Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

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cheapskate
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by cheapskate »

anoop wrote: Thu Nov 26, 2020 10:47 am Looks like you might be right based on more recent info at macrumors.
https://www.macrumors.com/2020/11/26/ap ... -in-au-nz/
This website seems to be the only game in town for the $50 off the new M1 MBA. I don't know if they charge for shipping. I assume you will have to pay sales taxes (unlike B&H). Depending on the state you are in, it may be cheaper to buy this from B&H Photo with their PayBoo card (B&H Photo == No shipping costs, No state taxes hack. I am in CA so B&H has been my goto for Apple products usually, except for the iPhone which they don't sell).

https://expercom.com/?ranMID=43979&ranE ... s8YFZbcblg
anoop
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by anoop »

cheapskate wrote: Thu Nov 26, 2020 1:09 pm
anoop wrote: Thu Nov 26, 2020 10:47 am Looks like you might be right based on more recent info at macrumors.
https://www.macrumors.com/2020/11/26/ap ... -in-au-nz/
This website seems to be the only game in town for the $50 off the new M1 MBA. I don't know if they charge for shipping. I assume you will have to pay sales taxes (unlike B&H). Depending on the state you are in, it may be cheaper to buy this from B&H Photo with their PayBoo card (B&H Photo == No shipping costs, No state taxes hack. I am in CA so B&H has been my goto for Apple products usually, except for the iPhone which they don't sell).

https://expercom.com/?ranMID=43979&ranE ... s8YFZbcblg
I prefer to buy from Apple directly because of their 14-day no questions return policy which is even sweeter during the holidays extending the return period to Jan 8 for anything bought between Nov 10 and Dec 25.
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beyou
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by beyou »

While I don't do video editing, I do all my work on my MacBook and iPad.
Have a 2013 MBA with 4GB and 128GB storage and just upgraded to Big Sur, no issues.
Works like a charm for many years. My iPad is low end ($400) and it's great for zoom, watching Netflix, Hulu,
email and more.

Note that comparisons to Windows PCs/laptops are not so relevant, as a better OS can function with less RAM than Windows.
Storage though can be a significant need if you do lots of video editing. That said there is one drive, google drive, iCloud to get tons of storage, why keep it all on your local drive (and risk losing it).
rj49
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by rj49 »

If you're going to do Zoom and video editing, I would use a regular Mac, particularly the new Mac mini with a big monitor, although I think Amazon has a 21" imac for under $1,000 now, which would give you plenty of storage and a large screen for teaching and content creation. Both options are portable...I saw a DJ carry an imac to a gig once. I'm using my 2012 imac now, which is perfect for online learning/media. If you can wait a bit, they supposedly have new imacs coming out next quarter, with a redesign and the new chips, and the specs and storage should be much larger and faster than the Air. If you want to buy from Apple, they have an educator discount, and Target has Apple gift cards now with a $20 Target gift card per $100 spent, so people are buying multiples to get a big discount on Apple products.
02nz
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by 02nz »

Adorama, B&H, and probably others are selling the Air (M1) for $900. If you have an Amex card, check Amex Offers for $25 off $250 Adorama.
AS7911
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by AS7911 »

rj49 wrote: Fri Nov 27, 2020 1:56 am and Target has Apple gift cards now with a $20 Target gift card per $100 spent, so people are buying multiples to get a big discount on Apple products.
I was reading the reviews of these gift cards at Target, and 1/2 the reviews say the gift cards don't work!
sycamore
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by sycamore »

Best Buy has a similar promo: buy $100 apple gift card, get $20 best buy card.
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/promo/appl ... card-offer
But only 1 per person.
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Anon9001
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by Anon9001 »

This should be avoided because it is a GEN-1 product. The ARM Macs will become superior from here and the native software support should also be very good by the time GEN-2 is released. Although I did see that emulation is surprisingly good for the device from reviews.
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angelescrest
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by angelescrest »

Toadandfriends wrote: Wed Nov 25, 2020 6:32 pm Bogleheads, thank you for taking the time to share so much detailed info. I am learning a lot! I appreciate everyone's generosity.
Just to clarify, I'm a classical musician. When I am working on a 'true' recording project I hire an audio engineer/professional equipment/and use a hall or recording studio/professional editing.

My main goal in the instructional videos is to communicate and demonstrate elementary and intermediate concepts clearly. My material is primarily geared towards music educators and future music educators. My actual 'playing' and sound aren't nearly important as you might think :) Better audio would be nice, and I appreciate the excellent advice regarding an external mic. I do own a Zoom H2n recorder, and it looks like I might be able to use it as an external mic.
(I have a little spending wiggle room but I'm definitely on a self-imposed budget, so probably no additional equipment purchases in the near future. This laptop will be the big purchase of 2020.)

