Here you go! The full comparison between the new 15" MacBook Air and the 14" MacBook Pro! If you spec them the same, they cost the same. So which one would you get?
In Australia, the refurbished M2Pro 14-in MacBook Pro chosen for this comparison is priced $80 LOWER than the 15-in Air. I've been looking for such a comparison. I am not currently looking to upgrade from the M1 MacBook Air but given the choice between the ywo Macs mentioned in this video, I'd go with the Pro.
not for me i dont really see my self doing editing work but the Display is just enough for me to go for Pro over Air though its sad that in my country there is no deals on Pro
You started out talking about the upgraded 15 Air vs. the refurbished 14 Pro. SUPER exciting comparison I have been waiting for someone to cover since they match in price. Yet you compared the performance of a base 15 Air to the 14 Pro. Not all that relevant to your intro/outro talking points...Would love to see you do this test properly with matched RAM and storage specs :)
This is an easy comparison. If you use the laptop in bright lights Or You you like extra weight Or You don’t need 18+ hours of battery Or You don’t mind the fans running Or You use blender Or you get paid for video editing Then get then m2 pro refurbished. Else if you Can’t tell the difference in 5% performance improvement in everyday tasks Or Like more screen size. Or Do a lot of typing on the laptop on and need extra battery time - MBA For everyone else (non complex rendering) get a MacBook Air.
This is an unfair comparison, two base models have very different ram and SSD features, and the price is 700 different. I’d like to see Air 16g+512 SSD vs Pro base model, which is only $300 difference (or even less if buy pro on Amazon). Will the performance still be so significantly different?
It’s not unfair, the performance is comparable, and someone could easily save $700 because of this review. I’m generally a performance user yet I was very happy with the M1 air 13.3”.
I got the base model 15-inch Air, ended up returning it and buying a refurbished 14-inch M2 Pro and couldn't be happier. Easy to connect to my monitor with the HDMI port, and can handle absolutely anything I throw at it. Not to mention the amazing screen and speakers. With the base Air when I pushed the limits, it struggled at times.The ProMotion makes it easier on my eyes when I scroll
I find the base 15 inchs screen amazing from how big it is, and love the speakers though I use earbuds mostly. I love the fanless and super light design that looks sleek, the animations I disable and use page up/down so scrolling is not done often, and even then there are battery life gains so it wins there. I love my MBA and despite the Pro being much nicer in so many ways, I think the Air 15 is a beast. A 2lb 12 inch is nice too
When doing a comparison next time, I’ll give you one pro tip. You should fix the one on the left and the other one on right rather than moving around. At glance, audience may be confused and can be misinformed.
Once again, very detailed comparison. Proves that if you're gonna do professional things on your MacBook, get the Pro and not the Air. For what I do, the Air is perfect so that's what I got. I did own an M1 14" Pro and I do sometimes miss that gorgeous screen, but, for the money, the base model 15 is totally fine. Also, I like the text and windows to be a little bigger (especially since I've aged into my 50's) so the new 15 is better for that as well. Thanks for the vid!
I absolutely choose the the AIR for the reason that it's super light weight, the reason I'm using a laptop in the first place, and the bigger screen. Using the air pods still gives you high resolution with the AIR. If I really needed high performance on a consistent basis, I'd go with the 16" MacBook Pro. Secondly. the MacBook Pro in your example is refurbished, which is not easily available in Canada.
I’ve owned my 2012 MBP with upgraded RAM and SSD storage for the last 12 years, and the times have finally caught up to it (no more software and app updates). I might be biased, but I think going for the 14” Pro and maybe upgrading the RAM and storage a little bit would go a very long way as far as future-proofing your purchase, which is what I’m thinking of doing vs getting the 15” Air. Only time will tell, though.
the air is prfect for those not doing multimedia..like myself using it for office docs, remote access of other machines, and spending msot times with static text. the air is not meant for multimedia and is a great office, remote access, chat communications(voip included). the air is not meant for the media tasks and is why it doesnt have the pro label and the reduced hardware capabilities. the hardware specs actually bear this out without needing to do tests in a way the air was never designed for.
Interesting. But it is two very differented speced computers. 512 GB of SSD storage will make a lot of difference when testing due to the way Apple sets this up. And 8 GB of extra ram will also make a difference. Why not test apples with...ehm...apples? 😁 PS: What is the difference in noise? Air is silent, but is Pro 14 noisy?
never heard my 14" once since i bought it.. also own an imac 24" (16gb/512gb 2 fans) and i think i've heard it once but had to listen for it and i was even shocked that i noticed lol i was working in photoshop and lightroom with spotify music in background and browsing multiple tab in firefox. could hear it but not as loud as it used to in the intel era, like not distracting at all so i wouldn't make my choice around that concern if i were you. I personally prefer the 14", the screen is literally the best screen i owned yet. speakers almost better if not better than my imac... powerful, etc... its perfect imo
Absolutely NO. And i am an extreme user and work all the day on this machine (besides my MacStudio M1 Pro). The performance of the MBP is much much better than the MacStudio and so i do heavy renderings, photoshop with very high resolution over 20.000 pixels and lots of video cutting. When the fans turn on, you have to lay your ear onto the surface to hear it. For me the 14 MBP M1 Max is the best laptop i ever bought from apple. And believe me... i had a loooooot MBP in the past. Absolutely recommend this machine.
