10 core GPU, 16 GB RAM and 512 GB SSD, with 67 W charger. I would like a machine that will never hit its limits with Lightroom editing, and figured I could rest easy with this configuration. I decided I valued fast charging more than dual charging.
I opted for 10 core GPU, 16 GB unified memory, and 512 GB ssd varient as it's going to be my primary computer and i am planning to use it atleast 5 -7 years.
@@ashleyvandescheur I’d go silver if you plan on keeping it for more than a few years. I can’t imagine the dark finish on the midnight color wearing well
I ordered the M2 MacBook Air base configuration, but I added the 67w charger. I figured it might be nice to have the faster charger for just $20 more. This Air will be my portable laptop for everyday tasks. My desktop setup will handle the heavy-duty tasks. And the M1 MacBook Air is definitely NOT obsolete! It’s a fine solution for a large group of computer users.
This is the most helpful video I’ve seen about how to decide which specs to get on the M2. I think Apple makes it confusing because they want you to get nervous and upgrade the specs and the tech guys that make videos want the best of everything because they use it for so many high performance activities. A lot of just need it for basic things, anyway, thanks for a really helpful video!
One of the great things about Macs is how long they last. Many users will use their new MacBook as their primary computer for 5+ years. So the question shouldn't be whether 8GB is enough memory for 2022, but for 2027.
This is 100% the comment I was looking for. And actually, 8 GB of RAM isn’t even enough because I’ve seen Macs with that much memory Macs constantly using swap memory, which increases the limited lifespan of the soldered SSDs, and will eventually lead to a paperweight of done too often over several years. Add that to the slower SSDs, and I think 16 GB of RAM should have been the baseline.
@@cameronbosch1213 Do not mind SSD usage for swap. My old M1 MBA with 8GB RAM had average 20GB written per day, so with margin 8TB/yr. Typical SSDs have 150TBW granted by manufacturer, so even 10TBW/yr means 15yrs, but it is just guarantee not real lifespan, Had 120GB SSD in 4GB windows machine, after 8yrs 175TBW and mostly 100% condition. My old gaming PC had 3yrs 256GB SSD for system, apps and documents… 32GB RAM, swap dissabled… 24TBW after 3rsy, so PC had even bigger SSD usage with 4x bigger RAM. I switched to 16GB model MBA, becouse 8GB was just rented, but right now my typical usage is about 15GB/day, so only 5GB/day difference. I even do not notice any perfromance differrence between 8 and 16GB model.
@@Wokiis I had a (maybe 2008-9?) 27" iMac that lasted for 10 years and was still going strong when it stopped getting security updates because the CPU architecture wouldn't support all the new features. If it wasn't such a space heater I'd probably install Linux on it rather than leave it in the closet...
@@jirikocman I agree that currently 8GB is probably fine for performance for most users. But given the performance of these CPUs, the memory will more likely be the bottleneck a few years down the road. Most users will probably be better served in the long run by an M1 with 16 GB over an M2 with 8GB at the same price point.
I ordered the 8gb 512gb ssd version on Friday. I woke up on Saturday and cancelled it. I’ll save myself £600 and stick with the m1 version because really the difference is so subtle it’s just not worth the extra.
Nice video as always... I opted for the 16gb 1tb... as that's the spec I went for the M1 MBA - very excited! I would say AppleCare is better paid for after the date as a subscription - you get to spread the cost and it lasts longer... personally a win win! been a god send for the MBP 16 Max!
Can you do this in the beginning? Couldn't see an option outside of the 2/3 year Cover - I've got it for my iPad, but didn't know you could pay monthly for AC+ on MBA!
Huge dollops of commonsense in this vid Mark. Be careful - it’ll never catch on! 😆 I know we probably need to wait for MaxTech & the rest of the guys to run their tests but can I put this out there? Nobody needs 24GB on a MBAir. For the money, buy a 14” MBP instead. Amirite? 😆
Hi Mark. Great video. Regarding Apple Care and the Warranty. It’s also worth remembering that under Consumer Law in the UK you may be entitled to a free of charge repair, replacement or refund from the seller if the goods are defective or do not conform to the contract of sale. In England and Wales this lasts for 6 years (5yrs in Scotland). I’ve used this to replace hard drives in iMacs, TVs, VR headsets and many other expensive devices for free, long after the warranty has expired. This is why I always purchase from a retailer I think will still be around in a few years time!
