25 ms·

Apple Finally Updates MacBook Air with Retina Display, Touch ID

274 points by evo_9 8y ago

koolba 8y ago
Summarizing a bit: * Starting price of $1,199 * 13" display with trimmed bezels * 2.75 lbs * Higher resolution screen ("Over 4M pixels") * HD front facing camera * No Touch Bar (Yay!) * No USB ports (Boo!) Assuming it doesn't have any odd dust or logic board issues cropping up in the next couple months, I can see myself getting one of these.
- ihuman 8y ago
  > No USB ports No USB-A ports. There are still 2 USB ports, but they are Thunderbolt 3/USB-C ports.
  - atlasunshrugged 8y ago
    Gah, just what I need, another adapter. I guess in this day and age pretty much everything is in the cloud but still, I like having at least one USB port. A little surprised they kept the mic jack
    - reustle 8y ago
      My phone, Sony camera, battery bank, and now laptop are all usb-c. I welcome this with open arms.
      - izacus 8y ago
        What, the annoyance every time you need to plug in a USB stick or a mouse you down own? Even now, after two years of USB-C macbook, it's still incredible how annoying having to look for those damn dongles is. You do understand that you can have BOTH ports on the laptop right - see for example how Lenovo Thinkpad Carbon engineers manage to stuff usable ports on the same chasis size.
        Latteland 8y ago
        The google pixel 2015 was the top of the heap for ports. 2 usb-c ports, headphones!, 2 usb-a, sd card. All laptops should have this. It's just endless pain. Certainly 2 usb-c ports are better than 1. But why not put 4? Even better usb-c + usb-a.
        masklinn 8y ago
        > Certainly 2 usb-c ports are better than 1. But why not put 4? Even better usb-c + usb-a. Because they're not just Type C ports, they're TB3 ports, Intel's stinginess with respect to PCIe lanes & TB3 controller integration means it's hard to put many of those in a machine especially on low-end CPUs, and I guess Apple prefers uniformising capabilities to an extent (even if performances can differ see e.g. the 13" MBP) to having multiple ports with the exact same connector but completely divergent capabilities.
      - falcolas 8y ago
        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.
        notatoad 8y ago
        >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 market shortly after USB-C came into use with the nexus phones and the macbook pro, but that problem has almost entirely been solved, and is still a much smaller problem than cheap aftermarket USB-A charging bricks sold by the same sketchy vendors.
        rspeer 8y ago
        I got an out-of-spec USB-C cable three weeks ago. While driving a long distance, I noticed that I had failed to bring any way to charge my phone in the car, so I bought a USB-A to USB-C cable at a rest stop convenience store. It served its immediate purpose of not leaving me lost with a dead battery. But it doesn't charge many other devices, and it only works when plugged in with the USB logo facing down. I don't consider the problem of fake USB-C cables solved. (I have no idea what brand it is, and the convenience store themselves probably bought whatever the cheapest counterfeit thing on Amazon was)
        jazzyjackson 8y ago
        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.
        cbhl 8y ago
        > The cords I've begun to accumulate to work with a USB C computer have varying capabilities USB-A had these problems back in 1998. It's early days for USB-C, but I think a few more hardware iterations and hopefully things will start settling down. Right now USB-C controllers are too complex and expensive to fit in low-end devices (think $49 TV dongles).
      - lathiat 8y ago
        I mean I've got 2 AT keyboards and 3 PS/2 mice in my drawer. Why can't I plug these into the latest MacBook pro? It's a travesty.
        51lver 8y ago
        I gotchu fam! AT > PS/2 > usb A > usb C If I were you, I'd stick all that crap inside the massive schoolbus sized AT keyboard where you can't see it. There is probably plenty of room. Hell, go ahead an integrate a USB hub too, then you can use the keyboard itself to adapt other legacy devices to usb C.
        dwighttk 8y ago
        why didn't they include an ADB port?
        51lver 8y ago
        Because svideo is a terrible serial protocol.
        tinus_hn 8y ago
        You can’t use a ps/2 keyboard using an adapter on the Mac, it doesn’t work. I’ve tried.
    - ummonk 8y ago
      It's getting better every year, as peripherals and other devices switch over to USB-C. Apple's imposition of USB-C as the one cable has been very frustrating, but we're starting to see the fruits of it.
      - notatoad 8y ago
        if apple were truly imposing USB-C as the "one cable" it would be less frustrating. it's crazy that still, three years after the macbook pro switched to all usb-c, if you go to the apple store and buy a brand new iPhone and a brand new mac, you need an aftermarket cable to connect the two.
        gumby 8y ago
        No you don't -- apple sells a cable with lighting on one end and type c on the other end. I have one. Given that the new iPad has type C I assume that's the future for iPhones as well.
        notatoad 8y ago
        maybe i used the wrong word, does aftermarket not mean you have to buy it separately from the actual product?
        toyg 8y ago
        I think it's often used to indicate third-party products.
        51lver 8y ago
        Aftermarket means it was supplied by an accessory manufacturer and not the original equipment manufacturer, generally without the OEM's blessing. It's really more of a car term than a computer term.
        intopieces 8y ago
        >you need an aftermarket cable to connect the two. You don't need a cable at all, because they connect over AirDrop.
    - zapnuk 8y ago
      To be fair I already have to carry a ethernet and a display adapter with me. Switching to an USB-C means I don't need other adapters anymore. At least one USB-A port should be the minimum though. Between no USB-A with Apple notebooks and no USB-C on the Surface Laptop I don't know whats worse...
    - MR4D 8y ago
      I'm probably going to get crucified for this, but I wish they would have dropped the mic jack in return to a third TB3 port (so they would be accessible form either side of the computer).
      - rjplatte 8y ago
        God, no. The TRRS port is the last thing I want to see go.
      - FiveSquared 8y ago
        Let's go to Reddit, 'tis a silly place.
  - nkkollaw 8y ago
    No USB ports.
    - lostgame 8y ago
      Upvoting this because it was ridiculously down-voted, and I'm not sure why. No, USB-C ports are not 'USB' ports. Not as 'USB' ports have been for at least a decade and a half. Almost two. USB 1.0 and USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 managed to all use the same connector, and not charge us out the ass for adapters to use the same hardware. If you're not pissed about USB-C, or you somehow think that having a port you can no longer plug any of your previous devices into without a costly and non-bundled adapter is equivalent to having an actual, standard USB port, you probably simply haven't had to deal with dongle life. We have an inside joke at my work where we literally call these ports 'not-USB'. The fact that Apple's flagship phone and flagship computer can't connect out of the box without paying for an additional cable indicates blatantly how horrible this situation is. That they had the audacity to release phones only a month ago that were still incompatible after all this time almost makes me feel that they are intentionally messing with us.
      - Karunamon 8y ago
        It was probably ridiculously downvoted for being worthless snark that adds nothing to the conversation. As to "costly", a USB -> USBC hub can be had for around the same price as a regular hub on Amazon, starting around $4.99 and going up from there.
        FiveSquared 8y ago
        A good one costs 60-80 ish. https://www.amazon.com/Satechi-Aluminum-Multi-Port-Ethernet-Pass-Through/dp/B075FW7H5J/ https://www.amazon.com/Satechi-Aluminum-Multi-Port-Ethernet-...
      - dragonwriter 8y ago
        > USB 1.0 and USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 managed to all use the same connector, No, they didn't. USB 1.0 used A and B connectors USB 2.0 added Mini A and Mini B USB 2.0 Revised added the Micro A and Micro B connectors USB 3.0 modified the A and B connectors, and the Micro A and Micro B connectors, and deprecated the Mini A and Mini B connectors. USB 3.1 added the C connector. USB 3.2 didn't mess with connectors, for once. (And it's even a little more complicated if you talk about sockets, because then you need to talk about the Mini and Micro AB sockets, as well as sockets corresponding directly to each of the connectors.)
- Digory 8y ago
  New keyboard has a "4x more stable butterfly mechanism." I'm still limping along on a 2012 Air. This could finally be the upgrade.
  - thefounder 8y ago
    Any idea why the processor is only 1.5? I have a 2011 Model with 1.8ghz
    - akvadrako 8y ago
      Does your 2011 model have 3 Ghz turbo boost? That's just how modern processors work - lower clocks but still higher performance.
      - ianhowson 8y ago
        This is the correct answer. 'Base clock' is just the steady-state clock speed given power and thermals. Boost clock is more relevant in general usage.
      - SyneRyder 8y ago
        I looked up the specs - the 2011 1.8GHz was an i7-2677M. It did have a Turbo Boost up to 2.9Ghz.
  - nkkollaw 8y ago
    What does "stable" mean? Keys don't stop working because of dust anymore..?
    - ascagnel_ 8y ago
      Having recently been switched from a 2013 MBP to 2018 MBP -- the older keycaps could wiggle a little bit if you rested your fingers on them. The new keys don't exhibit this behavior, but don't feel as nice to type on.
      - 8y ago
- dogma1138 8y ago
  And a Dual Core CPU for $1200, app compatibility aside the CPU in the new MBA might be arguably slower than the A12 bionic. It's literally going to be the same CPU as in the current 12" Macbooks with a slightly relaxed power envelope which now begs the question why is the Macbook Air even a separate product? at this point it brings nothing to the table other than being slightly larger and slightly cheaper version of the Macbook.
  - ascagnel_ 8y ago
    I think Apple is rethinking its product matrix. This new MBA is the entry-level system. The 12" MB is an upgrade option if you value thin/light/battery life -- the new "executive laptop". The MBP is an upgrade option if you need power or screen space.
    - eugeniub 8y ago
      12" MB: No touch ID, slower CPU, crappy last-gen keyboard that breaks all the time.
      - 0culus 8y ago
        Typing this from my 2017 12" MacBook...have not had a single issue with the keyboard. In fact, I have grown to quite like it. Sure it's not my beloved WASD Code with the Cherry Clears, but it's one of the better portable keyboards in terms of typing experience of late, in my opinion.
  - mtgx 8y ago
    It boggles my mind that Apple hasn't switched to AMD Ryzen yet. Lower cost for them, more cores/higher overall performance for their customers. What's not to like? But no, they'd rather try and sell people $20,000 Xeon Mac Pros with half the cores of an AMD Threadripper and like 4x the price.
    - 51lver 8y ago
      The future is application processors. No point in switching to another general purpose CPU.
- jjkmk 8y ago
  No USB ports? How is that even workable?
  - masklinn 8y ago
    It has two TB3/Type C ports, GP is just lying for effect.
- SnowingXIV 8y ago
  I have a newer MBP (with touchbar, ugh) and I'm quite jealous of this form factor and setup. I probably could perform most of my work on this just as well and it would have been heck of a lot cheaper.
  - Dunedan 8y ago
    Have you checked its form factor? It has the same width and depth as the 13" MacBook Pro and is even higher.
- jjcm 8y ago
  > HD front facing camera It amazes me that notebook makers still advertise a 720p camera as being a feature. Are we never going to get anything more than 720p for webcams? Am I the only one who wants 4k video conferencing?
  - aylmao 8y ago
    Or not even 4k, I'd be good having something that matches my phone's selfie camera.
    - andromeduck 8y ago
      Your phone's selfie camera is significantly thicker than the display assembly here.
- briandear 8y ago
  And no firewire!!! OMG.
berbec 8y ago
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?
- saagarjha 8y ago
  You can install Linux in them, just like you can on MacBook Pro. There is an option to disable this feature, though, in the name of verifying the boot process.
  - danieldk 8y ago
    You can install Linux, if you can accept that a lot of functionality does not work. Even on most MacBook Pro 2016 models audio, suspend/hibernate, and WiFi don't work. https://github.com/Dunedan/mbp-2016-linux https://github.com/Dunedan/mbp-2016-linux
    - saagarjha 8y ago
      This has nothing to do with the a T2 chip; that MacBook Pro doesn’t have one.
      - Dunedan 8y ago
