M2 MBA 2 years in....

[Technerd108]

So I got to a point with my Mac and iPhone that I was going to get rid of all things Apple. As Apple kept dropping the price of the M2 my resale value kept dropping to a point that selling my MBA I would lose close to half of what I paid or more and at that point it made more sense for me to keep the Mac.

I stopped using the Mac for a while and was using Windows PC instead with an OLED screen, 120hz and a lot of other specs. After using the PC for a while I started using the Mac again. Then on and off using both or using both at the same time.

I have realized that even with issues with an Android phone and Mac I still prefer my Mac. This no fan M2 chip that is now almost a couple gens old and still performs admirably. Battery life is still great. Not having any fans on a laptop is still awesome compared to the PC with fans. The PC is technically faster yet my MBA still feels as fast as the day I bought it which I couldn't say for my previous M1 Max Mac so I am surprised at how well it has aged in two years. I was thinking of selling my PC and my Mac and possibly upgrading to a M4 MBP 14". I have a couple of gifts card so I am sure even with the super low resale on my M2 MBA that with the sale of the PC and gift cards I could upgrade BUT I could also just sell and save the money and use this Mac until it starts to appreciably slow down in day to day use.

At this point I am thinking of just keeping this M2 MBA for as long as it feels responsive to me. That may be 1 year or it may be 3 or more years from now. It is just a great laptop.

Okay so I discussed my crazy mind and selling and keeping, complaining about Macs and iOS integration, power button redundancy, terrible and purposefully bad integration with Android which drove me to try a different way of doing things. A lot of people told me I would be back and I was like NO way man and yet I am going to have to eat my own words and an entire thread because I am seriously considering going back to Mac full time. I still have concerns with Apple and CCP integration and production and privacy and security concerns. I don't like the sort of fake environmentalism and other marketing aspects of Apple.

But at the end of the day the M2 MBA despite for the first time in my life having worse resale value than a PC of comparable MSRP the laptop if you just keep it is still really good. Shiny keys after like 3 months of light use and some rubbing off of the finish near the power port and usb c that is very minimal I have no real wear. My Midnight has aged rather well. The M2 chip has aged rather well.

Now compared to my Oled 120 hz touchscreens the M2 MBA 60hz LCD IPS screen can't really compare on contrast and black values but the OLED can't compare on white balance which always looks off on OLED. On a phone or tablet screen it is not so bad but on larger screens it has become something that bothers me. While the LCD on the Mac feels more natural. The only time I have issues is contrast. If Apple could put a 120hz high contrast IPS display or even 60hz would remedy my only big complaint with the MBA screen. Over time I prefer the MBA screen over the comparative PC OLED screens. This is very ironic since I wanted a Mac or PC with an OLED screen for a long time. I still prefer OLED to mini led due to blooming but the color and white balance on all MacBooks is really good. Even my MBA surprises me with the color range and also gradients on Oleds look weird. One of the major hardware reasons for my switch was having "just" a 60hz IPS vs mini led or OLED at 120hz. Seems until they perfect OLED white balance and blooming with mini led it seems I prefer old school IPS. I would love a higher contrast ratio and even 90hz would be great but 60hz really doesn't seem to be an issue in real world use. I really can't tell the difference even while using side by side. Obviously some scrolling is smoother on the higher refresh rate screens but that is really it?

Speakers on the M2 MBA are still pretty good. They are not as loud as my PC or previous 16 MBP but just like the screen it still is impressive the sound quality and volume. Decent bass response and overall stereo sound.

So I just wanted to post my crazy experience and ask how people are getting on with their M2 MBA's? How has your M2 MBA aged? How does it perform? How is battery life?

I just hope met M2 won't be able to run any AI. Not really wanting AI in MacOS but I guess we will see. Maybe there will be granular controls to opt out??

 

[fashiondgal]

I bought my laptop almost 2 years ago (04/23) and my battery is 89% with 111 cycle count

 

[arcite]

It’s a great laptop, have the M2 15. No complaints.

