As about as cheap as it will get for AU stock from a local retailer.
Yes, it is almost 3 years old and has not been refreshed since.
Yes, a refreshed model has just been announced (although the only change is a newer processor).
Yes, it is a mac.
However for this price, it is still a decent laptop that covers the essentials such as an awesome trackpad, battery life, build quality and portability.
is an i5 apple that much better than an i5 pc or are we paying for operating system
Paying for the quality of the materials used (debatable to some people), and the OS.
Apple hardware may seem expensive initially, but when you consider the insane resale value, warranty support and materials, it doesn't seem that bad.
i own an i5 windows laptop and a macbook air and the macbook is superb build quality. because most windows laptops ventilate bu sucking air from underneath , you can't use then on your lap or in bed on a doona ….. apple sucks are in from the back and ventilated out between keys on keyboard.
the cost of a macbook air and equivalent ultra book are very close and resale value if great.. it's why they have it in their range as macbook pro prices don't compete windows equivalents.
also apples ability to couple OS and hardware means s all tightly tunes not just for OS but even firmware updates ….. on a pc you need to update bios separate from OS and hope win 10 has specific rather than genrc drivers for for your PC.
move to a new mac form an old one….. real easy, no license keys etc …. unlike moving your hard drive to a new PC.
we have PCs and macs in our house hold so i'm unbiased.
Nope not even close. Cant remember what it was, but a few weeks back you got another tech comparison blinding wrong.
This macbook air has Outdated specs and the new processor is only just a speed bump of the same 5th gen i5 processor.
This still has a crap TN screen panel which at this price shouldn't even happen. Pretty much all ultrabooks on the market outdo this at a lower price.
People only buy this cos they want Mac OS or build quality or too poor to afford a proper MacBook
This has Intel's 'U' processor, so, don't compare 🍎 to 🍐.
Independent testing shows that an equally specced Mac is quicker & has better battery life than a Windows laptop.
That is why it is has far better resale value
Was at jb Jodi. Noticed that the mbp has intel processor and Radeon graphics. Always thought AMD and Radeon go hand in hand?
amd own radeon so often see them bundled because they might get better deal on chips ….. but lots of intel also use radeon.
have been using MacBook Air for several years now - can not recommend it enough!
too many things to explain, but for one, when you open the screen its on, instantly, no 'resuming windows' bullshit.
will never use anything else.
Meh, any Windows running ssd can can do that nowadays. In fact any OS running on ssd does same thing.
it's not just ssd and boot , it's the sleep mode on the mac is tuned for the hardware straight out of the box ….. with windows you need to tune it yourself, windows always have to trade off defaults due to support for so many different combinations of hardware.
the macbook air is a sweet spot as the PC equivalent ultrabook isn't vastly cheaper.
only downside is limited (none) ability to upgrade storage ( proprietary) or ram (soldered) but that is how they kept the size small and speed up.
take your windows where the sun dont shine :)
it's bloody funny how windows fan boys flock to this thread lol.
I have this laptop. I want to point out that it has the "weakest" display on the entire Mac range. It uses a TN panel. It's not retina and don't expect anything if you use this for graphic design or Photoshop. This is for web browsing and excel/word.
I've had just about every kind of Macbook over the last five years or so as I like trying different things, rotate regularly for resale value, and always wait to grab them when they're at best possible discount prices.
So, powerful 15" retina models with dedicated graphics, midrange 13" (including the old non-retina), and several lowly 13" Macbook Airs.
I'm a graphic designer and web developer. I work out and about a lot, but at home I plug in to a 32" QHD colour accurate display.
My favourite Mac? The 13" Air. Shocking stuff.
These things are such great little performers, and for the tasks I use them for, never skip a beat. Adobe CS (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) don't stress these much at all (and I work with very large files). Don't let the 1.6Ghz CPU fool you, they're surprisingly capable (and honestly, I was sceptical).
Yes, the screen is not retina, but as a result the Air is so much smoother to use and the colour accuracy and brightness are not nearly as bad as people always try to make out. They're good, in fact, and better than 90% of laptops out there. The usable real estate is decent (the UI is rendered at what I consider the right size) and the PPI doesn't bother me in the slightest, despite having spent lots of time with much higher res displays (I've had QHD on my phone since LG's G3 and love it, but a phone is different). Also, I'm not constantly having to factor retina multipliers when sizing images/code.