        The MacBook Pro 2016 and 2017 have a T1 chip, the MacBook Pro 2018 has a T2 chip, the same which debuted in the iMac Pro last year and is now in included in the new MacBook Air as well. The linked repository covers Linux support for more all MacBook Pro's (and some parts of the 12" MacBook) released since 2016, even though Linux support for the 2018 MacBook Pro is very dire.
    - Dunedan 8y ago
      Well, we don't know for sure that Linux will boot on the new MacBook Air as well, as nobody has tried it yet, but I think it's safe to assume we'll have the same situation as for the MacBook Pro 2018. In addition to the mentioned limitations the MacBook Pro 2018 doesn't even support accessing the SSD from Linux yet. A few seconds after activating the NVMe controller it just reboots, apparently because the T2 chip isn't happy (see https://github.com/Dunedan/mbp-2016-linux/issues/71 https://github.com/Dunedan/mbp-2016-linux/issues/71 for details). Help to figure out what's the issue would be really appreciated!
Splendor 8y ago
Aside from losing magsafe this is my perfect Mac.
- rbanffy 8y ago
  The other day two MBPs were running out of battery during a meeting. We plugged one into the room charger and plugged the second one out of another USB-C port on the first one. I miss MagSafe, but USB-C is seriously cool.
  - xutopia 8y ago
    Wait... you can charge a MBP with another MBP?
    - sbuk 8y ago
      Absolutely. I still lament the retirement of magsafe, but USB-C is a considerably better standard than USB-A.
      - deleted 8y ago
        [deleted]
    - SlowRobotAhead 8y ago
      I dont know if that works, but a difficulty of USB-C has been the power profiles and who charges what and when. It’s weird, and I would think the potential would have to be way different between the two laptops but according to the spec it can work.
      - FBISurveillance 8y ago
        You can charge MacBooks from each other. * First laptop you plug one end of USB C cable in will the the charger; * Second laptop will be the one getting charged.
        8y ago
whywhywhywhy 8y ago
> the new model comes with the latest-generation edition of Apple's "butterfly" keyboard Maybe it was naive of me but I had high hopes Apple would use the Air refresh as an upgrade path for those of us who have decided they need a keyboard with more travel and reliability beyond a few months. (I use a 2017 butterfly keyboard today, never again)
- jschmitz28 8y ago
  Any info on whether the 2018 keyboard update fares much better [1]? I’m seriously considering buying this MBA, but I’m happy with the travel and durability on my 2011 MBA keyboard and primarily spooked by the butterfly keyboard complaints. [1] https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/macbook-pro/#keyboard https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/macbook-pro/#keyboard
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
  - Kpourdeilami 8y ago
    The 2018 keyboard is much better than 2017 and feels nicer to type on. I have both right now and the 2018 seems improved but still not as good as the old keyboards
  - gumby 8y ago
    I had a lot of problems with my 2016 keyboard (repaired four times and getting ready for a fifth when it took an unplanned drink of water). I now have a 2018 MBP and the keyboard is really reliable and actually pretty great.
    - freehunter 8y ago
      I recently got a 2018 for work and I'm enjoying the keyboard. I like clicky keyboards with low travel, I think it makes touch typing easier and I have to move my fingers up and down less. After going back to my 2015, the keys on the older one feel mushy and not as clicky, and I tend to drag my fingertips across the tops of the keys because they have more travel. I never used a 2016/2017 keyboard though so I can only compare 2018 to 2015, and I like the 2018.
andr 8y ago
Given that 15 minutes later, in the iPad part of the event, they claimed the new iPad is faster than 92% of all notebooks sold in the last year, the writing is on the wall. For me, the next Macbook to be excited about, would be one with an ARM processor. Still, really disappointing that for the new Air they do not allow you to go to 1TB SSD, but they won't allow you upgrade from a dual-core i5. Feels like a political decision more than a technical one.
- TazeTSchnitzel 8y ago
  If Apple could sell you a quad-core CPU as an purchase-time $1000 upsell they would. They don't because it doesn't fit the power budget.
  - philjohn 8y ago
    And thermal envelope budget.
    - ngcazz 8y ago
      Wouldn't that be an equivalent way of putting it?
  - Dunedan 8y ago
    I'm pretty sure there would enough power budget, as the new Macbook Air has a similar volume than the 13" MacBook Pro and the MacBook Pro is already offered with quad-core CPUs. My guess is that they want to have a clear differentiation between MacBook Air (= Dual-Core) and 13" MacBook Pro (= Quad-Core).
    - kristianp 8y ago
      Only two cores for the air is bad. I would guess that only Apple will be selling a machine with a 2 core 8th gen i5. I can't see one on ark, they're all 4 core: https://ark.intel.com/products/series/122597/8th-Generation-Intel-Core-i5-Processors#@mobile https://ark.intel.com/products/series/122597/8th-Generation-...
SlowRobotAhead 8y ago
So TouchID is good enough for laptop but they “just can’t” make a phone with it anymore huh? Rabble.
- benrbray 8y ago
  I never really understood fingerprint scanners on phones. Is it really more useful to you than e.g. a headphone jack?
  - lbotos 8y ago
    I mean, I have a 6s which has a headphone jack and a fingerprint scanner. Happy as a clam. I have "wake on lift" on and I grab it by the bottom quadrant and touch id works 90% of the time. I really want the better camera of the newest iphone, but I am weary of face ID and I really don't want bluetooth headphones. I already lose headphones a ton as it is.
    - gehsty 8y ago
      FaceID is rock solid...Both it and TouchID have there ups and downs but FaceID has been great since day 1 with the X. 100% agree with the bluetooth headphones. I have lost multiple pairs. AirPods are now something I have to track in my day to day carry... Phone / keys / wallet / AirPods... which is a little annoying.
  - slededit 8y ago
    Before finger print scanners I couldn’t be bothered entering a passphrase every time. It was an important security feature.
  - ken 8y ago
    Yes. I use the fingerprint scanner a couple dozen times a day. I've never used the headphone jack.
  - gizmo385 8y ago
    > Is it really more useful to you than e.g. a headphone jack? Why are you presenting this as a dichotomy? Those aren't mutually exclusive features. If I had to choose between the 2, then I would most certainly choose the fingerprint reader, but there isn't anything that fundamentally prevents the two from being in the same phone (the original Pixel had both, for example).
cribbles 8y ago
We're inching ever so gradually toward idlewords's 2016 piece "Benjamin Button Reviews The New MacBook Pro".[1] [1] https://blog.pinboard.in/2016/10/benjamin_button_reviews_the_new_macbook_pro/ https://blog.pinboard.in/2016/10/benjamin_button_reviews_the...
- PhasmaFelis 8y ago
  Reminds me of the "Upgrade to Windows 7" article that was doing the rounds when Windows 8 was big.
  - GolDDranks 8y ago
    I feel that both were appropriate. I think that Windows 7 was in many ways, better than Windows 8; the MacBook Pros before the 2016 redesign were in many ways, better than the ones after that. I'm sure there will be a design that will be better than the 2015 model (Which I recently bought, second hand, after using the 2016 one for a bit over a year.) But we haven't seen it yet. Similarily, I'd rather use the modern Windows 10 rather than Windows 7. But Windows 8 or Windows 10 at its inception? Heck no.
themihai 8y ago
Nice... but still the same dual core? Shame!
- TazeTSchnitzel 8y ago
  They're constrained by TDP. The MacBook Air draws too little power (thus having good battery life!) for a quad-core CPU to make sense.
  - rhodysurf 8y ago
    They also probably dont want to cannibalize the MBP which is like the same computer but quad core
briffle 8y ago
| It will start at $1,199, which is a slight jump from the $999 starting price of the older MacBook Air. apparently, a 20% increase is a 'slight jump'
- SippinLean 8y ago
  Fully spec'd and w/Apple Care it comes to $2,848 before tax (~$3,100 after)
- MIKarlsen 8y ago
  I'm so bummed out by this. Rumours had me hyped for a cheaper package, but seeing as it's 1599 USD in my country, I will not be looking into buying one now.
- djhworld 8y ago
  In terms of "Apple units" it's a slight jump They tend to price their stuff in units of $100. So the jump is 2 'apple unit' uptick.
- lwkl 8y ago
  Could there be economic reasons for the price jump? The Surface Pro was in a similar price region. I'm interested to see if Microsoft raises the prices of the new Surface Generation too. It looks like new computers are getting more expensive overall. Maybe it's because the hardware lives longer nowadays.
erikstarck 8y ago
There's also, finally, a new Mac Mini! "The most specced-out Mac mini can feature 64 GB RAM, 4.6GHz 6-core Core i7 CPUs, a 2 TB SDD and 10 Gigabit ethernet."
- TazeTSchnitzel 8y ago
  Whoa, the internals aren't just a MacBook Air now?
  - masklinn 8y ago
    The price has skyrocketed though, entry model is $800 (used to be $500), the top end with all options is $4200.
    - gehsty 8y ago
      Thats probably just inflation since the last update :)
    - tonyedgecombe 8y ago
      It would be interesting to compare that to an equivalent Intel NUC, my guess is you are paying a lot for the ability to run macOS.
      - vesrah 8y ago
        There aren't NUCs that compare. You can't buy a NUC with an i7 6 core, one with 64GB of memory, or one with 10GBit.
        detaro 8y ago
        There aren't NUCs that compare for all variants.
      - maxsilver 8y ago
        The Mac Mini (standard configs) are pretty comparable to the latest Intel NUC, compared to something like this https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/products/boards-kits/nuc/kits/nuc8i7hvk.html https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/products/boards-kits... (and folks can debate whether the Mini's 6-cores and no dGPU is better/worse than the NUC's 4-cores with a Radeon GPU). What's neat is that the Mini now runs a full desktop CPU (60W TDP?). So while the default configs of the Mac Mini are roughly equivalent to a NUC , the Mini has higher max upgrade headroom and a fully-tricked-out Mini will significantly surpass a NUC in speed/memory/networking.
nakedrobot2 8y ago
USB-C ONLY? I mean, seriously. It was a bold gambit. But the world of usb-C is a world of pain. Give it up. Magsafe was a wonderful thing. I cannot seriously believe they gave it up for this.... thing they call usb-C And still, iphone with lighting, macbook with usb-C? Seriously Apple?
- saagarjha 8y ago
  iPad has USB C now. I wouldn’t be surprised if they decided to switch iPhone over soon.
- throwaway-hn123 8y ago
  You ignorant little cunt. Go fuck your mother
- gehsty 8y ago
  *Thunderbolt only But I guess this is part of the issue. No one understands the differecnce and strange compatibility rules (cable length is even a factor..).
seane 8y ago
Genuine question: Why would someone choose the new MacBook Air over the 12" Macbook? I have the 12" (it's my everyday computer and I love it, not looking to switch) but wondering why choose one over the other, size of screen? Thanks.
- scarface74 8y ago
  A second port and it should be noticeably faster.
  - seane 8y ago
    thanks for the info!
  - Latteland 8y ago
    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.
    - Bluestrike2 8y ago
      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.
      - rpilgrimr 8y ago
        another possibility is that it will not have any ports at all. BT, WiFI and Qi for wireless charging.
- saagarjha 8y ago
  Two Thunderbolt ports, a bit more power, and a fan, which should allow for heavier sustained workloads.
  - 8y ago
emdowling 8y ago
Why is the 12 inch MacBook still in the line-up? The only benefit is that it offers an i7 processor at the top-end - beyond that, I can't see any benefit. Why not just unify the two lines?
- thefounder 8y ago
  Because Asia likes 12" displays and EU/US likes 13" displays
- stefanfisk 8y ago
  It is a lot lighter, as well as fanless. I reckon that the lines should be swapped though, so that Air actually meant something again.
- masklinn 8y ago
  > The only benefit is that it offers an i7 processor at the top-end That's not really a benefit since it uses a 5W i7 (formerly m7) versus — I assume — a 15W i5 on the Air, it's just Intel's shitty branding confusion. The 12" is quite a bit lighter (2.03 lbs to 2.75), is fanless, and has a smaller footprint (width of 11.04" to 11.97" and depth of 7.74" to 8.36"). That's pretty much it. The Air has touchid, likely better performances, seemingly a better display, higher storage options, more ports, better ports (12" only has USB-C, MBA has TB3), more battery life.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
nkkollaw 8y ago
Sure, but it has the horrible butterfly keyboard--with those crammed up arrows I hate so much--and all ports are gone. Also, how do we kniw they'll stay without releasing another one for another 5 years? As a MacBook Air user for years, I'm glad I jumped ship a year ago.