Nice, but the Air is meant for people whom want the 15 inch screen real estate. If you do not need that you can drop down to M2 13 and if you need to larger or SSD or Ram (the 13 is now 1099). Screen size is screen size. Most people who only doing non pro tasks will have no issue with the base M2 13 or M2 15. Everyone's needs are unique.
I went 15"air. I love the screen size, get a bump in the GPU vs the 13", better sound, better power supply... love it. Comparing these two machines is kind of dumb. You either need a PRO machine, or you don't. f you don't, get the air.. if you do, get the pro, it's far more powerful. But you can get the air with 16GB and 512GB NVME for $300 less if you just want better specs for future proofing. The air is not a heavy lifting Photo/video editing machine. The pro is.
Based on iJustine's review. The M2 chip in the Air has blurred the line even more with the Pro. You will only ever notice a real difference if you're doing intense video editing and graphics processing and want to speed up productivity. But for the general user, having those pro specs is overkill. Based on that alone, I think the 15" Air is the perfect laptop for the majority of consumers.
Incorrect. I work in multiple virtual machines/remote desktops and use multiple screens as part of my job. I also partake in photography/video making as a hobby. I have the 16 inch MBP M1 Max, 32GB Ram, 1TB SSD. Oh also, I’m 6’3” and 90 kg, so this MacBook feels like the normal MacBook Pro 14 inch for normal sized people 😂
This a small correction for the pedantic out there! If you need multiple monitors then as the Air only supports one, obviously that will not be on your radar!!!
You are paying quite a premium for the thinner MBA with a slightly bigger screen. I think the MBA is more appealing for most. For me the MBP will last me longer and has so many better features.
Both fantastic machines and in reality will deliver great performance. In reality even the Air would be good enough for most photographers/ videographers. But clearly the pro is pro for demanding users. The test seemed a little flawed using a lower specification machine in the tests, but otherwise made a convincing argument for either machine depending on your use case.
How much do you want more display real estate? That is the single reason my sister chose a 15” air (16GB/1TB) over a similarly configured 14” pro. As somebody who multitasks while sitting on the couch and doing leather work and other crafts, more screen is more better since multiple monitors don’t work well with that flow. Being able to reference patterns and designs on the computer is important. Rendering and exporting are rare occurrences so performance differences are not important.
I couldn't decide between the two for my wife for a Christmas present. I kept on trying to see what she would use it for--editing vs. casual. I eventually ended up asking her if she had the option between two screen sizes (14 vs. 15), which one would she use. She said she would always opt for the larger screen, so that is what was the deciding factor. I ended up going with the Air for her.
My personal thought is this, I want a bigger screen but don’t need all the power. Now I’ve seen both the 14 inch and 13 inch at Best buy and the difference in screen size isn’t that much, or at least for what I need but the difference between the 15 and 13 is more noticeable. Because of this I prefer the 15 over 14
The MB Air display is impressive, and I notice little difference from the Pro XDR displays. If you use a lot of HDR, then the Pro is the way to go; otherwise, the MB Air screen is A+. I do not use 120Hz so that is not a biggie for me; mostly typing or media.
for the past few weeks i have had the get a new laptop bug. Was going back and forth between Dell XPS / Asus / Apple. Thought for sure was going to be a 13inch Air. Had a refurb 13 Air (and a pro) in cart a few times but backed out. Thought ok, wait and see the 15 Air. Almost got it. But looking at tie price of upgrading ram and storage puts it in the pro $$ range. So finally, yesterday i bit the bullet and got a MacBook pro 14. Glad i did.
Thank you for the comparison! Exactly what I had asked for. I think I’ll be sticking with the 15” MBA. Thank you again, always putting the best content out
It should be understood by now that these are designed for different needs. Not sure why people still think that the M2 Air will ever keep up with a Pro machine. Thanks for the review!
What if you decide you want to do occasional gaming? What if you need those fans for rendering? What if you start a photography/videography business? Fanless laptops are overhyped. People who are considering a maxed out Air should definitely get the Pro. There's almost no difference in weight and the footprint is smaller on Pro.
Still prefer the 15” MBA 16/512 for the form factor alone and that’s why I returned my lovely Apple refurbished MBP 14” M1. Don’t regret the choice but everyone has their own preference.
In the US, your recommendation makes sense. But in Greece, the 15” MacBook Air costs 1749 € the base model and the 14” MacBook Pro 2499€. For any non-photo-video professional, the Air is a perfect option (and way cheaper).
