Undecided MacBook Pro 14 (base) or Air M2

[Mcuserr]

I have had a base air 2 for a week, was cheap as so grabbed it.
Likes: does the job for basic use, got silver so no fingerprints.
Dislikes: speakers are average, and screen is not bright enough outside under a verandah, not even in the sun.
Might flog it off and get a 14" MBPr, even my M1 11" iPad has a better brighter screen.

 

[Technerd108]

I have had a base air 2 for a week, was cheap as so grabbed it.
Likes: does the job for basic use, got silver so no fingerprints.
Dislikes: speakers are average, and screen is not bright enough outside under a verandah, not even in the sun.
Might flog it off and get a 14" MBPr, even my M1 11" iPad has a better brighter screen.

Technically it does at 600 nits and it is also brighter than the MacBook Pro unless you are viewing HDR content?

So I guess neither would work for you until Apple makes a laptop screen with 600 nits standard brightness.

I don’t think any newer design Apple laptop is cheap but I guess a thousand dollars is a lot to me?

 

[Mcuserr]

Technically it does at 600 nits and it is also brighter than the MacBook Pro unless you are viewing HDR content?

So I guess neither would work for you until Apple makes a laptop screen with 600 nits standard brightness.

I don’t think any newer design Apple laptop is cheap but I guess a thousand dollars is a lot to me?

Maybe, I got mine as new for $1100 they are $1800AUD retail here so can't complain too much. Other thing I find it's not as easy to read on v my 11" iPad, obviously it's closer too you but the air text is not as clear and as big.

what settings do you use in accessibility/display?

 

[Technerd108]

Maybe, I got mine as new for $1100 they are $1800AUD retail here so can't complain too much. Other thing I find it's not as easy to read on v my 11" iPad, obviously it's closer too you but the air text is not as clear and as big.

what settings do you use in accessibility/display?

I need reading glasses so I just use default settings for the display and it looks great to me. I am now at an age where close up vision is toast and I couldn't read close up unless it is outrageously big. Lol

Seems like you got a good deal. How much is a 14" MBP where you are? Probably a big difference and there are pluses and minuses to both laptops. The M2 without fans lasts a long time on a charge vs. the 14 MBP which is about 60-70% as good depending on what you are doing. The display size is what .4" bigger?? Obviously the mini led is preferred by most people but Promotion is barely a noticeable difference. The speakers have more bass and volume for sure but I find the M2 MBA to have clearer sound specially for voices.

Plus if you sold your M2 how much would you get for it? Same as you paid? Then pay how much more for the 14"? If you do a lot of video editing or 3d rendering then it would makes sense but otherwise the M2 MBA is pretty decent for what it is.

The 14" MBP is an amazing laptop and the best Pro laptop Apple has made in many years but I would say the same thing for the air. It is the best MBA Apple has made in many years.

If you seriously like the screen of the MBP better then that might be enough reason to spend the extra money. You really can't go wrong with either. I had a 14" and returned it for a 16" and after few months realized I barely used all the power it had and it had significantly worse battery life compared to the m1 13" MBP I sold to get it. The 16" is a brick and since I use my laptop on my lap a lot it was an issue for me. I know 5 pounds is not crazy heavy but it was just uncomfortable to me and when I had the 14" it was also pretty heavy to me. The air at 2.7 pounds is just right.

However if I scored a deal like you I would just keep what I have and wait for the next MBP or MBA and sell it then close to what I bought it for and upgrade when the time was right. Just my opinion though.

 

[ilikewhey]

I have had a base air 2 for a week, was cheap as so grabbed it.
Likes: does the job for basic use, got silver so no fingerprints.
Dislikes: speakers are average, and screen is not bright enough outside under a verandah, not even in the sun.
Might flog it off and get a 14" MBPr, even my M1 11" iPad has a better brighter screen.

agreed, my colleague has the m2 mba, we have floor to ceiling windows at our office, everyday at 2-3pm, he has to shift his m2 mba cause otherwise the sun glare makes his screen practically unreadable. 😂

as for speakers, the m2 mba's awkward firing position sounds like tin cans compared to the 14inch.

