> I've had quite enough of Microsoft's constant nagging to upgrade to Windows 11
I’m surprised he’s seeing a lot of nagging. That machine can’t even run Windows 11.
Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
171–180 of 634 posts
Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
#172I don't think so. Time to recompile the newest p7zip (using this as an example because it dropped yesterday):
- My M1 Macbook Air, 16GB RAM: 11s
- My M1 Ultra Mac Studio, 128GB RAM: 6s
- My HP DevOne (AMD Ryzen7 PRO 5850U, 64GB RAM): 51s
- My home server (HP Z2 Mini G4, Xeon E-2176G , 32GB RAM): 17s
- my Gigabyt Aorus 17G gaming laptop (i7-11800H, 64GB RAM): 35s
On GeekBench the DevOne should be faster than the Z2:
https://browser.geekbench.com/v5/cpu/compare/16189462?baseli...
and comparable to the M1 MBA:
https://browser.geekbench.com/v5/cpu/compare/6428909?baselin...
Two conclusions:
- GeekBench is an incredibly flawed benchmark
- The M1 MacBook Air is an incredible machine, even more so when you consider it's a laptop.
Now that M1 support is in the official Linux 6.2 kernel, I hope running Linux on Apple Silicon will soon become mainstream and usable.
If the rumored M2 15" MBA comes out, I am totally getting one.
Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
#173The biggest contrast here and what we should be concerned about is the fact that this old Thinkpad can be upgraded and still be used vs an old macbook that if speced too low is now useless and ends up on a landfill. Not even considering that new macbooks if locked are unusable on the secondary market and get tossed even if the hardware is perfectly fine. It's as if we have given up on "solving" climate change in favo…
In practice old MacBooks tend to have a much longer useful life in my experience. I'm working on a 12" Macbook and I love it. It's still decently fast for.the lowest specced Macbook from 6 years ago. It supplements a 2017 Macbook Pro that's still overkill in 2022. Both have excellent battery life. If it wasn't for the nearly free upgrade I got in 2017, I'd probably still rock a 2012 model.
I've got a 2012 MacBook Air which I bought second hand (maybe third or fourth hand, or more?) for $300 a couple years ago. The hinge is floppy probably due to being dropped several times, the FaceTime is busted, I replaced the battery but it still runs out in less than 2 hours, and I don't think macOS even gets security patches for the version it's running - but install Linux and it's _fine_, plus it's tiny.
I could probably run it as a rudimentary media server if I didn't already have one, or palm it off to a young kid who doesn't care that it's a bit banged up, or use it as a machine of last resort. I don't use it like I use my M2 MacBook Air and would never suggest someone daily drive it unless they had no other choice, but I can't justify throwing it away because it's completely solid and still works. I could also probably get $100-150 out of it if I really wanted to sell it - if anyone can tell me of another 10 year old laptop with resell value like that I'd like to know.
I don't think I've owned a non-Apple laptop for more than 3 years, with the exception of a particularly long-lived Lenovo laptop I got in 2013. Every other one has had critical hardware die that I didn't feel inclined to replace mainly due to costs outweighing benefits. Except for a few weird years in the late 2010s, Apple makes stunningly reliable and long-lasting hardware in my experience.
Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
#174Earlier quoted context omitted.
Same, but I think he might refer to an external trackpad. I haven't ever encointered people upgrading their trackpads.
It can be done in this case. Tho I’m unclear if the X1E is ‘Macbook equivalent’. https://www.reddit.com/r/thinkpad/comments/j0mrh5/t480_with_... Hence the question. Love to know a trackpad (even external) that is of a similar feel and quality as the MacBooks.
Personally, I prefer the X1E trackpad over the feel of the trackpad on my dell XPS on or my friends' macbook M1s.
Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
#175Earlier quoted context omitted.
> screen quality > battery life > speakers > trackpad All things you can replace with the T480. Which I've done, and can just recommend. There's much better options than the ones shipped by default, including trackpads rivalling the M1, a screen that beats the M1, and a battery that has 20h+ capacity and can be swapped with a second one to double the capacity in seconds.