 

[shakopeemn]

So I just wanted to post my crazy experience and ask how people are getting on with their M2 MBA's? How has your M2 MBA aged? How does it perform? How is battery life?

Still amazed using my MBA M1 here. Apple can't be beat with quick wake, battery life, and fanless operation. The icing is how this processor remains pretty snappy.

I do use Aldent battery manager and the battery life is still great when undocked.

 

[Mainsail]

I bought my base M2 MBA over two years ago, and it is the best computer I have ever owned. Very satisfied. Never a stutter or hick-up....smooth as silk. That said, I am the quintessential MBA consumer. I do standard home and office work on my MBA; Mail, Messages, Calendar, iWork, Office, ChatGPT, Photos, Notes, etc.. I love the integration with other Apple devices, and use iPhone mirroring more frequently than I expected.

I find the audio and display to be excellent and absolutely fine for my purposes. The battery life is insanely great. Also, I love the silent fanless operation.

I am no where near as discerning or particular as others on this Forum. So, I imagine that there are Pro users that just could not get by with the M2 MBA, but for me, it is great. I am definitely the target market for these machines.

As for resale value, I don't really worry about it. I keep my MBAs for about 4-5 years and trade-in for a new model. It works for me.

 

[Darth Tulhu]

I am happy with my M2 MBA 13", although I want to sell it and get the 15" (it didn't exist when I bought my 13").

That said, I am a bit disappointed with a few things after the latest release:

Safari seems a bit wonkier, and especially the trackpad tracking has become worse over the years, little by little.

I still remember how responsive and accurate it was back in the Snow Leopard days; today it is actually a point of frustration.

Don't get me wrong, it is still better than ANY Windows trackpad I ever used, but the difference over the years has become noticeable to me.

Also, there is a lot more instability; I've had more apps and web pages lock up requiring quitting the app and on rare occasions a reboot. That used to NEVER happen.

Still, outstanding computer overall.

 

[KeepCalmPeople]

I have had mine for two years and have Sequoia on it now. It feels just as snappy now as it was when I bought it. Very happy with it - it is so compact and it has never had any MacOS error that I recall.

 

[rampancy]

One year in, I'm more than happy with my refurb 13" M2 MBA. Zero issues with it so far, despite my paranoia about it being put into a bag with all of my books and notebooks (I did end up getting a hard shell case for it, in addition to a padded sleeve).

 

[Technerd108]

I am happy with my M2 MBA 13", although I want to sell it and get the 15" (it didn't exist when I bought my 13").

That said, I am a bit disappointed with a few things after the latest release:

Safari seems a bit wonkier, and especially the trackpad tracking has become worse over the years, little by little.

I still remember how responsive and accurate it was back in the Snow Leopard days; today it is actually a point of frustration.

Don't get me wrong, it is still better than ANY Windows trackpad I ever used, but the difference over the years has become noticeable to me.

Also, there is a lot more instability; I've had more apps and web pages lock up requiring quitting the app and on rare occasions a reboot. That used to NEVER happen.

Still, outstanding computer overall.

You may need to back up your Mac. Wipe the drive and reinstall MacOS. I this every 6 months to a year or after a major update. Sometimes over time with many updates no matter the OS things can get corrupted and cause issues. Mac's are much better than anything else but I notice over time things seem more sluggish than normal after a reboot then I will wipe and reinstall and bam, everything works like new again.

I am no expert and it could be as simple as a browser clearing of cookies, etc but if you back up, wipe and reinstall it isn't going to hurt anything and it may just solve your issues??

 

[1BadManVan]

Still love my m2 air, the only gripe i have is that weird hinge click when i first open up the laptop, only does if its been closed for several hours, I've seen it as a common complaint but besides the click sound, it doesn't affect anything so I've never bothered to look into it further.

