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Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

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Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#341

Post by wodenokoto »

tqi wrote: post #283

Been a long time since I bought a new computer. How should I think about / compare the processor options of the new MBA[1] and the non-touchbar MBP[2]? I've seen the passmark results, but have no idea how to interpret. [1]: 8th Gen 1.6-GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 [2]: 7th Gen 2.3GHz dual-core Intel Core i5

I've been scratching my head on that point too. Apple's spec page list the MBA processor to have "4MB L3 cache", while the MBP non-touch bar processor is listed as having "64MB of eDRAM".

I mean, 64 sounds better than 4, but are these things even comparable? is eDram something you have next to L3 cache or instead?

Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#342

Post by inopinatus »

drfuchs wrote: post #71

Never mind all that; it has an Escape key! (When they dropped it on the latest MacBook Pro, I feared that this portended its general demise on the whole laptop line...)

Loss of escape key is the reason I cancelled my MacBook Pro order, so it's a relief that this abominable change did not infect the Air. I'd been bookmarking the Microsoft Surface for when my 2012 Retina MBP finally expires.

Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#343

Post by 2color »

enraged_camel wrote: post #206
YetAnotherNick wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the entry level macbook pro is better buy than this. For $100, the CPU is much better, and very likely the build quality too. And everything else including weight, keyboard, ports, battery life etc. mostly the same.

The new MBA has touch ID though, whereas the entry level MBP doesn't. The convenience IS a lot of value for some people.

Do you think it's worth it over the entry level MBP considering the difference in the CPU?

Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#344

Post by rpilgrimr »

Bluestrike2 wrote: post #176
Latteland wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

one usb-c port on the smaller macbook was of course just a silly stupid idea. But I think 2 is less good than 3 or 4. I'd rather have multiple. next apple needs to convert the phone to use usb-c so we can all move over to one port type.

With the iPad Pro now using USB-C, I think it's a given that the next iPhone will do the same. If only my next Kindle would do the same.

another possibility is that it will not have any ports at all. BT, WiFI and Qi for wireless charging.

Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#345

Post by jazzyjackson »

sreque wrote: post #273
starbugs wrote: post #165

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I bought my first 15" MBP in 2006 after Apple switched to Intel. I was a student back then and I got it for about 1800 EUR. It was a beautiful machine, I could replace the battery myself without unscrewing anything, and if I wanted to upgrade the memory or HDD I could do that easily. Now here we are 12 years and a couple of Macs later. The current MBP is a bit more beautiful than the first one I got, it's noticeably…

I don't know how anyone could reasonably conclude Apple's software is vastly superior. Apple has always been and continues to be a hardware-first company; their software always lags behind. In the past two days I've had to reboot my mac twice because the headhone jack stopped working. At my previous job, the terminal program segfaulted at least once a week. Bluetooth is notoriously flaky and requires frequent reboots…

I was a Windows user all my life (Started with Win98 as an 8 year old) but switched to MacOS once hitting "Windows Key" and typing 'Downloads' to jump to my Downloads folder became non-deterministic.

Like Windows 10 actually suggests some web / app store results first, and after about a second, it will remember that I have a local folder called 'Downloads', so instead of using 'Win+D.o.w.+Enter' as a shortcut, I have to wait for the computer to suggest Downloads as a suggestion.

This is on a top of the line Surface Book.

Besides that I spent hours trying to get colors working in a terminal emulator so I could use vim and tmux with syntax highlighting. I gave up and bought what I figured would be the last Macbook Air with USB-A and a decent keyboard.

Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#346

Post by jazzyjackson »

notatoad wrote: post #103
falcolas wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In contrast - my USB hubs, external USB drives, and CD reader are all USB A. My phone is Lightning. My spare chargers are two flavors of magsafe. The cords I've begun to accumulate to work with a USB C computer have varying capabilities, to the point where I can't safely interchange them for fear of blowing past their tolerances accidentally. I'm not so keen on this change.

>for fear of blowing past their tolerances accidentally this is not how USB-C works. you might end up with a cable that doesn't support high voltage, but it simply won't upgrade to a higher voltage and your device will charge slower or not at all. I agree that it's frustrating that all USB-C cables aren't interchangeable, but to imply they're potentially unsafe is wrong. There was a bunch of out-of-spec cables on the…

yeah my nexus 5x melted thanks to a USB-C cable that I didn't strike me as off-brand or fake. So I'm skittish about USB C now. oh well.

Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#347

Post by jazzyjackson »

halotrope wrote: post #333

I just got a surface book 2 after having trouble adjusting to the touch bar mbp. It is not perfect in any way but everything I care about (thermals, battery, performance, keyboard) got so much better. WSL is a good enough shell replacement and windows as a whole feels more productive. The touch and tablet mode is surprisingly handy. It is weird but after 10 years die-hard mac user I don’t feel it no more. No matter h…

Funny, I just got a 2017 Macbook Air because Windows 10 was annoying me with news-in-my-start-menu and a change in how start-button-search worked from all the previous Windows OSes.

WSL got me used to using bash in my daily work flow, but having a Darwin system with unix in its bones is heaven to me.

Funny how tastes can change :)

Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#348

Post by jazzyjackson »

microtonal wrote: post #12
berbec wrote: post #3

Pros: Thinner, lighter, better display, thunderbolt, 8th-generation chip, headphone jack(!) Cons: Still dual core, no USB-A, no magsafe. Would buy, and I'm a Lenovo fanboy. I just love the Airs. Does anyone know if you can install Linux onto the newer Macs with the T2 chip? Or is it locked to osX^H^H^HmacOS?

Cons: Still dual core, no USB-A, no magsafe. And still the butterfly mechanism. And apparently, specks of dust also affect the latest iteration: https://theoutline.com/post/6409/the-new-and-improved-macboo... I have been waiting for a good replacement for my MacBook Pro 2016. But this is not it. Still too few ports, still the risk of sticky keys. And given that the base model with 128GB is $1199, after the upgrade to…

Replacing at laptop after 2 years? I'm a fan of Macbooks specifically because they can last for 5+ years. Especially now that Moore's Law is burned out, I expect my 2017 Macbook Air to be just as useful in 2023.

Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#349

Post by cauthon »

IkmoIkmo wrote: post #270
cauthon wrote: post #231

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Love the device but I can't get over how expensive it has gotten. A 20% price bump... I got downvoted for posting this as a top-level comment, but it's insane to me how Apple's hardware specs have stagnated while maintaining the same price. In 2014 I bought an entry-level Macbook Pro with retina display, 2.6 GHz i5 processor, 8 GB of RAM, and 128 GB SSD for $1300. In 2018 I can buy the entry-level Macbook Pro with…

I mean, I hear you and I agree (I wrote the post above you after all), pricing has been a bit tough. But since you asked, some additional background information comparing the 2014 $1300 Mac to today's $1300 Mac (which isn't a 2018 model, but rather the 2017 model and prices.) Geekbench 4 single/multicore scores are 30% and 42% faster respectively. The latter can do 4k resolution output. It's almost half a pound light…

Fair. I don't think the actual processor matters much, I could have written "basic dual-core processor" to make my point. It's more frustrating that the entry-level RAM and storage options haven't increased at all in almost 5 years.

To your points: I'd rather have the old form factor and weight, multiple hours extra battery life, and a usable set of ports.

I compared the three entry-level laptops because I thought it was the most fair comparison, and because I knew the price of the 2014 equivalent. I'm actually looking for a model with 16 GB RAM and 256 or 512 GB SSD, and like you noted, that comes with a massive price gouge. I'd hope that at least the storage could have been upgraded on the base model over the last 4-5 years.

Re: Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

#350

Post by IkmoIkmo »

lostgame wrote: post #297

I'm a little upset we are now without a $1000 ($999) introductory-level Apple notebook. Even though it was gloriously underpowered, it still presented an entry-level device for students and those generally with less cash. The extra $200 also makes the differential between the 'Air' and the standard 'MacBook'...well, um...can anyone specifically tell me the differences, even?

I mean, it's still for sale, the original Macbook Air, it's just a horribly outdated machine now. It's got a 5th generation (2015) CPU, 128 PPI (what), and bezels as thick as your thumb.

It's still a great little thing, the battery life is just great for ordinary casual use. It's thin... but I feel it belongs in 2013, was still nice for a few years after, but approaching 2019 this thing should have gotten a real replacement.

And replacing it with something $200 more expensive (that itself is quite similar to the 12 inch Macbook anyway, which caters to a higher-end casual-user segment), when the air is supposed to be a cheap entry-level product for the lower-end casual-user segment like students... Can't say I like it.

It feels we didn't get a replacement for relatively cheap entry level Macbook Air, but rather got a new expensive alternative to the expensive Macbook.

If they dropped the original Air and dropped this price down to $1100 next year, I think that'd be okay. But really I was hoping for another $1000 Air. And I don't see it happening. $1200 will be the new normal for a modern entry level Apple machine.

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