I bought MacBook Air M1. Bad purchase?

[iHorseHead]

Hey!
I bought MacBook Air M1 and right after I purchased it I read "MacBook M1 won't turn on" posts on this forum and also about the SSD tear. Should I be worried? When I watched the reviews it everyone were talking how great of a laptop it is.
So it's not?
Was it a bad purchase? My previous MSI laptop broke down on me out of the blue. I don't want the same to happen to my MacBook

Is it true that the SSD's will go bad after two years?

 

[Apple_Robert]

You didn't make a bad purchase. The problem with some models not turning on has been fixed with a software update. As to the SSD question, only a small number of people been affected from what I have seen.

 

[adib]

Hey!
I bought MacBook Air M1 and right after I purchased it I read "MacBook M1 won't turn on" posts on this forum and also about the SSD tear. Should I be worried? When I watched the reviews it everyone were talking how great of a laptop it is.
So it's not?
Was it a bad purchase? My previous MSI laptop broke down on me out of the blue. I don't want the same to happen to my MacBook

Is it true that the SSD's will go bad after two years?

... maybe it’s a good idea to buy AppleCare while it’s still possible?

In any case, having backups is always a Good Thing™ regardless of your hardware’s brand.

 

[Quackers]

Not at all.
I'm very happy with mine
Read the relevant posts in this section of the forum and you can make your own mind up about things.
If you have concerns you could always buy Applecare+ and have 3 years peace of mind (if you haven't already).

 

[iHorseHead]

... maybe it’s a good idea to buy AppleCare while it’s still possible?

In any case, having backups is always a Good Thing™ regardless of your hardware’s brand.

I looked. They only had Apple Care for iPads, not MacBooks, but I should have 2 year warranty. My previous MacBook lasted me 11 years and it still works, so that's why I bought a MacBook Air. I highly doubt I could buy Apple Care from the US or any other European country and use it in my country.

 

[Brian1230]

I just bought mine last night, only used it for a few hours, but have to say I am quite impressed with how fast it is and how well it works being a brand new system. I didn't buy AppleCare yet, thinking about if I need it because I have never used the AppleCare on any of my Apple devices except when my iPhone was stolen 3 weeks after getting it.

 

[Zazoh]

Owned since November. Use 8 hours a day minimum.

No real issues.

 

[xraydoc]

Love my M1 MacBook Air. I've been using it constantly since I bought it a month ago. Rock solid and very fast.

 

[5425642]

I have my working perfectly also no issues at all.
Got the MacBook Pro.

the only thing is that some application makes the mbp really slow and buggy but that applications are not m1 native it’s intel so it’s not the MacBook pros fault.

with the .3 beta of macOS it’s even better I was upgrading because I did have issues with some stuff regarding screen but it’s gone now so I’m happy

 

[jjjoseph]

Hey!
I bought MacBook Air M1 and right after I purchased it I read "MacBook M1 won't turn on" posts on this forum and also about the SSD tear. Should I be worried? When I watched the reviews it everyone were talking how great of a laptop it is.
So it's not?
Was it a bad purchase? My previous MSI laptop broke down on me out of the blue. I don't want the same to happen to my MacBook

Is it true that the SSD's will go bad after two years?

Don’t overthink it. I’ve had almost 40 Macs since the B&W G3 days for personal and company use, about 10 of those stations being laptops. This is by far the most stable laptop I have ever owned from Apple. Considering it’s a new chip tech makes it even more remarkable. Speed, heat and battery are mind blowing.

I did buy the pro with 16gb of Ram and AppleCare, to ease my buyers guilt, but I would have still been happy with an 8gb Air.

 

[trevpimp]

I bought my m1 MacBook Air a couple weeks ago and I love it!
No Worries you can trust Apple products longevity

The many post's that come on here about faulty hardware are very rare compared to how many MacBooks that actually do good outside of the community

Enjoy your M1 MacBook Air

 

[Harthag]

Hey!
I bought MacBook Air M1 and right after I purchased it I read "MacBook M1 won't turn on" posts on this forum and also about the SSD tear. Should I be worried? When I watched the reviews it everyone were talking how great of a laptop it is.
So it's not?
Was it a bad purchase? My previous MSI laptop broke down on me out of the blue. I don't want the same to happen to my MacBook

Is it true that the SSD's will go bad after two years?

You can always return the laptop if it is defective out of the box. Can you buy a 3rd party warranty? Have had my Air 8+8/16gb/1TB for a week and love it. First M1 Air had terrible screen uniformity, promptly returned it. All brands have duds. Don't worry about it and enjoy it.

 

[Apple_Robert]

The OP is no longer with us. Doesn't make much sense to keep replying to his post.

 

[Big Bad D]

Hey!
I bought MacBook Air M1 and right after I purchased it I read "MacBook M1 won't turn on" posts on this forum and also about the SSD tear. Should I be worried? When I watched the reviews it everyone were talking how great of a laptop it is.
So it's not?
Was it a bad purchase? My previous MSI laptop broke down on me out of the blue. I don't want the same to happen to my MacBook

Is it true that the SSD's will go bad after two years?

Does it do what you want? if so it was good purchase. Spend time using what you have rather than paranoia. If you overthink reviews of any product than you would never buy or use anything, whilst not perfect, every problem reported has many people without problem and enjoying their product.

 

[Seanm87]

The OP is no longer with us. Doesn't make much sense to keep replying to his post.