 

[Technerd108]

agreed, my colleague has the m2 mba, we have floor to ceiling windows at our office, everyday at 2-3pm, he has to shift his m2 mba cause otherwise the sun glare makes his screen practically unreadable.

The screen brightness is 500 nits which is the same as the 14" MBP? Unless viewing hdr content the glare you are talking about would be the same on a 14" MBP or M2 MBA?

Maybe it is more about the office space than the device???

 

[Mcuserr]

I need reading glasses so I just use default settings for the display and it looks great to me. I am now at an age where close up vision is toast and I couldn't read close up unless it is outrageously big. Lol

Seems like you got a good deal. How much is a 14" MBP where you are? Probably a big difference and there are pluses and minuses to both laptops. The M2 without fans lasts a long time on a charge vs. the 14 MBP which is about 60-70% as good depending on what you are doing. The display size is what .4" bigger?? Obviously the mini led is preferred by most people but Promotion is barely a noticeable difference. The speakers have more bass and volume for sure but I find the M2 MBA to have clearer sound specially for voices.

Plus if you sold your M2 how much would you get for it? Same as you paid? Then pay how much more for the 14"? If you do a lot of video editing or 3d rendering then it would makes sense but otherwise the M2 MBA is pretty decent for what it is.

The 14" MBP is an amazing laptop and the best Pro laptop Apple has made in many years but I would say the same thing for the air. It is the best MBA Apple has made in many years.

If you seriously like the screen of the MBP better then that might be enough reason to spend the extra money. You really can't go wrong with either. I had a 14" and returned it for a 16" and after few months realized I barely used all the power it had and it had significantly worse battery life compared to the m1 13" MBP I sold to get it. The 16" is a brick and since I use my laptop on my lap a lot it was an issue for me. I know 5 pounds is not crazy heavy but it was just uncomfortable to me and when I had the 14" it was also pretty heavy to me. The air at 2.7 pounds is just right.

However if I scored a deal like you I would just keep what I have and wait for the next MBP or MBA and sell it then close to what I bought it for and upgrade when the time was right. Just my opinion though.

I use glasses too but text doesn't seem as good. I don't care about power or video editing, or weight lol, just want the best screen, 14" base is $2559AUD from apple refurb store here, could sell my air for $1400 easy so would make the 14" $2290, but still double the price I paid for the air 2. May have to stick with it for what I paid, it's just for around the house and trips away, I have a 24" iMac too.

 

[Technerd108]

I use glasses too but text doesn't seem as good. I don't care about power or video editing, or weight lol, just want the best screen, 14" base is $2559AUD from apple refurb store here, could sell my air for $1400 easy so would make the 14" $2290, but still double the price I paid for the air 2. May have to stick with it for what I paid, it's just for around the house and trips away, I have a 24" iMac too.

I guess you have to decide what not as good means to you and if it is worth all that extra cash ?

I mean a deal isn't much of a deal if you aren't happy with it. Cost is only part of the equation. If you can afford it then you should get what makes you happy?

It seems like a big difference to me but I am on a budget.

 

[Mcuserr]

agreed, my colleague has the m2 mba, we have floor to ceiling windows at our office, everyday at 2-3pm, he has to shift his m2 mba cause otherwise the sun glare makes his screen practically unreadable. 😂

as for speakers, the m2 mba's awkward firing position sounds like tin cans compared to the 14inch.

I can cop the speakers as I use AirPods Pro mostly, but half the reason I got it was so I could use on may back patio away from my home/office, it's shaded all day till late arvo, its mainly video probably glare and most stuff these days are dark scenes.

 

[ilikewhey]

The screen brightness is 500 nits which is the same as the 14" MBP? Unless viewing hdr content the glare you are talking about would be the same on a 14" MBP or M2 MBA?

Maybe it is more about the office space than the device???