Lucky you. I had to fight with Dell regarding a (at the time) less than 2 year old XPS laptop. It took almost a year to replace the defective laptop, and the process was so bad, I eventually had to escalate the issue to REALLY high levels within Dell before I got a laptop. Only recently after I clean installed the replacement has it been good, but that was 4 years of the laptop’s life essentially wasted…
@@cameronbosch1213 that’s rough. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had battles with some retailers, Game…JL to name a couple where I’ve had to pull the old “email the CEO directly” trick but never had a problem with Apple or Amazon (I would flag that neither have actively reminded me of my Consumer Rights tho…)
I love your videos Mark! You give honest, straightforward advice for everyday users. I'm going for the 16GB RAM / 1TB SSD option to future proof the laptop (and I'll store a fair amount of videos on there). I personally prefer editing directly from the device, rather than external SSDs, but financially external HDDs are much better value! Cheers :)
I know I'm a year late but I ordered a an 8c/8c/24GB/512GB in Space Grey, to last me throughout college Computer Science degree and some AI/ML work. Very excited
I decided I’m getting the M2 the base 8/256 It will benefit me for many years. Work, documents and photography 👍🏼 thank you for your great videos. Cheers. 😎
Had trouble choosing between 8 gb or 16 gb ram, since I will use it for the danish version of high school/college and mostly work with documents & presentations + I have a gaming pc at home, which can take on the heaviest task with no sweat. Went with 16 gb ram anyways, mostly because i will keep it for long and because my bugdet allow it. Thanks for the help :)
Have you watched this Art is Right "M2 which is a better upgrade 16GB RAM vs 512GB SSD for the most performance?" ruclips.net/video/YKRO-4BiZrI/видео.html
Im waiting for my midnight M2 MBA to arrive. I spec the unified memory to 16GB since I observed that 8GB unified memory on my M1 iMac is easily used up with few youtube tabs open playing 4k videos and a few other apps running.
Great tips. I belong to the first option. So I went in for the base model with the included 30w charger. In my opinion the mba holds charge well so I may not really need the fast charger.
Thank you and well said. Too many out there coming up with fictional scenarios about how the MBA M2 will fail, perform poorly, etc. The base model is perfect for the casual user & average user who does not have large media files.
I went with an 8/8, 16GB, 512GB, 30W with no AppleCare+. I’m just using it as my personal (productivity and media) machine. It gets around any concerns about 8GB RAM, and the single 256GB SSD performance issues. Spend any more and you are dangerously close to the 2021 14” MBP base, which has no downsides compared to the M2 MBA unless you absolutely need the smaller size.
Great video! I wonder if you could make a similar one for MacBook air m1 in light of this video and having in mind M2 air option :) I am aware you done it or sum up at the end, however, maybe you would like to make another in similar regards as this one?
6:32 Well, I cannot really forget yet the butterfly keyboards (it was a pretty serious issue until the magic keyboard expanded to equip all laptops in 2020 which was only two years ago)... If we move a bit before, then I would also include the pealing anti-glare coating and the swollen batteries.
@Ramp I knew somebody who had a 2016 15 inch MacBook Pro go down with a key that double typed randomly, and after he went to Apple to have it fixed (before the repair program, although I think he was able to get a refund on that service), he still hated the keyboard and put a cover on it. Ever since he bought a 2019 16 inch MacBook Pro and then a 2020 M1 MacBook Air, he loves them and prefers those Magic Keyboards. And he normally LOVES Apple products, just not that one. He always has the latest iPhone Pro Max, an iPad Mini, and he uses that aforementioned M1 MacBook Air for work except for some legacy application that only runs on Windows, which he uses a Lenovo Yoga laptop for. On the other hand, my mother got a 15 inch 2018 MacBook Pro (to replace a 2008 15 inch Unibody model) and she hasn’t had any issues with the keyboard. Though in my opinion, it only takes a little heat warping the butterfly key switches to deform the keys, and because those models ran super hot, it’s only a matter of time before they warp and start double typing too… The point is, along with the fact that Apple is quickly killing off their Intel Macs, I would never buy a Mac with a butterfly keyboard for ANY price. (I personally did not like the butterfly keyboard at all for typing, but whether or not you liked it, you have to admit that the reliability was always questionable to the point of not being usable ever again.)
