Returning my M2 MBA for an M1

[jdb8167]

Doesn't that defeat the whole purpose? If one gets the air its for the size difference, bringing around more external items would just kill that line of thinking?

I just bought a laptop cooler as an experiment. It is big and bulky but it only cost $20 and I wanted it to experiment with external cooling for my M2 MacBook Air. Long story short, it works very well to keep the M2 from throttling on CPU intensive work but less well with GPU stuff (though it still makes a difference.)

I would never bring the cooling pad with me but leaving it at home and maybe using it infrequently for things like Handbrake video compression or a GPU intensive game seems like it would still be worth it. So yes, carrying one around would defeat the purpose of buying an M2 MBA but owning one could be useful to anyone who occasionally needs unthrottled performance .

 

[Technerd108]

I would keep the m2 air just for the redesign and MagSafe as those bezels would bother me. I was never a fan of the wedge shaped design either. The screen is also brighter and more color accurate.

Plus can you still configure an m1 air with those specs and it would be an expensive purchase for an older version.

If you were talking base model air on sale then at least I could understand the saving in cost.

But as others have said don’t listen to people on this forum, myself included as to what YOU should ultimately keep. Get what you like the most and enjoy!

 

[fisherking]

I would keep the m2 air just for the redesign and MagSafe as those bezels would bother me. I was never a fan of the wedge shaped design either. The screen is also brighter and more color accurate.

Plus can you still configure an m1 air with those specs and it would be an expensive purchase for an older version.

If you were talking base model air on sale then at least I could understand the saving in cost.

But as others have said don’t listen to people on this forum, myself included as to what YOU should ultimately keep. Get what you like the most and enjoy!

that's a sane, civilized post. how are you allowed on these forums? 🤣

 

[Technerd108]

that's a sane, civilized post. how are you allowed on these forums? 🤣

I love it.

Yeah, some people love to fling personal insults when you are just stating facts. I don't understand it. We are nerds talking about things most people could care less about. It is like their particular view is the only view and if you don't agree they have to take you down when really none of this stuff matters and it is mostly opinion.

It is not like I am an expert on anything or a cpu engineer or something. Lol

 

[fisherking]

It is not like I am an expert on anything or a cpu engineer or something. Lol

and we don't have to be! we're just people who are obsessed I MEAN passionate about our macs, iphones, or whatever, and enjoy discussing it, or getting help with an issue, or raving about something (or, sadly, ranting). but it's a forum, in every sense of the word, and am glad to be here (now that i'm out of suspension)...

 

[jav6454]

Duh. It basically blew away almost all of the Intel chips that came before it.

Yet people forget that and think the M1 is quite obsolete.

 

[lambertjohn]

The M1 Air is still a great computer! I say buy it if you can get one cheap enough.

 

[tagumcity]

Purchased from Apple a refurbished M1 Air 16Gb. Family member content using a 2014 mac mini for browsing & YT. I tried the Mac Studio and the mbp 14 & 16 and those devices feel way too powerful to be applicable for my use pattern. The benefit of computing is software dependent.

 

[Technerd108]

Yet people forget that and think the M1 is quite obsolete.

No the M1 is not obsolete and it won't be for a long time. It was a game changer and a paradigm shift in laptop computing. Now that an iPad Air has one even an iPad Air is a monster in terms of performance.

The M1 is a great cpu no doubt. However the M2 is even better and should also be recognized as a great step in the right direction. In my opinion when talking about M1 devices like the M1 Air or M1 MBP people tend to forget that the M1 MBP also got a complete redesign which is as important in my opinion as the M1 chip was. The M1 MBP 14/16" is one of the best Pro laptops Apple has ever made or at least ever made in a very long time and completely blows out of the water the former MBP Intel models in design IMHO.

The same is true in my opinion for the new M2 MBA. It is the redesign and the M2 chip not either one alone. It is an iconic laptop that completely blows the older M1/Intel MBA out of the water. That is not to say the old M1 MBA is a bad machine but personally I never liked the look of it and the bezels were pretty outdated. Now the new M2 MBA looks great, has MagSafe!, has a brighter screen and even better performance.

