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I just want a company to keep making the previous generation MacBook Air. Keep the ports. Keep the MagSafe. Don’t screw with the keyboard. More memory and dis

I just want a company to keep making the previous generation MacBook Air. Keep the ports. Keep the MagSafe. Don’t screw with the keyboard. More memory and disk space would be nice, but it’s not a deal-breaker. I don’t mind going for a walk or enjoying a cup of coffee while I wait for GHC to compile. It’s a good machine. Now leave it alone.

robin_reala 8y ago
Preferably the 11" Macbook Air.
- tluyben2 8y ago
  That was my favorite Apple laptop. So annoying they do not produce it anymore.
  - TomVDB 8y ago
    My big mistake was to buy the 2GB/64GB version. I could upgrade the SSD to 128GB, but the RAM is soldered. And it’s juat not enough for today.
    - tluyben2 8y ago
      I bought the 13 inch one with 4gb after my 11 inch one died and that really doesn't work anymore either; for anything serious 4gb is just always thrashing seeing the lovely colored ball which makes you wanting to pull your hair out.
      - rconti 8y ago
        Yeah I have a 2011 with 4GB.. it's finally starting to show its age, and the 128gb disk is always full. 8/256 would be perfect... but the screen is just starting to wear my down. I'm thinking of "upgrading" to the new one because of the display...
- isostatic 8y ago
  I'm on one right now, it has magsafe (good), 3.5mm (good), 2 usb and a thunderbolt I'd rather it was a little thicker and had two ethernets and a second thunderbolt, but aside from that it's a great alternative to a chromebook. I wouldn't do real work on it though
  - taude 8y ago
    I do lots of real work on mine. I wish it could do 4K output to an external monitor. But I run things like Emacs and VS Code for smaller projects, iTerm for SSHing into all my beefier machines. Battery life is still great for a machine almost 5 years old now: I still get about 5 hours. And then, I can also do writing with the keyboard I prefer, over the newer style. I'm even keeping my eyes open for a used MB Air 11" with 8 GB ram, and 128 GB storage for when this one breaks, unles I find something more suitable. Like the people talking about using old Surface Pros from eBay, I really like a low priced, almost disposable computer that I don't care about, especially since most my tool-chain is legacy at this point....
    - tluyben2 8y ago
      > I really like a low priced, almost disposable computer that I don't care about I use the X220 for that; it's a nice, robust device, great keyboard, I like a trackpoint better than a trackpad, runs Linux well and excellent battery life with the 9 cell battery (which you can still buy on Ebay & Amazon). And it's cheap enough now to just rip everything out and get a new one without even thinking about it.
      - TomVDB 8y ago
        Bought one recently for $110. It’s fantastic. One problem is how modular it is: there’s nothing holding you back from upgrading LCD panel, SSD, ... I use it as the main driver for my home lab.
      - ianhowson 8y ago
        Seconded on the x220. Makes a great Hackintosh with minimal fiddling. Can be upgraded to 16GB RAM for practically nothing and genuine power adaptors are only a few dollars each. More than fast enough to get real work done.
taude 8y ago
I've not really been a fan of iOS, but for the holidays this year, I got a cheap 10" iPad 6, and and add-on Brydge keyboard for it. It makes for a small 10" laptop and I'm finding myself using it for 90% of my home computing tasks. My favorite computer of all time was my 11" MacBook Air. I almost wish that apple would make a clam-shell iPad. I find the clamshell design makes for a superior stand, that works better in angles, and I almost always prefer to use a keyboard, except when I'm reading a book on the iPad. I also wish for some more software, like maybe native Emacs and some other system-level tools. I'd be open to even newer android clamshell designs.... Anyway, for the other 10% of my tasks, I still reach for my 11" MBAir.
- ubermonkey 8y ago
  I'm super tempted by the Brydge, but I already have a Logitech Slim Folio that's almost as good, but also provides all-around protection. Unfortunately, it's not backlit, which is something I'd really enjoy, but since the SF is so good I can't see dumping it to switch to the Brydge. I also love to use it as a stand for reading at lunch or whatever, which is nice. (ZOMG native emacs on iOS would be KILLER.)
  - 0xCMP 8y ago
    I bought both. The Brydge keyboards always had quality issues with wobbly keys and such. You have to keep sending it back until you get one that's acceptable. I prefer the Slim Folio for everything except it can't do the clam shell mode.
    - taude 8y ago
      This is true. I bought my Brydge keyboard at Microcenter and had to look through a couple packages to get one that had even keys.
  - raihansaputra 8y ago
    Have you tried iSH?
dasil003 8y ago
Buy a few. Insurance if they’re discontinued and also send the message about what is valued by their customers. I bought one for my wife for Christmas.
miles 8y ago
Despite releasing the 2018 model some months ago, Apple is still selling the 2017 MacBook Air: https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-air/1.8ghz-dual-core-processor-with-turbo-boost-up-to-2.9ghz-128gb# https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-air/1.8ghz-dual-c... I put together a table comparing it with Apple's other laptop offerings: https://tinyapps.org/blog/mac/201811190015_last_decent_macbook.html https://tinyapps.org/blog/mac/201811190015_last_decent_macbo...