@Ramp I purposely avoided to buy one when I heard of the story (I kept my 2015 Retina MBP until I switched to the M1 Air). Five of my friends did though, some of them multiple times with the same computer. You were lucky or my friends were unlucky you choose! In the end there were far too many unlucky people for this issue to be ignored. So many that Apple had to set up a service program to all of the laptops equipped with the butterfly keyboard if you remember. The fact that their service program even included the 2019 15"and 13" MacBook Pros at the very time of their release was the furthest that Apple went to implicitly acknowledge the issue. The service program was only discontinued to the models released after the 2019 16" MacBook Pro (which all have the magic keyboard).
@Ramp My wife had two laptops in a row with the butterfly keyboard that eventually had double-typing keys. She's a fast typist (140+ wpm) and hits pretty hard, so I don't know if it was just luck of the draw, or if they keyboards were especially bad for typists who type hard, or both.
Great video! I went with the m2 air 8 cores on cpu and gpu 16gb memory and 1tb storage in midnight with the dual 35w charger. Can’t wait to get my hands on it!
Can you do a video soon about external SSD storage? That is a topic i am certainly interested in learning more about. Great video and keep up the excellent work.
It was a while ago I grant you but there was a video about "cheaper" chargers that were basically crap and some caught fire due to their poor design and manufacture. Just a heads up for those tempted to skimp on chargers. Electrickery can be a dangerous thing.
I have two options either, 1. 10 Core GPU, with 8GB Ram and 512GB SSD Macbook Air 2. 8 Core GPU, with 16GB ram and 512GB SSD Macbook Air I think that I would rarely need the 10 Core GPU and that 16GB Ram would be more useful. Please give me your thoughts?
@@MarkEllisReviews I have just looked a pricing where I am located: And My Spec Comes to $2639 for the 8 Core GPU and 512 GB SSD and 16GB Ram upgrade. If I add the fast charger since it comes with the 30W it comes to a price of $2679 if I then add the price of a USB C hub since I need HDMI 4K it comes to $2755. There is a retailer here and they have the 14 inch Macbook Pro M1 PRO with 16GB Ram and 512SSD for $3059 there is a price difference of $300 NZD (New Zealand Dollar) Would you suggest me upgrading to that.
Hi Mark, your videos are great. Thank you for your guidance. I will be ordering the model that gives 35w or 67w charger free. Please which would you recommend? Anyone who can advise I’d really appreciate it.
This is a really useful video. I think I am going to wait however with my 16" intel MacBook pro for now but the air is in my near future and the trade in value for my mac is decreasing rapidly. On a side note, what watch are you wearing?
Hi Mark, My wife and I want to switch from Ipad to macbook air M2. It’s going to be our macbook at home and we are will use the mac for browsing, writing documents and keeping or vacations pictures on it. Which configuration are you suggesting to buy. Please consider it that we probably going to sell it in 5 6 years and we don’t have financial difficulties. Best Regards Jahan
I will only use it to browse the web, email, pages, watching RUclips videos and looking at my pictures that are stored in iCloud. Is the base model enough for me? I would like to keep it for a few years, but I know my use will remain the same. Please help.
8 core or 10? I like the idea of crisper graphics with the 10, but is it really a battery drain and is heating up a problem? And does that outweigh the graphics advantage? Can’t find that answer anywhere. The $ difference isn’t much, so that doesn’t really factor in. Either way, I plan to go with 16 GB unified memory and 512 SSD, 67 charger and no apple care (yikes!).