When I first read this I thought he'd died or something

 

[Jack Neill]

When I first read this I thought he'd died or something

RIP OP.

 

[antwormcity]

I am returning mine 8/256 Air M1. Don't believe anything comes close to my requirements right now, so I will just wait. Coming from 2013 15 inch rMBP, the 13 inch screen is too small for me to buy an MBP M1 + touch bar is not my thing interfering with my typing and key shortcuts. Onto that is a design update coming at most in 9 months in stores.

My biggest gripe with Air is I don't know how much it is throttled compared to say a machine with fans, it struggles and does heat up to 45/50. Can't imagine the summer months of 80 - 90F ambient. I'd rather get a Mac Mini for now given my current system needs an update asap

 

[Apple_Robert]

I am returning mine 8/256 Air M1. Don't believe anything comes close to my requirements right now, so I will just wait. Coming from 2013 15 inch rMBP, the 13 inch screen is too small for me to buy an MBP M1 + touch bar is not my thing interfering with my typing and key shortcuts. Onto that is a design update coming at most in 9 months in stores.

My biggest gripe with Air is I don't know how much it is throttled, it struggles and does heat up to 45/50. Can't imagine the summer months of 80 - 90F ambient.

What kind of workflow were you attempting with the M1 MBA?

 

[antwormcity]

What kind of workflow were you attempting with the M1 MBA?

Anaconda, Xcode once in a while in parallel.

6 browser tabs.
Quicktime
Adobe Acrobat
Word Processor
Youtube for music podcast streaming.

Not unreasonable some of this runs at the same time.
Launch LR Classic and temp goes to 70C

What would you recommend I stop using in parallel?

 

[Apple_Robert]

Anaconda, Xcode once in a while in parallel.

6 browser tabs.
Quicktime
Adobe Acrobat
Word Processor
Youtube for music podcast streaming.

Not unreasonable some of this runs at the same time.
Launch LR Classic and temp goes to 70C

What would you recommend I stop using in parallel?

Has LR Classic been updated specifically for the M1? I don't use LR. Did it get that hot with just LR or is that with LR and everything else running? 158 degrees is way too hot.

 

[antwormcity]

Has LR Classic been updated specifically for the M1? I don't use LR. Did it get that hot with just LR or is that with LR and everything else running? 158 degrees is way too hot.

Yes, so I thought when I tried, it was the latest/updated version for LR classic for M1.

LR by itself - no Xcode or Anaconda running - browser tabs would have been somewhere in that order. I have had Firefox freeze at least twice with 5-6 tabs running. Prior Anaconda versions would hang almost every time (I can consider this is a compatibility issue - not an M1 issue specifically, a reinstall had fixed it). Perhaps some of my problems are just RAM related, though I think for my usage the thermal management and throttling is not ideal.

 

[antwormcity]

Funny part is to check LR classic, I pulled a Sony raw format image from the web and LR classic has only ONE image in the library and then in Develop mode. The temperature would consistently stay at 65-70 degree C in that timeframe, it was very snappy with adjustment, but I was practically placing my macbook upside down in clamshell mode. 8-9GB of swap used with LR classic running.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Yes, so I thought when I tried, it was the latest/updated version for LR classic for M1.

LR by itself - no Xcode or Anaconda running - browser tabs would have been somewhere in that order. I have had Firefox freeze at least twice with 5-6 tabs running. Prior Anaconda versions would hang almost every time (I can consider this is a compatibility issue - not an M1 issue specifically, a reinstall had fixed it). Perhaps some of my problems are just RAM related, though I think for my usage the thermal management and throttling is not ideal.

It sounds like a combination of your workflow and some apps not properly updated, is the cause for the less than stellar experience. I would return the M1 as well, If I was running into that problem. It sounds like the rumored 14" may be more conducive for you, should it be released this year.

 

[antwormcity]

It sounds like a combination of your workflow and some apps not properly updated, is the cause for the less than stellar experience. I would return the M1 as well, If I was running into that problem. It sounds like the rumored 14" may be more conducive for you, should it be released this year.

Yeah, as I alluded to in my original post.

Not to hijack OP's thread - perhaps gives some food for thought and how to assess whether the M1 is suitable for OP or not. To each their own - some would be perfectly happy with it - great machine!

 

[xraydoc]

I am returning mine 8/256 Air M1. Don't believe anything comes close to my requirements right now, so I will just wait. Coming from 2013 15 inch rMBP, the 13 inch screen is too small for me to buy an MBP M1 + touch bar is not my thing interfering with my typing and key shortcuts. Onto that is a design update coming at most in 9 months in stores.

My biggest gripe with Air is I don't know how much it is throttled compared to say a machine with fans, it struggles and does heat up to 45/50. Can't imagine the summer months of 80 - 90F ambient. I'd rather get a Mac Mini for now given my current system needs an update asap

There's a ton of benchmarks and app tests on YouTube that show about a 10% gain in sustained workloads on the M1 MBP over the MBA due to the fan. My personal workflow almost never results in long, sustained high-CPU workloads. The MBA has been extremely zippy for me, where the Microsoft SurfaceBook 2 (quad-core i7) would throttle significantly (besides chewing through a fully charged battery in no time).

Bear in mind that the M1 is Apple's entry level chipset. If you're after workstation-class performance, either stick with Intel for now or be patient for the next set of machines coming out. Apple did say it would take two years to make the full transition.