- gootdude 8y ago
  What did you replace it with? Would love to upgrade with something as reliable as this 2013 Air I've been abusing everyday for years. I'd give anything for a windows laptop with the trackpad and reliable sleep/hibernate you get from osx/apple laptops.
  - ericabiz 8y ago
    Not the person you replied to, but look at a Dell XPS 13 or a Lenovo X1 Carbon. I have been recommending the XPS 13 to our customers and they love it.
  - nkkollaw 8y ago
    I you can afford it, a Surface Book. Otherwise, a Dell XPS. I personally use Linux Xfce, but Windows is just great.
drfuchs 8y ago
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...)
- realradicalwash 8y ago
  on their website / in their video, it has an escape key or am i mistaken? https://www.apple.com/macbook-air/ https://www.apple.com/macbook-air/
  - drfuchs 8y ago
    All recent 15 inch and higher-end 13 inch MacBook Pro models come with a "Touch Bar" where the Escape and Function key row ought to go. Sometimes a soft button will appear near the left edge of the Touch Bar that says "Escape", but there's no physical feedback when you touch it, and it doesn't protrude from the surface of the keyboard housing, nor have any key travel like the physical keys do, so all-in-all it's funky to touch-type. Not a happy thing for vim and emacs users, as well as for the korn shell, where it invokes command completion (as on the Tenex / Tops20 shell, for that matter).
- inopinatus 8y ago
  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.
cauthon 8y ago
In 2014 I bought a 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 a Macbook Pro with retina display, 2.3 GHz i5 processor, 8 GB of RAM, and 128 GB SSD for $1300 (and now you have to buy dongles). In 2018 I can also now buy a Macbook Air with retina display, 1.6 GHz i5 processor, 8 GB of RAM, and 128 GB SSD for $1200. I don't really understand what market this Air is hoping to target. The Macbook Pros are already winning the ultraportable category, and the Air doesn't offer any significant price differentiation. I thought in 2014-2015 the "Apple premium" wasn't actually too bad for the specs compared to equivalent laptops from the competition. Unfortunately their hardware offerings have stagnated over the past four years and they are again overpriced for what you're buying.
- notatoad 8y ago
  >I don't really understand what market this Air is hoping to target. i'm assuming it's meant to target the people buying the $1300 macbook pro, so they can get rid of that model and ratchet up the prices of the pro models while still having a 13" laptop that works for most poeple.
_Codemonkeyism 8y ago
The Air of my wife was the worst computer we've owned, yellow display with dark areas, Wifi basically doesn't work anywhere and trackpad broken in a short amount of time.
- mediocrejoker 8y ago
  Do you and your wife live underground, in an active coal mine? If not you must admit that your experience is atypical for that computer.
  - _Codemonkeyism 8y ago
    I've owned several dozen Apple products, iPods, iPhones, iPads, from XSans/XServers, Cubes, Minis, maxed out Macbook Pros and a dozen iMacs, and no the experience is not atypical for Apple. Many people I know have problems with bad iPhone and MacBookPro Wifi reception. This development iMac Pro I'm writing this on feels slow, often has a beach ball and crashes randomly. The 27 iMac before this had fan problems from the start. Also see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUaJ8pDlxi8&t=526s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUaJ8pDlxi8&t=526s
Ratiofarmings 8y ago
So they finally removed the last computer with mag safe and a good keyboard from their lineup. I am not at all happy about that. All this computer needed was a new cpu, memory and a type-c port.
- tptacek 8y ago
  Magsafe is done. The writing was on the wall when the rMBP switched to USBC. If you want a magnetic breakaway USBC cable, just buy one.
  - prolikewh0a 8y ago
    Are there any breakaway USB-C's that work with 45-65W? Serious question.
    - chicagobob 8y ago
      There are literally dozens, just google or search Amazon, here's an example: https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-Charger-Charging-Breaksafe-Nintendo/dp/B077BQ5PMY https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-Charger-Charging-Breaksafe-N...
    - slg 8y ago
      There are, but they aren't good. This [1] still seems to be the best offering by the most established brand. The reason people want Apple to make them isn't because they aren't available. It is because a version made by Apple would be expected to be far superior to anything else on the market. I assume Apple knows this and is not yet able to deliver on that quality so they simply aren't offering it. [1] - https://www.amazon.com/Griffin-BreakSafe-Magnetic-Breakaway-Chromebook/dp/B01CQTK6GU https://www.amazon.com/Griffin-BreakSafe-Magnetic-Breakaway-...
      - tptacek 8y ago
        That does not square with my recollections of managing a fleet of Macbooks with Magsafe adapters.
diegorbaquero 8y ago
If only Apple could make their Pro line without Touch Bar but with Pro specs, that'd be nice
- dayvough 8y ago
  I was kinda disappointed they didn't touch the MBP lineup this time around but hey we might get something come WWDC.
  - AlphaSite 8y ago
    It did get updated not 3 months ago.
    - danieldk 8y ago
      Except for the MacBook Pro Escape, which didn't get a refresh, nor the butterfly mechanism update.
zapnuk 8y ago
How does the CPU compare to the 7gen i5 of the 2017 non-TB MBP? Otherwise they have basically the same specs - with the MBP being a bit more expensive.
wilsonnb3 8y ago
I’m a bit confused as to where the base model MacBook Pro without the TouchBar fits into the lineup now. It was always pretty clear to me that the 12 inch MacBook replaced the 11 inch air, and the 13 inch MacBook Pro without TouchBar replaced the 13 inch air. There’s barely any difference between the Pro without TouchBar and the new Air. The extra hundred dollars for the Pro gets you a slightly older but faster process at the expense of an additional quarter pound of weight.
- wlesieutre 8y ago
  They didn't update it with the 2018 Macbook Pro refresh, presumably because this new Air was coming. I'd expect it to quietly disappear.
  - wilsonnb3 8y ago
    That makes sense, although it’s a little unfortunate. I would have preferred they update the Pro instead of releasing the new Air with a weaker processor and graphics.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
plantain 8y ago
So is the Macbook 12 dead now?
- saagarjha 8y ago
  No, it's still sold.
  - plantain 8y ago
    Dead as in, has no future.
chx 8y ago
> 1.6GHz dual-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.6GHz, with 4MB L3 cache... Intel UHD Graphics 617 https://twitter.com/tum_apisak/status/1034639298174148608 https://twitter.com/tum_apisak/status/1034639298174148608 it's a custom chip made for Apple. Look at the other Amber Lake Y chips: https://ark.intel.com/products/codename/186968/Amber-Lake-Y https://ark.intel.com/products/codename/186968/Amber-Lake-Y they have lower base but higher Turbo and UHD 615 not UHD 617.
- geoelectric 8y ago
  Any idea how these compare to the 2.9Ghz dual core i7 in the 2015 MacBook Pro 13"? I'm expecting these to be slower, but have no concept of what an apples to apples comparison looks like there since clock speed can be so misleading between generations. Ditto the UHD 617 vs. Iris 6100, for that matter.
  - chx 8y ago
    > since clock speed can be so misleading between generations I am sorry but no. They haven't been misleading for a long, long time. IPC grew from Sandy Bridge to Kaby Lake only by 20% https://www.hardocp.com/article/2017/01/13/kaby_lake_7700k_vs_sandy_bridge_2600k_ipc_review/4 https://www.hardocp.com/article/2017/01/13/kaby_lake_7700k_v... and since then nothing because Intel is barely doing more than tweaking the Turbo profiles because 10nm is not happening. All these years the progress was more in power consumption than anything else. Note how ThinkPads (and the world) moved from 35W dual core to 15W dual core chips. So if you compare them clock to clock you won't be far. But you don't know what clock of the chip actually will be because the problem with Y CPUs the problem always was: how good is the cooling, how long are they are able to maintain their top Turbo before throttling. Noone can say as there are no Amber Lake laptops yet and much less an Apple. What we can say with surety is even if it has exceptional great cooling it can only keep up with the 5557U in single core, in multi core performance it'll be half at best. The UHD 617 is not officially launched but https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-HD-615-Mobile-Kaby-Lake-vs-Intel-Iris-Pro-HD-6100-Mobile/m193629vsm25925 https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-HD-615-Mobile-Ka... the Iris Pro is a different class to the HD 615. I do not expect anything groundbreaking between the HD 615 and the 617. Check the difference between 610 and 615: https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel--HD-610-Desktop-Kaby-Lake-vs-Intel-HD-615-Mobile-Kaby-Lake/m225196vsm193629 https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel--HD-610-Desktop-...
IkmoIkmo 8y ago
Love the device but I can't get over how expensive it has gotten. A 20% price bump... Sure, there's still the old Macbook Air around, but it wasn't updated and is based on a decade old model with a CPU/GPU that's a 3 years old (5th gen i5 from 2015), and a 128 PPI screen, that's a bit ridiculous. If you want a modern machine you're looking at $1200 for the cheapest model. That isn't even too bad but when you go abroad, all bets are off. I still don't get this. USD/EUR rate has been as high as 1.4 and as low as 1.05 in the past 5 years, averaging about 1.2 USD/EUR. So a $1200 Macbook Air should be €1000, typically. It's not. Instead it's more, €1350. Or in dollar terms, that's about $1620 at the 5y average exchange rates. That's what EU students have to pay for a modern but entry-level Macbook in the new Air. The regular Macbook or Macbook Pro are of course even more expensive. Okay so part of this is silly exchange rates and pricing, some of it related to high EU VAT by the way, not just Apple's pricing. But part of it is also a pretty damn expensive lineup, with this new Macbook Air coming in at 20% higher prices than the previous model. Yes prices tend to move up, inflation is a thing... but technology is supposed to be the exception, where you can get better specs after a few years without moving the price point. They just bumped it up 20%, that's pretty ridiculous.
- Xixi 8y ago
  You are comparing prices without VAT to prices with VAT. In France VAT is 20%, quite typical in the EU, so the comparison is not fair at all. There's VAT in many states and cities in the United States, although typically at rates much lower than in the EU. Buying a MacBook Air in New York City for instance will be at least $1,300 (combined VAT rate of 8.875%). [EDIT] Granted, the exchange rate is not great, but it's definitely not as bad as you make it sounds. In the EU sticker price is the final price, in the US the sticker price is a baseline on top of which any ridiculous fee and unexpected tax can (and will) be added. Unlike in the EU you really don't know how much you will pay until you get the final bill...
  - klodolph 8y ago
    There’s currently no VAT in the US, there used to be a VAT in Michigan but currently there are only sales and use taxes, which aren’t universal. Buying a MacBoox Air for $1,199 in Oregon will cost $1,199 out of pocket.
ksec 8y ago
I wonder if a lot of people are leaving the Mac ecosystem. Apple has been selling roughly ~19M Mac per year since 2012, and its new user to Mac has also been steady at ~50%. Apple has had 60M Mac user in 2012 announced in WWDC, and they has been nearing 100M since early 2017. I assume that actual number is larger than 90M at the time, so after nearly 20 Months, ~20M New Mac Users on board, it manage to add a total ~10M Active Install Base. That is surprising for me, as I was expecting ~110M+ Mac User already, others analysts like Benedict Evans and Asymco put those number past ~120M. So for every 2 new Mac Users, there is one leaving. I hardly call that good news by Apple Standard. And this high churn rate happens after early 2017. From 2012 to 2016-17, there is 4 / 5 New users for every 1 leaving the Mac Ecosystem. The timing actually align with their sudden Interviews with Apple journalist on Mac, Mac Pro, and the release of iMac Pro. And judging from these numbers, I would bet the release of MacBook Pro, iMac Pro and MacBook didn't restore the faith of its Mac users. Apple didn't care about its Mac lineup, this new MacBook Air as well as Mac mini were likely reaction to this churn, much like the iMac Pro. Or may be, the timing has something to do with their New Keyboard Design, which they introduce to MacBook in 2015 and Pro in 2016, and they managed to fit that in this New MacBook Air.
- starbugs 8y ago
