6 ms·

I can walk into many Walmarts in the US right now with $699 and walk out with a MBA with the M1. That's a damn good deal.

lolinder 2y ago
That's still ~twice as expensive as the items I linked to below, and that's at clearance prices. A good deal on a luxury item still gets you a luxury item. And if we want to compare Walmart to Walmart, this thing currently runs for $359 and has 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, and a CPU that benchmarks slightly faster than the M2: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Acer-Aspire-3-15-6-inch-Laptop-AMD-Ryzen-7-5700U-16GB-RAM-512GB-SSD-Pure-Silver/5262667268 https://www.walmart.com/ip/Acer-Aspire-3-15-6-inch-Laptop-AM...
- epcoa 2y ago
  Oh dear. 16:10 screen with superior resolution, brightness and gamut - and it still gets superior battery life driving all those pixels.. that’s a headline feature that even a non-propellerhead can observe (I was honestly surprised when I looked up that Acer screen what a dim, narrow piece of shit it is) - notably there are ballpark priced systems with better screens. I think you unjustifiably downplay how much of a selling point a screen that looks great (or at least decent) on the floor is. And I know tons of devs that put up with the 45% NTSC abominations on Thinkpads that aren’t even suitable for casual photo editing or web media, just because you make do with that doesn’t automatically make a halfway decent display on a laptop a “luxury”. Sorry, but don’t buy the “everything that isn’t a $300 econo shit laptop is luxury” thesis repeated ad nauseum.
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  - int_19h 2y ago
    What defines "luxury" exactly if not the combination of price and "premium experience"?
    - tsimionescu 2y ago
      "Luxury" often includes some amount of pure status symbols added to the package, and often on what is actually a sub-par experience. The quintessential luxury tech device were the Vertu phones from just before and even early in the smartphone era - mid-range phones tech and build quality-wise, with encrusted gems and gold inserts and other such bling, sold at several thousand dollars (Edit: they actually ranged between a few thousand dollars all the way to 50,000+). But the definition of luxury varies a lot by product category. Still, high-end and luxury are separate concepts, which ven when they do overlap.
      - darkwater 2y ago
        You just made up the "sub-par experience" as a defining point of a luxury product. A luxury product is defined by being a status symbol (check for all Apple devices) and especially by its price. A luxury car like a Bentley will still you bring from point A to point B like the cheapest Toyota.
        tsimionescu 2y ago
        I didn't say that sub-par experience was a requirement, I said it was often a part of luxury products. Or, more precisely, I should have said that something being of excellent build quality and offering excellent, top of the line experience is neither sufficient nor necessary for being a luxury good. It is true though that luxury goods are, often, top of the line as well. Cars and watches are often examples of this. Clothes are a much more mixed bag, with some luxury brands using excellent materials and craftsmanship, while others use flashy design and branding with mediocre materials and craftsmanship. Exactly where Apple sits is very debatable in my experience. I would personally say that many of their products are far too affordable and simple to be considered luxury products - the iPhone in particular. The laptops I'm less sure about.
- positus 2y ago
  I doubt I am alone in saying that I would gladly pay twice the price to avoid having to use Windows. It's the most user-hostile, hand-holdy, second-guess-and-confirm-my-explicit-command-ey os I've used to date. And bloatware baked in? No thanks.
  - neoromantique 2y ago
    ...but that is a luxury.
    - positus 2y ago
      You're probably right. I am in the middle-class, maybe lower middle-class, and I live in the US. I have advantages and opportunities that many in other circumstances do not and I am sincerely grateful for them.
    - fl0ki 2y ago
      Damn right it is.
  - bigstrat2003 2y ago
    Windows is pretty shit these days, but it's not the only other option. Linux is far more sane than MacOS or Windows.
  - Dylan16807 2y ago
    Good news, not using windows is free.
- eigen 2y ago
  > this thing currently runs for $359 and has 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, and a CPU that benchmarks slightly faster than the M2: I'm seeing significant differences in the performance between Acer Aspire A315 to M2 Macbook Air; the Acer is ~33% of the M2 for 50% the price. https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/compare/5942766?baseline=6003965 https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/compare/5942766?baselin...
  - darkwater 2y ago
    Nowadays (well actually this has been true for the last 10 years) a normal user won't care about that extra perf ratio. The Aspire is "fast enough".
    - antifa 2y ago
      I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess we're also looking at 10 hr battery vs 1hr battery.
      - darkwater 2y ago
        No brand new laptop has a 1h battery. Also, battery life importance as in "I can work a full day unplugged from AC" it's something that affects only a subset of laptop users, and mostly during some specific conditions (i.e. long travels).
- AdamN 2y ago
  That's more like cheap vs middle of the road. There is no luxury space in laptops - displays, iPads, and workstations maybe but that's it (and those are more pro than luxury). $999 amortized over 3 years is $30/mo which is less than what even middle class people spend on coffee.
- amon22 2y ago
  Sorry but linkink Acer crap doesnt help your point.
- wiseowise 2y ago
  Weight > 3.92 lb Battery life > 6.5 h Probably half of that. Fans that sound like jet engine, screen quality which would force me to stab my eyes, speakers sounding worse than a toilet, plastic build. I'm not convinced.
FireBeyond 2y ago
The Walmart variant was introduced 6 weeks ago to offload excess stocks of a four year old discontinued model. I'm not sure your argument of "at only 70% of the price of a model two generations newer" is the sales pitch you think it is.