Battery life is still fantastic, Apple shows 97% and coconut battery is 92% after about 97 cycles. Performance feels just as fast and smooth as the day i got it. It's still by far my favorite laptop I've ever owned. I still love my windows gaming machine for my full desk set up but my mac is my favorite couch surfing machine and to take with me when we travel for camping all summer.

 

[Macbookey]

My M2 Air was purchased to get on the  silicon band wagon and have the latest OS, when my 2015 5K iMac was no longer going to be supported. In short, it not only caused me to give the iMac away, it has done everything I need including guitar and audio in Logic brilliantly. Hands down my favourite Mac that I have ever owned in 2 decades as a Mac user. I would rather eat toenail sandwiches in olive loaf than ever be forced to deal with Windows again, especially when it comes to music production. I love this computer, and despite the inconsistency in software and quality assurance that Apple needs to address, macOS has come a long way in my years that started with Panther. The integration with iPhone is wonderful, and the quality of life improvements that have steadily increased over the years are easy to overlook. There is only what is best for you that makes something the best. I thought I would have had MacBook Pro by now, but this Air has overachieved, and I am content with every aspect of it for my needs. Love everything about this computer.  silicon on the Mac is by far my favourite innovation in modern Apple, along with AirPods.

 

[1BadManVan]

My M2 Air was purchased to get on the  silicon band wagon and have the latest OS, when my 2015 5K iMac was no longer going to be supported. In short, it not only caused me to give the iMac away, it has done everything I need including guitar and audio in Logic brilliantly. Hands down my favourite Mac that I have ever owned in 2 decades as a Mac user. I would rather eat toenail sandwiches in olive loaf than ever be forced to deal with Windows again, especially when it comes to music production. I love this computer, and despite the inconsistency in software and quality assurance that Apple needs to address, macOS has come a long way in my years that started with Panther. The integration with iPhone is wonderful, and the quality of life improvements that have steadily increased over the years are easy to overlook. There is only what is best for you that makes something the best. I thought I would have had MacBook Pro by now, but this Air has overachieved, and I am content with every aspect of it for my needs. Love everything about this computer.  silicon on the Mac is by far my favourite innovation in modern Apple, along with AirPods.

It's crazy how many people still underestimate the capabilities of the airs, even after 4 years of the M silicon. I dont even come close to pushing mine at all, but I've seen the things people can do on these and its definitely very impressive what Apple has achieved on these machines.

Now just give us even a 90-100hz panel on them and I'll be sold on an upgrade lol.

 

[Macbookey]

It's crazy how many people still underestimate the capabilities of the airs, even after 4 years of the M silicon. I dont even come close to pushing mine at all, but I've seen the things people can do on these and its definitely very impressive what Apple has achieved on these machines.

Now just give us even a 90-100hz panel on them and I'll be sold on an upgrade lol.

Agreed. To do this things I do regularly on and Intel Air would have been a miserable experience. The  silicon and battery life of the Air has made leaving the desktop world an easier transition for me personally. I would love to see pro motion as well as OLED, but the bean counters are not about making the best products they can, but the best margins, so that is many years away. Despite that, the fan-less Air is a joy, and I have not run into any thermal issues as a result, despite doing “pro” tasks. Are the MacBook Pros that much better, absolutely, but I do not feel I am missing anything that makes the added cost worth it for now. It is a small wonder and an overachiever.

 

[Technerd108]

Agreed. To do this things I do regularly on and Intel Air would have been a miserable experience. The  silicon and battery life of the Air has made leaving the desktop world an easier transition for me personally. I would love to see pro motion as well as OLED, but the bean counters are not about making the best products they can, but the best margins, so that is many years away. Despite that, the fan-less Air is a joy, and I have not run into any thermal issues as a result, despite doing “pro” tasks. Are the MacBook Pros that much better, absolutely, but I do not feel I am missing anything that makes the added cost worth it for now. It is a small wonder and an overachiever.