Vivid is a new app that doubles your Mac's display brightness system-wide

If you own a modern MacBook Pro or a Pro Display XDR, your display can show images in a much brighter fashion than you're seeing — and Vivid is the app you need to fix all of that.

www.imore.com

 

[Misheemee]

Maybe, I got mine as new for $1100 they are $1800AUD retail here so can't complain too much. Other thing I find it's not as easy to read on v my 11" iPad, obviously it's closer too you but the air text is not as clear and as big.

what settings do you use in accessibility/display?

How did you get it for $1100AUD?

 

[Mcuserr]

How did you get it for $1100AUD?

A lady bought it from amazon and realised she needed a bigger GB, don't think she knew she could of returned it, she put it on gumtree, offered $1100 and she took it, she set it up once then wiped it so was brand new.
I don't think she cared just wanted it gone as she had bought another 1TB one, she was in a flash apartment overlooking the beach living off her shares/super lol.
Got lucky.

 

[Misheemee]

A lady bought it from amazon and realised she needed a bigger GB, don't think she knew she could of returned it, she put it on gumtree, offered $1100 and she took it, she set it up once then wiped it so was brand new.
I don't think she cared just wanted it gone as she had bought another 1TB one, she was in a flash apartment overlooking the beach living off her shares/super lol.
Got lucky.

Far out, that's awesome! I bet you were surprised when she accepted it LOL
(also living in Oz but haven't come across a deal like that)

 

[ledzep1]

It's a tough decision because they are both great. However, as you're in the UK, Apple's refurbished website is offering the 16gb/512 M2 Air for £1479 and the base 14 Pro for £1619.

I got the MBP 14 in the end, had some staff discount so got it with a nice 15% off the price.

 

[ilikewhey]

I got the MBP 14 in the end, had some staff discount so got it with a nice 15% off the price.

good choice, when it comes to mbp 14 vs a BTO m2 mba, the amount of folks who would rather save a little weight and sacrifice alot are in the super minority, don't let macrumor's small sample pool make you think otherwise.

 

[CalMin]

I happen to have both machines - and both are excellent.

The 8GB/256 base M2 Air can actually keep up with the 16GB/1TB 14" MBP for just about all normal daily computing tasks. If you're doing email, web (lots of tabs), MS Office, Photos, video editing etc. it is actually quite remarkable how similar the two machines are. When docked to a monitor, I literally can't tell which machine I am using!

That said, if I could only have one, it would be the 14" M1 Pro all day and every day. It is literally the best computer I have ever owned. Even if you're not exploiting the extra compute power, the screen, the speakers, the ports give it an edge over the M2. And, with sale prices overlapping as they do, the 14" is the way to go. It really isn't much heavier than the M2 Air and the 14" form factor is the right blend of power/portability for most people. Go check them out together in a store and you will see what I mean.

 

[Misheemee]

I got the MBP 14 in the end, had some staff discount so got it with a nice 15% off the price.

You'll have to let us know what you think of it coming from the 16

Awesome choice, Enjoy!

 

[S1njin]

I'm in the same boat here w/ the decision. A tricked out M2 MBA (8/8, 16GB, 512) is the same price as the base MBP 14" on sale now at Amazon and BB. I don't do anything to push the system at all, so the MBA is probably the system for me. However, the price is a wash and the gift card promo from Apple later next week will likely only net me ~ $100 - $150 to go w/ the MBA. I've resigned myself that going w/ the better screen and speakers will be worth the weight and battery life trade-off (I don't use my laptops or iPad off charger often enough for battery life to matter much to me). The tech geek in me just chaffs at having a binned proc, and I've seen some YouTube videos that bench in favor of the M2 MBA for basic productivity tasks like I would do. Not that I'd likely see the difference in real life ...

 

[Misheemee]

I can cop the speakers as I use AirPods Pro mostly, but half the reason I got it was so I could use on may back patio away from my home/office, it's shaded all day till late arvo, its mainly video probably glare and most stuff these days are dark scenes.

if it doesn't suit your purpose, sell it and get what you need

 

[CalMin]

I'm in the same boat here w/ the decision. A tricked out M2 MBA (8/8, 16GB, 512) is the same price as the base MBP 14" on sale now at Amazon and BB. I don't do anything to push the system at all, so the MBA is probably the system for me. However, the price is a wash and the gift card promo from Apple later next week will likely only net me ~ $100 - $150 to go w/ the MBA. I've resigned myself that going w/ the better screen and speakers will be worth the weight and battery life trade-off (I don't use my laptops or iPad off charger often enough for battery life to matter much to me). The tech geek in me just chaffs at having a binned proc, and I've seen some YouTube videos that bench in favor of the M2 MBA for basic productivity tasks like I would do. Not that I'd likely see the difference in real life ...