> a battery that has 20h+ capacity and can be swapped with a second one to double the capacity in seconds Any computer that can be charged with a usb-c connection doesn't need additional proprietary external batteries, you can just use a generic battery pack, which is why the T480 was the last TP with an external battery.
If you want to a) have a huge external device connected all the time, b) destroy your battery with constant charge cycles so badly that you need to replace it every few months, and c) want to be unable to charge other devices from your laptop.
Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
#176Earlier quoted context omitted.
> screen quality > battery life > speakers > trackpad All things you can replace with the T480. Which I've done, and can just recommend. There's much better options than the ones shipped by default, including trackpads rivalling the M1, a screen that beats the M1, and a battery that has 20h+ capacity and can be swapped with a second one to double the capacity in seconds.
Right, but "If you upgrade the screen, batteries, trackpad, speakers, RAM and SSD and then it's a pretty good laptop" isn't exactly a ringing endorsement. A 38-horsepower 1980s Mini 1000 is a fast car, if you install the engine and drivetrain from a Toyota Celica GT-Four.
> isn't exactly a ringing endorsement
Why not? Consider it a DIY kit, not a product, and you'll be happy. People build their own IKEA furniture with countless mods applied to it, why not do the same with a laptop? The framework is popular for a reason.
Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
#177The biggest contrast here and what we should be concerned about is the fact that this old Thinkpad can be upgraded and still be used vs an old macbook that if speced too low is now useless and ends up on a landfill. Not even considering that new macbooks if locked are unusable on the secondary market and get tossed even if the hardware is perfectly fine. It's as if we have given up on "solving" climate change in favo…
>Not even considering that new macbooks if locked are unusable on the secondary market and get tossed even if the hardware is perfectly fine. It's as if we have given up on "solving" climate change in favor of short term profits...
Making this argument without acknowledging the impact it has on the market for stolen Apple goods makes it an intellectually dishonest one I think.
Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
#178I'm still not sure why. The section doesn't really answer the actual question. It's cheaper, good enough, replacement parts are cheap, and I understand that argument; I myself use alternatively some kind of very old Thinkpad (that I don't remember the specs of), a 2011 Macbook Air, or a recent Macbook M1 and for what I do with them (little more than running Firefox and ssh) the only difference that matters in practic…
He was tired of Apple's shit, it sounds like a divorce to me. It's better in all of the aspects the author stated: price, ability to repair etc. All valid points, that are more or less or not at all important for other people.
Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
#179Earlier quoted context omitted.
Right, but "If you upgrade the screen, batteries, trackpad, speakers, RAM and SSD and then it's a pretty good laptop" isn't exactly a ringing endorsement. A 38-horsepower 1980s Mini 1000 is a fast car, if you install the engine and drivetrain from a Toyota Celica GT-Four.
The best things in life can't be bought ready and require thought and even sacrifice.
Ikea furniture requires you to build it.
The best beds on the planet are pre-assembled.
Not saying the exact thing you're saying isn't true (IE; the best things in life are actually not things but relationships and experiences); but it is categorically untrue that "the best products require you to build them".
Re: Replacing my MacBook Air M1 with a ThinkPad T480
#180Earlier quoted context omitted.
T480 weighs 3.6lb vs. 3.5 for a 14" M1. I'm surprised you noticed. MBP doesn't have a trackpoint. Still can't run Linux as well, lacks USB A so still requires constant dongles despite improved port selection. I moved from a 2018 15" MBP to a P14s Gen 2 AMD. The speakers, screen, trackpad are worse. But I don't care. I'm not stuck using a horrible OS with miniscule amounts of storage to keep the price down. The machin…
Is the trackpoint really that important when you have a trackpad which doesn't suck with associated drivers and software which doesn't suck? I've never been using a Mac trackpad and felt the need for something trackpoint-like. I understand the desire for a trackpoint on laptops with non-Apple trackpads though.
Yes, because I have to move my hand off the keyboard to use the trackpad.