Honestly I hope Apple continues to develop micro led technology and pass mini led on to everything else and no use OLED screens at all.

I actually started using my air because I prefer the IPS display over the OLED. I really did not expect this and I had been wanting a laptop with a good OLED screen and I have it with the GalaxyBook 4. I started using the GB4 exclusively for a few months and at first it was great. Samsung even has a similar tech to True Tone and the blacks are incredible. BUT the white balance never truly looks white. It is either greenish or reddish and you can't get a true white and over time it started to bother my eyes. Once I noticed it I couldn't unsee it. I then started using my M2 MBA and I noticed that I enjoyed the screen more than the OLED even thought the contrast ratio sucks on IPS in comparison to OLED but the white balance made a bigger difference to me and brightness even at same nits is brighter in perception at least for my eyes on the IPS LCD??

Otherwise I agree with you. This little M2 MBA can handle any task I throw at it with no overheating and no fans and great performance and long battery life, and this is 2 years in!

PC's just haven't completely caught up. A Surface with snapdragon might be more similar to what I have and then you have to deal with arm version of windows. With Intel and AMD they are competitive and battery life is much better but efficiency and thermals are just still so much better on M series chips that it will probably take another couple years before PC's catch up in efficiency to my M2 Mac. Meanwhile m series continues to improve performance and efficiency as well as new GPU.

 

[cjsuk]

Honestly I hope Apple continues to develop micro led technology and pass mini led on to everything else and no use OLED screens at all.

I actually started using my air because I prefer the IPS display over the OLED. I really did not expect this and I had been wanting a laptop with a good OLED screen and I have it with the GalaxyBook 4. I started using the GB4 exclusively for a few months and at first it was great. Samsung even has a similar tech to True Tone and the blacks are incredible. BUT the white balance never truly looks white. It is either greenish or reddish and you can't get a true white and over time it started to bother my eyes. Once I noticed it I couldn't unsee it. I then started using my M2 MBA and I noticed that I enjoyed the screen more than the OLED even thought the contrast ratio sucks on IPS in comparison to OLED but the white balance made a bigger difference to me and brightness even at same nits is brighter in perception at least for my eyes on the IPS LCD??

Otherwise I agree with you. This little M2 MBA can handle any task I throw at it with no overheating and no fans and great performance and long battery life, and this is 2 years in!

PC's just haven't completely caught up. A Surface with snapdragon might be more similar to what I have and then you have to deal with arm version of windows. With Intel and AMD they are competitive and battery life is much better but efficiency and thermals are just still so much better on M series chips that it will probably take another couple years before PC's catch up in efficiency to my M2 Mac. Meanwhile m series continues to improve performance and efficiency as well as new GPU.

Yeah 100% agree with this. I have a 16" Dell OLED laptop and the colours are waaay off on it and there's some sign of burn in and fading after only 6 months already. Particularly blues are problematic. I can't calibrate it out either. I'd rather have my mini-LED M1 MBP than anything OLED at the moment. This is mostly plugged into the Studio Display as well which has excellent colour reproduction and doesn't burn my eyes out like the bloody Dell OLED does.

I was considering buying an M4 OLED iPad to replace my M2 one but I'm going to keep it. The IPS screen on it is fine!

 

[Technerd108]

Yeah 100% agree with this. I have a 16" Dell OLED laptop and the colours are waaay off on it and there's some sign of burn in and fading after only 6 months already. Particularly blues are problematic. I can't calibrate it out either. I'd rather have my mini-LED M1 MBP than anything OLED at the moment. This is mostly plugged into the Studio Display as well which has excellent colour reproduction and doesn't burn my eyes out like the bloody Dell OLED does.

I was considering buying an M4 OLED iPad to replace my M2 one but I'm going to keep it. The IPS screen on it is fine!

Sometimes new tech is great and sometimes it corrects some problems while creating new problems.

