Looking to buy MacBook Air
Which one would you prefer M1 or M2?
Thanks
MacBook Air M1 or M2
Lrbatra on 28/08/2022 - 12:41
Comments
I was waiting so long for the MBA M2 to be released but the price point really puts it in an awkward spot between the M1 MBA and the 14" MBP. I ended up going with the 14" because it was a relatively small price difference once you upgraded RAM to 16gb and storage to 512gb.
As always the most honest answer is "it depends"… mostly on your use case and what you want to get out of it. If you want the latest and you love the look of it, then get the M2 MBA but the M1 offers the most bang for buck
Pros of M2 MBA:
Bigger, brighter screen (500 nits vs 400, 13.6" vs 13")
Addition of Magsafe charging (leaves both thunderbolt ports free)
Slightly faster CPU (approx 17%)
Slightly faster GPU (assuming you get the 8core GPU)
Looks dope in midnight colourwayCons:
The 256gb base SSD is HALF the speed of the M1 MBA 256gb variant (there's a few videos about this)
The price sits it awkwardly in the middle between two extremely good options: The M1 MBA and the M1pro MBP
Midnight colourway is VERY fingerprinty
Gets pretty warm and throttles after extended time under heavy load (but about on par with the M1 MBA)
I was in the same boat but I opted downwards for the M1 for the best value! M1 Air with upgraded ram to 16gb :) still cheaper than the base model M2 and would outlast it in the long run IMO. The upgrades of the M2 are nice but doesn’t really justify the price hike IMO. Beautiful machine. I wish it was more affordable.
Bought with discounted Apple gift cards from some great sellers here on OZB, and bought from AOC/Education Union site for further discounts.
In the end it depends on your use case and how much you want to save/treat yourself.
I thought to get the best value (price vs performance) now, and then easily justify upgrading to a new model in the next 5-10 years etc whenever I think it’s worth it to upgrade.
I’ve been using my base mode 2013 MBA for uni and work, and only upgrading because 4GB ram is almost unusable for multi tab web browsing . The 16GB M1 will last me ages.
I would say get the M1 and spend your money else where for other things, or upgrade sooner in the next 5-10 years etc
If money is no object, get the MBP 14 or MBA M2 16/512.
16GB M1 is best value IMO. Upgrade the storage if you want too depending on your use case and if portable SSD isn’t your thing.
I made a spreadsheet when I was deciding to compare the prices. Might help you see the difference and if it’s worth it.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-E-u4zmTR4Msezyo1AQ-…
It’s just a tool in the end. Get the base model M1 if you don’t multitask or have a lot of apps or tabs open at the same time
hey can you please make ur spreadsheet public!!!
i was doing this too lol but its not completeHi buddy,
Your reply and spreadsheet is quite helpful. I plan to by MBP M1 16/512. While I never used gift card and education store. May I ask you how many gift cards should I purchase and any limitation? To buy it on education store, I need to have an account ending with edu.au, then I buy it with AEU price in your spreadsheet, sounds temping, any cons?
Looking forward to your reply, Thanks in advance.
@paulatsydney: Hey mate, glad to be of some help. I recommend if you’re getting a 16/512 configuration, you should opt for either the M1 Air, or the 14 inch MBP, which has the M1 Pro chip.
Is that the MBP you were referring to? 14 inch not 13 inch? Because I don’t think the 13 inch is worth getting if you want value for money :)
Let me get the list of people who helped me out with Apple gift cards- I trust them and recommend them to you and everyone else.
Yes, education store requires edu account but others have used the Apple on Campus site and the Education Union site (just google them to find it or look on other threads). They don’t actually check if you’re correctly affiliated but many people have used them with no issues. I think I read one post when someone was asked to verify their affiliation.
M2 brah
Definitely get the M2 for the new chassis but if you can find Air M1 at a very good price, sure why not.
Why buy a laptop for the case?
I mean for the new display (brighter and slimmer bezels contributing to small overall form factor) since the MBA's design has been for a few years now. Obviously it is a matter of preference. Not saying the old MBA's design isn't good but that is very much dependent on the price.
OK.
I actually am definitely not an Apple fanboi, but bought an Air M1 for my daughter for high school.
