Upgrading Mac

[isplumm]

Hi

My old MacBook Pro 13in mid-2014 is starting to have a few issues - 6 years old. So I have been debating whether to buy myself a newer model.

Looking at the Apple Macbook Air 13" - M1 chip, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD - £1,500 or the Macbook Pro 13" M1 chip, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD - £1700. Is it the camera?

Not sure of the difference between the two models - but I use my Mac for Excel / PowerPoint stuff, editing photos, internet stuff - don't really play games apart from things like Football Manager, City Skylines, etc.

Could do with recommendations as to which one to buy ... what is the difference between the two?

Thanks Mark

 

[thegiftofdom]

Hi Mark,

Based on your use case, the 16 GB M1 Macbook Air is perfect, and would even exceed your needs. The Pro variant is overkill.

The main difference between the Pro and the Air is that the Air lacks a fan. Apple’s new M1 chips are so efficient that the new Air doesn’t require a fan, and relies on passive cooling to keep it functioning up to speed, and it works!(I own an 8GB M1 Air). You would only need the Pro model if you were doing some extreme photo/video editing, unless you’re doing work that involves something like editing 8K footage, and even the Air would be more than enough for that level of work. It seems that a majority of tech reviewers that tried pushing the Pro to its limit found it very difficult to get the fan to activate, so that tells you that you really need to be maxing out the processor before the fan kicks in.

The cameras are both a measly 720p, no difference there, but Apple alleges that the new M1 chips actually improve the image quality of the webcam(not a huge difference in my opinion). Also, the Pro has a touch bar that plenty of people despise(it replaces the function row on your keyboard). The Pro is also slightly brighter, and has a better battery life by about 2 or so hours if i’m not mistaken. Both MacBooks will give you 15+ hours of battery life

All in all, either model would suit you perfectly fine. You won’t notice any difference in performance between either based off of your use case. I would highly recommend the 16 GB M1 Air.

Hope that helped with your decision!

 

[isplumm]

Hi

Thanks thegiftofdom - I was originally looking at buying

3.8GHz 8-Core Processor with Turbo Boost up to 5.0GHz​

512GB Storage​

Retina 5K Display​

• 3.8GHz 8-core 10th-generation Intel Core i7 processor
• Turbo Boost up to 5.0GHz
• 8GB 2666MHz DDR4 memory, configurable up to 128GB
• 512GB SSD storage¹
• Radeon Pro 5500 XT with 8GB of GDDR6 memory
• Two Thunderbolt 3 ports
• Retina 5K 5120x2880 P3 display with True Tone (optional nano-texture glass available)

Which is £2.3k in the UK.

But that looks like overkill!

I did read up about the differences between the Air & the Pro - to be honest apart from the lack of a fan, I could not really find much difference!

I guess I will need to buy a docking station or something similar so I can connect my Air to my external screen etc.

Any recommendations for a docking station?

Thanks Mark

 

[thegiftofdom]

Hi

Thanks thegiftofdom - I was originally looking at buying

3.8GHz 8-Core Processor with Turbo Boost up to 5.0GHz​

512GB Storage​

Retina 5K Display​

• 3.8GHz 8-core 10th-generation Intel Core i7 processor
• Turbo Boost up to 5.0GHz
• 8GB 2666MHz DDR4 memory, configurable up to 128GB
• 512GB SSD storage¹
• Radeon Pro 5500 XT with 8GB of GDDR6 memory
• Two Thunderbolt 3 ports
• Retina 5K 5120x2880 P3 display with True Tone (optional nano-texture glass available)

Which is £2.3k in the UK.

But that looks like overkill!

I did read up about the differences between the Air & the Pro - to be honest apart from the lack of a fan, I could not really find much difference!

I guess I will need to buy a docking station or something similar so I can connect my Air to my external screen etc.

Any recommendations for a docking station?

Thanks Mark

Hm. If I'm being completely honest, I wouldn't get an iMac now. Apple plans on completely refreshing the entire Mac lineup, and the intel iMac is on the chopping block.

The iMacs will soon be using Apple Silicon chips just like the new MacBook Airs, Pros and Minis. The cheapest, lowest spec M1 MacBook Air will completely blow the iMac that you are interested in buying out of the water in terms of performance and speed. The iMac model you are looking at is most likely the last iteration of its kind, with the first Intel model being from 2006. So really, that iMac is "underkill" LOL!

If you are looking for a more desktop oriented experience, I would get the new Mac Mini, which is arguably the most powerful of the three new M1 Macs, cheaper than that iMac, and more powerful. Just get a decent external display, keyboard and mouse/trackpad and you're golden!

As for nice docking stations, I'm still doing my research for cheaper alternatives, but I have used the Satechi brand on a few occasions, their quality is superb, and even Apple sells their products on the official website. You can't go wrong with them!

In conclusion, if you are looking for a good desktop, get the current Mac Mini(M1), or get nothing and skip the current iMac until the Apple Silicon version is out. Alternatively, if you are in need for an Intel Mac for very specific reasons, get the current iMac.

 

[isplumm]

Thanks again - going to stick with the Macbook Air - the version you recommended in your 1st post - I can get that model for £1377 in the UK - might wait till Friday to see whether Apple have any offers on.

 

[thegiftofdom]

Thanks again - going to stick with the Macbook Air - the version you recommended in your 1st post - I can get that model for £1377 in the UK - might wait till Friday to see whether Apple have any offers on.

Awesome choice, you will love it!