Is This The Most Underrated MacBook Ever?
The 2017 MacBook Air Model MQD32LL/A is a criminally underrated MacBook.
It doesn’t come equipped with touch-bars, one port, LED retina displays, turbo-charged 3.2Ghz i.7 processors, or an Iris graphics card, but it is what I like to call a workhorse because of one huge advantage:
OPTIONS.
Ports = Options.
Are you a videographer, photographer, musician, artist of any kind?
Well then you probably have a media card or usb with a lot of content on it.
And the easiest way to transfer that content onto your computer is not through the cloud, but through a convenient port built into your laptop.
The Air MQD32 not only has 1, but 2 USB ports, including a USB-A designed for every memory stick and device you own.
It also offers 1 Thunderbolt port, and of course, a crucial media card reader, which automatically puts it ahead of its 2019 MacBook Pro competition.
The 2019 retina display Air is void of ports, with only 2 USB-Cs and 3 Thunderbolt ports, while lacking a media card slot.
The 2017 Air received minor spec upgrades from its predecessors as a testament to its strength.
The sturdy aluminum design and frame is meant to take a beating.
The keyboard is a memoir to the chunky, “I’m going to pound out an essay” days, instead of shallow keys featured on new MacBook Air + Pros, which feel like typing directly on a table-top, lacking any form of feedback.
Plus, MQD32 offers the most genius feature on any laptop ever: The MagSafe power connection.
The Power of MagSafe
This feature saved the lives of hundreds of Macs, but it can’t be found on new generations using USB-C.
And speaking of charging, you won’t have to do much of it, because the 2017 Air has a modest 10 hour battery life.
It may seem underpowered and aged but the 2017 Air runs Adobe’s creative cloud smoothly, including Premier, and web surfing and streaming is a breeze.
The screen bezel is thick, and it’s not as stunning as newer models, but for $999 this MacBook is the sleeper of its family.
And Apple knows it.
It’s almost as if they did away with the utility of the 2017 Air to make their customers crave its features.
The “New” 2021 MacBook Pros
So when they released their “new” 2021 line of MacBook Pros, eerily similar to the 2017 air, people took notice.
In addition to Apple’s new M1 chip and Retina display, ports reappeared.
An HDMI slot is present and professionals have access to card readers again.
And of course, no “new” MacBook Pro would be complete without the lifesaving MagSafe connection.
So what did Apple do with their “new” 2021 MacBook Pro?
Well they realized the power of their 2017 MacBook Air and beefed it up with better screens, processors, cameras, and microphones, while adding back all the ports their customers missed, giving them something “new.”
