My M1 experience - Air / Pro / 8gb / 16gb / 256gb / 512gb / 1tb

[fmacmac]

Hello all, I just wanted to share my experience with the models and configs I have tried.

First I will start with the models I have tried:

1) Air M1 8gb/256gb
2) Air M1 8gb/512gb
3) Air M1 16gb/1tb
4) Pro M1 8gb/512gb
5) Pro M1 16gb/512gb

#### My experience with the Air vs Pro running side by side for a few weeks ####

1. The Air is EXCEPTIONAL on its own, nothing to complaint at all. Also, great slim form factor (which is a + over the Pro)
2. The Pro I find a few steps above the Air in terms of:
   • Screen (it is just a beauty)
   • Clarity of speakers
   • Longer batter life
   • Bigger charger
   • Bigger trackpad
   • IMP better typing experience
   • Fan which helps if needed
3. The Touch Bar is not an issue for me, it was before but now I actually quite like it.

#### Memory 8gb vs 16gb ####

1. The 16gb feels a bit faster than the 8gb - highlight "feels" as how I perceive it.
2. The 8gb handles VERY VERY well, but as you have more things opened you see the SSD getting more use and of course the chaining effects - More use of the SSD results in more heat and more battery usage. Is this noticeable? not really but it is a fact.
3. The 16gb just breezes through things, you can only see the SSD kicking in for swap if you are really pushing it

#### SSD size ####

1. 256gb may be plenty for some, but for me it just didn't cut it. I have about 170gb in the cloud and I like to have a copy on my local machine for easy access, and backed up to an external storage.
2. 1tb was great, but I felt a bit of waste for my need
3. 512gb I am able to get all my cloud data (about 15 years of pics and documents), all my tools and still have 250gb left

For me, I find the M1 Pro with 16gb/512gb to be my ideal configuration. I also have the same configuration on the Mini M1.

 

[osplo]

Thanks for sharing. I am about ordering a new MBA and doubting a bit about 512/1TB. 16 GB it will be, but disk size is still a question. 512GB would be more than fine in the near future.... but in the end I think I'll go for the 1TB as my old MBA is from 2011 and it's still alive and kicking. So going the 1TB route is a nice way to make room for future, long term needs.

Thanks again.

 

[Admiral]

I am very much hoping for a revival of the 12" MacBook, hopefully with two ports. The one-pound difference doesn't sound like much, but it's real. A 12" MacBook with a bit more oomph than an M1 would be irresistible.

 

[pertusis1]

8 gb Air owner here. I can't believe how fast it is relative to a 2017 15" top-line MacBook Pro. Most of what I do is low-demand stuff, but out of curiosity, I tried Civilization VI. On my MacBook Pro, it is jumpy, hot, and the fans scream the whole time. The air is smooth, not hot, and of course, there is no fan.

Amazing!

 

[jerryk]

8 gb Air owner here. I can't believe how fast it is relative to a 2017 15" top-line MacBook Pro. Most of what I do is low-demand stuff, but out of curiosity, I tried Civilization VI. On my MacBook Pro, it is jumpy, hot, and the fans scream the whole time. The air is smooth, not hot, and of course, there is no fan.

Amazing!

I found mine fast even my 16" MBP with 32 GB, i9, 1TB. So much so I dumped the 16", and the screaming fans.

 

[Memet]

I've tested MBA 8gb with 4K external display, and I can feel the system lag all the time. I can clearly see (istat) that the processor(s) are idle, but the system slows down for the swap file read/writes, which is a big problem when you push the ram usage (tested safari with multiple tabs and adobe audition batch process, using both displays).

 

[fmacmac]

Here is a view of my memory usage - besides the apps showing on the screenshot I have have zoom opened.

 

[Deliro]

Wait, are you saying you ordered all those models and only kept one? No wonder Apple omits things like chargers to offset the return - refurb costs margin. MAYBE I can see comparing a Air to Pro, MAYBE.. But merely space configurations? Even RAM? Yikes man. If you kept them all, bravo.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Seems like a waste of time and money to try all those models, when there is no significant difference between most of them.

 

[Memet]

ssd swap - high usage of Terabytes Written

Please read the update at the end of this post. Hi, I have Mac mini m1 256/16 for almost 8 days. After those 8 days I can see 0.9 TB written. From what I found on the web this ssd should last for ~~150 TBW. After 8 days I have 0.9 TBW :) I checked on my MacBook Pro 13" from 2018, 256/16 as...

forums.macrumors.com

I think this discussion proves my point on 8GB Ram.