  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 thinner, the trackpad is bigger, but that's pretty much it. The rest is just technological advancements that have happened to the whole industry line-up of laptops (faster CPU, more RAM, SSDs, USB3, USB-C, Thunderbolt). And for that I now have to pay nearly double the price of my first MBP. I think the sales people have taken control over Apple again. It just feels natural to look for an alternative at this point. The really sad part is that Apple software, which is vastly superior to all competitors from my perspective, is no longer accessible for certain people due to the price hikes. I had hoped that Apple would take another path this time. They seem to have forgotten their decline during the 90s.
YetAnotherNick 8y ago
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.
- yoz-y 8y ago
  Which one? MacBook Pro without Touch Bar has older cpu generation (albeit it is faster) but it still has the previous version of the keyboard (without membrane).
- whatsthatyousay 8y ago
  The Air has the 8th generation i5 which seems to be a solid upgrade in benchmarks https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/Intel-i5-8250U-vs-Intel-i5-7200U/3042vs2865 https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/Intel-i5-8250U-vs-Intel...
johnchristopher 8y ago
> Apple says the new Air takes up 17-percent less volume than the past model. Do anyone really care at this point ? I'd rather have those 17% filled with batteries or storage. Do people really choose a laptop based on its dimensions ? (I don't mean the transportable laptop vs ultrabook). > Apple says the display now has a 2560×1600 resolution and 48-percent more color than the prior model. Just goes to show how terrible the previous screen was I suppose. /s > It will start at $1,199, which is a jump from the $999 starting price of the older MacBook Air. So, no more $1000 usable laptop in the apple ecosystem ? That kinda sucks. I though the brand was declining and that would open up Apple to lower its prices. If technology is going forward then why does it get more expensive ?
Wildgoose 8y ago
Too late. I was an Apple user for years but I recently purchased an AMD Ryzen based development box which I am extremely happy with. My iPhone SE will be my last iPhone as well - I won't purchase an expensive mobile 'phone that lacks something as basic as a headphone jack.
- ratfaced-guy 8y ago
  Nobody cares about headphone jacks.
  - aaaaaaaaaab 8y ago
    I do.
    - 2muchcoffeeman 8y ago
      I recently bought wireless headphones. I have a small collection is wired headphones. Given that Apple, Google and reportedly Samsung have done away with it, and everyone still buys their phones, you have to ask yourself, how long will you hold out?
      - aaaaaaaaaab 8y ago
        Forever. I prefer lossless music. Not that I won’t buy an iPhone without one, as long as there’s lightning-to-jack, but I do find its removal misguided.
hartator 8y ago
The current line is a bit weird. MacBook 12” vs MacBook Air 13” vs MacBook Pro 13” without Touch Bar. I just wish they release a 14” MacBook. That would have made more sense.
- MR4D 8y ago
  I said this exact thing to a coworker less than 3 minutes ago!
- oliv__ 8y ago
  Exactly. The Macbook feels out of place now. It has one less USB-C port, less battery power, and is $100 more expensive with lesser specs. And it has a different name. Before this new Air came out, I figured they were just going to kill the Air line and release a 13" Macbook at a cheaper price. (Which is essentially what this is)
  - ianhowson 8y ago
    It's smaller and way lighter, though. In a past life I flew by air several times per week; I would've bought the 12" in a heartbeat if it existed.
  - reaperducer 8y ago
    The Macbook feels out of place now Think of it as an entry-level, but fully capable Mac. For people who use their phone almost exclusively, but need a computer once or twice a month for work. That's exactly how my wife uses hers.
    - hartator 8y ago
      I worked full time on one at some point. Doing RoR dev. It wasn't powerful enough. But the form factor is really fun. You can hold it with one hand and type on it.
    - teddyfrozevelt 8y ago
      But now the entry level Macbook Air is better than the Macbook in every way except the base storage level.
a13n 8y ago
Looks like the same shitty keyboard as the MacBook Pro. At least there's an escape key...
gao8a 8y ago
Does anyone know if this will support egpu?
- rsln-s 8y ago
  It does
Psrajan 8y ago
It's pretty much the 2017 nTB MBP in a slightly changed chassis with touchID and 8th generation chips added. Now we know why they didn't refresh the nTB this year. Eventually, the price is the same.
ianamartin 8y ago
I don't love it, but between this and the mac mini update, I think Apple is back on a more reasonable path. The overall laptop lineup makes actual sense now if you pretend that the macbook and macbook pro without touchbar models don't exist. And I suspect that they won't exist much longer. The only thing you get for an extra hundred dollars for the macbook Pro escape is a higher base speed processor with the same turbo boost on an older generation chip and Iris Graphics vs UHD. Worse battery life. Heavier. No touchID. Same thunderbolt 3 ports. The macbook is even more of an anemic joke now. I guess if you really have to have the thinnest and lightest mac laptop possible, this one's for you. But pretend for a moment that those confusing models aren't in the lineup, and the whole thing starts to make sense after they get EOL'd. The new MBA handles the low end competently. There's some gray area when you upgrade it to 16GB rams and 512GB SSD. That's the same price as the entry level 13" macbook pro with touchbar. But now you get real differentiation between the Air and Pro line. 4 thunderbolt 3 ports, 2 core vs 4 core. Higher base and boost clock speed; same generation chip. True-tone display. Option to upgrade the processor. What sticks out to me the most here is how completely hamstrung Apple is by Intel right now. There should be a 32gig RAM option for the 13". But it's a different architecture than what they have on the 15" models that do support it, and they couldn't cram into the 13" form factor. It's not ideal. USB-C is still a shitshow, and I wish you could opt for at least one step up in processor. But it's actually better than I expected. They also didn't completely ruin the mac mini. They gave us pretty much what we wanted out of that. So overall, I'm pretty pleased with the direction. I just can't decide if I should wait another couple years to see more of that direction until the macbook pros get a redesign with these ideas or if I can live with this MBA as an upgrade from my older stuff for now. My biggest concern was that every new design and product matrix since the trashcan mac pro has been a massive, "WTF are you thinking, Apple?" This makes me feel like they've figured some things out about what people want out of their Macs. Or made the leadership decision to listen to what they already knew people wanted. The next gen pro should be very exciting.
finchisko 8y ago
Am I the only one, who is excited and considering buying this thing? I'm still on 2012 Air. It's good device, but showing it's age (slow CPU and only 4GB of Ram, the screen resolution is joke). But new Air seems very compelling to me. I'll miss the magsafe though. Also I would like to know if the SSD can be upgraded later (unofficially of course). 2012 Air SSD can be replaced, using cheap reduction (from proprietary apple to standard M2). Not sure about the newer models.
- outside1234 8y ago
  I thought I would miss the magsafe as well, but actually I like the USB-C charging better - you can charge from either side of the device, which is a lot more useful than I would have thought.
  - ajay-d 8y ago
    Both ports are on the same side though...
- RBerenguel 8y ago
  2013 Air here, and I'm definitely getting one as soon as I can (8GB though).
- danieldk 8y ago
  I would wait about 6 more months to see how reliable the updated butterfly mechanism is. Having a failing keyboard is no fun, repair apparently takes ~1 week. The new Pro's (and probably the new Air) use a membrane to keep the dust out, but I'd wait and see if it works well enough.
- BonesJustice 8y ago
  Out of curiosity, what is the appeal of the new MacBook Air over a regular MacBook? Is it the 13" screen vs. the 12"? I'd just assumed that when Apple introduced that crazy-thin 12" MacBook a couple years ago, it was meant to replace both product lines. I don't understand why it's necessary to maintain a third discrete product line. Why not add a 13" variant to the standard MacBook line with i5 and i7 processor choices? That would be similar to what they do with the MacBook Pro line. Is there some other difference that I'm overlooking?
Matthias247 8y ago
The difference to the entry level MacBook Pro seems very minimal. The form factor is pretty much 100% identical - the Pro even is listed to be thinner overall on the tech specs (0.59" vs 0.61), even though the Air is slightly thinner at the front. So it seems like the difference is 100$ price, 100g weight, and a slightly slower CPU.
exabrial 8y ago
"Finally"? I don't think anyone is clamoring for the touch bar. The TouchID is fairly useful, but the only time I ever use the Touchbar is accidental.
- dbbk 8y ago
  It doesn't have one...
- publicfig 8y ago
  It doesn't come with the Touch Bar, just Touch ID as an independent key
  - exabrial 8y ago
    OH, nice! I guess I didn't pay good enough attention to the pics! This is actually pretty close to what I want!
Wowfunhappy 8y ago
The old 13 Inch Macbook Air had a resolution of 1440 x 900. The new Macbook Air has a resolution of 2560 x 1600, but at 200% dpi scaling, so the usable resolution is only 1280 x 800. It'll be prettier for sure, but you're getting less screen real-estate than on the old models! You can adjust the dpi scaling, but then the scaling won't be even and everything will look a bit blurry. I honestly would have much preferred a straight 1080p screen.
- yubiox 8y ago
  With the Display Menu app you choose from lots of resolutions. They are not blurry whatsoever. I use 4096x2304 on 27" retina imac, 2880x1800 on 15" retina mbp, and 2304x1440 on 12" retina mb. Plenty of real estate.
  - Wowfunhappy 8y ago
    It's a subtle difference that not everyone will notice, but the icons will not be quite as sharp at these alternate resolutions due to uneven pixel scaling. The icons were drawn for a specific resolution, not the in between ones. This is also why System Preferences marks one resolution as best for the display. I can absolutely see the difference on the iMac I use at work, unfortunately.
ataturk 8y ago
The 64GB spec with a 2TB hard disk is pushing $4,000. Are they insane?
tqi 8y ago
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
- jakobegger 8y ago
  According to Anandtech the new MBA has a 5W TDP Y series chip. The non-touchbar MBP has a 15W TDP U series chip. So I'd assume that the MBP is going to be a lot faster in practice, even though it's one generation older. https://www.anandtech.com/show/13531/apple-2018-macbook-air-announced https://www.anandtech.com/show/13531/apple-2018-macbook-air-...
- wodenokoto 8y ago
  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?
  - Dunedan 8y ago
    The eDRAM is mainly for the integrated GPU and an addition to the L3 cache. It's also only available for a few selected Intel CPUs, which usually have higher graphics performance. As Wikipedia puts it [1]: > The 128 MB of eDRAM in the Iris Pro GT3e is on the same package as the CPU, but in a separate die manufactured in a different process. Intel refers to this as a Level 4 cache, available to both CPU and GPU, naming it Crystalwell. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Graphics_Technology#IRIS-PRO https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Graphics_Technology#IRIS...
lostgame 8y ago
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?
- greedo 8y ago
  Expect to see the 12" Macbook canned pretty soon.
- IkmoIkmo 8y ago
  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.
shamino 8y ago
A lot of people seem to forget that Apple is a luxury brand. Their tech is not going to be the latest. Does Louis Vuitton care about the latest fabric ? No, cuz you're gonna pay a lot for it anyways!
halotrope 8y ago
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 how hard I try, iOS keeps being a toy (media consumption/browsing) and mac has the wrong priorities. Maybe that changes with next years Pro lineup. Right now I am a refugee in the Microsoft ecosystem. And I like it.
- jazzyjackson 8y ago
  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 :)
mark_l_watson 8y ago
Nice option for people who love the form factor, if somewhat expensive. I was surprised that it weighs about 3/4 of a pound more than a MacBook, but then it is a 13” screen rather than a 12” screen. I have had computers since before I bought an early Apple II (I had a single board Intersil PDP-8 emulator board) and I must say that my MacBook is my favorite computer ever. I am not sure why someone would buy the new MacBook Air over a MacBook.
aceshades 8y ago
Do people actually like the butterfly keys on the keyboard? They may have fixed the issues, but it still feels like crap every time I try it.