Well, I have received lots of advice!! Thank you. I'm afraid I'm still waffling :D I'll re-read all the posts tomorrow and tally up the various responses to find out what I'm going to do :mrgreen:
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!!
The Zoom would help if you can place it close to your instrument—that matters more than anything else. I hear you on hiring a sound engineer for real music recordings, but if I had to listen to audio for class from my music teacher, through a tinny computer mic that’s 3-4 feet away from the instrument...that would be rather painful. I’d get a Presonus Studio 68c (for usb-c), a mic stand, and a cardioid or hypercardioid mic. Or a mic arm to attach to your desk to swivel around between instrument and voice for when you go back and forth between lecturing or playing, esp if it’s live. This would be a few hundred dollars for all the items. But yeah you could attach your Zoom to a stand, although this would work for asynchronous learning where you’re editing and then posting your videos later.
cheapskate
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by cheapskate »

02nz wrote: Fri Nov 27, 2020 9:09 am Adorama, B&H, and probably others are selling the Air (M1) for $900. If you have an Amex card, check Amex Offers for $25 off $250 Adorama.
B&H with their store debit card (where they pay the sales tax) is probably the best deal on the M1. If you live in CA, that is a ~$180 total savings compared to getting it from Apple !
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vitaflo
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by vitaflo »

The M1 is really a generational leap in performance. It's hard to explain to normal people just how revolutionary and how far ahead this chip is to almost everything else on the market. The price and performance per watt is simply outstanding and at levels no other company has come close to.

Given the price of the Air it's by far the best bang/buck available for any laptop in recent memory. And will probably continue to be until the M2 comes out. If you're in the market and have the means I would not hesitate to buy one.
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framus
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by framus »

This won't directly answer the spec question however the reviews for the first M1 MacBooks are pretty impressive. Respected reviewers have been impressed: The Verge contemplated rating these products as a "10". MKBHD has been very laudatory in his eval.

This link provides a compendium of remarks from various quarters:

https://www.singhkays.com/blog/apple-si ... oer6HkCegw

-Framus
Tingting1013
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by Tingting1013 »

arf1410 wrote: Fri Nov 27, 2020 10:13 am
rj49 wrote: Fri Nov 27, 2020 1:56 am and Target has Apple gift cards now with a $20 Target gift card per $100 spent, so people are buying multiples to get a big discount on Apple products.
I was reading the reviews of these gift cards at Target, and 1/2 the reviews say the gift cards don't work!
The Apple gift cards absolutely work, I just bought four.

The question is whether Target will follow through with the $20 Target gift cards. Remains to be seen.
amd2135
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by amd2135 »

vitaflo wrote: Fri Nov 27, 2020 2:05 pm The M1 is really a generational leap in performance. It's hard to explain to normal people just how revolutionary and how far ahead this chip is to almost everything else on the market. The price and performance per watt is simply outstanding and at levels no other company has come close to.

Given the price of the Air it's by far the best bang/buck available for any laptop in recent memory. And will probably continue to be until the M2 comes out. If you're in the market and have the means I would not hesitate to buy one.
On paper, the Apple M1 chip in the Macbook Air is roughly on par with the overclocked Core i7 in my gaming desktop. The M1 does this without a fan and about 15x less power/heat.

My recommendation: Don't even consider buying an Intel Mac unless you have a specific use case in mind that requires one. Intel and AMD had better have ARM chips in the works. The likes of Dell and HP are going to demand something, anything that can compete with what Apple's doing.

No, I'm not an Apple fanboy. I've never even owned a Mac outside of a decade old Mini I was given. I never really used it... :happy
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Leif
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Re: Macbook Air - which specs should I get?

Post by Leif »

Toadandfriends wrote: Tue Nov 24, 2020 1:00 pm Thank you for all the info and thoughts. In the past I have used the same computer for about 6 years before upgrading, so I will think seriously about the 16GB ram. It sounds like I'd probably be fine with the 8GB, but I could purchase the upgrades for $1400 incl taxes with the education pricing. It is more than I'd like to spend, but over 6 years it isn't a huge price difference. I'll sleep on it:)
From your usage is sound like 8 GB RAM is plenty. I just read a review where the reviewer loaded up the system with a lot of programs and only used 7 GB on a 16 GB system. Even if over 8 GB it still runs, just needs to swap primary memory with secondary memory. So I'm sure you OK with 8 GB.

I have a Macbook Pro 2014. I bought it with 256 GB. I think at the time 128 was standard. Now, 6 years later, I'm using about 2/3 of that. Of course, if needed, I would off load a bunch of files to an external drive or to the internet. You probably could do the same. So, I think you are also OK with a 256 GB solid state drive. But I would prefer the M1 Air.
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