I actually still prefer LCD screens on phones too. But that ship sailed along time ago. My son has an IPhone 11 and it has a 720p LCD screen that amazes me how good it is despite the specs every time I use it.

Luckily m series chip Macs/iPads have enough headroom you can keep using them for several years and depending on what Apple does in a couple years you can decide to upgrade and maybe they will have micro led? I would prefer micro led than Oled. Mini led is very good except for blooming which would be eliminated with micro led. Let's hope Apple doesn't stop improving their own tech instead of just switching to OLED.

 

[cjsuk]

Sometimes new tech is great and sometimes it corrects some problems while creating new problems.

I actually still prefer LCD screens on phones too. But that ship sailed along time ago. My son has an IPhone 11 and it has a 720p LCD screen that amazes me how good it is despite the specs every time I use it.

Luckily m series chip Macs/iPads have enough headroom you can keep using them for several years and depending on what Apple does in a couple years you can decide to upgrade and maybe they will have micro led? I would prefer micro led than Oled. Mini led is very good except for blooming which would be eliminated with micro led. Let's hope Apple doesn't stop improving their own tech instead of just switching to OLED.

I don't prefer an LCD on a phone surprisingly. I spend a few weeks a year in extremely bright places so you need something that can really pump out the nits in those environments. The LCD didn't cut it for that unfortunately.

Definitely agree on the holding on to things. Will see what happens over time. I am probably going to sell my MBP as it gets used in desktop mode, move to a Mac Mini and will keep this Studio Display until it has died and keep repaired a couple of times.

Now if they did a mini-LED studio display...

 

[raylo32]

My M2 MBA is my first ever Mac and I mostly like it. Battery life is great, and battery health is at 96%. Love the no-fan and cool running. It is also plenty fast for most everything I do. My only complaint is about the input devices (keyboard and trackpad). I had to have the keyboard replaced when it was a month old due to a sticky space bar. Now I have sticky trackpad "buttons". This is partly my fault as I spilt a few drops of black coffee on it, but really? It should not have affected it at all. Now out of warranty I will be replacing the trackpad by myself at some point. Luckily it still works, I just get no tactile clicks from left or right clicking. But very frustrating. Having said that, I had to replace the keyboard in my last Asus Zenbook due to some keys failing to register. I guess making responsive and durable keyboards may always be challenging with thin and lights.

 

[Technerd108]

My M2 MBA is my first ever Mac and I mostly like it. Battery life is great, and battery health is at 96%. Love the no-fan and cool running. It is also plenty fast for most everything I do. My only complaint is about the input devices (keyboard and trackpad). I had to have the keyboard replaced when it was a month old due to a sticky space bar. Now I have sticky trackpad "buttons". This is partly my fault as I spilt a few drops of black coffee on it, but really? It should not have affected it at all. Now out of warranty I will be replacing the trackpad by myself at some point. Luckily it still works, I just get no tactile clicks from left or right clicking. But very frustrating. Having said that, I had to replace the keyboard in my last Asus Zenbook due to some keys failing to register. I guess making responsive and durable keyboards may always be challenging with thin and lights.

Sorry to hear about that.

Sometimes even Apple can make lemons. If you can closely inspect and test everything you can for the time you have during return period. If you have any hardware issue simply return and buy another unit. It is a PITA but generally saves a lot of headaches to return once and buy again than deal with Multiple repairs until your warranty runs out and you are on your own.

That has been my experience with electronics in general but specially Google and Apple hardware.

Hopefully you can get your Mac properly fixed and next time you won't have such issues.

I mean if the keyboard and track pad suck that is almost as bad as the screen. They are very important.

My experience with the track pad and keyboard is opposite of yours and I have had a lot of thin and light laptops of various OEMs and Apple. In fact, the M2 MBA keyboard is one of my favorite in terms of typing experience. I hate the damn shinny keys after a month and wish Apple would use a better material. But functionality is really good with decent key travel and accuracy for such a thin laptop.