They're much nicer to carry around because of the wedge shape, particularly compared to the 15" which is quite heavy.
The new force touch trackpad doesn't work great for me. YMMV. The Air has the old school clicky one which I love.
The Air has ports and an SD slot that I use. Perhaps in the future I'll have USB-C devices but right now I do not.
The final thing that I quite like is the fact that I'm not carrying something around that costs $3000 or more! Apple prices are absolutely insane(!!!) these days and comparatively speaking the Air is a steal given the performance you get out of them. I don't feel like a rich, walking target when traveling about, either in Australia or overseas (something always made me uneasy pulling out my 15" Pro to get some work done in various parts of the world).
With the recent sales I just bought yet another Macbook, and yep, it's an Air and will be my daily workhorse for another year. Every one has a different use case but for me these hit the right balance.
*Please note I'm not commenting/comparing against Windows laptops here. That is a completely different discussion. I use Windows lots too.
Mac make operating software to work perfectly on whatever hardware it's designed for, if it doesn't work perfectly on a particular model you can't update, simple.
Windows is designed to work on anything from a $2000 laptop to a $150 laptop and it doesn't work on anything perfectly.
Plus the operating system is simply better than windows. That's what your paying for the specs on paper are less relevant for the Mac because the software is designed specifically for it.
Perfectly fine to have a preference, but…
Windows is designed to work on anything … and it doesn't work on anything perfectly.
is rubbish.
It's a generic operating system, made to work on a plethora of devices from high to low end, made by various manufacturers which model specification do you pick as your model that it's going to run its best on? Apple design thier operating system to run on their hardware at the best it possibly can. Windows can't do that simply because they don't design the hardware.
Windows can't do that simply because they don't design the hardware.
It don't seem you know much about computers (and I don't mean in derogatory sense - we all have different expertise and experience).
Microsoft don't need to make hardware - they only need to specify the glue ('driver model') that allows hardware to work with Windows.
@AlexF: I agree. This is just about classic apple ripoff standards. I have a reliable experience on my Xiaomi laptop so that suits me fine. I can understand why Mac users feel the same about their Mac's too cos of experience.
What I can't justify though is paying double or triple the price for something that takes equal time to render a video in Premiere for example. Spend that money saved on a bigger SSD or faster SSD.
Or if you just want something for web browsing or simple work and not fussy about screen or build - again just buy a windows ultrabook.
I'd say price is why Mac os has never gained a foothold on market share - ever.
@AlexF: If you're running a desktop then Windows generally won't be an issue, but finding a laptop with good drivers for Bluetooth, wifi and sleep can be tricky. I really think MS needs to clamp down on subpar hardware and drivers. Even the Surface Pro line has had its share of issues.
Should be priced at $999; fantastic a few years ago, but that screen just looks so bad in 2017.
Heck even the iPad 3 screen is far superior, and that came out in 2012.
Well get this. The Xiaomi mi notebook air 12 I have has a core m3 6y30 is slightly more powerful according to CPU Passmark than this Macbook Air. And only cost half the price.
Apple should have at least put an IPS panel in here instead of TN. Viewing angles be rubbish on TN panels.
MacBook (pre Retina) range of displays have always been rubbish, and the MacBook Air is from the generation before where the displays were rubbish.
Apple should have at least put an IPS panel in here instead of TN. Viewing angles be rubbish on TN panels.
This is really a pending future discontinued product, they made the newer 12" Macbook and 13" Macbook Pro (non touch bar) to replace the Air which are already both thinner and lighter than the Air.
That's why they haven't made a huge update in it for 3 years. They decided to make a new range of Macbooks.
Specs aren't always everything. Hardcore fanboys always look at this and make a judgement. You can have all the fastest specs and run Windows 95 for all I care, but does it make it better? Specs are half the equation, software needs to be just as good.
Look at the overall experience of the product. Not everyone is a techie and knows all the confusing specs. They just want a product that works.
Windows works as well. And you are right about specs.
However when it comes to display it's inexcusable. We have 700/800/900 dollar laptops in shops that have IPS panels. The difference between TN and IPS is night and day.
price beat at OW for $1196.15