... so long as it performs the jobs that you need of it, then it's still a perfectly useful little laptop, despite what some on the constant upgrade treadmill will tell you
I had been using iMovie for making vids and it was working fine. I bought FCP to use pro features. But they require so much from the CPU that it slows down a lot, the fan goes crazy and sometimes, I have to completely shutdown the computer and restart.
Thanks for the suggestion. I'll look into this.
My 2013 11" i7/8gb/512gb MBA still works well in general, but the trackpad has issues. I prefer a mouse anyway, so I haven't tried to fix it. Still on the original battery. Less runtime than I originally had, but still quite usable.
I don't run FCP on that machine anymore, but I use it on a 2012 quad core Mac Mini Server (which only has an HD4000 graphics chip) and it's just fine for my usage with 1080p30 video. I guess the quad core CPU makes a difference (at least twice the geekbench rating of the MBA), and the cooling is also better than a laptop.
This is by far the longest use I've gotten from any laptop. I don't travel much anymore, so it mostly sits on my desk. I suspect its days are numbered, but I'm not in any rush to replace as long as it works.
The 11" Airs with 8GB are fantastic little computers; my one for home, as mentioned, is an i5/8GB/256GB, and it handles everything from productivity to programming to a VM or two without a hitch. Even my school laptop, a 2011 i5/2GB/128GB, continues to amaze me with how much it can do with its limited hardware, and the form factor keeps it in my school bag. It's small and light enough to toss in there with no qualms.