAPL shares in 2003 were about $2 > book value of the company (roughly $14/sh pre splits). There’s been a 2:1 split, a 7:1 and a 4:1 split since then and I may be forgetting a split as well.
You can look at the affiliate marketing all over this site and places like Dealmac and see that this isn't limited to Apple's older products anymore. Brand new products get discounts at retailers just days after release. Best Buy is even discounting unlocked SIM-free iPhones. The MSRP of Apple products is now irrelevant, just like a Ford F-150 or an HP Envy laptop.