Excellent comparison. Thank you. I’ve twice made the mistake of buying the base Air models. The problem is that the base SSD really restricted my use over time. Constantly ran out of memory and had to delete many apps. As simple models they work well for daily use. Love them. But I’m not going to make that mistake again. I’m going PRO.
I ordered a 15" MacBook Air with 24GB of unified memory and 1TB of storage. If I needed more power than the MacBook Air, I would get the 16" MacBook Pro with the M2 Max chip. I wouldn't even consider the 14" model.
Thanks for detailed reviewing. I was wondering exactly these two machines and finally made a decision. I'm gonna go MBP14 with the performance. This is absolutely prefect reference for me.
MacBook Air 15 inch makes most sense for the majority of us. Especially students and working professionals and writers. We don’t need the power of Pro most of the time we use MacBooks. We need bigger screen without breaking the bank.
All three charging ports on one side - is stupid. And maybe, a marketing trick. In the next version they might move one to another side. In this case PRO is better, you have a choice from which side to charge
Your review and commentary were a decision maker. It allowed me to quickly grasp important differences between the products and conclude how I should spend my hard-earned money. I appreciate the effort you made in producing this content.
Thanx for that. I am considering jumping from a PC to a Mac and I want to decide between Air & Pro. I think I like the Pro options you presented. Great video comparison!
Love your channel! May I ask if you could correct the way you read your decimals? E.g. 2.89 is read as “2 point eight nine”, not “2 point eighty nine”. The logic to this convention is, reading it as the latter makes it sound incorrectly larger than the former. Additionally, your current decimal convention would be problematic when trying to differentiate between 2.9 vs 2.90 vs 2.09.
So for someone who doesn’t do any video editing or photography edits, but wants top of the line, which one is better? Besides memory and all the editing goodies why is the pro Better?
Cheers ! Great presentation ! I’m definitely, going to buy the M2 MacBook Pro refurbished. Future proofing has always been a concern for me. Thank You !
RUclipsrs make these comparisons pretending that the base m2 air cannot deal with heavy tasks. Dude, that machine is strong, just because there is a pro model it doesn’t mean the air can’t be for people who create content/art/designs/videos/photography/etc -> it just take a little longer to render/export when needed. Also, with native games, the air can get a good performance when resolution is on full hd. I played resident evil 8 in base m1 air with 39-60 fps using metalFX on quality mode. For 700$ less you get a very good and lightweight machine (best laptop ever).
Your testing is confusing. You begin your video asking whether One should buy the M2 MacBook Air with 512 storage and 16 GB of RAM, or a refurbished base model, MacBook Pro. Since these are similarly priced. Then, in all your tests, you compare the baseline MacBook Pro against the baseline MacBook Air, which is $400 cheaper. And of course the MacBook Pro is going to beat the MacBook Air in all the tests, because this is not an apples to apples test in terms of performance. I really don't get this video or the point of it since these tests have been performed already by many others. Your premise you started with was completely different from other videos, but then your tests reverted to something totally different
Not a fair comparison as you can upgrade memory and RAM on macbook air and it will still be cheaper than macbook pro. Please update the review to include the upgrades.
I just went and looked at both and I don’t like how the Mac Pro fan slots are right where your hands rest at the bottom. It not smooth and kind of sharp… I went with the air…
I’m going with the 15 inch MacBook Air. I’ve own nothing but MBA in the past. I’m using it mostly for school work. I’m not doing any editing or multimedia.
It is not fair to compare the price of a refurbished Mac with a brand new one. Also, reviewers need to keep in mind that they're reviewing products for the masses and not for other reviewers. Your mind had already been made that Pro> Air, which it is but context is important too.
Air not having fans is the deal maker for me. The fans pull dust over time and machine struggles to cool down itself and make a lot of noise. The future of laptop is fanless cooling design.
Thanks for the nice overview with time measurements/comparisons. I don't plan on doing any rendering or heavy duty video editing later, so the Air at 16/1TB is my pick. It's superb for watching movies on the go, and maybe even adequate for some gaming I might do down the line, but as you know, gaming isn't a Mac strength. cheers
So I initially placed my order for a 15 inch MacBook Air M2 with 16 GB RAM and 1TB SSD….. but after you bump up the MacBook Air, for only $270 more can get the 14 Pro M2 with 120 hz pro motion display, more ports, dual external monitor support etc…. Now I don’t know what to do 😫😫 help
reaffirms my belief...only buy a Pro, Max or Ultra processor unless your computer use is ••just•• Email, Web, Office, watching RUclips/Netflix/ and other basic light duty use...
The baseline 15 inch Air is so hard to recommend. You're much better off going with the next one up for general usage. It shouldn't surprise anyone that the M2 Pro was going to demolish the M2 in heavier tasks.