robin_reala 8y ago

Preferably the 11" Macbook Air.

tluyben2 8y ago
That was my favorite Apple laptop. So annoying they do not produce it anymore.
- TomVDB 8y ago
  My big mistake was to buy the 2GB/64GB version. I could upgrade the SSD to 128GB, but the RAM is soldered. And it’s juat not enough for today.
  - tluyben2 8y ago
    I bought the 13 inch one with 4gb after my 11 inch one died and that really doesn't work anymore either; for anything serious 4gb is just always thrashing seeing the lovely colored ball which makes you wanting to pull your hair out.
    - rconti 8y ago
      Yeah I have a 2011 with 4GB.. it's finally starting to show its age, and the 128gb disk is always full. 8/256 would be perfect... but the screen is just starting to wear my down. I'm thinking of "upgrading" to the new one because of the display...
isostatic 8y ago
I'm on one right now, it has magsafe (good), 3.5mm (good), 2 usb and a thunderbolt I'd rather it was a little thicker and had two ethernets and a second thunderbolt, but aside from that it's a great alternative to a chromebook. I wouldn't do real work on it though
- taude 8y ago
  I do lots of real work on mine. I wish it could do 4K output to an external monitor. But I run things like Emacs and VS Code for smaller projects, iTerm for SSHing into all my beefier machines. Battery life is still great for a machine almost 5 years old now: I still get about 5 hours. And then, I can also do writing with the keyboard I prefer, over the newer style. I'm even keeping my eyes open for a used MB Air 11" with 8 GB ram, and 128 GB storage for when this one breaks, unles I find something more suitable. Like the people talking about using old Surface Pros from eBay, I really like a low priced, almost disposable computer that I don't care about, especially since most my tool-chain is legacy at this point....
  - tluyben2 8y ago
    > I really like a low priced, almost disposable computer that I don't care about I use the X220 for that; it's a nice, robust device, great keyboard, I like a trackpoint better than a trackpad, runs Linux well and excellent battery life with the 9 cell battery (which you can still buy on Ebay & Amazon). And it's cheap enough now to just rip everything out and get a new one without even thinking about it.
    - TomVDB 8y ago
      Bought one recently for $110. It’s fantastic. One problem is how modular it is: there’s nothing holding you back from upgrading LCD panel, SSD, ... I use it as the main driver for my home lab.
    - ianhowson 8y ago
      Seconded on the x220. Makes a great Hackintosh with minimal fiddling. Can be upgraded to 16GB RAM for practically nothing and genuine power adaptors are only a few dollars each. More than fast enough to get real work done.

taude 8y ago

I've not really been a fan of iOS, but for the holidays this year, I got a cheap 10" iPad 6, and and add-on Brydge keyboard for it. It makes for a small 10" laptop and I'm finding myself using it for 90% of my home computing tasks. My favorite computer of all time was my 11" MacBook Air. I almost wish that apple would make a clam-shell iPad. I find the clamshell design makes for a superior stand, that works better in angles, and I almost always prefer to use a keyboard, except when I'm reading a book on the iPad. I also wish for some more software, like maybe native Emacs and some other system-level tools. I'd be open to even newer android clamshell designs.... Anyway, for the other 10% of my tasks, I still reach for my 11" MBAir.

ubermonkey 8y ago
I'm super tempted by the Brydge, but I already have a Logitech Slim Folio that's almost as good, but also provides all-around protection. Unfortunately, it's not backlit, which is something I'd really enjoy, but since the SF is so good I can't see dumping it to switch to the Brydge. I also love to use it as a stand for reading at lunch or whatever, which is nice. (ZOMG native emacs on iOS would be KILLER.)
- 0xCMP 8y ago
  I bought both. The Brydge keyboards always had quality issues with wobbly keys and such. You have to keep sending it back until you get one that's acceptable. I prefer the Slim Folio for everything except it can't do the clam shell mode.
  - taude 8y ago
    This is true. I bought my Brydge keyboard at Microcenter and had to look through a couple packages to get one that had even keys.
- raihansaputra 8y ago
  Have you tried iSH?

dasil003 8y ago

Buy a few. Insurance if they’re discontinued and also send the message about what is valued by their customers. I bought one for my wife for Christmas.

miles 8y ago

Despite releasing the 2018 model some months ago, Apple is still selling the 2017 MacBook Air: https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-air/1.8ghz-dual-core-processor-with-turbo-boost-up-to-2.9ghz-128gb# https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-air/1.8ghz-dual-c... I put together a table comparing it with Apple's other laptop offerings: https://tinyapps.org/blog/mac/201811190015_last_decent_macbook.html https://tinyapps.org/blog/mac/201811190015_last_decent_macbo...