Is The M2 MacBook Pro 14 for $500 More Worth It over a M2 MacBook Air 13

supbah on 15/06/2023 - 19:59

As per title.

With my student + work discounts, I have the option of choosing the M2 MacBook Pro 14" for an extra $500 vs the M2 MacBook Air 13". Specific builds I'm looking at is at the bottom of the post.

To me spending over 2k is a decent amount already (i.e. that's a lot). But I'm wondering whether it's worth dropping the extra money now for future proofing and better longevity.

I don't intend to do any photo/video editing on this machine (maybe some light stuff down the track here and there, but certainly not predominant use case), but am wanting it for programming/app development + productivity workhorse. I intend to keep a separate windows desktop for gaming needs.

Main reasons attracted to the Mac in the first place is long battery life, powerful and ultra portable. Lightweight is a huge plus with the Air but worried about long-term performance/usability.

Specs considered:

13" MacBook Air (~$2,250):

  • M2 Chip, 8-Core CPU, 10-Core GPU
  • 16GB RAM
  • 1TB Storage

Or,
14" MacBook Pro for an extra $500 (~$2,750):

  • M2 Pro Chip, 10‑core CPU, 16‑core GPU
  • 16GB RAM
  • 1TB Storage

Poll Options

  • 19
    13" MacBook Air M2
  • 33
    14" MacBook Pro M2
Computing 14inch Apple Computer Laptop

Comments

  • Jimothy Wongingtons on 15/06/2023 - 20:04
    +6

    Yolo - already dropping 2k what’s another $500 anyway. Nothing worse than regret

    • supbah on 15/06/2023 - 20:24

      Did think that, but also feeling guilty about potentially spending close to 3k vs closer to 2k.
      I've never dropped that kind this kind of money on a laptop before but then there's the potential regret down the line…

      • impoze on 15/06/2023 - 20:25
        +1

        Can you stack with discounted apple gift cards?

        • supbah on 15/06/2023 - 20:30
          +1

          Prices I quoted are already using stacked discounted apple gift cards via work benefits. That's where some of the discounted price comes from.

    • whatwasherproblem on 15/06/2023 - 21:25
      +1

      what’s another $500 anyway

      With the way inflation's going, pretty soon it'll be the cost of a bag of potatoes down at Colesworth. I agree with splurging on the pricier Macbook.

  • impoze on 15/06/2023 - 20:09
    +3

    Why not keep the storage at 512gb and also consider thr 15" Air, it has more gpu cores than the 13" at stock

    • supbah on 15/06/2023 - 20:22

      I would rather not have the form factor too big. Still want it very portable. From seeing it in person form factor is not much different between the MBA 13" and MPB 14".
      Also I want 1TB and 16GB RAM as a minimum.

      • impoze on 15/06/2023 - 20:25

        I see, yet to see them in person

        • supbah on 15/06/2023 - 20:48
          +1

          Yeah it's actually fairly impressive tbh. The MBP is a bit chunkier though.

          Have a look here from 1:45 onwards:
          https://youtu.be/QwC6EtTb1Rk?t=104

          • Kangal on 16/06/2023 - 02:17

            @supbah: I would look for USED a MacBook Pro 14in (M1 Pro*, 32GB model) from the likes of Facebook/Gumtree. Just agree on price, and inspect the device in-person.

            You should really upgrade the RAM, 8GB is a no-go and 16GB will be limited in the near future. 32GB RAM is the way to go for Memory, you can't add more later. For Storage 1TB nVme is pretty good, but even if you got less than that you can mitigate the issue with SD cards, USB Flash, or even External SSDs. As for the chipset, most of the CPUs are great it's the GPUs that are lacking. So optimised it for your needs there. And between the M2 (B/P/X/U) chip and the M1 variants, they're the same but overclocked. It's not really worth paying the premium for, whilst the M3 is shaping up to be a decent uplift.

            If you get "the good device" upfront, you will later be glad you did, even if it costed you a little first. I did that when I had the MBA, wasn't happy with it, had issues out of the box, and managed to hand it back and upgrade to a MBP the next day. Years later I am happy I did that.

            *ideally look for the M1 Max, but you won't find it, so you will have to settle for the M1 Pro chipset. That is because Apple removed that 14in-chipset option from the Australian Market, in order to upsell people to the 16in model. If you do find one, it's going to be a grey import, and I'm not sure how Apple treats those for International / Warranty (their Customer Care is usually great, but not always).

    • sumyungguy on 15/06/2023 - 21:05

      The bigger display tips it over for me: 15-inch Air 16GB/512GB $2,799
      Should be a third poll option, especially considering OP isn't doing video editing

      • supbah on 15/06/2023 - 21:17

        Don't really want the size that big ahah. I actually measured, doesn't even fit in my bag.

  • harryhung196 on 15/06/2023 - 20:36

    TBH have a good consideration MBA M1 for 1200ish, real life performance is not that much different to M2 MBA especially since they gimped the M2 ram and SSD

  • LanceVance on 15/06/2023 - 20:49
    +2

    I'd go the Pro, has the extra connectivity, doesn't have the 1 external monitor limitation, better performance and thermal headroom, way better screen and maybe better battery life? Seems like worth the extra $500. Especially if its something that you want to keep for a longer time.