Read my post above. I have both.

Honestly, the M1Pro is underutilized most of the time, but I like knowing that there is performance available if I ever needed it. The only thing that I really do on the M1Pro, that I don't do on the M2 Air is use a Windows 11 VM via Parallels - and the main reason I don't use the M2 for that is the 256GB SSD which isn't big enough for my 100GB Windows VM.

But Apple silicon is extraordinary. The base M2 Air with only 8GB and 256GB handles every MS Office, web surfing, photo editing, email handling stuff that I chuck at it. It just doesn't slow down. And so in that sense it is indistinguishable from the M1Pro. Given your stated need, you would be delighted with the M2. Personally, I would still take the Pro, because I don't find it to be that much heavier and there are a few quality of life features (speakers, screen size and quality, ports) and so dollar for dollar, pound for pound, it's worth more to me, but these decisions are personal, so make your choice and be happy!

 

[Misheemee]

Read my post above. I have both.

Honestly, the M1Pro is underutilized most of the time, but I like knowing that there is performance available if I ever needed it. The only thing that I really do on the M1Pro, that I don't do on the M2 Air is use a Windows 11 VM via Parallels - and the main reason I don't use the M2 for that is the 256GB SSD which isn't big enough for my 100GB Windows VM.

But Apple silicon is extraordinary. The base M2 Air with only 8GB and 256GB handles every MS Office, web surfing, photo editing, email handling stuff that I chuck at it. It just doesn't slow down. And so in that sense it is indistinguishable from the M1Pro. Given your stated need, you would be delighted with the M2. Personally, I would still take the Pro, because I don't find it to be that much heavier and there are a few quality of life features (speakers, screen quality, ports) and so dollar for dollar it's more to me, but these decisions are personal, so make your choice and be happy!

100% agree with this.

 

[ledzep1]

You'll have to let us know what you think of it coming from the 16

Awesome choice, Enjoy!

Hi

Thanks I think the mbp 14 is great, love the portability and general fastness compared to my now boxed up iMac late 2013.

 

[S1njin]

So, I've been using my M2 MBA w/ 16GB RAM and 512GB HD for a couple of days now. All I can say is - I'm absolutely 100% pleased with my decision. Analysis paralysis was beginning to set in earlier as I was obsessing over screen tech, benchmarks, etc.

I've been using my new Mac for 2 days now and the battery has only dropped 5%. The screen is beautiful to look at. I'm not looking at it side to side with a MBP, but on its own I'm more than pleased. If I really want to watch movies I have my M1 iPad Pro, or my home theater system w/ the 65" Sony OLED. I really don't care a whole lot about the HDR on my MBA. Fanless design - wonderful. I just use it and it doesn't let me know its there. The sound quality out of it blows my 2019 Dell XPS out of the water; so I'm perfectly content in that department as well. Its so light; not much heavier really than my iPad. Sitting on the couch w/ the MBA on my lap is comfortable, and its not radiating heat nor am I worried about blocking intake vents.

I only use it for consumer type activities; it's very fast and a complete pleasure to use.

I'm happy with the decision I made. I waited too long to go back to Mac !

 

[JamesMay82]

I had my hopes set on3 the 14 but when I went to Apple it was next to the 16 and it just felt tiny for some strange reason. Mine will be living at home and a car commute to the office so I think I’m going to go with the 16 inch.

 

[MrHoobs]

Yeah, I actually just got the 14" pro as I got a good saving on it, £1614 instead of £1899 in UK with some staff discount. No brainer after all that.

Ooh how did you get that discount or do you know someone?