WOW - it's beautiful and it's just intuitive (for her). And I read that it's damn good at what it does. And it works all day, without getting hot or even bothered.
For me, I just don't get the Apple 'flow' or "mabo" or "thought processes"…….I'm old and a PC-head from the 80's. Was always envious of my mate with an Apple IIe. I just never got them though……
M2 is hands down the better machine, I just don’t think it’s as bang-for-buck.
Question for OP is if $350-400 is worth a slightly brighter screen (less valuable if you use an external display, and the M1 brightness is still great, and depends on how much time you spend with the screen in direct sun), half the SSD speed (at 256gb), a MagSafe port (means extra usb c port when charging but with these laptops you’ll probably only charge once every couple of days or more, and probably overnight when you’re not using it), new design (beautiful, but aesthetics don’t add to performance), M2 chip (M1 is already a beast and how much the extra graphics power will help depends on OP use case), and very slightly taller screen -64 pixels?).
Both amazing machines! Just wish the M2 was more affordable or didn’t have the SSD slow down in the base model!
dont flame me.. can i run windows on Mac?
Only if you have a mac made before 2020.
You can Windows for ARM in Parallels
Is Mac going to continue being ARM based forever? I use VMs for Windows and Linux x64 on Intel based Mac and the ARM architecture makes it impossible to upgrade? :(
Short answer: yes they are all going to ARM for the foreseeable future. Apple made a big song and dance about ditching intel 2 years ago
macOS still runs on Intel. However, Intel is slowly being phased out permanently. macOS Monterey and Ventura specific features are not being back ported to BigSur and earlier versions of macOS for Intel. Apple's future is built around ARM derived systems. Assuming you have an M1 or M2 Mac, all you need to do to maintain forward compatibility is get Parallels 18 for macOS. Then deploy Windows 11 for ARM or any supported Linux for ARM. Windows 11 supports ARM64EC which means all your programs targeted for x86 architecture will run inside the VM. Parallels offers Coherence View so your apps run on your macOS desktop. If you require other OS (e.g. Windows Server 2022), then you need to remain on Intel.
M1 MacBook 2020 has crack screen issue. https://9to5mac.com/2021/07/30/m1-macbook-screen-cracks/
My one cracked 2 weeks ago, it was always on my desk, over one night, I didn’t touch it, its internal LCD cracked at the left down corner, outer glass was no damage. I went to Apple store, they fixed it for free, they told me I was the 3rd one in the morning. This issue is very common, but my concern is if out of warranty, do they still fix it for free? My one is over 1 year old, at Consumer Law Warranty status.Hmmm, I’m in a similar boat (difficulty choosing m1 vs m2 air). I kind of prefer the m1 form factor (tapered edges leads to a perception of a thinner device, despite it actually having a larger overall volume), but the chip was released 2 years ago. I kind of want an m2 chip in the m1 form factor… and in midnight colour.
Some people say the 4 speakers in the m2 sound better than the m1 (which has 2 speakers); however, they sounded the same to me in store when I listened to them side by side.
Update the post when you decide
Neither M1 or M2, let me explain. For over a decade now ARM has been using the V8 Instruction set but apple who was first to produce an ARM v8 chip is now behind as Qalcom?Mediatek have both got a second generation (mid 2022 they launched the improved V9 silicone) of the V9 Instruction set! Apple will be launching this new instruction set probably in the next Macbook Pro and when these launch, well its the mac that will replace all the previous ones and a cutdown version will be the AIR version. M2 is nothing but a warmed over tech M1 with the M1pro/Max silicone codecs built in! Apple still make great cpus, but the V9 is a generational move accross the board and its only the strength of the others addons like hardware and audio encoding and decoding thats allowed them to fall behind but keep selling products. So dont buy any new mac until the V9 instruction set is the basis of the chip technology as you will soon regret it and be looking to buy again as its like when apple went from PowerPC to the orignal CORE from intel and then soon had the much better CORE2 release, that orphaned the early adopter's of the Intel Core products. This is important a change to Apple as the move from PowerPC>Intel>ARM ever was is the move from first-genration V8 instruction set to the V9 that will be the basis of ARM for the next decade!
Hi
You can always use the search function to look for histories posts similar to yours..
Like this one from a few days ago
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/720333