Trackpad is haptic instead of mechanical click and if you are coming from a standard track pad it takes a little time to get used to it. Once you do, I find haptic glass track pads superior regardless of PC or Mac. I don't like the single click instead of right click or left on PC. Using a button with track pad is just a hassle IMHO.

So I don't know if you just got a defective mac or what but I would actually be a lot more upset than you seem to be if I experienced what you have with the cost of these. So I am not downplaying your experience but just suggesting I don't think it is normal.

Again best wishes in resolving the issues with your Mac.

 

[raylo32]

I mostly use the left click to highlight text to copy/paste or to drag e-mails to folders. But that is hard when you get no feel. I realize it is supposed to be haptic, but it never felt that way to me. Just felt like a tiny muted click. Now no clicks at all. I should say most of the time. I wiped the edges with some 91% alky allowing a little to go in. That restored the lame clicking I am used to, but it doesn't last. As that dries out the click goes away again. I am considering spraying just a tiny bit of silicone lube along the edges... at this point I have nothing to lose and I don't believe that would damage other parts. In any case, my 7 year old 13" i7 Zenbook with SSD to the rescue. The battery lasts only 6 hours or so these days but that's enough.

I have a tool kit coming tomorrow and I may go ahead and disassemble the MBA. New parts will be here next week.

Trackpad is haptic instead of mechanical click and if you are coming from a standard track pad it takes a little time to get used to it. Once you do, I find haptic glass track pads superior regardless of PC or Mac. I don't like the single click instead of right click or left on PC. Using a button with track pad is just a hassle IMHO.

So I don't know if you just got a defective mac or what but I would actually be a lot more upset than you seem to be if I experienced what you have with the cost of these. So I am not downplaying your experience but just suggesting I don't think it is normal.

Again best wishes in resolving the issues with your Mac.

 

[Technerd108]

I mostly use the left click to highlight text to copy/paste or to drag e-mails to folders. But that is hard when you get no feel. I realize it is supposed to be haptic, but it never felt that way to me. Just felt like a tiny muted click. Now no clicks at all. I should say most of the time. I wiped the edges with some 91% alky allowing a little to go in. That restored the lame clicking I am used to, but it doesn't last. As that dries out the click goes away again. I am considering spraying just a tiny bit of silicone lube along the edges... at this point I have nothing to lose and I don't believe that would damage other parts. In any case, my 7 year old 13" i7 Zenbook with SSD to the rescue. The battery lasts only 6 hours or so these days but that's enough.

I have a tool kit coming tomorrow and I may go ahead and disassemble the MBA. New parts will be here next week.

Should be fun. If you don't mind and have the time a couple pictures of your repair would be really cool. Could even help others in a similar situation.

Can't wait to hear how everything turns out.

 

[raylo32]

LOL... not fun, but necessary! I'll try to report back but I won't be documenting the work. That's already been done and widely available on the net. Only thing is those videos omit some of the stuff in the Apple repair manual procedure, like how to use the spacing kit to get the edge clearances correct and yellow stickies to gage whether you need shims or not. There is some other fiddly stuff in the manual that makes this a "not fun" job. We'll see if all that is necessary or not, I suppose.

Should be fun. If you don't mind and have the time a couple pictures of your repair would be really cool. Could even help others in a similar situation.

Can't wait to hear how everything turns out.

 

[raylo32]

I just sprayed a little of this stuff into the edges of the trackpad and the darned thing is working better than new for over an hour now. I won't call it solved until tomorrow in case it gets sticky again after it dries... even though it should be dry already. But this is very promising.

 

[DeepSix]

Everyone should be using external keyboards with their Air. I wouldn't use the crap Air keyboard just for preventing the keys from becoming shiny like mirrors. Each time you even touch the keys on the Air keyboard you are lowering your resale value of your laptop.

 

[thadoggfather]

It’s a great laptop, have the M2 15. No complaints.

Glad to get on the 1st gen 15 inch air as well