 

[SkiHound2]

One thing that strikes me is that the base Air offers one heck of a lot of computer. Offers most of the performance of tricked out 16" MPPros. And what has really surprised me is how well these perform using Rosetta to run x86 code. I also think these were kind of concept computers. Toss an M1 in current bodies and let the world see just how well these first generation chips perform. I have to think the 14" Pro is going to be pretty special.

 

[Apple_Robert]

One thing that strikes me is that the base Air offers one heck of a lot of computer. Offers most of the performance of tricked out 16" MPPros. And what has really surprised me is how well these perform using Rosetta to run x86 code. I also think these were kind of concept computers. Toss an M1 in current bodies and let the world see just how well these first generation chips perform. I have to think the 14" Pro is going to be pretty special.

I share your sentiment. The M1 MBA is a really joy to use every day. I look forward to seeing what the 14" comes with. I may treat myself again.

 

[jdb8167]

ssd swap - high usage of Terabytes Written

Please read the update at the end of this post. Hi, I have Mac mini m1 256/16 for almost 8 days. After those 8 days I can see 0.9 TB written. From what I found on the web this ssd should last for ~~150 TBW. After 8 days I have 0.9 TBW :) I checked on my MacBook Pro 13" from 2018, 256/16 as...

forums.macrumors.com

I think this discussion proves my point on 8GB Ram.

There is some interesting data in that thread but it is a bit much to say it proves anything. Some others are reporting normal TBW on an 8 GB MacBook. It probably depends on what you are running and how much memory pressure you put on the system.

Edit: And the original poster has a 16 GB M1 Mac anyway.

 

[fmacmac]

As I mentioned, the Air and 8gb are great, but my judgement (which matters to me) just not as great as the pro with 16gb and more than 256gb ssd.

As far as trying these models, well...my money and my time ??

 

[reeney]

Hello all, I just wanted to share my experience with the models and configs I have tried.

First I will start with the models I have tried:

1) Air M1 8gb/256gb
2) Air M1 8gb/512gb
3) Air M1 16gb/1tb
4) Pro M1 8gb/512gb
5) Pro M1 16gb/512gb

#### My experience with the Air vs Pro running side by side for a few weeks ####

1. The Air is EXCEPTIONAL on its own, nothing to complaint at all. Also, great slim form factor (which is a + over the Pro)
2. The Pro I find a few steps above the Air in terms of:
   • Screen (it is just a beauty)
   • Clarity of speakers
   • Longer batter life
   • Bigger charger
   • Bigger trackpad
   • IMP better typing experience
   • Fan which helps if needed
3. The Touch Bar is not an issue for me, it was before but now I actually quite like it.

#### Memory 8gb vs 16gb ####

1. The 16gb feels a bit faster than the 8gb - highlight "feels" as how I perceive it.
2. The 8gb handles VERY VERY well, but as you have more things opened you see the SSD getting more use and of course the chaining effects - More use of the SSD results in more heat and more battery usage. Is this noticeable? not really but it is a fact.
3. The 16gb just breezes through things, you can only see the SSD kicking in for swap if you are really pushing it

#### SSD size ####

1. 256gb may be plenty for some, but for me it just didn't cut it. I have about 170gb in the cloud and I like to have a copy on my local machine for easy access, and backed up to an external storage.
2. 1tb was great, but I felt a bit of waste for my need
3. 512gb I am able to get all my cloud data (about 15 years of pics and documents), all my tools and still have 250gb left

For me, I find the M1 Pro with 16gb/512gb to be my ideal configuration. I also have the same configuration on the Mini M1.

I like my M1 Air except for printer issues. I have checked it to use Rosetta. But the old HP1012 won't print, and the new Brother L2350DW goes into deep sleep and does not awaken unless I turn it off and on.

 

[Apple_Robert]

I like my M1 Air except for printer issues. I have checked it to use Rosetta. But the old HP1012 won't print, and the new Brother L2350DW goes into deep sleep and does not awaken unless I turn it off and on.

You can turn off deep sleep on the brother printer.

 

[camotron]

I have a Macbook Air M1 with 16gb and 512gb SSD which I think is probably an ideal config (for me at least!) - music production and some video production. I can expand storage when on the desktop (or on the go) with external SSD drives but there's enough on the machine to install some larger apps and sound libraries etc. I'm also looking at getting a mini just for productivity/office use and whilst I will certainly get the 16gb ram I'm wondering if it's worth saving money on the storage and going for 256gb. For the upgrade cost I can get a Samsung 2tb T5 SSD external and have cash left over. Any thoughts on that?

 

[applefan19]

Hello all, I just wanted to share my experience with the models and configs I have tried.