I am in the market for a new Mac. It's like choosing what I need vs. what I want. For example, I bought my wife the new Nissan Pathfinder Rock Creek which is better for off road and looks more badass than the normal model. It has more ground clearance, bigger & offroad wheels, better suspension, sweet roof rack, etc... But she will never take it off road where the regular model would be incapable. So we went for want vs. need. After watching this where the Pro wins in just about all the measurements (i.e. speed, resolution, etc..), it is what I would want. But I do not need all the extra speed as I do not use complicated software. Just MS Office. I do use Garageband where i plug my guitar, bass, keys and mics for vocal and drums but I am not recording tunes with tons of tracks. My current 2015 13" Pro does a pretty good job. The Air does have a bigger screen. If it did not, it would not be a question, I would get the Pro. The 16" Pro costs too much. 2500 for the base model.
Why don’t any person shows the normal vedio editing being done on macbook air 15 . Why all are behind numbers of comparison . Many people want to see someone editing a a 4k vedio on final cut and how it handle it . That’s a content i am cared about . I don’t care about my export is 10 min longer than a more expensive laptop . I can wait for that much time , totally okayy . But what matters is is it possible to do average vedio editing on macbook air 15 base model .. without much hiccups, wish that could solve alot of people’s confusion..
Yes, I can confirm that as far as 4K or lower goes, the 15-inch MB Air will perform similarly to the MB Pro M2 in the timeline. The difference is only rendering time, but that is okay for non-pros. When you get more complex edits with layers, then the RAM becomes the bottleneck, so 16-24GB is needed for that work or 6K-8K workflows.
![MacBook Air M3 vs MacBook Pro M3 - Which Should You Buy? [2024]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/I0YcblQpJBg/mqdefault.jpg)
![MacBook Air M3 vs MacBook Pro M3 - Which Should You Buy? [2024]](/img/tr.png)
Here you go! The full comparison between the new 15" MacBook Air and the 14" MacBook Pro! If you spec them the same, they cost the same. So which one would you get?
I might pick the Pro.
MacBook Pro
I travel and work outside a lot. I'd love the light weight of the 15" air, but the Pro's screen quality and brightness wins for me.
I went with the 15” MBA. Was going to buy the Pro but that bigger screen size is more valuable to me than the 14” MBP having better specs
In Australia, the refurbished M2Pro 14-in MacBook Pro chosen for this comparison is priced $80 LOWER than the 15-in Air. I've been looking for such a comparison. I am not currently looking to upgrade from the M1 MacBook Air but given the choice between the ywo Macs mentioned in this video, I'd go with the Pro.
I think you should have compared the 16GB/512GB Air to the Pro, since this is what most people are actually choosing between.
totally agree
Yeah that’s what I’m choosing between
That would be nice!
Yes, the MBA 15 was gimped in several tests because of its lack of RAM and SSD performance
Agree. Really need to see these comparisons - as people buying the base model MBA wouldn't be thinking about getting a MBP
In a nutshell, the Air 15 is the best choice for the 98% of us who don't edit video.
not for me i dont really see my self doing editing work but the Display is just enough for me to go for Pro over Air
though its sad that in my country there is no deals on Pro
And for 80% of people who do edit videos but don’t get paid to do it full time.
IJustine did her editing on the MBA 15”. Seems to work for her and she is paid to be a creator.
Not really. The 14” is for those who want a better screen, speaker system, superior performance, and useful ports.
Not for me. I wanted the better display. Can never go back to an air display
You started out talking about the upgraded 15 Air vs. the refurbished 14 Pro. SUPER exciting comparison I have been waiting for someone to cover since they match in price. Yet you compared the performance of a base 15 Air to the 14 Pro. Not all that relevant to your intro/outro talking points...Would love to see you do this test properly with matched RAM and storage specs :)
agreed
agreed x2
This is an easy comparison. If you use the laptop in bright lights
Or
You you like extra weight
Or
You don’t need 18+ hours of battery
Or
You don’t mind the fans running
Or
You use blender
Or
you get paid for video editing
Then get then m2 pro refurbished.
Else if you
Can’t tell the difference in 5% performance improvement in everyday tasks
Or
Like more screen size.
Or
Do a lot of typing on the laptop on
and need extra battery time - MBA
For everyone else (non complex rendering) get a MacBook Air.
agreed x3 i doubt many people will be trying to choose between the base MBA vs the Pro
@@timbukstu is the macbook air 15 better for typing?
IMO this test is a bit biased since the 16/512 MBA has better performances than the 8/256 MBA used in this video.
Not a fair comparison. Everyone comparing base models of air and pro. Compare base model 14pro with 15 air 16gb ram 512 storage.
Really good point, but I thought that he was doing that. Now I'm not sure.
This is an unfair comparison, two base models have very different ram and SSD features, and the price is 700 different. I’d like to see Air 16g+512 SSD vs Pro base model, which is only $300 difference (or even less if buy pro on Amazon). Will the performance still be so significantly different?
Me too
That’s stupid because they’re entirely different products at different base units. People buying air are 90% buying base model.
agree, the comparison is useless
It’s not unfair, the performance is comparable, and someone could easily save $700 because of this review. I’m generally a performance user yet I was very happy with the M1 air 13.3”.