  • Krixz on 15/06/2023 - 20:59
    +2

    OfficeWorks have the base 16/512 8C M1 MBP for 2347 - you will never max out its performance based off your description and can easily expand storage if you need.
    https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/macbook-pr…

  • cauilfield on 15/06/2023 - 21:54

    yes

  • ihfree on 15/06/2023 - 22:18

    I think both machines would have a similar life. I would go for the MBP for extra connectivity.

    Personally, my primary personal machine is a MBA. For any heavier tasks, I use my desktop.

    • supbah on 15/06/2023 - 23:16

      Have you found the MBA to be limiting or any thermal throttling in your use? At what point do you transfer over to the desktop?

      • ihfree on 15/06/2023 - 23:55

        Not really, my use is light. There have been tasks that would not be practical to run on my MBA - for example, I ran Stable Diffusion on my desktop using docker/WSL recently.

        I wouldn't give up the ability to connect two monitors based on your intended use. There is displaylink if you have a MBA, but AFAIK, there are many downsides. My MBP connects via a thunderbolt dock to two 1440p displays.

  • worldwidehappiness on 16/06/2023 - 00:26

    Portability: MBA
    Power: MBP

    Generally, the value with Apple is in sticking to the base configurations, so if MBA 8/256 is not enough, then get MBP base model. But personally, I will never get a laptop with a fan ever again. Once you've gone fanless, you can't go back.

    • ihfree on 16/06/2023 - 00:38
      +3

      Agreed, though i'd make an exception for a MBP - I don't think i've heard the fan run on mine.

  • Pelicannn on 16/06/2023 - 00:26
    +2

    Do you plan on buying say, a MBP or MBA M3 or M4 in the future? Or will you keep the laptop for a while?

    Usually, the MBP will have a better resale value and you'll a lot of that $500 back when it comes to selling it down the track.

  • jaredzammit on 16/06/2023 - 07:56

    You’re not going to run into performance issues with what you’re asking the machine to do. If you were doing any heavy photo processing or graphics work, maybe, but the M2 Airs are incredibly capable as is.

    While the niceties of the 14 inch are appreciable (ports, better screen, etc), it’s worth remembering how much less portable it is compared to the Airs. The pros are heavy and thick in a way you’ll regret on a day to day basis versus maybe the one time a year something takes longer to complete on the Air. Just make sure the monitor limitations don’t bite you in the future.

  • i2OzBargain on 16/06/2023 - 08:40

    As per some comments above, I chose the MBP over the MBA for both power, but also connectivity. You may not think you are going to plug things in, but you will more than you think. For me, the HDMI port alone on the MBP is a HUGE advantage.

    I know people have put second hand or the M1 option out there, I'd like to also suggest the "apple refurbished" store: https://www.apple.com/au/shop/refurbished
    Looks like there are a few on there atm too: https://www.apple.com/au/shop/refurbished/mac/14-inch-macboo…

  • The Hawk on 16/06/2023 - 11:17

    My Wife went the Pro (M1) over the Air for the extra battery, she also likes the Touchbar. Performance wise, the M1 was basically the same between the two (if you matched specs).

    Unless you have a specific need for the GPU, cheaper is probably better. Similarly for RAM, if you don't have a specific need you probably don't need more… that said we went with 16GB over the stock 8GB because I felt that was worth it since we will hopefully be using it for a while yet.

    Storage is far more personal, you need what you need/want. While I would only get 512GB, I have NAS storage at home to offload more photos/video/stuff, if I didn't have that I would be looking at a minimum of 1TB and be sad that 2/4TB options are stupidly expensive.

  • mlbrooke on 16/06/2023 - 13:40

    If form factor is your primary driver and performance is not an issue the. The M2 MacBook Air is good, you could wait for the 15 inch MacBook Air which is about to launch with a bigger display and the 13 inch form factor.

    Personally even if performance is not your primary concern, screen size is something I would consider as the bigger display just fits more content.

  • javawoo on 16/06/2023 - 18:51

    If u no need high spec go with air basic
    If u need high spec go with pro

  • sumyungguy on 17/06/2023 - 14:50

    Here's a developer guy comparing MB Air 13, Air 15 & Pro 14

  • pull the lever on 20/07/2023 - 11:43

    The MacBook Pro 14s have been on the refurbished store.
    I got mine for ~$2844 after 7% cashrewards (confirmed to work in the refurbished store) and 10% GST exemption, because it's for work. No scratches or blemishes whatsoever. 1TB 16GB RAM, 12 core processor, 19 core gpu.

    But the 15 inch Air is very nice too, if you can live with 8GB RAM - once you spec this up it goes into Pro territory, unless you can wait for a JB Hi-Fi deal, which is currently on now as of this post.

  • 47 on 25/09/2023 - 04:01

    How are you able to get the 14 MBP M2 for that price? Seems to be a great deal for that price.

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