274 points by evo_9 8y ago

Summarizing a bit: * Starting price of $1,199 * 13" display with trimmed bezels * 2.75 lbs * Higher resolution screen ("Over 4M pixels") * HD front facing camera * No Touch Bar (Yay!) * No USB ports (Boo!) Assuming it doesn't have any odd dust or logic board issues cropping up in the next couple months, I can see myself getting one of these.

ihuman 8y ago
> No USB ports No USB-A ports. There are still 2 USB ports, but they are Thunderbolt 3/USB-C ports.
- atlasunshrugged 8y ago
  Gah, just what I need, another adapter. I guess in this day and age pretty much everything is in the cloud but still, I like having at least one USB port. A little surprised they kept the mic jack
  - reustle 8y ago
    My phone, Sony camera, battery bank, and now laptop are all usb-c. I welcome this with open arms.
    - izacus 8y ago
      What, the annoyance every time you need to plug in a USB stick or a mouse you down own? Even now, after two years of USB-C macbook, it's still incredible how annoying having to look for those damn dongles is. You do understand that you can have BOTH ports on the laptop right - see for example how Lenovo Thinkpad Carbon engineers manage to stuff usable ports on the same chasis size.
      - Latteland 8y ago
        The google pixel 2015 was the top of the heap for ports. 2 usb-c ports, headphones!, 2 usb-a, sd card. All laptops should have this. It's just endless pain. Certainly 2 usb-c ports are better than 1. But why not put 4? Even better usb-c + usb-a.
        masklinn 8y ago
        > Certainly 2 usb-c ports are better than 1. But why not put 4? Even better usb-c + usb-a. Because they're not just Type C ports, they're TB3 ports, Intel's stinginess with respect to PCIe lanes & TB3 controller integration means it's hard to put many of those in a machine especially on low-end CPUs, and I guess Apple prefers uniformising capabilities to an extent (even if performances can differ see e.g. the 13" MBP) to having multiple ports with the exact same connector but completely divergent capabilities.
    - falcolas 8y ago
      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.
      - notatoad 8y ago
        >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 market shortly after USB-C came into use with the nexus phones and the macbook pro, but that problem has almost entirely been solved, and is still a much smaller problem than cheap aftermarket USB-A charging bricks sold by the same sketchy vendors.
        rspeer 8y ago
        I got an out-of-spec USB-C cable three weeks ago. While driving a long distance, I noticed that I had failed to bring any way to charge my phone in the car, so I bought a USB-A to USB-C cable at a rest stop convenience store. It served its immediate purpose of not leaving me lost with a dead battery. But it doesn't charge many other devices, and it only works when plugged in with the USB logo facing down. I don't consider the problem of fake USB-C cables solved. (I have no idea what brand it is, and the convenience store themselves probably bought whatever the cheapest counterfeit thing on Amazon was)
        jazzyjackson 8y ago
        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.
      - cbhl 8y ago
        > The cords I've begun to accumulate to work with a USB C computer have varying capabilities USB-A had these problems back in 1998. It's early days for USB-C, but I think a few more hardware iterations and hopefully things will start settling down. Right now USB-C controllers are too complex and expensive to fit in low-end devices (think $49 TV dongles).
    - lathiat 8y ago
      I mean I've got 2 AT keyboards and 3 PS/2 mice in my drawer. Why can't I plug these into the latest MacBook pro? It's a travesty.
      - 51lver 8y ago
        I gotchu fam! AT > PS/2 > usb A > usb C If I were you, I'd stick all that crap inside the massive schoolbus sized AT keyboard where you can't see it. There is probably plenty of room. Hell, go ahead an integrate a USB hub too, then you can use the keyboard itself to adapt other legacy devices to usb C.
        dwighttk 8y ago
        why didn't they include an ADB port?
        51lver 8y ago
        Because svideo is a terrible serial protocol.
        tinus_hn 8y ago
        You can’t use a ps/2 keyboard using an adapter on the Mac, it doesn’t work. I’ve tried.
  - ummonk 8y ago
    It's getting better every year, as peripherals and other devices switch over to USB-C. Apple's imposition of USB-C as the one cable has been very frustrating, but we're starting to see the fruits of it.
    - notatoad 8y ago
      if apple were truly imposing USB-C as the "one cable" it would be less frustrating. it's crazy that still, three years after the macbook pro switched to all usb-c, if you go to the apple store and buy a brand new iPhone and a brand new mac, you need an aftermarket cable to connect the two.
      - gumby 8y ago
        No you don't -- apple sells a cable with lighting on one end and type c on the other end. I have one. Given that the new iPad has type C I assume that's the future for iPhones as well.
        notatoad 8y ago
        maybe i used the wrong word, does aftermarket not mean you have to buy it separately from the actual product?
        toyg 8y ago
        I think it's often used to indicate third-party products.
      - 51lver 8y ago
        Aftermarket means it was supplied by an accessory manufacturer and not the original equipment manufacturer, generally without the OEM's blessing. It's really more of a car term than a computer term.
      - intopieces 8y ago
        >you need an aftermarket cable to connect the two. You don't need a cable at all, because they connect over AirDrop.
  - zapnuk 8y ago
    To be fair I already have to carry a ethernet and a display adapter with me. Switching to an USB-C means I don't need other adapters anymore. At least one USB-A port should be the minimum though. Between no USB-A with Apple notebooks and no USB-C on the Surface Laptop I don't know whats worse...
  - MR4D 8y ago
    I'm probably going to get crucified for this, but I wish they would have dropped the mic jack in return to a third TB3 port (so they would be accessible form either side of the computer).
    - rjplatte 8y ago
      God, no. The TRRS port is the last thing I want to see go.
    - FiveSquared 8y ago
      Let's go to Reddit, 'tis a silly place.
- nkkollaw 8y ago
  No USB ports.
  - lostgame 8y ago
    Upvoting this because it was ridiculously down-voted, and I'm not sure why. No, USB-C ports are not 'USB' ports. Not as 'USB' ports have been for at least a decade and a half. Almost two. USB 1.0 and USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 managed to all use the same connector, and not charge us out the ass for adapters to use the same hardware. If you're not pissed about USB-C, or you somehow think that having a port you can no longer plug any of your previous devices into without a costly and non-bundled adapter is equivalent to having an actual, standard USB port, you probably simply haven't had to deal with dongle life. We have an inside joke at my work where we literally call these ports 'not-USB'. The fact that Apple's flagship phone and flagship computer can't connect out of the box without paying for an additional cable indicates blatantly how horrible this situation is. That they had the audacity to release phones only a month ago that were still incompatible after all this time almost makes me feel that they are intentionally messing with us.
    - Karunamon 8y ago
      It was probably ridiculously downvoted for being worthless snark that adds nothing to the conversation. As to "costly", a USB -> USBC hub can be had for around the same price as a regular hub on Amazon, starting around $4.99 and going up from there.
      - FiveSquared 8y ago
        A good one costs 60-80 ish. https://www.amazon.com/Satechi-Aluminum-Multi-Port-Ethernet-Pass-Through/dp/B075FW7H5J/ https://www.amazon.com/Satechi-Aluminum-Multi-Port-Ethernet-...
    - dragonwriter 8y ago
      > USB 1.0 and USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 managed to all use the same connector, No, they didn't. USB 1.0 used A and B connectors USB 2.0 added Mini A and Mini B USB 2.0 Revised added the Micro A and Micro B connectors USB 3.0 modified the A and B connectors, and the Micro A and Micro B connectors, and deprecated the Mini A and Mini B connectors. USB 3.1 added the C connector. USB 3.2 didn't mess with connectors, for once. (And it's even a little more complicated if you talk about sockets, because then you need to talk about the Mini and Micro AB sockets, as well as sockets corresponding directly to each of the connectors.)
Digory 8y ago
New keyboard has a "4x more stable butterfly mechanism." I'm still limping along on a 2012 Air. This could finally be the upgrade.
- thefounder 8y ago
  Any idea why the processor is only 1.5? I have a 2011 Model with 1.8ghz
  - akvadrako 8y ago
    Does your 2011 model have 3 Ghz turbo boost? That's just how modern processors work - lower clocks but still higher performance.
    - ianhowson 8y ago
      This is the correct answer. 'Base clock' is just the steady-state clock speed given power and thermals. Boost clock is more relevant in general usage.
    - SyneRyder 8y ago
      I looked up the specs - the 2011 1.8GHz was an i7-2677M. It did have a Turbo Boost up to 2.9Ghz.
- nkkollaw 8y ago
  What does "stable" mean? Keys don't stop working because of dust anymore..?
  - ascagnel_ 8y ago
    Having recently been switched from a 2013 MBP to 2018 MBP -- the older keycaps could wiggle a little bit if you rested your fingers on them. The new keys don't exhibit this behavior, but don't feel as nice to type on.
    - 8y ago
dogma1138 8y ago
And a Dual Core CPU for $1200, app compatibility aside the CPU in the new MBA might be arguably slower than the A12 bionic. It's literally going to be the same CPU as in the current 12" Macbooks with a slightly relaxed power envelope which now begs the question why is the Macbook Air even a separate product? at this point it brings nothing to the table other than being slightly larger and slightly cheaper version of the Macbook.
- ascagnel_ 8y ago
  I think Apple is rethinking its product matrix. This new MBA is the entry-level system. The 12" MB is an upgrade option if you value thin/light/battery life -- the new "executive laptop". The MBP is an upgrade option if you need power or screen space.
  - eugeniub 8y ago
    12" MB: No touch ID, slower CPU, crappy last-gen keyboard that breaks all the time.
    - 0culus 8y ago
      Typing this from my 2017 12" MacBook...have not had a single issue with the keyboard. In fact, I have grown to quite like it. Sure it's not my beloved WASD Code with the Cherry Clears, but it's one of the better portable keyboards in terms of typing experience of late, in my opinion.
- mtgx 8y ago
  It boggles my mind that Apple hasn't switched to AMD Ryzen yet. Lower cost for them, more cores/higher overall performance for their customers. What's not to like? But no, they'd rather try and sell people $20,000 Xeon Mac Pros with half the cores of an AMD Threadripper and like 4x the price.
  - 51lver 8y ago
    The future is application processors. No point in switching to another general purpose CPU.
jjkmk 8y ago
No USB ports? How is that even workable?
- masklinn 8y ago
  It has two TB3/Type C ports, GP is just lying for effect.
SnowingXIV 8y ago
I have a newer MBP (with touchbar, ugh) and I'm quite jealous of this form factor and setup. I probably could perform most of my work on this just as well and it would have been heck of a lot cheaper.
- Dunedan 8y ago
  Have you checked its form factor? It has the same width and depth as the 13" MacBook Pro and is even higher.
jjcm 8y ago
> HD front facing camera It amazes me that notebook makers still advertise a 720p camera as being a feature. Are we never going to get anything more than 720p for webcams? Am I the only one who wants 4k video conferencing?
- aylmao 8y ago
  Or not even 4k, I'd be good having something that matches my phone's selfie camera.
  - andromeduck 8y ago
    Your phone's selfie camera is significantly thicker than the display assembly here.
briandear 8y ago
And no firewire!!! OMG.

berbec 8y ago

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?

saagarjha 8y ago
You can install Linux in them, just like you can on MacBook Pro. There is an option to disable this feature, though, in the name of verifying the boot process.
- danieldk 8y ago
  You can install Linux, if you can accept that a lot of functionality does not work. Even on most MacBook Pro 2016 models audio, suspend/hibernate, and WiFi don't work. https://github.com/Dunedan/mbp-2016-linux https://github.com/Dunedan/mbp-2016-linux
  - saagarjha 8y ago
    This has nothing to do with the a T2 chip; that MacBook Pro doesn’t have one.
    - Dunedan 8y ago
      The MacBook Pro 2016 and 2017 have a T1 chip, the MacBook Pro 2018 has a T2 chip, the same which debuted in the iMac Pro last year and is now in included in the new MacBook Air as well. The linked repository covers Linux support for more all MacBook Pro's (and some parts of the 12" MacBook) released since 2016, even though Linux support for the 2018 MacBook Pro is very dire.
  - Dunedan 8y ago
    Well, we don't know for sure that Linux will boot on the new MacBook Air as well, as nobody has tried it yet, but I think it's safe to assume we'll have the same situation as for the MacBook Pro 2018. In addition to the mentioned limitations the MacBook Pro 2018 doesn't even support accessing the SSD from Linux yet. A few seconds after activating the NVMe controller it just reboots, apparently because the T2 chip isn't happy (see https://github.com/Dunedan/mbp-2016-linux/issues/71 https://github.com/Dunedan/mbp-2016-linux/issues/71 for details). Help to figure out what's the issue would be really appreciated!

