Don’t waste your money on the M2 MacBook Air
Why the M2 is a pointless upgrade for most consumers.
There’s a lot to talk about when it comes to Apple laptops. With the new M2 MacBook Air just announced at WWDC this May, we now have a multitude of options to consider.
And when Apple launches a new product, it leaves us thinking:
- Who is the M2 MacBook Air for?
- Why should I get one?
- What configuration options should I go for?
The M2 MacBook Air starts at US$ 1200 dollars which is actually pretty decent, but the M2 MacBook Air appeal is the form factor itself. Weighting only 2.7 pounds (1.2 kilograms) and only 0.44” (1.1cm) thin, it is certainly a ultra portable, ultra thin laptop.
It’s about the weight of two iPad Pros to give you a reference, but of course, much more capable because of those MacOS apps you’re going to get access to.
Another great appeal of the M2 MacBook Air, is that it actually doesn’t blow any… Air!
It’s a ‘fan-less’ design but frankly, even their latest M1 Pro and M1 Max MacBook Pros which do have fans, are barely noticeable, if at all!
I am constantly editing 4K videos, rendering these videos at least once a week for my YouTube channel and it cuts through them ‘like butter’, without breaking a sweat.
So the fact that the M2 MacBook Air has no fans isn’t really that much of an advantage, when you compare it against the latest MacBook Pros.
Of course if you compare this against other Ultra thin laptops in the market, that’s different and the Air will likely come out on top from a noise perspective.
The M2 Chip — Is it really that much of a jump?
As well as the form factor, the M2 processor is the other main selling point here. And Apple have made that clear with their pricing strategy, to make you ‘feel’ like you are buying something more powerful. Had they priced the M2 MacBook Air the same way as the M1 MacBook Air, questions would have to be asked as to whether there is any improvement at all.
If you are considering the M2 because you currently have an M1 MacBook Air, and that M1 is underperforming for your workload, then great, of course this will have a better performance.
Apple’s claims on the website — and during the WWDC — do tend to check out traditionally, when it comes to laptops. Specifically the Apple silicon generation of laptops.
Just a word of caution really, about the ‘over the top’ claims which are designed to get potential customers hyped up.
Up to 15X faster than Intel-based model. Well, my Casio watch is 15x faster than the Intel-based model!
As with the M1, in practice the M2 follows the same architecture of combining CPU, memory and graphics in one chip.
But it’s still a 5 nanometer based tech, albeit enhanced with more transistors and being more capable from the amount of operations it can execute — it’s far from groundbreaking — as the first M1 chip was.
In simple terms, these enhancements, translate into the ability to run many apps simultaneously and quickly.
And this is where the reality ‘kicks in’ for me. If you are just running a few Chrome tabs for work, listening to Spotify and running Zoom calls all day and then watching some content and browsing socials in the evening the M2 is overkill.
Having the latest M2 MacBook Air in this scenario will only serve to make you happy. And I value that. One may not NEED all that power but if buying the latest makes one happy, and one can afford it… then why the heck not?
But for most people, we will only see an advantage in getting this M2 MacBook Air, when upgrading from a much older machine, perhaps the Intel version or perhaps a Windows laptop that is underperforming.
I would still beware of the “gateway drug” aspect of this machine. This is Apple’s way of enticing Windows users. And once you’re in the Apple ecosystem, it’s quite hard to get out. Because it is excellent!
And that I think is the main target market for this laptop. I honestly believe that only a small percentage of people will see a difference, if they are coming from the much newer M1 MacBook Air.
It does irritate me nonetheless, that Apple will publish notes such as:
With this new M2 processor, you will be able to zip through creating documents and presentations.
Come on Apple, that’s insulting our intelligence!
My 1980s Casio watch can probably spit out a PowerPoint really quickly.
It’s the more demanding workloads that involve creating music, editing videos or developing in Xcode, that make this machine really interesting.
But for serious professionals out there, they are probably better off looking at the existing M1 Pro/Max or M1 Ultra machines for those much more demanding, graphic intensive workloads.
A mobility king?
The M2 MacBook Air will be great for people who are on the move all the time.
I am aware I am the minority in thinking that the 16” MacBook Pro is just fine from a mobility perspective so I write with the empathy for people who never used to carry the 17” MacBook Pros from 2008/2009.
Excluding the niche cases like mine, I do believe the MacBook Air will be a great device to carry around. With 18 hours battery life, a better display and that faster M2 processor, this could indeed be a mobility king.
Perhaps not ‘beefy enough’ to take care of heavier Final Cut Pro edits or huge compiling of applications, but fast enough to be accepted in a ‘work from a cafe’ world.
I do want to see if this new MacBook Air would be a better option than my M1 iPad Pro though.
I have an unproven hypothesis, that the iPad Pro is probably not as “Pro” as it could be, because of the M2 MacBook Air.
What specs to go for?
When it comes to ordering one, how much storage and RAM should you go for?
I’ve been burned a few times by Apple recently so I decided to write this article (and make a video about it)
I would certainly not pay extra for only 256 Gigabytes of storage, just to go up to the next model. That would be ludicrous. Sure you are getting a better power adapter and more GPU power but US$ 300 for that privilege sounds excessive.
I’d much sooner save that cash and get something like the Acasis 10-in-1 hub which then allows me to expand my storage up to 8 Terabytes. This, would exponentially be a much better value for money.
256 Gigabytes on a laptop in 2022 is simply not enough. It’s not enough on a smartphone, let alone on a laptop. And 512 Gigabytes is not much better either.
So you can get the 1 Terabyte or 2 Terabyte options for extra US$ 200 or US$ 600 but I’d question whether that convenience of having local storage is worth paying all this extra?
Adding these extras to your order starts to ‘creep up’ into M1 MacBook Pro territory!
If you are going to make any upgrades to this MacBook Air, the only one I think is worth doing is the memory. Either 16 or 24GB depending on your budget.
Definitely worth getting but, going back to my previous points, only if your workload will use it.
If you are not editing 4K or above videos or compiling heavy code, or using Logic Pro for example to produce complex layers of music then it’s really questionable whether you need to upgrade the memory.
I know you may be concerned about ‘future-proofing’ which I also appreciate.
In this case I’d say upgrading the RAM is the best move, but not the storage, unless you really have a specific use case for it and a hub won’t do.
There are really neat solutions out there, that will be perfect the the MacBook Air. This hub I am referring to from Acasis has a built-in enclosure, capable of up to 8TB to be used as an expansion. Super mobile, fits in your hand and doesn’t require any dedicated power to work. It will work with the laptop’s adapter, and passing through the power via Power Delivery (PD).
I am excited at how hardware in general keeps moving forward. I just hope we get the software to keep evolving too.
