Whose going with the M1 Air vs Pro?

[darngooddesign]

...By simply going to settings - you can tweak Touchbar to default to Fn keys...
Or have shorcuts placed with spacings between them etc...- however you want...
Its just nice...

Side note, the thing I didn't like about changing the TouchBar's layout is that if you reduce the number of "keys" visible they don't scale proportionally and you end up with a black empty space on the right side. In a world biased towards the right-handed this is pleasantly better for left-handed folks, but as a right-handed person I just found it annoying.

Its also worth mentioning again that "Better Touch Tool" is one of several apps which really enhance the TouchBar.

 

[nameste]

yesterday I made a test with my m1 mba.I played a game at 32c room too see how will it handle the hot summer days.I measured the top keyboard and max temperature I saw was 42c and after it drops to 40c.The keyboard max was 37c and the machine was really comfortable.I don't think i need a fan.After replacing the top spec Map 16" with this I am really happy.

 

[R.Stoychev]

Hello, currently I am using 2017 mbp with 4 ports, Its great machine but I am really impressed with the m1 chip and looking forward to upgrade. I mainly use my mac for surfing the web, emails, light photo edit, watching streams and videos and for work ( I write a lot because I am project manager 😅 thats why new keyboard is a big plus). I am on the fence about the macbook air m1 16gb/256 ssd or should I go with the m1 macbook pro again with 16 gb. Do you think MBA would be the better option or it would be a downgrade for me, also because my mac it’s not that old I am able to wait for a months. Is there a possibility for mba upgrade this year, I know that there would be 14 inch mbp etc.

 

[James_C]

@R.Stoychev , Hi I upgraded my 2016 MacBook Pro 15" to the M1 16GB MBA three months ago. I posted a review comparing the two here. You might find it useful as your machine is pretty close to my old MBP.

MacBook Air M1 ,1 Week Review, Switch from 15” MBP

I thought it might be useful to summarise my thoughts after using the new M1 MacBook Air after using it for a week, and how it compares with a 15” MBP, if anyone else is thinking of upgrading. The summary is for those that don’t want to read a long post is I am really happy with the switch, the...

forums.macrumors.com

I don't think from your use case you would see much benefit from the MBP. If you love the Touch Bar, then the M1 MBP may be worth the extra cost. For the me the MBA as it is tapered was one of the reasons I went for the MBP and the fact that it has no fans, so that should make it more reliable (as it's one less thing that can break).

If you need 4 ports or your want a MBP with a new design (smaller bezels) then it might be worth waiting for the Gen 2 M1, however I am loving the X2 performance and the hugely better typing experience on the M1 Air. Best Mac I have ever purchased.

 

[SamPotts]

the fact that it has no fans, so that should make it more reliable (as it's one less thing that can break).

Have many folks had their fans die? I never have in maybe 10 MacBooks. That aside though, fan-less is still a positive unless you’re going to load the CPU at 100% for more than 10 minutes, when you’d benefit from the fan.

 

[R.Stoychev]

@R.Stoychev , Hi I upgraded my 2016 MacBook Pro 15" to the M1 16GB MBA three months ago. I posted a review comparing the two here. You might find it useful as your machine is pretty close to my old MBP.

MacBook Air M1 ,1 Week Review, Switch from 15” MBP

I thought it might be useful to summarise my thoughts after using the new M1 MacBook Air after using it for a week, and how it compares with a 15” MBP, if anyone else is thinking of upgrading. The summary is for those that don’t want to read a long post is I am really happy with the switch, the...

forums.macrumors.com

I don't think from your use case you would see much benefit from the MBP. If you love the Touch Bar, then the M1 MBP may be worth the extra cost. For the me the MBA as it is tapered was one of the reasons I went for the MBP and the fact that it has no fans, so that should make it more reliable (as it's one less thing that can break).

If you need 4 ports or your want a MBP with a new design (smaller bezels) then it might be worth waiting for the Gen 2 M1, however I am loving the X2 performance and the hugely better typing experience on the M1 Air. Best Mac I have ever purchased.

Great review, to be honest I don’t need 4 ports two are more than enough for me, I use my laptops inside so brightness probably wont be a problem. Do you think the base model with 16 ram would be a good option ? Do you think they will release a 2nd gen air this year and final question its not a problem for me to get a mbp but I think that it would be a total overkill in my situation and use, from I read and watched over the web.

 

[James_C]

Have many folks had their fans die?

I have had a fan die, it's not as uncommon as you might think as a reason for a computer to fail.

 

[R.Stoychev]

Have many folks had their fans die? I never have in maybe 10 MacBooks. That aside though, fan-less is still a positive unless you’re going to load the CPU at 100% for more than 10 minutes, when you’d benefit from the fan.

I think that in my situation it wont be even possible to load the cpu to 100%, the only time my fans work is when I am watching streams on facebook live probably due to the fact that the site isn’t well made and besides that the cpu load is around 60% percent

 

[James_C]

Do you think the base model with 16 ram would be a good option ?

Yes, you may get away with 8GB base model, but if you plan to keep it for more than a couple of years I would go for 16GB to increase its longevity.

Do you think they will release a 2nd gen air

Difficult to know, I don't think you will see one until October at the earliest and maybe not until March 22.

mbp but I think that it would be a total overkill in my situation

Its not overkill, but unless you need any of the specific features that the MBP has ( brighter screen, Touch Bar) then you will be spending more than you need IMO.

 

[R.Stoychev]

I have had a fan die, it's not as uncommon as you might think as a reason for a computer to fail.

Having so fast laptop without a fan Imo is a

Yes, you may get away with 8GB base model, but if you plan to keep it for more than a couple of years I would go for 16GB to increase its longevity.



