Why is a MacBook Air better?

[jmoore5196]

If you have a 2015 MacBook Pro Retina with 16GB of RAM (a good thing actually), your existing machine is more powerful than a brand new Air. Its not much heavier and your existing screen is better. Buying a new Air is a waste of your money.

This isn't always the case.

I sold my 13" 2.8GHz i7 rMBP because it lagged at inappropriate times when using Adobe CC apps. I went back to an 11" i7 MBA (with half the RAM) because it doesn't lag.

I have a 15" rMBP (circa 2014) that I keep around for long-term assignments away from home, and the 11" MBA that I travel with almost daily. I would happily sell both and buy a 13" rMBP if the processor could handle the loads I throw at it. Unfortunately, there's a penalty to pay when pumping out to all those extra pixels in a retina display.

OP, this may not matter to you at all. I'm just fed up with people downgrading the MBA because of the display. For those of us who run processor-intensive apps, NOT having a retina display is a genuine plus.

 

[tentales]

If I could, I wouldn't make this thread. Not everybody is super smart when it comes to computers.

Lol, this guy. Tells me I'm spoiled, and gets offended when I ask him to chill.


Yes, because you were definitely being helpful.
If you don't have anything helpful to say, then go away and don't even reply. Thank you.

I make one sentence in jest and you get your back up. Thin skinned aren't ya.

Yea, I was actually wasting my time helping you and all you could do is scoff and argue with the advice given.
Wait til "blut haus" or some other "my MBP is better than your MBA" people get hold of you.

 

[Mrbobb]

If you shop by the numbers, a Macbook is not "better" but for a portable device, how you "feel" about it is certainly as important for lots of people. Each subscribe their own religion.

As an engineer, I appreciate well-made products, by well-made I mean it functions good as well as appeals to my aesthetic senses. The uni-body MacBooks in that regards are like buying a Mercedes, or a Volvo, everything fits just right and it "feels" right.

Lately though I don't like Apple and their new "flat" looking OS, am sticking to Mavericks, their last legacy old looks. But as long as Windows can never get those touchpad gestures perfect like Apple does, am most likely gonna stick with the MacBooks.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

If I could, I wouldn't make this thread. Not everybody is super smart when it comes to computers.
I said what I need to do with my computer, and asked smarter people which computer would be better.

If you worked for the IT department in a company, and your boss says "I need a computer, and it needs to do this, this and this" and you reply with "only you can decide what computer's best for you", I guess you'd be fired.
All I'm trying to say is that I *don't know* how good an Air is, and if it'd be worth it, so I'm asking people who know more about computers than me.



Lol, this guy. Tells me I'm spoiled, and gets offended when I ask him to chill.



Yes, because you were definitely being helpful.
If you don't have anything helpful to say, then go away and don't even reply. Thank you.

----------------

To all the others: thank you guys for your replies.
I'll definitely get a MBA to test it out myself.
If I think that a MBA is less exciting than I thought, or that there isn't really a big difference compared to my current Mac, I'll stay with my MBP, and if I really fall in love with a MBA and think it's worth making the switch, then I'll definitely do that.

The advice and experience of MBA owners (what I asked for) was very helpful. Thank you guys!

Well, it wasn't my intention to criticise you.

Rather, it was to suggest that you must ask yourself what you yourself really need from a computer and make a choice on what you buy based on that.

Thus, for me, portability is a major issue; battery life, reliability and power come next. However, other features - such as a retina screen - while nice, are not the issues upon which would influence a purchase.

My point was that nobody can determine what features you yourself realise that you cannot live without in a computer; and, based on that, this is what will influence your purchase.

People (such as are present and who post here) can advise you on how features work, but they cannot prioritise what you decide are your needs.

 

[Buggyflayer]

This isn't always the case.

I sold my 13" 2.8GHz i7 rMBP because it lagged at inappropriate times when using Adobe CC apps. I went back to an 11" i7 MBA (with half the RAM) because it doesn't lag.

I have a 15" rMBP (circa 2014) that I keep around for long-term assignments away from home, and the 11" MBA that I travel with almost daily. I would happily sell both and buy a 13" rMBP if the processor could handle the loads I throw at it. Unfortunately, there's a penalty to pay when pumping out to all those extra pixels in a retina display.