Splendor 8y ago

Aside from losing magsafe this is my perfect Mac.

rbanffy 8y ago
The other day two MBPs were running out of battery during a meeting. We plugged one into the room charger and plugged the second one out of another USB-C port on the first one. I miss MagSafe, but USB-C is seriously cool.
- xutopia 8y ago
  Wait... you can charge a MBP with another MBP?
  - sbuk 8y ago
    Absolutely. I still lament the retirement of magsafe, but USB-C is a considerably better standard than USB-A.
    - deleted 8y ago
      [deleted]
  - SlowRobotAhead 8y ago
    I dont know if that works, but a difficulty of USB-C has been the power profiles and who charges what and when. It’s weird, and I would think the potential would have to be way different between the two laptops but according to the spec it can work.
    - FBISurveillance 8y ago
      You can charge MacBooks from each other. * First laptop you plug one end of USB C cable in will the the charger; * Second laptop will be the one getting charged.
      - 8y ago

whywhywhywhy 8y ago

> the new model comes with the latest-generation edition of Apple's "butterfly" keyboard Maybe it was naive of me but I had high hopes Apple would use the Air refresh as an upgrade path for those of us who have decided they need a keyboard with more travel and reliability beyond a few months. (I use a 2017 butterfly keyboard today, never again)

jschmitz28 8y ago
Any info on whether the 2018 keyboard update fares much better [1]? I’m seriously considering buying this MBA, but I’m happy with the travel and durability on my 2011 MBA keyboard and primarily spooked by the butterfly keyboard complaints. [1] https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/macbook-pro/#keyboard https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/macbook-pro/#keyboard
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- Kpourdeilami 8y ago
  The 2018 keyboard is much better than 2017 and feels nicer to type on. I have both right now and the 2018 seems improved but still not as good as the old keyboards
- gumby 8y ago
  I had a lot of problems with my 2016 keyboard (repaired four times and getting ready for a fifth when it took an unplanned drink of water). I now have a 2018 MBP and the keyboard is really reliable and actually pretty great.
  - freehunter 8y ago
    I recently got a 2018 for work and I'm enjoying the keyboard. I like clicky keyboards with low travel, I think it makes touch typing easier and I have to move my fingers up and down less. After going back to my 2015, the keys on the older one feel mushy and not as clicky, and I tend to drag my fingertips across the tops of the keys because they have more travel. I never used a 2016/2017 keyboard though so I can only compare 2018 to 2015, and I like the 2018.

andr 8y ago

Given that 15 minutes later, in the iPad part of the event, they claimed the new iPad is faster than 92% of all notebooks sold in the last year, the writing is on the wall. For me, the next Macbook to be excited about, would be one with an ARM processor. Still, really disappointing that for the new Air they do not allow you to go to 1TB SSD, but they won't allow you upgrade from a dual-core i5. Feels like a political decision more than a technical one.

TazeTSchnitzel 8y ago
If Apple could sell you a quad-core CPU as an purchase-time $1000 upsell they would. They don't because it doesn't fit the power budget.
- philjohn 8y ago
  And thermal envelope budget.
  - ngcazz 8y ago
    Wouldn't that be an equivalent way of putting it?
- Dunedan 8y ago
  I'm pretty sure there would enough power budget, as the new Macbook Air has a similar volume than the 13" MacBook Pro and the MacBook Pro is already offered with quad-core CPUs. My guess is that they want to have a clear differentiation between MacBook Air (= Dual-Core) and 13" MacBook Pro (= Quad-Core).
  - kristianp 8y ago
    Only two cores for the air is bad. I would guess that only Apple will be selling a machine with a 2 core 8th gen i5. I can't see one on ark, they're all 4 core: https://ark.intel.com/products/series/122597/8th-Generation-Intel-Core-i5-Processors#@mobile https://ark.intel.com/products/series/122597/8th-Generation-...

SlowRobotAhead 8y ago

So TouchID is good enough for laptop but they “just can’t” make a phone with it anymore huh? Rabble.

benrbray 8y ago
I never really understood fingerprint scanners on phones. Is it really more useful to you than e.g. a headphone jack?
- lbotos 8y ago
  I mean, I have a 6s which has a headphone jack and a fingerprint scanner. Happy as a clam. I have "wake on lift" on and I grab it by the bottom quadrant and touch id works 90% of the time. I really want the better camera of the newest iphone, but I am weary of face ID and I really don't want bluetooth headphones. I already lose headphones a ton as it is.
  - gehsty 8y ago
    FaceID is rock solid...Both it and TouchID have there ups and downs but FaceID has been great since day 1 with the X. 100% agree with the bluetooth headphones. I have lost multiple pairs. AirPods are now something I have to track in my day to day carry... Phone / keys / wallet / AirPods... which is a little annoying.
- slededit 8y ago
  Before finger print scanners I couldn’t be bothered entering a passphrase every time. It was an important security feature.
- ken 8y ago
  Yes. I use the fingerprint scanner a couple dozen times a day. I've never used the headphone jack.
- gizmo385 8y ago
  > Is it really more useful to you than e.g. a headphone jack? Why are you presenting this as a dichotomy? Those aren't mutually exclusive features. If I had to choose between the 2, then I would most certainly choose the fingerprint reader, but there isn't anything that fundamentally prevents the two from being in the same phone (the original Pixel had both, for example).

cribbles 8y ago

We're inching ever so gradually toward idlewords's 2016 piece "Benjamin Button Reviews The New MacBook Pro".[1] [1] https://blog.pinboard.in/2016/10/benjamin_button_reviews_the_new_macbook_pro/ https://blog.pinboard.in/2016/10/benjamin_button_reviews_the...

PhasmaFelis 8y ago
Reminds me of the "Upgrade to Windows 7" article that was doing the rounds when Windows 8 was big.
- GolDDranks 8y ago
  I feel that both were appropriate. I think that Windows 7 was in many ways, better than Windows 8; the MacBook Pros before the 2016 redesign were in many ways, better than the ones after that. I'm sure there will be a design that will be better than the 2015 model (Which I recently bought, second hand, after using the 2016 one for a bit over a year.) But we haven't seen it yet. Similarily, I'd rather use the modern Windows 10 rather than Windows 7. But Windows 8 or Windows 10 at its inception? Heck no.

themihai 8y ago

Nice... but still the same dual core? Shame!

TazeTSchnitzel 8y ago
They're constrained by TDP. The MacBook Air draws too little power (thus having good battery life!) for a quad-core CPU to make sense.
- rhodysurf 8y ago
  They also probably dont want to cannibalize the MBP which is like the same computer but quad core

briffle 8y ago

| It will start at $1,199, which is a slight jump from the $999 starting price of the older MacBook Air. apparently, a 20% increase is a 'slight jump'

SippinLean 8y ago
Fully spec'd and w/Apple Care it comes to $2,848 before tax (~$3,100 after)
MIKarlsen 8y ago
I'm so bummed out by this. Rumours had me hyped for a cheaper package, but seeing as it's 1599 USD in my country, I will not be looking into buying one now.
djhworld 8y ago
In terms of "Apple units" it's a slight jump They tend to price their stuff in units of $100. So the jump is 2 'apple unit' uptick.
lwkl 8y ago
Could there be economic reasons for the price jump? The Surface Pro was in a similar price region. I'm interested to see if Microsoft raises the prices of the new Surface Generation too. It looks like new computers are getting more expensive overall. Maybe it's because the hardware lives longer nowadays.

erikstarck 8y ago

There's also, finally, a new Mac Mini! "The most specced-out Mac mini can feature 64 GB RAM, 4.6GHz 6-core Core i7 CPUs, a 2 TB SDD and 10 Gigabit ethernet."

TazeTSchnitzel 8y ago
Whoa, the internals aren't just a MacBook Air now?
- masklinn 8y ago
  The price has skyrocketed though, entry model is $800 (used to be $500), the top end with all options is $4200.
  - gehsty 8y ago
    Thats probably just inflation since the last update :)
  - tonyedgecombe 8y ago
    It would be interesting to compare that to an equivalent Intel NUC, my guess is you are paying a lot for the ability to run macOS.
    - vesrah 8y ago
      There aren't NUCs that compare. You can't buy a NUC with an i7 6 core, one with 64GB of memory, or one with 10GBit.
      - detaro 8y ago
        There aren't NUCs that compare for all variants.
    - maxsilver 8y ago
      The Mac Mini (standard configs) are pretty comparable to the latest Intel NUC, compared to something like this https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/products/boards-kits/nuc/kits/nuc8i7hvk.html https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/products/boards-kits... (and folks can debate whether the Mini's 6-cores and no dGPU is better/worse than the NUC's 4-cores with a Radeon GPU). What's neat is that the Mini now runs a full desktop CPU (60W TDP?). So while the default configs of the Mac Mini are roughly equivalent to a NUC , the Mini has higher max upgrade headroom and a fully-tricked-out Mini will significantly surpass a NUC in speed/memory/networking.

nakedrobot2 8y ago

USB-C ONLY? I mean, seriously. It was a bold gambit. But the world of usb-C is a world of pain. Give it up. Magsafe was a wonderful thing. I cannot seriously believe they gave it up for this.... thing they call usb-C And still, iphone with lighting, macbook with usb-C? Seriously Apple?

saagarjha 8y ago
iPad has USB C now. I wouldn’t be surprised if they decided to switch iPhone over soon.
throwaway-hn123 8y ago
You ignorant little cunt. Go fuck your mother
gehsty 8y ago
*Thunderbolt only But I guess this is part of the issue. No one understands the differecnce and strange compatibility rules (cable length is even a factor..).

seane 8y ago

Genuine question: Why would someone choose the new MacBook Air over the 12" Macbook? I have the 12" (it's my everyday computer and I love it, not looking to switch) but wondering why choose one over the other, size of screen? Thanks.

scarface74 8y ago
A second port and it should be noticeably faster.
- seane 8y ago
  thanks for the info!
- Latteland 8y ago
  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.
  - Bluestrike2 8y ago
    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.
    - rpilgrimr 8y ago
      another possibility is that it will not have any ports at all. BT, WiFI and Qi for wireless charging.
saagarjha 8y ago
Two Thunderbolt ports, a bit more power, and a fan, which should allow for heavier sustained workloads.
- 8y ago

emdowling 8y ago

Why is the 12 inch MacBook still in the line-up? The only benefit is that it offers an i7 processor at the top-end - beyond that, I can't see any benefit. Why not just unify the two lines?

thefounder 8y ago
Because Asia likes 12" displays and EU/US likes 13" displays
stefanfisk 8y ago
It is a lot lighter, as well as fanless. I reckon that the lines should be swapped though, so that Air actually meant something again.
masklinn 8y ago
> The only benefit is that it offers an i7 processor at the top-end That's not really a benefit since it uses a 5W i7 (formerly m7) versus — I assume — a 15W i5 on the Air, it's just Intel's shitty branding confusion. The 12" is quite a bit lighter (2.03 lbs to 2.75), is fanless, and has a smaller footprint (width of 11.04" to 11.97" and depth of 7.74" to 8.36"). That's pretty much it. The Air has touchid, likely better performances, seemingly a better display, higher storage options, more ports, better ports (12" only has USB-C, MBA has TB3), more battery life.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]

nkkollaw 8y ago

Sure, but it has the horrible butterfly keyboard--with those crammed up arrows I hate so much--and all ports are gone. Also, how do we kniw they'll stay without releasing another one for another 5 years? As a MacBook Air user for years, I'm glad I jumped ship a year ago.

