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Apple M2 CPU, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro at WWDC22

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tonymacx86

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Motherboard
Z370N WIFI
CPU
i7 8700K
Graphics
HD 630
Mac
  1. MacBook Air
Classic Mac
  1. Apple
  2. PowerBook
Mobile Phone
  1. iOS
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My choice of color!. Not that I'm getting one, I love my M1 MBA in Space Grey, it's not something I'm willing to let go of yet, despite the .... camera. Macs are starting to look the same as iPads etc, I'd rather keep the wedge.

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Disappointing prices of MacBook Air M1 and M2 models... M1 one (no 8-core GPU anymore) remains the same price, yet M2 ones are more expensive.
 
I have to say it looks good and rather tempting!
But how it compares to my current one in actual usage is another matter.

Believe it or not, the longest lasting Mac I've ever used has been a 1.3GHz Core-i5 Macbook Air from 2013.
I have been using it on and off daily for nearly 9 years now. Over the years I had the it DIY upgraded from the a 256GB SSD to 512GB and then to a 1TB hard drive so I could watch movies and listen to FLAC files on it. I have found the SD card slot, USB-A and Thunderbolt ports all incredibly useful as has been the Target Mode feature (as I use USB flash drives quite a bit on it. And despite the older Haswell chipset it is pretty nippy. Aside from running Microsoft Office for daily admin stuff, as a workhorse it has saved both my personal and my work Macs numerous times. When one system stops booting, out comes the MB Air with Target Mode or Disk Utility to rescue that drive. Can't be said for equivalent PC laptops.
 
8GB RAM 256GB SSD .. No updates

The screen is better,
larger scree,
the CUP is likely faster or maybe they just changed the 1 --> 2,
Hardware accelerated H.264,HEVC,
Prores and Prores Raw Video decode and encode engine.

Not upgrades that would do me any good but they are upgrades just the same. I am sure that there are much more that I am not getting at first glance.
 
Looking at the new M2 Macbook Air, I think the question that's on everyone's minds right now is - is it worth it and if so which one?

If you're talking about value for money, personally I think the M2 Macbook Air just about seals it - I think it is for now the cheapest Mac you can get if you are after a proper Mac. The 13" M2 Macbook Pro feels like a stopgap product. But if you're after better performance, I think M1 Max Mac Studio or 14" M1 Max Macbook Pro is a better option. According to online tests I've seen so far, the M1 Max on Mac Studio performs twice as fast when say exporting 4K video on Final Cut Pro than an M1 Macbook Air. And given the M2 Macbook Air is around 18% faster than an M1 MB Air, that means it's still is not going to match the M1 Max chipset on performance.
 
The original "Air" was announced by pulling it from a manila envelope to brag about web mobility.

This Air is being marketed as a Macbook Pro, and by historical standards of Macbook Pro it is a compelling refinement with brilliant power at 1/2 the cost in adjusted $.

Superb display, sound, ergonomics, battery life, advanced performance by every measure. Technically and aesthetically it is defining the current laptop market.

And it's also oddly detached from any sense of professional or personal purpose or ethos. Apple has utterly lost he ability to mythologize its offerings since the passing of Jobs.

I will take technically superb over cultishly great!

But as my venerable 2012 MBP, acquired as an Apple Refurb for 1000$ when the Retina was introduced, still goes well, with handy (for IT) built-in ethernet port, and tendency to get uncomfortably hot when I download old Marshall McLuhan and Alan Kay talks to my archive, this new Mac makes my appreciate my vintage one more rather than want to replace it.

It has a full sRGB color screen and my $19 genuine Apple wired earpods sound great even though the mini-phono jack gets scratchy and sometimes drops a channel and then they fall out of my ears.

Has my lust for the sexy new diminished? Yes. But this new generation of Macbook can never be exciting. It's just excellent kit, sadly.

It's good the same way that mp3s made music boring by completely detaching the art from the moments of its creation.

Now the onus is totally upon the individual to create the enjoyment of his scene, individually, appearing as a little animated avatar is a vast complex of platforms too immense to be affable. It's like we're being sold doors to the Mall of America, but while I'm impressed with the portal, I already have several doors to malls, and have seen all I care to of Target and Walmart.

Things are too good.

It's a true tragedy of the commons!
 
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Disappointing prices of MacBook Air M1 and M2 models... M1 one (no 8-core GPU anymore) remains the same price, yet M2 ones are more expensive.
I suppose that due to the various shortages of components it makes no economic sense to reduce prices on electronic devices these days.
Let me try to put a positive spin on it. Those of us who already have a M1-family Mac should hold on it until at least the M3 or M4 generation anyway. For those who consider jumping in to Apple Silicon, the base price (M1 Air) is still the same and with a budget somewhat above the bare minimum there are now new, more powerful options. (I.e. better get a M2 Air than an 8-core GPU M1 Air.)
 
I suppose that due to the various shortages of components it makes no economic sense to reduce prices on electronic devices these days.
Let me try to put a positive spin on it. Those of us who already have a M1-family Mac should hold on it until at least the M3 or M4 generation anyway. For those who consider jumping in to Apple Silicon, the base price (M1 Air) is still the same and with a budget somewhat above the bare minimum there are now new, more powerful options. (I.e. better get a M2 Air than an 8-core GPU M1 Air.)
I'm really happy with my 8 core GPU M1 air, its the sweet spot for me. I wonder who will 1st with a bench of the M2 Air using heat transfer pads on the passive cooler.
 
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