OP, this may not matter to you at all. I'm just fed up with people downgrading the MBA because of the display. For those of us who run processor-intensive apps, NOT having a retina display is a genuine plus.

Interesting note about the Adobe apps and a point well worth making, info like this is why these forums are worth coming back to.

Going back to OP

Anyways: my question is: do you guys think I'd better stick with my current MacBook or get an Air?
<snip>
Or why you think my current MacBook would be better?


I still think that this is not the time to get rid of a machine that is currently capable of doing all that OP perceives that they need, to buy another before experiencing their new situation. After a couple of weeks they will discover whether the battery really is a deal-breaker or that the faculties 'cloud' is not what was claimed and to preserve sanity they suddenly need to have a load of data onboard and wouldn't want to carry an external HDD etc etc so the spec of OP's ideal machine will differ from what can be guessed today.

For what its worth I continue to use my mid 2012 13" MacBook Air as my only computer, if it broke I'd most likely buy another Air, meanwhile this one continues to fulfil my needs as is

 

[linguist]

"If I bought an Air in the first place, I'd still be using it for sure.
I bought my current MacBook Pro Retina on Feb. 18, 2015 and it still has only 229 charge cycles (and I use it daily). But if I really use it for school, I definitely need to charge it twice a day (good thing that it charges really fast)."

I think the key point here is battery life. Yes macbook air has relatively longer battery life if not pushed as hard !
you would still need to lug your charger with your usage/workload pattern, VM sucks up a lot of CPU power, and possibly charge once-twice a day, instead of "definitely twice a day".

would I change rMBP to Air , no way

I want an Air weight with retina screen.

 

[weezerr]

I have a 2011 entry level 11"MBA, still going strong. I did 4 years of Post Doc in biomedicine with it, lots of stats, lots of image analysis, quite some heavy papers/articles, posters for conferences. Never had a problem.

It is a great little laptop, you take it with you wherever you go if you need to. My battery is almost gone, lasts no more than 2-3 hours with light use, or 1 with heavy use, so I need to bring the charger with me. Nevertheless, still an amazing portable device.
I also have a Surface Pro 2, which I love, but it is very bulky compared to the MBA.

Same computer and same complaint. The battery life is garbage. Other than the battery and 4 gigs of RAM, great little laptop.

 

[bertbekkelik]

This isn't always the case.

Indeed, that's why I opened this thread.
Don't get me wrong: I absolutely love my Mac, but I've never used a MBA, so I don't know if it might be better for whatever it is that I use my Mac for.

I make one sentence in jest and you get your back up.

What did you expect if you start by saying "you're spoiled"?
You don't know me, and you've never met me.
You don't know how my parents raised me, and what I do for the others/charity/...
If you're being disrespectful, don't expect me to give you a respectful answer.
Cheers.

Rather, it was to suggest that you must ask yourself what you yourself really need from a computer and make a choice on what you buy based on that.

Of course.
But a MBA could do anything I want it to do, then my Pro could do it as well, I thought.
But I've noticed how a MBA can actually even be better sometimes for some tasks (like some people over here noticed as well), and I have absolutely no expierence with MBA's.

Numbers don't say everything (definitely not if we're talking Apple).
Test driving an Air and using as my main laptop would be the best way to find out if it's good enough.

Portability, battery life and reliability are definitely the most important features for me as well.
A Retina display isn't necessary for me either (on a laptop), but the rMBP's screen has less reflection...
It's hard, lol...
I guess test driving one is really the best thing to do.

... and it "feels" right.

Exactly, that's what I mean... It should *feel* right.

I still think that this is not the time to get rid of a machine that is currently capable of doing all that OP perceives that they need, to buy another before experiencing their new situation.

You're right.

I think the key point here is battery life. Yes macbook air has relatively longer battery life if not pushed as hard !
you would still need to lug your charger with your usage/workload pattern, VM sucks up a lot of CPU power, and possibly charge once-twice a day, instead of "definitely twice a day".

