Display size difference between 14” MBP and 15” MBA is quite huge. The 15” MBA should be compared with the 16MBP and here comes the big price increase.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Video Comparison: M3 MacBook Air vs. M3 MacBook Pro
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
That doesn’t sound right. Are you sure you bought her a base MacBook Air, as the base was 128 GB in 2014.
It looks like was still base 128GB until 2020, actually, when base was updated to 256 GB for the final series of Intel Airs (though there was apparently an education version of the M1 Air available with 128 GB).
People also tend to remember things better than they really were, as 256 GB was fairly large for an SSD in 2014, and the Air that year was actually available starting at 128 GB. I was thinking my refurb 2018 Air was base, but I just checked and it turns out I did pay extra for that 256 MB… in early 2020, a few weeks before the 2020s came out with base 256 GB and the better scissor keyboards, and 9 months before the M1 Airs came out. My timing is predictably bad, but that one was even worse than usual, apparently waiting 8 years between Mac purchases to time it perfectly.
While cloudstorage can replace some local storage, it is really inconveinient when you are on the road or abroad. I actually think local storage is more valuable on a mobile computer as there is a cost in time, effort and potentially in connection fees for pulling stuff in and out of the cloud all the time.
Also, some stuff seems to use local disk space in a much more crazy way than before. For example, the outlook client is huge, 2,4GB. It alone takes 3x more disk space than the entire office 2014 install. And yes, I am talking about the applications. The local message storage also seems out of hand. Despite outlook being cloud-y it downloads everything locally and you can't delete local copies unless you delete email from the cloud. The message attachement folder is worse - it seems that even after emails are deleted (locally and in cloud) the attachment storage is never cleared on local drive.
Teams app is 1GB but also loves to "cache" stuff. Several GB on local drive just for cache.
Just installing office is 10GB and then using it quickly removes another 10GB.
I was eying a M2/16/1TB Air at 400 off at Best Buy awhile back as they cleared out the M2's, I opted for spending 800 more and got a 12c M3/18/1TB and I am blown away by this machine. The SD card slot alone is worth it for the extra coin on the M3 base Pro. I have a 1TB SD card in mine and have all my music and photos and still have 860Gb free on the main flash. Best Mac I have ever owned. I really love the 15" form factor of those Airs tho. It reminds me of my 15" MBP with thinness but with a good keyboard and a fast CPU. I think the 8GB ram thing is overblown myself and the base M3 Pro is fine if you're using it for MBA tasks and just want a better screen and an SD slot. I think the M3 Base should just be called a MacBook and problem solved.
What about Lightroom Classic with 60MB pictures on a SSD? would the Macbook Air M3 with 16GO be powerful enough?
It is truly shameful that 256 is all the base models come with today, even if I don't recall the awful 128GB base models departing as soon as 2014. What's the purchase price difference to Apple between buying 256 and 512 these days? $4? $4.50?
Car manufacturers have done the same thing for years.
Look at the “base spec” car of any type and they’re hideous and lacking basic features like alloy wheels that really should be a given.
It's not a fair comparison. Basically the whole auto is pulling that ****... in computing other companies are generally not charging Apple pricing while offering shockingly little in storage, and a disappointing amount in RAM. Also, significantly, if a car manufacturer, let's say Porsche, wanted 30% or so of the $120,000 sale price to upgrade the wheels and tyres to a reasonable spec, few would pay the $36,000 requested for this. They'd just buy aftermarket parts. Meanwhile, Apple engage in anti consumer practices like soldering down the SSD, so their customers are held hostage- 'buy our stuff or don't, but you can't improve it or fix it.'
System requirements of Lightroom Classic show 8GB minimum and 16GB recommended, so it should be fine.
Lightroom Classic system requirements
Your computer must meet the minimum technical specifications outlined below to run and use Lightroom Classic.
Nicer display yes but also smaller. Maybe it’s my age but today I prefer having larger screens.
If only there was an expression for that! I suggest "quality vs quantity'. I wonder if that is taken?
yeah but I would not consider the size "significantly" different size wise. Personally I'd rather have a better screen (more bright, mini LED etc)..
So it’s
It‘s a personal decision. If the screen is too small you will use it in clamshell mode with external display only.
Quantity is if you prefer multiple displays 😊If only there was an expression for that! I suggest "quality vs quantity'. I wonder if that is taken?
I dont use displays at all... but want to be prepared if I need to. Screen on 14 does not feel small at ALL to me..
Great news, that! I guess I can now diet by eating entire cakes, as long as I don’t cut them into pieces! 😀
This is the beauty of Apple marketing. You can get the air but if you bump up beyond base it doesn't cost much more to got to the 14" MBP with M3. So then you say I will get M3 MBP since it is only a little more buy then you can get a really nice M3 Pro MBP 14" for $1999 so you may as well just spend a little more and get that and by the time you are done you walk out with a space black 14" MBP when you were going to get mid spec M3 MBA. It is perfect for pushing you up the ladder and buying more than you need.
The $1999 14" MBP will be the most popular M3 MacBook going forward I bet you even over the cheaper base model air. Of course the base model air is easier to get but I think the masses will go for the model I suggest because it is not crazy expensive and when you are already spending over $1000 it is hard not to go up the ladder because it is a purchase you may keep a while. So people are willing to spend more to increase satisfaction.
In the end though if the air had ProMotion and the ram and ssd upgrades were $100 instead of $200 then the air would sell way more than the pro's and people wouldn't over buy. Apple knows this.
The $1999 14" MBP will be the most popular M3 MacBook going forward I bet you even over the cheaper base model air. Of course the base model air is easier to get but I think the masses will go for the model I suggest because it is not crazy expensive and when you are already spending over $1000 it is hard not to go up the ladder because it is a purchase you may keep a while. So people are willing to spend more to increase satisfaction.
In the end though if the air had ProMotion and the ram and ssd upgrades were $100 instead of $200 then the air would sell way more than the pro's and people wouldn't over buy. Apple knows this.
No but if I were in the market for a new Mac it would be hard for me not to overbuy. I could get away with an air easily for my workload but the quality of life features like 120hz screen, better speakers and longer battery life are important as are portability and lightweight design and fanless is really nice.So you got a pro?
But I feel if I were to get the air with the price specced the way I want it is $100 to go Pro with same specs. Kind of hard not to go Pro. But then once I make that jump I naturally want m3 Pro instead of m3. So the $1999 model would be my go to but it is way more than I spent on my previous m2 MBA and not so sure it is worth it.
I have since decided to go a different route and I am selling my Mac in all transparency.
I feel like it is cool Apple made the Pro cheaper with regular m3 in the 14" and the m3 Pro at 2k is a really good option. But I don't have an iPhone anymore and it screws everything up. There are plenty of band aids but they don't work as well as if I had an iPhone. I hate spending money on a system that I can't use all the features because of one choice. I could have Apple everything else but the phone but it doesn't matter cause it is the hub of everything.
So for now I am just living vicariously through the excitement of new m3 owners and my previous experience with m1 and m2 Macs.
The economics of a large car price and their cost for more features is a lot more complicated but the core concept is the same.
A base spec car is lacking features that really should be a given.
I bought a Kia Cerato recently (2021) and compared to the Hyundai i30 N line. Both are technically Hyundai but the i30 was lacking basic inclusions like an electric seat or blind spot monitoring. You had to buy a higher model to get that.
Since when are those two features "basic"? I wouldn't expect either of them on a cheap car...