First I will start with the models I have tried:

1) Air M1 8gb/256gb
2) Air M1 8gb/512gb
3) Air M1 16gb/1tb
4) Pro M1 8gb/512gb
5) Pro M1 16gb/512gb

#### My experience with the Air vs Pro running side by side for a few weeks ####

1. The Air is EXCEPTIONAL on its own, nothing to complaint at all. Also, great slim form factor (which is a + over the Pro)
2. The Pro I find a few steps above the Air in terms of:
   • Screen (it is just a beauty)
   • Clarity of speakers
   • Longer batter life
   • Bigger charger
   • Bigger trackpad
   • IMP better typing experience
   • Fan which helps if needed
3. The Touch Bar is not an issue for me, it was before but now I actually quite like it.

#### Memory 8gb vs 16gb ####

1. The 16gb feels a bit faster than the 8gb - highlight "feels" as how I perceive it.
2. The 8gb handles VERY VERY well, but as you have more things opened you see the SSD getting more use and of course the chaining effects - More use of the SSD results in more heat and more battery usage. Is this noticeable? not really but it is a fact.
3. The 16gb just breezes through things, you can only see the SSD kicking in for swap if you are really pushing it

#### SSD size ####

1. 256gb may be plenty for some, but for me it just didn't cut it. I have about 170gb in the cloud and I like to have a copy on my local machine for easy access, and backed up to an external storage.
2. 1tb was great, but I felt a bit of waste for my need
3. 512gb I am able to get all my cloud data (about 15 years of pics and documents), all my tools and still have 250gb left

For me, I find the M1 Pro with 16gb/512gb to be my ideal configuration. I also have the same configuration on the Mini M1.

I ordered the M1 MacBook Pro with 16 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD! My current MacBook Pro and only computer is the mid-2012 13-inch with 8 GB RAM and an upgraded 512 GB SSD (originally HDD). Keep getting messages on low storage, so opted for 1 TB since I will keep it for a long time.

 

[Brian1230]

Just got my m1 MacBook Air 8gb/256 last night, and have only spent a few hours with it.... but so far it is absolutely amazing. I have an early 2015 MacBook Air and I loved that machine and still do, but this new m1 MacBook Air blows it out of the water. it is totally unbelievable how much different it is.

 

[Leon1das]

As I mentioned, the Air and 8gb are great, but my judgement (which matters to me) just not as great as the pro with 16gb and more than 256gb ssd.

As far as trying these models, well...my money and my time ??

You wrote an excellent review and I am 100% with you on all fronts - after using MBA and MBP for 2 weeks in parallel.

Sadly I had to stick with 8Gb MBP as 16Gb was not on stock at a time - but I agree that 16g/512b MBP is the sweet spot in the offer.

 

[xraydoc]

You can turn off deep sleep on the brother printer.

My Brother printer does the same thing. Not an Apple Silicon problem. Sometimes neither of my PCs or my wife's 15" MacBook Pro will wake it up, either.
I watched the video linked above. Unfortunately, the trick doesn't seem to work on my printer. Doesn't respond the same way as the one in the video.

 

[Apple_Robert]

My Brother printer does the same thing. Not an Apple Silicon problem. Sometimes neither of my PCs or my wife's 15" MacBook Pro will wake it up, either.
I watched the video linked above. Unfortunately, the trick doesn't seem to work on my printer. Doesn't respond the same way as the one in the video.

Does your M1 MBA have the same problem? I haven't had any problems with my brother laser printer waking up.

 

[xraydoc]

Does your M1 MBA have the same problem? I haven't had any problems with my brother laser printer waking up.

Yes, but like I said, at least in my household, it's absolutely not an M1 problem. Was happening long before the M1 Macs were even a thing.

 

[dizmonk]

I'm working on a 16gb/1tb model... I'm torn about the 512gb as I do think 1tb is overkill. I'm just leery that in a few years I'll wish I had more HD space. I'm leaning toward keeping the 1tb for future-proofing reasons more than anything else.

 

[jdb8167]

I'm working on a 16gb/1tb model... I'm torn about the 512gb as I do think 1tb is overkill. I'm just leery that in a few years I'll wish I had more HD space. I'm leaning toward keeping the 1tb for future-proofing reasons more than anything else.

Since MacOS Monterey is going to support MacOS guests in virtualization the 1TB in my M1 MBA is probably not going to be as much overkill as I thought. I’ve been experimenting with it and while MacOS virtualization is not quite ready for prime time yet I can see myself using a few MacOS VMs and at least one Linux VM. That takes a lot of drive space.