Indeed, and portability.
I really don't need to use it 12 hours. If I can use it for 4 to 5 hours, with my virtual machine (that only use when I really need it), I'd be happy.
I found myself in a few situations that I opened my MBP and that it has like 10% left when I still want to work on something... Even if I could only squeeze 1 more hour out of an Air, I'd be happy.

But indeed, a virtual machines requires a lot of power...
I'm thinking about getting a MacBook power bank as well, because I can barely charge my laptop in school.

The battery life is garbage.

Wait, what computer are you talking about right now?

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Same computer and same complaint. The battery life is garbage. Other than the battery and 4 gigs of RAM, great little laptop.

The MBA received a terrific upgrade in 2013, (the 13" and 11" both) which improved specs, but, above all, it significantly improved the battery life.

 

[tentales]

What did you expect if you start by saying "you're spoiled"?

Wow, comes back weeks later, still butthurt.
"you kids are spoilt" is very much a generic phrase, in comparison to your parents' generation.
If you're insulted by *that*, then you have some serious growing up to do.

 

[Skika]

Do not go from the Pro to the Air unless you really want a slower computer with a really subpar display.

Keep your Pro, it would seem you just have lust for some new gear.

 

[Left4DeadBoy]

hi its improved for the soundbar! Ive not owned a Mac esktop .

 

[cfedu]

Do not go from the Pro to the Air unless you really want a slower computer with a really subpar display.

Keep your Pro, it would seem you just have lust for some new gear.

I have a 2012 11" Air that I absolutely love , but as much as I love the Air there is zero chance of me downgrading from a Retina Pro and paying money to do that. If my Air dies, I will buy another one as the pro is too expensive, if they were priced the same, I would go with the pro every time.

 

[AxiomaticRubric]

I had to sell my 2013 MacBook Air but I loved it while I had it. The form factor made me more productive at home. I could write code with it perched on my knee or chair whilst tending children. Can't do that with the old 15" MacBook Pro I use now.

Whatever your choice may be, if you go with the MacBook Air you won't be disappointed.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

Keep the Retina display it's that simple, it's worth the extra weight and the loss of a couple of hours of battery life if you spend any sort of time reading researching and writing on it.

 

[RegularGuy09]

I had to sell my 2013 MacBook Air but I loved it while I had it. The form factor made me more productive at home. I could write code with it perched on my knee or chair whilst tending children. Can't do that with the old 15" MacBook Pro I use now.

Whatever your choice may be, if you go with the MacBook Air you won't be disappointed.

Which MBP do you use and why did you sell the Air?

 

[iluvgadgets]

Hi!
I am going to college soon, and I'm thinking about getting a MacBook Air.
I've been a MacBook user for over four years now, and — coming from Windows — I automatically went for the Pro back then because I thought the Air would just be a horrible laptop with those specs.
Last year, I decided to buy a new Mac, and without thinking about it, I went for the Pro again (maybe because it has a Retina screen, this time). This guy asked me if I wanted 8 GB or 16 GB of ram, and because my old MacBook was getting horribly slow, I said I'd go for 16 GB of ram (really stupid choice). I swapped the HD of my old MacBook with an SSD and it's actually an awesome 2nd computer right now.
*I'm sorry for this unnecessary information.*

But, like I said: I'm going to college and even though the MacBook Air doesn't have an *awesome* display or silver bezels around the screen (that I might like), I kinda fell in love with it.
It has all the ports I need, and it has a 12 hour battery (which would be awesome).
But I'd like to know what you guys think. Would you swap a MacBook Pro Retina 13" for an Air?

I only really browse the web, use Word, PowerPoint, Excel, iMessage, FaceTime, Skype, iStudiez Pro, Mail, some other basic apps and Parallel Desktop to run Windows 7 (for some Windows-only programs that I need for school).
I enjoy playing old-school games like GTA San Andreas (Mac) and Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 (and The Sims 4) using Parallels. Works fine on my current Mac.
My little brother sometimes plays Trine (1, I guess) and Scania Truck Simulator on my laptop (I tried to let him play this on my old MacBook Pro (late 2011), but it's kind of laggy)... Can a MacBook Air run all of this?
Oh, and I do use Final Cut Pro for video editing, but really not that much... Maybe once a month, for a 30-minute video in 1080p...