lolinder 2y ago

That's still ~twice as expensive as the items I linked to below, and that's at clearance prices. A good deal on a luxury item still gets you a luxury item. And if we want to compare Walmart to Walmart, this thing currently runs for $359 and has 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, and a CPU that benchmarks slightly faster than the M2: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Acer-Aspire-3-15-6-inch-Laptop-AMD-Ryzen-7-5700U-16GB-RAM-512GB-SSD-Pure-Silver/5262667268 https://www.walmart.com/ip/Acer-Aspire-3-15-6-inch-Laptop-AM...

epcoa 2y ago
Oh dear. 16:10 screen with superior resolution, brightness and gamut - and it still gets superior battery life driving all those pixels.. that’s a headline feature that even a non-propellerhead can observe (I was honestly surprised when I looked up that Acer screen what a dim, narrow piece of shit it is) - notably there are ballpark priced systems with better screens. I think you unjustifiably downplay how much of a selling point a screen that looks great (or at least decent) on the floor is. And I know tons of devs that put up with the 45% NTSC abominations on Thinkpads that aren’t even suitable for casual photo editing or web media, just because you make do with that doesn’t automatically make a halfway decent display on a laptop a “luxury”. Sorry, but don’t buy the “everything that isn’t a $300 econo shit laptop is luxury” thesis repeated ad nauseum.
- deleted 2y ago
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- deleted 2y ago
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- int_19h 2y ago
  What defines "luxury" exactly if not the combination of price and "premium experience"?
  - tsimionescu 2y ago
    "Luxury" often includes some amount of pure status symbols added to the package, and often on what is actually a sub-par experience. The quintessential luxury tech device were the Vertu phones from just before and even early in the smartphone era - mid-range phones tech and build quality-wise, with encrusted gems and gold inserts and other such bling, sold at several thousand dollars (Edit: they actually ranged between a few thousand dollars all the way to 50,000+). But the definition of luxury varies a lot by product category. Still, high-end and luxury are separate concepts, which ven when they do overlap.
    - darkwater 2y ago
      You just made up the "sub-par experience" as a defining point of a luxury product. A luxury product is defined by being a status symbol (check for all Apple devices) and especially by its price. A luxury car like a Bentley will still you bring from point A to point B like the cheapest Toyota.
      - tsimionescu 2y ago
        I didn't say that sub-par experience was a requirement, I said it was often a part of luxury products. Or, more precisely, I should have said that something being of excellent build quality and offering excellent, top of the line experience is neither sufficient nor necessary for being a luxury good. It is true though that luxury goods are, often, top of the line as well. Cars and watches are often examples of this. Clothes are a much more mixed bag, with some luxury brands using excellent materials and craftsmanship, while others use flashy design and branding with mediocre materials and craftsmanship. Exactly where Apple sits is very debatable in my experience. I would personally say that many of their products are far too affordable and simple to be considered luxury products - the iPhone in particular. The laptops I'm less sure about.
positus 2y ago
I doubt I am alone in saying that I would gladly pay twice the price to avoid having to use Windows. It's the most user-hostile, hand-holdy, second-guess-and-confirm-my-explicit-command-ey os I've used to date. And bloatware baked in? No thanks.
- neoromantique 2y ago
  ...but that is a luxury.
  - positus 2y ago
    You're probably right. I am in the middle-class, maybe lower middle-class, and I live in the US. I have advantages and opportunities that many in other circumstances do not and I am sincerely grateful for them.
  - fl0ki 2y ago
    Damn right it is.
- bigstrat2003 2y ago
  Windows is pretty shit these days, but it's not the only other option. Linux is far more sane than MacOS or Windows.
- Dylan16807 2y ago
  Good news, not using windows is free.
eigen 2y ago
> this thing currently runs for $359 and has 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, and a CPU that benchmarks slightly faster than the M2: I'm seeing significant differences in the performance between Acer Aspire A315 to M2 Macbook Air; the Acer is ~33% of the M2 for 50% the price. https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/compare/5942766?baseline=6003965 https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/compare/5942766?baselin...
- darkwater 2y ago
  Nowadays (well actually this has been true for the last 10 years) a normal user won't care about that extra perf ratio. The Aspire is "fast enough".
  - antifa 2y ago
    I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess we're also looking at 10 hr battery vs 1hr battery.
    - darkwater 2y ago
      No brand new laptop has a 1h battery. Also, battery life importance as in "I can work a full day unplugged from AC" it's something that affects only a subset of laptop users, and mostly during some specific conditions (i.e. long travels).
AdamN 2y ago
That's more like cheap vs middle of the road. There is no luxury space in laptops - displays, iPads, and workstations maybe but that's it (and those are more pro than luxury). $999 amortized over 3 years is $30/mo which is less than what even middle class people spend on coffee.
amon22 2y ago
Sorry but linkink Acer crap doesnt help your point.
wiseowise 2y ago
Weight > 3.92 lb Battery life > 6.5 h Probably half of that. Fans that sound like jet engine, screen quality which would force me to stab my eyes, speakers sounding worse than a toilet, plastic build. I'm not convinced.

FireBeyond 2y ago

The Walmart variant was introduced 6 weeks ago to offload excess stocks of a four year old discontinued model. I'm not sure your argument of "at only 70% of the price of a model two generations newer" is the sales pitch you think it is.