gootdude 8y ago
What did you replace it with? Would love to upgrade with something as reliable as this 2013 Air I've been abusing everyday for years. I'd give anything for a windows laptop with the trackpad and reliable sleep/hibernate you get from osx/apple laptops.
- ericabiz 8y ago
  Not the person you replied to, but look at a Dell XPS 13 or a Lenovo X1 Carbon. I have been recommending the XPS 13 to our customers and they love it.
- nkkollaw 8y ago
  I you can afford it, a Surface Book. Otherwise, a Dell XPS. I personally use Linux Xfce, but Windows is just great.

drfuchs 8y ago

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...)

realradicalwash 8y ago
on their website / in their video, it has an escape key or am i mistaken? https://www.apple.com/macbook-air/ https://www.apple.com/macbook-air/
- drfuchs 8y ago
  All recent 15 inch and higher-end 13 inch MacBook Pro models come with a "Touch Bar" where the Escape and Function key row ought to go. Sometimes a soft button will appear near the left edge of the Touch Bar that says "Escape", but there's no physical feedback when you touch it, and it doesn't protrude from the surface of the keyboard housing, nor have any key travel like the physical keys do, so all-in-all it's funky to touch-type. Not a happy thing for vim and emacs users, as well as for the korn shell, where it invokes command completion (as on the Tenex / Tops20 shell, for that matter).
inopinatus 8y ago
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.

cauthon 8y ago

In 2014 I bought a 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 a Macbook Pro with retina display, 2.3 GHz i5 processor, 8 GB of RAM, and 128 GB SSD for $1300 (and now you have to buy dongles). In 2018 I can also now buy a Macbook Air with retina display, 1.6 GHz i5 processor, 8 GB of RAM, and 128 GB SSD for $1200. I don't really understand what market this Air is hoping to target. The Macbook Pros are already winning the ultraportable category, and the Air doesn't offer any significant price differentiation. I thought in 2014-2015 the "Apple premium" wasn't actually too bad for the specs compared to equivalent laptops from the competition. Unfortunately their hardware offerings have stagnated over the past four years and they are again overpriced for what you're buying.

notatoad 8y ago
>I don't really understand what market this Air is hoping to target. i'm assuming it's meant to target the people buying the $1300 macbook pro, so they can get rid of that model and ratchet up the prices of the pro models while still having a 13" laptop that works for most poeple.

_Codemonkeyism 8y ago

The Air of my wife was the worst computer we've owned, yellow display with dark areas, Wifi basically doesn't work anywhere and trackpad broken in a short amount of time.

mediocrejoker 8y ago
Do you and your wife live underground, in an active coal mine? If not you must admit that your experience is atypical for that computer.
- _Codemonkeyism 8y ago
  I've owned several dozen Apple products, iPods, iPhones, iPads, from XSans/XServers, Cubes, Minis, maxed out Macbook Pros and a dozen iMacs, and no the experience is not atypical for Apple. Many people I know have problems with bad iPhone and MacBookPro Wifi reception. This development iMac Pro I'm writing this on feels slow, often has a beach ball and crashes randomly. The 27 iMac before this had fan problems from the start. Also see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUaJ8pDlxi8&t=526s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUaJ8pDlxi8&t=526s

Ratiofarmings 8y ago

So they finally removed the last computer with mag safe and a good keyboard from their lineup. I am not at all happy about that. All this computer needed was a new cpu, memory and a type-c port.

tptacek 8y ago
Magsafe is done. The writing was on the wall when the rMBP switched to USBC. If you want a magnetic breakaway USBC cable, just buy one.
- prolikewh0a 8y ago
  Are there any breakaway USB-C's that work with 45-65W? Serious question.
  - chicagobob 8y ago
    There are literally dozens, just google or search Amazon, here's an example: https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-Charger-Charging-Breaksafe-Nintendo/dp/B077BQ5PMY https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-Charger-Charging-Breaksafe-N...
  - slg 8y ago
    There are, but they aren't good. This [1] still seems to be the best offering by the most established brand. The reason people want Apple to make them isn't because they aren't available. It is because a version made by Apple would be expected to be far superior to anything else on the market. I assume Apple knows this and is not yet able to deliver on that quality so they simply aren't offering it. [1] - https://www.amazon.com/Griffin-BreakSafe-Magnetic-Breakaway-Chromebook/dp/B01CQTK6GU https://www.amazon.com/Griffin-BreakSafe-Magnetic-Breakaway-...
    - tptacek 8y ago
      That does not square with my recollections of managing a fleet of Macbooks with Magsafe adapters.

diegorbaquero 8y ago

If only Apple could make their Pro line without Touch Bar but with Pro specs, that'd be nice

dayvough 8y ago
I was kinda disappointed they didn't touch the MBP lineup this time around but hey we might get something come WWDC.
- AlphaSite 8y ago
  It did get updated not 3 months ago.
  - danieldk 8y ago
    Except for the MacBook Pro Escape, which didn't get a refresh, nor the butterfly mechanism update.

zapnuk 8y ago

How does the CPU compare to the 7gen i5 of the 2017 non-TB MBP? Otherwise they have basically the same specs - with the MBP being a bit more expensive.

wilsonnb3 8y ago

I’m a bit confused as to where the base model MacBook Pro without the TouchBar fits into the lineup now. It was always pretty clear to me that the 12 inch MacBook replaced the 11 inch air, and the 13 inch MacBook Pro without TouchBar replaced the 13 inch air. There’s barely any difference between the Pro without TouchBar and the new Air. The extra hundred dollars for the Pro gets you a slightly older but faster process at the expense of an additional quarter pound of weight.

wlesieutre 8y ago
They didn't update it with the 2018 Macbook Pro refresh, presumably because this new Air was coming. I'd expect it to quietly disappear.
- wilsonnb3 8y ago
  That makes sense, although it’s a little unfortunate. I would have preferred they update the Pro instead of releasing the new Air with a weaker processor and graphics.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]

plantain 8y ago

So is the Macbook 12 dead now?

saagarjha 8y ago
No, it's still sold.
- plantain 8y ago
  Dead as in, has no future.

chx 8y ago

> 1.6GHz dual-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.6GHz, with 4MB L3 cache... Intel UHD Graphics 617 https://twitter.com/tum_apisak/status/1034639298174148608 https://twitter.com/tum_apisak/status/1034639298174148608 it's a custom chip made for Apple. Look at the other Amber Lake Y chips: https://ark.intel.com/products/codename/186968/Amber-Lake-Y https://ark.intel.com/products/codename/186968/Amber-Lake-Y they have lower base but higher Turbo and UHD 615 not UHD 617.

geoelectric 8y ago
Any idea how these compare to the 2.9Ghz dual core i7 in the 2015 MacBook Pro 13"? I'm expecting these to be slower, but have no concept of what an apples to apples comparison looks like there since clock speed can be so misleading between generations. Ditto the UHD 617 vs. Iris 6100, for that matter.
- chx 8y ago
  > since clock speed can be so misleading between generations I am sorry but no. They haven't been misleading for a long, long time. IPC grew from Sandy Bridge to Kaby Lake only by 20% https://www.hardocp.com/article/2017/01/13/kaby_lake_7700k_vs_sandy_bridge_2600k_ipc_review/4 https://www.hardocp.com/article/2017/01/13/kaby_lake_7700k_v... and since then nothing because Intel is barely doing more than tweaking the Turbo profiles because 10nm is not happening. All these years the progress was more in power consumption than anything else. Note how ThinkPads (and the world) moved from 35W dual core to 15W dual core chips. So if you compare them clock to clock you won't be far. But you don't know what clock of the chip actually will be because the problem with Y CPUs the problem always was: how good is the cooling, how long are they are able to maintain their top Turbo before throttling. Noone can say as there are no Amber Lake laptops yet and much less an Apple. What we can say with surety is even if it has exceptional great cooling it can only keep up with the 5557U in single core, in multi core performance it'll be half at best. The UHD 617 is not officially launched but https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-HD-615-Mobile-Kaby-Lake-vs-Intel-Iris-Pro-HD-6100-Mobile/m193629vsm25925 https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-HD-615-Mobile-Ka... the Iris Pro is a different class to the HD 615. I do not expect anything groundbreaking between the HD 615 and the 617. Check the difference between 610 and 615: https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel--HD-610-Desktop-Kaby-Lake-vs-Intel-HD-615-Mobile-Kaby-Lake/m225196vsm193629 https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel--HD-610-Desktop-...

IkmoIkmo 8y ago

Love the device but I can't get over how expensive it has gotten. A 20% price bump... Sure, there's still the old Macbook Air around, but it wasn't updated and is based on a decade old model with a CPU/GPU that's a 3 years old (5th gen i5 from 2015), and a 128 PPI screen, that's a bit ridiculous. If you want a modern machine you're looking at $1200 for the cheapest model. That isn't even too bad but when you go abroad, all bets are off. I still don't get this. USD/EUR rate has been as high as 1.4 and as low as 1.05 in the past 5 years, averaging about 1.2 USD/EUR. So a $1200 Macbook Air should be €1000, typically. It's not. Instead it's more, €1350. Or in dollar terms, that's about $1620 at the 5y average exchange rates. That's what EU students have to pay for a modern but entry-level Macbook in the new Air. The regular Macbook or Macbook Pro are of course even more expensive. Okay so part of this is silly exchange rates and pricing, some of it related to high EU VAT by the way, not just Apple's pricing. But part of it is also a pretty damn expensive lineup, with this new Macbook Air coming in at 20% higher prices than the previous model. Yes prices tend to move up, inflation is a thing... but technology is supposed to be the exception, where you can get better specs after a few years without moving the price point. They just bumped it up 20%, that's pretty ridiculous.

Xixi 8y ago
You are comparing prices without VAT to prices with VAT. In France VAT is 20%, quite typical in the EU, so the comparison is not fair at all. There's VAT in many states and cities in the United States, although typically at rates much lower than in the EU. Buying a MacBook Air in New York City for instance will be at least $1,300 (combined VAT rate of 8.875%). [EDIT] Granted, the exchange rate is not great, but it's definitely not as bad as you make it sounds. In the EU sticker price is the final price, in the US the sticker price is a baseline on top of which any ridiculous fee and unexpected tax can (and will) be added. Unlike in the EU you really don't know how much you will pay until you get the final bill...
- klodolph 8y ago
  There’s currently no VAT in the US, there used to be a VAT in Michigan but currently there are only sales and use taxes, which aren’t universal. Buying a MacBoox Air for $1,199 in Oregon will cost $1,199 out of pocket.

ksec 8y ago

I wonder if a lot of people are leaving the Mac ecosystem. Apple has been selling roughly ~19M Mac per year since 2012, and its new user to Mac has also been steady at ~50%. Apple has had 60M Mac user in 2012 announced in WWDC, and they has been nearing 100M since early 2017. I assume that actual number is larger than 90M at the time, so after nearly 20 Months, ~20M New Mac Users on board, it manage to add a total ~10M Active Install Base. That is surprising for me, as I was expecting ~110M+ Mac User already, others analysts like Benedict Evans and Asymco put those number past ~120M. So for every 2 new Mac Users, there is one leaving. I hardly call that good news by Apple Standard. And this high churn rate happens after early 2017. From 2012 to 2016-17, there is 4 / 5 New users for every 1 leaving the Mac Ecosystem. The timing actually align with their sudden Interviews with Apple journalist on Mac, Mac Pro, and the release of iMac Pro. And judging from these numbers, I would bet the release of MacBook Pro, iMac Pro and MacBook didn't restore the faith of its Mac users. Apple didn't care about its Mac lineup, this new MacBook Air as well as Mac mini were likely reaction to this churn, much like the iMac Pro. Or may be, the timing has something to do with their New Keyboard Design, which they introduce to MacBook in 2015 and Pro in 2016, and they managed to fit that in this New MacBook Air.

starbugs 8y ago
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 thinner, the trackpad is bigger, but that's pretty much it. The rest is just technological advancements that have happened to the whole industry line-up of laptops (faster CPU, more RAM, SSDs, USB3, USB-C, Thunderbolt). And for that I now have to pay nearly double the price of my first MBP. I think the sales people have taken control over Apple again. It just feels natural to look for an alternative at this point. The really sad part is that Apple software, which is vastly superior to all competitors from my perspective, is no longer accessible for certain people due to the price hikes. I had hoped that Apple would take another path this time. They seem to have forgotten their decline during the 90s.

