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I own a rev a. tested a rev b today...

B

bobsaget611

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 15, 2008
39
0
my impressions...

definitely not worth it. then again i tested it for about 30 minutes but here is what i did (on the 1.86 w/ ssd new model confirmed, it had 4 finger swipe).

i started an ichat and youtube and just like my 1.6 80gb rev a it heated up. while the fan didnt rev up to 6200rpm it was still hot and lagged noticeably.

the hulu.com test... ran hulu (episode of office) in hi-res, full screen and it was laggy just as on mine.

verdict... I, at least, am not going to upgrade to the rev b as it seemed the performance was quite similar. While I usually like staying extremely current and having the latest and greatest, the new macbook air looks the same and performs the same... so I will not go out of my way to sell this machine and drop a few hundred for the same thing.

Once again, this is MY impression and what I and doing, sorry if I offended anybody. I am just being honest and if you want your own opinion go test it for yourself, maybe you will feel something different. However if you ask me, I would definitely say it is not worth it to upgrade to a rev B.
 
GoCubsGo

GoCubsGo

macrumors Nehalem
Feb 19, 2005
35,742
155
Your honest opinions are fine and I wouldn't want you to get flamed for them, however, you should know that tests have been done using various methods and they prove with actual numbers that the Rev B MB Air runs cooler. Hulu specifically runs quite nicely from what I understand.
 
mhnajjar

mhnajjar

macrumors 6502a
Mar 3, 2008
777
0
It is really weird that I was in the Apple store this Monday and I noticed that rev B reached 85 degrees C (stayed between 75-80) most of the time while running 10 youtube videos compared to 75 C max on rev A.

However, rev B was way cooler to the touch than rev A which made me think that their might be an error in the iStat Pro widget or the inner sensors. In addition, rev A had a HDD which contributes to the heat felt by my hands compared to the cold SSD.

BTW, the screens where exactly the same with some light bleeding on the top of the screen (horizontal bright strip).

After I got home, I ordered a rev B from Apple online since I am sick of rev A and I am sure that I will not encounter core shutdowns or at least not as much (if any) lag while watching videos.

I am sorry bobsaget611, but prepare to get flamed!!!
 
Ironic

Ironic

macrumors 6502a
Oct 6, 2008
652
0
In my MBA!
More speed, no core shutdowns, no heat, no fans think it was posted 4 X faster then Rev A, think thats good enough to switch.
 
W

wheelerw

macrumors member
Jun 6, 2007
43
0
Ironic said:
More speed, no core shutdowns, no heat, no fans think it was posted 4 X faster then Rev A, think thats good enough to switch.
Click to expand...
It is definitely NOT 4 times faster, but rev. B is an overall better laptop for someone who needs the extra power (as long as they get a good screen).
 
B

bobsaget611

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 15, 2008
39
0
okay, you are right... because it wasn't lagging right in front of me. im just posting because I had never tested one myself and after all I read here I thought it would perform like an iMac... I really didn't notice anything of that sort. Maybe it was the particular unit I was using... all im trying to say is if you are thinking about stepping up to a rev b, go test it for yourself and make your own choice.

and trust me I am a MacBook Air lover and was very optimistic going in. I still love the air and it gets the job done... just sometimes it lags a little. no big I still love it and will continue to use my rev A.

just posts like these "More speed, no core shutdowns, no heat, no fans think it was posted 4 X faster then Rev A, think thats good enough to switch." are absolutely not true. it is a great computer I thoroughly enjoy my air and would buy it all over again. but to say something that bold to somebody who had never tested a rev b is getting there hopes up big time.
 
NC MacGuy

NC MacGuy

macrumors 603
Feb 9, 2005
6,233
0
The good side of the grass.
To properly test it you should do a restart to totally clear all caches, then open safari or whatever and test. The 2G of RAM and it will get pretty full w. cache crapola, especially if it was a display machine. I do notice mine getting laggy, then check RAM and only have 100-200MB available.

Just an assumption.
 
Sesshi

Sesshi

macrumors G3
Jun 3, 2006
8,113
1
One Nation Under Gordon
jessica. said:
Your honest opinions are fine and I wouldn't want you to get flamed for them, however, you should know that tests have been done using various methods and they prove with actual numbers that the Rev B MB Air runs cooler. Hulu specifically runs quite nicely from what I understand.
Click to expand...