Difficult to know, I don't think you will see one until October at the earliest and maybe not until March 22.



Its not overkill, but unless you need any of the specific features that the MBP has ( brighter screen, Touch Bar) then you will be spending more than you need IMO.

Totally agree with you on the mbp, do you think there is a noticeable difference between the 7 core and 8 core mba ?

 

[fmacmac]

The Air is a great machine, the Pro is steps ahead and you do notice when running side by side for a few days.

I started with the Air, went to the Pro, back to the Air and could not stop thinking of the Pro features so settled back on the Pro.

 

[James_C]

Totally agree with you on the mbp, do you think there is a noticeable difference between the 7 core and 8 core mba ?

All the reviews I have seen say that there is negligible difference between the 7 and 8 core MBA’s.

 

[darngooddesign]

Hello, currently I am using 2017 mbp with 4 ports, Its great machine but I am really impressed with the m1 chip and looking forward to upgrade. I mainly use my mac for surfing the web, emails, light photo edit, watching streams and videos and for work ( I write a lot because I am project manager 😅 thats why new keyboard is a big plus). I am on the fence about the macbook air m1 16gb/256 ssd or should I go with the m1 macbook pro again with 16 gb. Do you think MBA would be the better option or it would be a downgrade for me, also because my mac it’s not that old I am able to wait for a months. Is there a possibility for mba upgrade this year, I know that there would be 14 inch mbp etc.

The M1 Air is as powerful as, or possibly fractionally slower, the M1 MBP unless you are doing sustained work like rendering at which can heats up to 95C and throttles. FWIW, the M1 MBP's fans never started spinning while dong regular stuff like browsing and emails, and even then they were a lot quieter than my 14" MBP's fan which idles at 1400rpm.

I suggest you stump up for the 512Gb drive because it is faster than the 256GB drive.

 

[R.Stoychev]

All the reviews I have seen say that there is negligible difference between the

The M1 Air is as powerful as, or possibly fractionally slower, the M1 MBP unless you are doing sustained work like rendering at which can heats up to 95C and throttles. FWIW, the M1 MBP's fans never started spinning while dong regular stuff like browsing and emails, and even then they were a lot quieter than my 14" MBP's fan which idles at 1400rpm.

I suggest you stump up for the 512Gb drive because it is faster than the 256GB drive.

So probably for me the best option will be mba 16gb/512 ssd. Thanks for the info ✌🏻 Oh I don’t render nothing I use my laptop as an ipad tbh

 

[darngooddesign]

So probably for me the best option will be mba 16gb/512 ssd. Thanks for the info ✌🏻 Oh I don’t render nothing I use my laptop as an ipad tbh

It will be silent and cool to the touch for almost everything you will do. A nice change to be sure.

 

[rui no onna]

Having so fast laptop without a fan Imo is a

Totally agree with you on the mbp, do you think there is a noticeable difference between the 7 core and 8 core mba ?

Remember, Apple's been using high power Apple Silicon on iPads for years and the next iPad Pro model is likely to get something very similar to M1. Heck, A14 on the latest iPhones have practically the same GB5 single-core scores as the M1 Macs. They're just slower at multi-core since they only have 2 big + 4 little cores vs the M1's 4 big + 4 little.

Unless you need peak performance always, going with the fanless MBA should be fine.

 

[mi7chy]

Purpose of these ARM SoCs is in fanless thin and light devices so it makes more sense in the MBA which could actually be lighter. 2.8# is a bit heavy plus ~0.5# Incase hard shell cover when the Surface Pro X is 1.7# or 2.3# with keyboard/pen cover. Fanless is preferred since fans tend to clog up over time diminishing cooling capacity then eventually rattle and/or die.

 

[SamPotts]

I must have been lucky to never have a fan die in 15+ years. Even so, I’ve never even heard the fan going on my M1 MBP. I personally don’t think of the fan life as an issue. Perhaps on a machine where the fan was always on, like the Intel machines. I’d have ordered the Air myself if the wait time wasn’t 1-2 weeks longer. The much longer battery life of the MBP is also something to consider.

 

[R.Stoychev]

Purpose of these ARM SoCs is in fanless thin and light devices so it makes more sense in the MBA which could actually be lighter. 2.8# is a bit heavy plus ~0.5# Incase hard shell cover when the Surface Pro X is 1.7# or 2.3# with keyboard/pen cover. Fanless is preferred since fans tend to clog up over time diminishing cooling capacity then eventually rattle and/or die.

Thats one of the main reasons, why I am interested in the MBA. I hope they put the next gen m1 in the air too.

 

[walterpaisley]

Have many folks had their fans die? I never have in maybe 10 MacBooks. That aside though, fan-less is still a positive unless you’re going to load the CPU at 100% for more than 10 minutes, when you’d benefit from the fan.

The point is not about the fans creating another breakage point – it’s that fans pull in dust and other bits in the air, and dust is the enemy of logic board longevity. No fans = less dust = happy macs.

 

[SamPotts]

I'm not disagreeing but if the said fan is barely ever running, I'd say it's much less of an issue compared to say the Intel models where the fan is always running. I guess we'll see in time. That's my prediction though.

 

[xraydoc]

I went with a 16GB Air. Except for one particular app that I don’t need to use too often, I don’t do anything with a long-enough sustained high-CPU demand to require the MBP. And even the one app I do use, the 8% performance hit with CPU temp throttle speed drop won’t make any real-world difference.

It was supposed to arrive tomorrow, but the stupid weather in the US as delayed my shipment!

 

[Bacci]

I had a 2020 Intel MBP before and traded it in for the M1 MBA.
I like the slim design and fanless design better.