@@tim-ox since the ssd speed it way slower on 256gb base model, it actually is.
I got the base model 15-inch Air, ended up returning it and buying a refurbished 14-inch M2 Pro and couldn't be happier. Easy to connect to my monitor with the HDMI port, and can handle absolutely anything I throw at it. Not to mention the amazing screen and speakers. With the base Air when I pushed the limits, it struggled at times.The ProMotion makes it easier on my eyes when I scroll
You can buy a hub to get HDMI and SD card ports for a MBA though
Definitely agree the speakers sound better on the MBP !!
I find the base 15 inchs screen amazing from how big it is, and love the speakers though I use earbuds mostly. I love the fanless and super light design that looks sleek, the animations I disable and use page up/down so scrolling is not done often, and even then there are battery life gains so it wins there. I love my MBA and despite the Pro being much nicer in so many ways, I think the Air 15 is a beast. A 2lb 12 inch is nice too
When doing a comparison next time, I’ll give you one pro tip.
You should fix the one on the left and the other one on right rather than moving around.
At glance, audience may be confused and can be misinformed.
Once again, very detailed comparison. Proves that if you're gonna do professional things on your MacBook, get the Pro and not the Air. For what I do, the Air is perfect so that's what I got. I did own an M1 14" Pro and I do sometimes miss that gorgeous screen, but, for the money, the base model 15 is totally fine. Also, I like the text and windows to be a little bigger (especially since I've aged into my 50's) so the new 15 is better for that as well. Thanks for the vid!
I'm a professional and I use the Air all the time. Many people do.
I’m a consumer, and I need that gorgeous screen but not the processing power.
I absolutely choose the the AIR for the reason that it's super light weight, the reason I'm using a laptop in the first place, and the bigger screen. Using the air pods still gives you high resolution with the AIR. If I really needed high performance on a consistent basis, I'd go with the 16" MacBook Pro. Secondly. the MacBook Pro in your example is refurbished, which is not easily available in Canada.
I’ve owned my 2012 MBP with upgraded RAM and SSD storage for the last 12 years, and the times have finally caught up to it (no more software and app updates). I might be biased, but I think going for the 14” Pro and maybe upgrading the RAM and storage a little bit would go a very long way as far as future-proofing your purchase, which is what I’m thinking of doing vs getting the 15” Air. Only time will tell, though.
I love my 2012 MacBook pro, sadly no more updates.
the air is prfect for those not doing multimedia..like myself using it for office docs, remote access of other machines, and spending msot times with static text. the air is not meant for multimedia and is a great office, remote access, chat communications(voip included). the air is not meant for the media tasks and is why it doesnt have the pro label and the reduced hardware capabilities. the hardware specs actually bear this out without needing to do tests in a way the air was never designed for.
Interesting. But it is two very differented speced computers. 512 GB of SSD storage will make a lot of difference when testing due to the way Apple sets this up. And 8 GB of extra ram will also make a difference. Why not test apples with...ehm...apples? 😁 PS: What is the difference in noise? Air is silent, but is Pro 14 noisy?
never heard my 14" once since i bought it.. also own an imac 24" (16gb/512gb 2 fans) and i think i've heard it once but had to listen for it and i was even shocked that i noticed lol i was working in photoshop and lightroom with spotify music in background and browsing multiple tab in firefox. could hear it but not as loud as it used to in the intel era, like not distracting at all so i wouldn't make my choice around that concern if i were you. I personally prefer the 14", the screen is literally the best screen i owned yet. speakers almost better if not better than my imac... powerful, etc... its perfect imo
Absolutely NO. And i am an extreme user and work all the day on this machine (besides my MacStudio M1 Pro). The performance of the MBP is much much better than the MacStudio and so i do heavy renderings, photoshop with very high resolution over 20.000 pixels and lots of video cutting. When the fans turn on, you have to lay your ear onto the surface to hear it.
For me the 14 MBP M1 Max is the best laptop i ever bought from apple. And believe me... i had a loooooot MBP in the past. Absolutely recommend this machine.
Nice, but the Air is meant for people whom want the 15 inch screen real estate. If you do not need that you can drop down to M2 13 and if you need to larger or SSD or Ram (the 13 is now 1099). Screen size is screen size. Most people who only doing non pro tasks will have no issue with the base M2 13 or M2 15. Everyone's needs are unique.
Would using Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro X mean that I am a pro user?
I went 15"air. I love the screen size, get a bump in the GPU vs the 13", better sound, better power supply... love it.
Comparing these two machines is kind of dumb. You either need a PRO machine, or you don't. f you don't, get the air.. if you do, get the pro, it's far more powerful. But you can get the air with 16GB and 512GB NVME for $300 less if you just want better specs for future proofing. The air is not a heavy lifting Photo/video editing machine. The pro is.