I also noticed how my laptop has Intel Iris 1,5 GB inside, and how the MacBook Air has Intel HD Graphics 6000... Is there a big difference? How much video memory does the Air have?
If I'd buy the Air, I'd buy the latest model, which is the Early 2016 model over here in Belgium (and everywhere, I guess).

The MacBook Air also has a native resolution of 1440x900... My old MacBook Pro has a native resolution of 1280x800. Does that mean the Air has more screen space, or that everything will look better?
For example, my MacBook Pro Retina is set to the best resolution for this computer, and it looks like 1280x800 in terms of size. If I set it to 1440x900, I get *way* more work space.
Does a MacBook Air have more screen space than a Pro? And how is the screen quality? I remember anything higher than Mavericks looked horrible on my old MacBook, because of the non-Retina display, but I heard it's better on an Air. I went to the store to check it out myself, and it's not Retina, indeed, but it's not *too* bad (but obviously, you only really notice when you have to work on the computer for a few minutes).

And does the fan make the same soft noise that the Retina MacBook Pro makes, or is it more like the old MacBook Pro? I really love how quiet my Mac is when the fan is at full speed.

Anyways: my question is: do you guys think I'd better stick with my current MacBook or get an Air?
I'm somebody who really likes to have a reason for the decisions I make.
And if you think an Air would we better for me, could you give me a few arguments why you think an Air would be better? Or why you think my current MacBook would be better?

A Retina MacBook isn't an option... I don't really like it and I definitely don't like the butterfly key mechanism.
Thank you guys so much for your time and help!

What did you end up doing? Did you get the air? I have the pro, but wanted the air 11 inch for travel and because it's smaller and lighter. The display is my main issue , my Retina display is so much better on my pro. I am hoping Apple will refresh the display on the air. I don't like the new MacBooks , not enough ports and don't like the keyboard.
Good luck with your decision.

 

[marcociccone]

TL;DR

Anyway I can say for sure the Air is the best laptop I've ever owned.
Used 2 Pros, a Macbook Retina and now I'm with a Air 13 inches.

It's light, portable, really really powerful and guys, the battery... it really lasts for (almost) a working day... I work in an office, doing loooot web browsing with chrome, emails and excel... macbook pros and macbook retina were almost dead at 2 pm, while the air goes until 4pm or sometimes even 5pm... never had a problem nor a single drop in frames like I did on my Macbook Retina.

This machine is spectacular... I really hope they don't discontinue it unless the new pros are in the same range re portability and battery life. It's the perfect mix between power and portability...

I don't understand Apple's choices sometimes. The air is perfect... why don't update USB-C, adding force touch trackpad and increase the resolution a little bit? That would be the ultime ultrabook...

 

[izzyfanto]

I'm back to my trusty 2012 MBA 13". I really liked trying the 12 rMB for 6 months, but ultimately just couldn't stand the keyboard, lack of ports and screen size. I wish the both MBA's could eliminate that bezel and make the screen bigger and higher resolution. A rMBA would check the boxes of good keyboard, portability, good screen, ports, and CPU that can handle sustained loads without major throttling. I'm not holding my breath that Apple will update the MBA. Unfortunately, a good keyboard trumps all other wants for me.

 

[jmoore5196]

I don't disagree with your decision. I found myself unable to type at speed on a rMB, and the lack of ports is annoying. I'm happy to keep my 11" MBA, particularly if the MBA is discontinued. The overwide bezel and subpar screen are certainly disconcerting, but otherwise, the MBA does everything I ask of it. It's also extremely portable. Unless I want to start carrying a 15" MBP everywhere, the MBA is still the best option.

 

[izzyfanto]

I don't disagree with your decision. I found myself unable to type at speed on a rMB, and the lack of ports is annoying. I'm happy to keep my 11" MBA, particularly if the MBA is discontinued. The overwide bezel and subpar screen are certainly disconcerting, but otherwise, the MBA does everything I ask of it. It's also extremely portable. Unless I want to start carrying a 15" MBP everywhere, the MBA is still the best option.

Yeah I'm worried the MBA won't be touched again and the only portability offerings will be the rMB