My apologies if this turns out to be a double-post but I scrolled back and didn't see that I had posted an update on my lusted-after device.
So, after waiting a year, once the 15" M2 MBA was announced and the 13" M2 MBA dropped in price, I finally bit the bullet and ordered a 13" M2 MBA 16/1 TB. It arrived a few weeks ago and I'm absolutely loving it. I haven't seen the 15" model in person yet, so I suppose I might have buyer's remorse when I finally get to lift it and see what it weighs, but I doubt it.
I picked the 13" model because I wanted a compact, very light Mac laptop to complement my 16" M1Pro MBP which unfortunately sits tethered to my desk most of the time because of its weight and overall size. I thought the 15" model was both too large (making it unwieldy to use while balanced on my lap for a prolonged period) and too heavy (it weighs in at only a little less than the weight of the 14" M1 MBP).
Thusfar, the 13" model is pretty much ideal for the use case I purchased it for. I've been able to sit with it on my crossed knees out on the deck or on the sofa and not have it knocked over by my rambunctious dog. And, it's light enough that I tend to grab it instead of my iPad mini 6 any time there's a possibility that I might need to type anything longer than a word or two. Having two M-series Mac laptops seems overkill and is definitely a luxury. But I figure this 13" MBA is (marginally) less expensive than a comparable 12.9" M2 iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard and is as light, if not lighter--and far more functional for my use-case scenario (navigation while typing/editing typed text is FAR more robust on a Mac than on an iPad).