Based on iJustine's review. The M2 chip in the Air has blurred the line even more with the Pro. You will only ever notice a real difference if you're doing intense video editing and graphics processing and want to speed up productivity. But for the general user, having those pro specs is overkill. Based on that alone, I think the 15" Air is the perfect laptop for the majority of consumers.
Air unless you professionally create content. Case closed
Mmm, no. I don’t professionally create content, but I still have a 16 inch MacBook Pro as multiple monitors are essential in my workflow
Incorrect.
I work in multiple virtual machines/remote desktops and use multiple screens as part of my job.
I also partake in photography/video making as a hobby.
I have the 16 inch MBP M1 Max, 32GB Ram, 1TB SSD.
Oh also, I’m 6’3” and 90 kg, so this MacBook feels like the normal MacBook Pro 14 inch for normal sized people 😂
@@AnthonyP1234 agreed. I use 2 screens atm so the Air is a non starter for me
Case closed? Ok cringelord
This a small correction for the pedantic out there! If you need multiple monitors then as the Air only supports one, obviously that will not be on your radar!!!
Thanks for the review. I agree with you that despite the weight, the 14” MacBook Pro is the way to go - especially if you plan to edit in Premiere.
Despite the weight! The weight difference is 9 grams.
I would choose the Pro. The smaller footprint makes up for the weight and thickness differences - especially when traveling.
yes but I hope the next will be a little more thinner, just a little.
@@JohnSmith-zl8rzTrue pros don't care about a bit of extra thickness if it means better port, battery life, cooling, and speakers.
You are paying quite a premium for the thinner MBA with a slightly bigger screen. I think the MBA is more appealing for most. For me the MBP will last me longer and has so many better features.
Both fantastic machines and in reality will deliver great performance. In reality even the Air would be good enough for most photographers/ videographers. But clearly the pro is pro for demanding users. The test seemed a little flawed using a lower specification machine in the tests, but otherwise made a convincing argument for either machine depending on your use case.
How much do you want more display real estate?
That is the single reason my sister chose a 15” air (16GB/1TB) over a similarly configured 14” pro. As somebody who multitasks while sitting on the couch and doing leather work and other crafts, more screen is more better since multiple monitors don’t work well with that flow. Being able to reference patterns and designs on the computer is important. Rendering and exporting are rare occurrences so performance differences are not important.
I couldn't decide between the two for my wife for a Christmas present. I kept on trying to see what she would use it for--editing vs. casual. I eventually ended up asking her if she had the option between two screen sizes (14 vs. 15), which one would she use. She said she would always opt for the larger screen, so that is what was the deciding factor. I ended up going with the Air for her.
I got a refurbished M1 Macbook Pro with a 512GB SSD for around $1500 and couldn't be happier
I’m getting the 15-inch MacBook Air 😊
My personal thought is this, I want a bigger screen but don’t need all the power. Now I’ve seen both the 14 inch and 13 inch at Best buy and the difference in screen size isn’t that much, or at least for what I need but the difference between the 15 and 13 is more noticeable. Because of this I prefer the 15 over 14
Dont need the power just the ram and that mini led display tbh
I'd go 14 pro because it can do more. Better speaker sound is nice too brighter screen.
Nice review as always..👍
Definitely go with mbp 14"..the advantages are many and I personally love good displays.
The MB Air display is impressive, and I notice little difference from the Pro XDR displays. If you use a lot of HDR, then the Pro is the way to go; otherwise, the MB Air screen is A+. I do not use 120Hz so that is not a biggie for me; mostly typing or media.
for the past few weeks i have had the get a new laptop bug. Was going back and forth between Dell XPS / Asus / Apple. Thought for sure was going to be a 13inch Air. Had a refurb 13 Air (and a pro) in cart a few times but backed out. Thought ok, wait and see the 15 Air. Almost got it. But looking at tie price of upgrading ram and storage puts it in the pro $$ range.
So finally, yesterday i bit the bullet and got a MacBook pro 14. Glad i did.
I thought you were Andrew Garfield making a review for Macbooks LOL.
Thank you for the comparison! Exactly what I had asked for. I think I’ll be sticking with the 15” MBA. Thank you again, always putting the best content out
It should be understood by now that these are designed for different needs. Not sure why people still think that the M2 Air will ever keep up with a Pro machine. Thanks for the review!
Your English is so pleasant. Just nice to hear your pronunciation. It’s really pleasure.
This is the comparison I wanted
Thanks man 🎉🎉
What if you decide you want to do occasional gaming? What if you need those fans for rendering? What if you start a photography/videography business? Fanless laptops are overhyped. People who are considering a maxed out Air should definitely get the Pro. There's almost no difference in weight and the footprint is smaller on Pro.
Still prefer the 15” MBA 16/512 for the form factor alone and that’s why I returned my lovely Apple refurbished MBP 14” M1. Don’t regret the choice but everyone has their own preference.