YetAnotherNick 8y ago

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.

yoz-y 8y ago
Which one? MacBook Pro without Touch Bar has older cpu generation (albeit it is faster) but it still has the previous version of the keyboard (without membrane).
whatsthatyousay 8y ago
The Air has the 8th generation i5 which seems to be a solid upgrade in benchmarks https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/Intel-i5-8250U-vs-Intel-i5-7200U/3042vs2865 https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/Intel-i5-8250U-vs-Intel...

johnchristopher 8y ago

> Apple says the new Air takes up 17-percent less volume than the past model. Do anyone really care at this point ? I'd rather have those 17% filled with batteries or storage. Do people really choose a laptop based on its dimensions ? (I don't mean the transportable laptop vs ultrabook). > Apple says the display now has a 2560×1600 resolution and 48-percent more color than the prior model. Just goes to show how terrible the previous screen was I suppose. /s > It will start at $1,199, which is a jump from the $999 starting price of the older MacBook Air. So, no more $1000 usable laptop in the apple ecosystem ? That kinda sucks. I though the brand was declining and that would open up Apple to lower its prices. If technology is going forward then why does it get more expensive ?

Wildgoose 8y ago

Too late. I was an Apple user for years but I recently purchased an AMD Ryzen based development box which I am extremely happy with. My iPhone SE will be my last iPhone as well - I won't purchase an expensive mobile 'phone that lacks something as basic as a headphone jack.

ratfaced-guy 8y ago
Nobody cares about headphone jacks.
- aaaaaaaaaab 8y ago
  I do.
  - 2muchcoffeeman 8y ago
    I recently bought wireless headphones. I have a small collection is wired headphones. Given that Apple, Google and reportedly Samsung have done away with it, and everyone still buys their phones, you have to ask yourself, how long will you hold out?
    - aaaaaaaaaab 8y ago
      Forever. I prefer lossless music. Not that I won’t buy an iPhone without one, as long as there’s lightning-to-jack, but I do find its removal misguided.

hartator 8y ago

The current line is a bit weird. MacBook 12” vs MacBook Air 13” vs MacBook Pro 13” without Touch Bar. I just wish they release a 14” MacBook. That would have made more sense.

MR4D 8y ago
I said this exact thing to a coworker less than 3 minutes ago!
oliv__ 8y ago
Exactly. The Macbook feels out of place now. It has one less USB-C port, less battery power, and is $100 more expensive with lesser specs. And it has a different name. Before this new Air came out, I figured they were just going to kill the Air line and release a 13" Macbook at a cheaper price. (Which is essentially what this is)
- ianhowson 8y ago
  It's smaller and way lighter, though. In a past life I flew by air several times per week; I would've bought the 12" in a heartbeat if it existed.
- reaperducer 8y ago
  The Macbook feels out of place now Think of it as an entry-level, but fully capable Mac. For people who use their phone almost exclusively, but need a computer once or twice a month for work. That's exactly how my wife uses hers.
  - hartator 8y ago
    I worked full time on one at some point. Doing RoR dev. It wasn't powerful enough. But the form factor is really fun. You can hold it with one hand and type on it.
  - teddyfrozevelt 8y ago
    But now the entry level Macbook Air is better than the Macbook in every way except the base storage level.

a13n 8y ago

Looks like the same shitty keyboard as the MacBook Pro. At least there's an escape key...

gao8a 8y ago

Does anyone know if this will support egpu?

rsln-s 8y ago
It does

Psrajan 8y ago

It's pretty much the 2017 nTB MBP in a slightly changed chassis with touchID and 8th generation chips added. Now we know why they didn't refresh the nTB this year. Eventually, the price is the same.

ianamartin 8y ago

I don't love it, but between this and the mac mini update, I think Apple is back on a more reasonable path. The overall laptop lineup makes actual sense now if you pretend that the macbook and macbook pro without touchbar models don't exist. And I suspect that they won't exist much longer. The only thing you get for an extra hundred dollars for the macbook Pro escape is a higher base speed processor with the same turbo boost on an older generation chip and Iris Graphics vs UHD. Worse battery life. Heavier. No touchID. Same thunderbolt 3 ports. The macbook is even more of an anemic joke now. I guess if you really have to have the thinnest and lightest mac laptop possible, this one's for you. But pretend for a moment that those confusing models aren't in the lineup, and the whole thing starts to make sense after they get EOL'd. The new MBA handles the low end competently. There's some gray area when you upgrade it to 16GB rams and 512GB SSD. That's the same price as the entry level 13" macbook pro with touchbar. But now you get real differentiation between the Air and Pro line. 4 thunderbolt 3 ports, 2 core vs 4 core. Higher base and boost clock speed; same generation chip. True-tone display. Option to upgrade the processor. What sticks out to me the most here is how completely hamstrung Apple is by Intel right now. There should be a 32gig RAM option for the 13". But it's a different architecture than what they have on the 15" models that do support it, and they couldn't cram into the 13" form factor. It's not ideal. USB-C is still a shitshow, and I wish you could opt for at least one step up in processor. But it's actually better than I expected. They also didn't completely ruin the mac mini. They gave us pretty much what we wanted out of that. So overall, I'm pretty pleased with the direction. I just can't decide if I should wait another couple years to see more of that direction until the macbook pros get a redesign with these ideas or if I can live with this MBA as an upgrade from my older stuff for now. My biggest concern was that every new design and product matrix since the trashcan mac pro has been a massive, "WTF are you thinking, Apple?" This makes me feel like they've figured some things out about what people want out of their Macs. Or made the leadership decision to listen to what they already knew people wanted. The next gen pro should be very exciting.

finchisko 8y ago

Am I the only one, who is excited and considering buying this thing? I'm still on 2012 Air. It's good device, but showing it's age (slow CPU and only 4GB of Ram, the screen resolution is joke). But new Air seems very compelling to me. I'll miss the magsafe though. Also I would like to know if the SSD can be upgraded later (unofficially of course). 2012 Air SSD can be replaced, using cheap reduction (from proprietary apple to standard M2). Not sure about the newer models.

outside1234 8y ago
I thought I would miss the magsafe as well, but actually I like the USB-C charging better - you can charge from either side of the device, which is a lot more useful than I would have thought.
- ajay-d 8y ago
  Both ports are on the same side though...
RBerenguel 8y ago
2013 Air here, and I'm definitely getting one as soon as I can (8GB though).
danieldk 8y ago
I would wait about 6 more months to see how reliable the updated butterfly mechanism is. Having a failing keyboard is no fun, repair apparently takes ~1 week. The new Pro's (and probably the new Air) use a membrane to keep the dust out, but I'd wait and see if it works well enough.
BonesJustice 8y ago
Out of curiosity, what is the appeal of the new MacBook Air over a regular MacBook? Is it the 13" screen vs. the 12"? I'd just assumed that when Apple introduced that crazy-thin 12" MacBook a couple years ago, it was meant to replace both product lines. I don't understand why it's necessary to maintain a third discrete product line. Why not add a 13" variant to the standard MacBook line with i5 and i7 processor choices? That would be similar to what they do with the MacBook Pro line. Is there some other difference that I'm overlooking?

Matthias247 8y ago

The difference to the entry level MacBook Pro seems very minimal. The form factor is pretty much 100% identical - the Pro even is listed to be thinner overall on the tech specs (0.59" vs 0.61), even though the Air is slightly thinner at the front. So it seems like the difference is 100$ price, 100g weight, and a slightly slower CPU.

exabrial 8y ago

"Finally"? I don't think anyone is clamoring for the touch bar. The TouchID is fairly useful, but the only time I ever use the Touchbar is accidental.

dbbk 8y ago
It doesn't have one...
publicfig 8y ago
It doesn't come with the Touch Bar, just Touch ID as an independent key
- exabrial 8y ago
  OH, nice! I guess I didn't pay good enough attention to the pics! This is actually pretty close to what I want!

Wowfunhappy 8y ago

The old 13 Inch Macbook Air had a resolution of 1440 x 900. The new Macbook Air has a resolution of 2560 x 1600, but at 200% dpi scaling, so the usable resolution is only 1280 x 800. It'll be prettier for sure, but you're getting less screen real-estate than on the old models! You can adjust the dpi scaling, but then the scaling won't be even and everything will look a bit blurry. I honestly would have much preferred a straight 1080p screen.

yubiox 8y ago
With the Display Menu app you choose from lots of resolutions. They are not blurry whatsoever. I use 4096x2304 on 27" retina imac, 2880x1800 on 15" retina mbp, and 2304x1440 on 12" retina mb. Plenty of real estate.
- Wowfunhappy 8y ago
  It's a subtle difference that not everyone will notice, but the icons will not be quite as sharp at these alternate resolutions due to uneven pixel scaling. The icons were drawn for a specific resolution, not the in between ones. This is also why System Preferences marks one resolution as best for the display. I can absolutely see the difference on the iMac I use at work, unfortunately.

ataturk 8y ago

The 64GB spec with a 2TB hard disk is pushing $4,000. Are they insane?

tqi 8y ago

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

jakobegger 8y ago
According to Anandtech the new MBA has a 5W TDP Y series chip. The non-touchbar MBP has a 15W TDP U series chip. So I'd assume that the MBP is going to be a lot faster in practice, even though it's one generation older. https://www.anandtech.com/show/13531/apple-2018-macbook-air-announced https://www.anandtech.com/show/13531/apple-2018-macbook-air-...
wodenokoto 8y ago
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?
- Dunedan 8y ago
  The eDRAM is mainly for the integrated GPU and an addition to the L3 cache. It's also only available for a few selected Intel CPUs, which usually have higher graphics performance. As Wikipedia puts it [1]: > The 128 MB of eDRAM in the Iris Pro GT3e is on the same package as the CPU, but in a separate die manufactured in a different process. Intel refers to this as a Level 4 cache, available to both CPU and GPU, naming it Crystalwell. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Graphics_Technology#IRIS-PRO https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Graphics_Technology#IRIS...

lostgame 8y ago

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?

greedo 8y ago
Expect to see the 12" Macbook canned pretty soon.
IkmoIkmo 8y ago
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.

shamino 8y ago

A lot of people seem to forget that Apple is a luxury brand. Their tech is not going to be the latest. Does Louis Vuitton care about the latest fabric ? No, cuz you're gonna pay a lot for it anyways!

halotrope 8y ago

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 how hard I try, iOS keeps being a toy (media consumption/browsing) and mac has the wrong priorities. Maybe that changes with next years Pro lineup. Right now I am a refugee in the Microsoft ecosystem. And I like it.

jazzyjackson 8y ago
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 :)

mark_l_watson 8y ago

Nice option for people who love the form factor, if somewhat expensive. I was surprised that it weighs about 3/4 of a pound more than a MacBook, but then it is a 13” screen rather than a 12” screen. I have had computers since before I bought an early Apple II (I had a single board Intersil PDP-8 emulator board) and I must say that my MacBook is my favorite computer ever. I am not sure why someone would buy the new MacBook Air over a MacBook.

aceshades 8y ago

Do people actually like the butterfly keys on the keyboard? They may have fixed the issues, but it still feels like crap every time I try it.