It's not just video that highlights cooling issues in both Rev. A and B. I have fewer issues with the Rev.B these days and it can be directly attributed to the current ambients I'm working in. When I returned to high-20's temps the Rev.B threw up similar issues to the A.
 
tubbymac

tubbymac

macrumors 65816
Nov 6, 2008
1,074
1
Hmm, any chance the Macbook Air you tried out was loaded with junk? My experience at the Apple store almost completely contradicts yours. My apple store had the old Air with HD right beside the new Air with SSD. Yeah I know that's not a fair comparison but it was what they had on display.

I started both from idle, and loaded up 3 youtube videos on each, as well as random stuff like iPhoto, iTunes, etc in the background, and there was a distinct difference in heat generated. The new Air also didn't lag at all.

Not that I doubt your experience, but sometimes there's all sorts of junk installed on these machines that affects results. Anyhow I'm going back to the Apple Store for the black friday sale so if I do notice anything different or the lag does show up I'll post.
 
Ironic

Ironic

macrumors 6502a
Oct 6, 2008
652
0
In my MBA!
"The MacBook Air uses the same core graphics chipset as Apple's newly introduced MacBook Pro and MacBook system - the Nvidia GeForce 9400M, which is embedded on the motherboard. Despite the fact that it's integrated with the motherboard, as Intel's GMA X3100 was on the last generation of MacBook Air, this new graphics architecture promises 4 times the speed, according to Apple."
 
A

aristobrat

macrumors G5
Oct 14, 2005
12,292
1,403
I don't know if this is what you're talking about, but during the keynote, Jobs mentioned that the Air's 9400M is underclocked a bit for the Air, which would make it slower than it is in the MacBook.
 
aleni

aleni

macrumors 68030
Jun 2, 2006
2,583
909
aristobrat said:
I don't know if this is what you're talking about, but during the keynote, Jobs mentioned that the Air's 9400M is underclocked a bit for the Air, which would make it slower than it is in the MacBook.
Click to expand...

yes. the macbook is 5 times faster, the air is a bit underclocked to make it generates less heat, so the air will have 4x faster speed instead.
 
kingcrowing

kingcrowing

macrumors 6502a
May 24, 2004
718
0
Burlington, VT
I've got a Rev. A MBA and I love it, the new ones do seem nice, but the only big thing for me would be a 120GB HD vs the 80GB, but I can always get it upgraded at an apple store if I really want.

I was just watching a 720p video, and it actually wasn't too bad, it was a .mkv and looked amazing, but would the video would pause ever once in a while (audio continues) then the video would catch up, but I also had Adium and Transmission running at the same time, so that possibly why its a bit laggy.

and 70c idling? Thats crazy! Mine usually at 43-48c in normal usage, up to like 53c if I'm doing a lot, and the hottest ever gets is like 70c if I'm doing skype or 720p video.

overall I love the Rev. A, no need to upgrade until I can get a 256GB SSD and a 256MB GPU and have it be in the same size :-D

But honestly, for internet (ooh firefox 3.1b is siick can't wait for full release) chatting, VLC and even some VMware it's a great machine, no complaints!
 
L

lincolnchee

macrumors member
Sep 13, 2008
66
0
Singapore
kingcrowing said:
I've got a Rev. A MBA and I love it, the new ones do seem nice, but the only big thing for me would be a 120GB HD vs the 80GB, but I can always get it upgraded at an apple store if I really want.

I was just watching a 720p video, and it actually wasn't too bad, it was a .mkv and looked amazing, but would the video would pause ever once in a while (audio continues) then the video would catch up, but I also had Adium and Transmission running at the same time, so that possibly why its a bit laggy.

and 70c idling? Thats crazy! Mine usually at 43-48c in normal usage, up to like 53c if I'm doing a lot, and the hottest ever gets is like 70c if I'm doing skype or 720p video.

overall I love the Rev. A, no need to upgrade until I can get a 256GB SSD and a 256MB GPU and have it be in the same size :-D

But honestly, for internet (ooh firefox 3.1b is siick can't wait for full release) chatting, VLC and even some VMware it's a great machine, no complaints!
Click to expand...

How do you check the temp ?
 
A

aristobrat

macrumors G5
Oct 14, 2005
12,292
1,403
Dashboard widgets, usually. Check out iStat Pro or iStat nano. smcFanControl also runs on the menu bar and shows you what's going on.
 
A

aristobrat

macrumors G5
Oct 14, 2005
12,292
1,403
Graphics
Advanced NVIDIA integrated graphics.

The NVIDIA GeForce 9400M brings amazing, high-speed graphics to MacBook Air. With up to a 4x graphics performance boost, graphics-intensive applications now run faster. Movie and video playback is now richer. Even Cover Flow flips more smoothly. It’s a quantum leap for MacBook Air graphics.
Click to expand...
http://www.apple.com/macbookair/
 
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