In the US, your recommendation makes sense. But in Greece, the 15” MacBook Air costs 1749 € the base model and the 14” MacBook Pro 2499€. For any non-photo-video professional, the Air is a perfect option (and way cheaper).
The power to wait is amazing knowing the future of mac's is looking great. M3 here I come...
Excellent comparison. Thank you.
I’ve twice made the mistake of buying the base Air models. The problem is that the base SSD really restricted my use over time. Constantly ran out of memory and had to delete many apps.
As simple models they work well for daily use. Love them.
But I’m not going to make that mistake again. I’m going PRO.
that's why you need to upgrade the ssd and not be cheap.
This is exactly what I’m looking for, really appreciate the review！！！
I ordered a 15" MacBook Air with 24GB of unified memory and 1TB of storage. If I needed more power than the MacBook Air, I would get the 16" MacBook Pro with the M2 Max chip. I wouldn't even consider the 14" model.
LoL
I am debating between MBA 15 and MBP 16. I think that would be a better comparison as the 15 MBA is close to MBP 16 in size.
Thanks for detailed reviewing. I was wondering exactly these two machines and finally made a decision. I'm gonna go MBP14 with the performance. This is absolutely prefect reference for me.
I will up the ssd and get the Air. That screen size difference is huge for me as a student and the Air looks like the perfect laptop to me.
Best review I have seen for product comparison. Thank you.
Thanks for the great video! It's basically a decision between battery life and performance.
MacBook Air 15 inch makes most sense for the majority of us. Especially students and working professionals and writers. We don’t need the power of Pro most of the time we use MacBooks. We need bigger screen without breaking the bank.
16 GB RAM vs 8? 256 vs 500 GB hard drive? Is this a fair question?
Great video and thank you for comparing a cost approach
Thanks for mentioning the Vivid app. I work outside a lot on my pro and wasn't aware of it.
I jave been watching zone of tech for the past 3 years and you deserve more subscriber s
Thanks dude, appreciate your reviews. Greetings from Satu Mare, Romania :)
All three charging ports on one side - is stupid. And maybe, a marketing trick. In the next version they might move one to another side. In this case PRO is better, you have a choice from which side to charge
Your review and commentary were a decision maker. It allowed me to quickly grasp important differences between the products and conclude how I should spend my hard-earned money. I appreciate the effort you made in producing this content.
If you already have a beefy pc at home. Might aswell get the air 😅
Your honest review worth the thumbs up. Thanks for the video.
Thanx for that. I am considering jumping from a PC to a Mac and I want to decide between Air & Pro. I think I like the Pro options you presented. Great video comparison!
don't buy for the performance of tomorrow. buy when you already need the performance.
Love your channel! May I ask if you could correct the way you read your decimals? E.g. 2.89 is read as “2 point eight nine”, not “2 point eighty nine”. The logic to this convention is, reading it as the latter makes it sound incorrectly larger than the former. Additionally, your current decimal convention would be problematic when trying to differentiate between 2.9 vs 2.90 vs 2.09.
I love this comment
So for someone who doesn’t do any video editing or photography edits, but wants top of the line, which one is better? Besides memory and all the editing goodies why is the pro Better?
The MacBook Air does not have thunderbolt 4. It has thunderbolt 3 only.
Cheers ! Great presentation ! I’m definitely, going to buy the M2 MacBook Pro refurbished. Future proofing has always been a concern for me. Thank You !
Amazing review. I’ll upgrade to the MBP 14” since I loved the performance for adobe lightroom
RUclipsrs make these comparisons pretending that the base m2 air cannot deal with heavy tasks. Dude, that machine is strong, just because there is a pro model it doesn’t mean the air can’t be for people who create content/art/designs/videos/photography/etc -> it just take a little longer to render/export when needed. Also, with native games, the air can get a good performance when resolution is on full hd. I played resident evil 8 in base m1 air with 39-60 fps using metalFX on quality mode. For 700$ less you get a very good and lightweight machine (best laptop ever).
This was exactly the video I was needing, thank you!
Best comparison I’ve seen. Thank you.
Your testing is confusing.
You begin your video asking whether One should buy the M2 MacBook Air with 512 storage and 16 GB of RAM, or a refurbished base model, MacBook Pro. Since these are similarly priced.
Then, in all your tests, you compare the baseline MacBook Pro against the baseline MacBook Air, which is $400 cheaper.
And of course the MacBook Pro is going to beat the MacBook Air in all the tests, because this is not an apples to apples test in terms of performance.
I really don't get this video or the point of it since these tests have been performed already by many others.
Your premise you started with was completely different from other videos, but then your tests reverted to something totally different
Another awesome and useful comparison video from ZONEofTECH
Not a fair comparison as you can upgrade memory and RAM on macbook air and it will still be cheaper than macbook pro. Please update the review to include the upgrades.
The Video quality and the number edited in your Content is really great and smooth though.