 

[jav6454]

No the M1 is not obsolete and it won't be for a long time. It was a game changer and a paradigm shift in laptop computing. Now that an iPad Air has one even an iPad Air is a monster in terms of performance.

The M1 is a great cpu no doubt. However the M2 is even better and should also be recognized as a great step in the right direction. In my opinion when talking about M1 devices like the M1 Air or M1 MBP people tend to forget that the M1 MBP also got a complete redesign which is as important in my opinion as the M1 chip was. The M1 MBP 14/16" is one of the best Pro laptops Apple has ever made or at least ever made in a very long time and completely blows out of the water the former MBP Intel models in design IMHO.

The same is true in my opinion for the new M2 MBA. It is the redesign and the M2 chip not either one alone. It is an iconic laptop that completely blows the older M1/Intel MBA out of the water. That is not to say the old M1 MBA is a bad machine but personally I never liked the look of it and the bezels were pretty outdated. Now the new M2 MBA looks great, has MagSafe!, has a brighter screen and even better performance.

The problem with the M2 is that it increased power consumption too much and hence heat went up.

 

[Technerd108]

The problem with the M2 is that it increased power consumption too much and hence heat went up.

How do you know this? Seems a lot of people repeat the same thing without firsthand knowledge?

From M1 on we are going to be on an Intel type of tick tock type of improvement. Yes 3nm, 1nm will offer better thermals and battery life but it will be incremental and not transformation like Intel to M1 was.

However from my personal experience a lot of claims about power consumption and thermals are overblown to non existent but if that is the price for better performance and it is barely noticeable in real world applications it seems like a decent trade off.

 

[discofuel]

I'm back... and to say I was wrong!

After returning my M2, I continued to use my M1 but with only 8GB / 256GB it wasn't even capable of moderate web browsing without freezing up.

So I bit the bullet and bought another M2 Air in the same configuration - 16GB / 1TB / Starlight.

At first, I did feel like I missed the M1 again but now I much prefer the M2!

• I now prefer the design of the M2 - feels more modern and it matches my M1 MBP
• The gold of starlight is more subtle but it's really grown on me
• It feels more balanced to hold and use
• Feels like a solid slab of gold metal!
• And all the other things I preferred about the M2 - screen, MagSafe, fast charging, speakers, etc.

I think sometimes it takes me a while to get used to new things.

Super happy with it now.

But I have to say, Apple continuing to sell old models is strange and confusing and definitely contributed to my indecision.

 

[1BadManVan]

I'm back... and to say I was wrong!

After returning my M2, I continued to use my M1 but with only 8GB / 256MB it wasn't even capable of moderate web browsing without freezing up.

So I bit the bullet and bought another M2 Air in the same configuration - 16GB / 1GB / Starlight.

At first, I did feel like I missed the M1 again but now I much prefer the M2!

• I now prefer the design of the M2 - feels more modern and it matches my M1 MBP
• The gold of starlight is more subtle but it's really grown on me
• It feels more balanced to hold and use
• Feels like a solid slab of gold metal!
• And all the other things I preferred about the M2 - screen, MagSafe, fast charging, speakers, etc.

I think sometimes it takes me a while to get used to new things.

Super happy with it now.

But I have to say, Apple continuing to sell old models is strange and confusing and definitely contributed to my indecision.

Appreciate you coming back to clear things up and glad you love your air. Sounds like my spec 8/10 core 16gb/1Tb in silver. What an amazing device

 

[GooseInTheCaboose]

Do what makes you happy, BUT I think there is a risk you will regret trading it in for the M1 in the long term.

You may like the old design now. But Apple has a way of making older designs “feel” obsolete and undesirable after some time.

It is part of their business model and one of their greatest skills—they make neutral differences in design aesthetics seem superior/inferior over time.