I just went and looked at both and I don’t like how the Mac Pro fan slots are right where your hands rest at the bottom. It not smooth and kind of sharp… I went with the air…
I’m going with the 15 inch MacBook Air. I’ve own nothing but MBA in the past. I’m using it mostly for school work. I’m not doing any editing or multimedia.
Finally someone including relevant REFURBISHED/DISCOUNTED items thank you.
Microsoft Word and Excel are likely more pleasant to work with on the Air.
It is not fair to compare the price of a refurbished Mac with a brand new one. Also, reviewers need to keep in mind that they're reviewing products for the masses and not for other reviewers. Your mind had already been made that Pro> Air, which it is but context is important too.
Air not having fans is the deal maker for me. The fans pull dust over time and machine struggles to cool down itself and make a lot of noise. The future of laptop is fanless cooling design.
imma return the 15 " and get the pro I don't need the m2 pro but who knows maybe in future I will also I want that mini led screen
We all know by now that the 256gb Air 13 and 15 have a brain damaged storage setup. You should've compared the Air with 512gb for a fairer comparison.
Thanks for the nice overview with time measurements/comparisons.
I don't plan on doing any rendering or heavy duty video editing later, so the Air at 16/1TB is my pick. It's superb for watching movies on the go, and maybe even adequate for some gaming I might do down the line, but as you know, gaming isn't a Mac strength. cheers
So I initially placed my order for a 15 inch MacBook Air M2 with 16 GB RAM and 1TB SSD….. but after you bump up the MacBook Air, for only $270 more can get the 14 Pro M2 with 120 hz pro motion display, more ports, dual external monitor support etc…. Now I don’t know what to do 😫😫 help
14 Pro M2
I appreciated the lack of overly technical jargon and straightforward comparisons.
Nice review, but... these are two different lines for different target people, people want air means they don't need pro power, sooo...
I chosen the 15 MacBook Air because I don’t do I intensive work on it and it’s just perfect for me.
Excellent comparison, thanks for the hard work! Please keep it up!
As someone who only does music production, would either one be good for music production? Looking into getting my first MacBook sometime soon
Both is also an option, MBP for at home for photo/video editing and other stuff and the MBA for on the go / holidays
why you comparing 3 different laptops?
Thank You this was very helpful on my decision
reaffirms my belief...only buy a Pro, Max or Ultra processor unless your computer use is ••just•• Email, Web, Office, watching RUclips/Netflix/ and other basic light duty use...
Thank you, Daniel, for a very informative and necessary video!
Higher brightness on the 14 is really nice even indoors sometimes
Great content as usual!
The baseline 15 inch Air is so hard to recommend. You're much better off going with the next one up for general usage. It shouldn't surprise anyone that the M2 Pro was going to demolish the M2 in heavier tasks.
I am in the market for a new Mac. It's like choosing what I need vs. what I want. For example, I bought my wife the new Nissan Pathfinder Rock Creek which is better for off road and looks more badass than the normal model. It has more ground clearance, bigger & offroad wheels, better suspension, sweet roof rack, etc... But she will never take it off road where the regular model would be incapable. So we went for want vs. need.
After watching this where the Pro wins in just about all the measurements (i.e. speed, resolution, etc..), it is what I would want. But I do not need all the extra speed as I do not use complicated software. Just MS Office. I do use Garageband where i plug my guitar, bass, keys and mics for vocal and drums but I am not recording tunes with tons of tracks. My current 2015 13" Pro does a pretty good job. The Air does have a bigger screen. If it did not, it would not be a question, I would get the Pro. The 16" Pro costs too much. 2500 for the base model.
Hey man, I'm looking for freelance design work, do you know anyone need some artwork or logo? :-)
In Europe an Air 15" 16GB 512GB is more expensive than the base M1 Pro 16".
If you try to spec out the MBA15, you're basically better of with the MBP14 base model.
Well detailed and informative comparison 👏
Why comparing 8GB ram MBA vs 16gb ram MBP. Of course there will be a difference only because of that.
Shouldn’t it be equal for a comparison?
Why don’t any person shows the normal vedio editing being done on macbook air 15 . Why all are behind numbers of comparison . Many people want to see someone editing a a 4k vedio on final cut and how it handle it . That’s a content i am cared about . I don’t care about my export is 10 min longer than a more expensive laptop . I can wait for that much time , totally okayy . But what matters is is it possible to do average vedio editing on macbook air 15 base model .. without much hiccups, wish that could solve alot of people’s confusion..
Yes, I can confirm that as far as 4K or lower goes, the 15-inch MB Air will perform similarly to the MB Pro M2 in the timeline. The difference is only rendering time, but that is okay for non-pros. When you get more complex edits with layers, then the RAM becomes the bottleneck, so 16-24GB is needed for that work or 6K-8K workflows.
even M1 macbook air can do average video editing very well .
M2 is even good for pro youtubers
Thanku bud!!
But you compare 14 Pro Base vs 15 Air Base. And this is 700$ different for this machines.