I'm a glutton for punishment! I'm hanging onto 2 - 21.5" iMacs (Late 2011 Catalina OCLP & Late-2013 Monterey OCLP), but I have the M1 13" MBP base model and it has done me well with graphic work, Video Editing and Clerical stuff... With the new MacOS coming, I just bought a refurbished Mac Mini 8GB unified memory 512GB SSD and a LG 32" QHD (1440p) Monitor, that will replace the 2013 iMac on my desk. I finally ordered a WD Blue 2TB NvME SSD and 2 10Gbps enclosures to test out on both the M1 Mac mini and M1 13" MBP, if they seem junk, I will get a TB3 enclosure! I was going to trade in the M1 13" MBP and per-order the M2 Air, but hearing so much grief, I'll wait until October with the hope that bugs will have been sorted out? If things are good? M2 Air with 10 core GPU 16GB Memory 512SSD, for Road Warrior use, which the Base Model M1 13" MBP is doing right now... besides sitting on my desk running the 32" 1440p in clam shell mode
It's probably worth considering whether your MacBook Air is your only machine. My M1 MBA is the basic machine, and after using it from launch there is still 180 GB of the 256 GB SSB unused. There's an awful lot of files on it, but they are mostly office files - spreadsheets, invoices, presentations. These take up little room. I operate the finances of a small charity in about half the space of 50 GB of iCloud. It's not my only machine - I have a Mac studio too. I don't edit video, my cameras can't do 8K, but I do edit lots of photos. But I rarely keep more than a couple of months photos on the Studio SSD, instead I have 20 years worth on an external SSD. I don't need them all on the internal drive, and a permanently connected external SSD works fast enough for me to scan though them all if needs be. I can easily unplug it and connect it to the MBA if the Studio is not available for some reason. And the Studio handles all my backups to external drives via scripts too - the iCloud files are backed up externally too. Backups are important and rarely mentioned in these considerations. If an MBA is your only machine you need to think about this. The cloud isn't a backup. Ideally you need at least three external backups, including one off-site. There's a lot of discipline needed to back up a portable computer. It's much easier for a desktop.
I get those illusive RAM out of memory messages regularly with my m1 mac book air. I have 16 GB. And I'm doing nothing special. browser, discord, messages, and photos... a handful of menu items. I wish i could figure it out!
I hate that this is the case, but I’d consider AppleCare+ a non-negotiable due to how unrepairable modern Apple hardware is. Even if you’re careful, non-user related defects still occur. Personally, I’d rather spend the money now than regret it in the future when I have to buy a whole new device
I just purchased the midnight blue Sony WHXM4, re watched your videos on the both and thought yea sod it im going for the xm4 especially as I got them brand new on Amazon prime day deal for £209 with some extra bluetooth 5.0 Dongle thing that I’ll never use but yea effectively £180 cheaper than the XM5!.
16, 512, 67 watt charger. Looking for several years use and it’s for 11th grader who I think will need fast charges. I really wish the Ram and SSD were user upgradable.
Great Video and clear too! I'm not a RUclipsr but, I am thinking of doing maybe a short series of my experience with Invisalign. Editing at it's basic really. FHD and UHD but nothing with special effects etc (never say never) I was thinking M1 Pro 14 but with price in mind, I'm thinking the MacBook Air ME. What do you think? TIA
To be honest, I'm still a bit undecided about which one to get since I believe I would be ok with the base config but I'm just too worried that in 3-5 years it will become slow and nearly obsolete but I have the budget for just one upgrade. Help!
Best Buy having a sale on M1 MBP 14 base for $1799 with a $55 discount for tech members made me cancel my M2 MBA pre order. Definitely made the right choice!
My m1 imac recently had the screen die out of the blue. I was told that I did nothing wrong and that is was just a hardware issue. It was a free fix with applecare. If I didn’t have it, I was told it would have likely cost $700-$800.
The M1 iMac is honestly a rip-off, even from Apple. Heck, even the M1 Mac Mini is a better bargain… Not surprised it failed, given how thin they made it…
@@MarkEllisReviews I’m saying that I’m not surprised that the original commenter’s M1 iMac screen failed, because the base model has inadequate cooling and it is very thin.
@@cameronbosch1213 My iMac isn’t the base model and has the dual fans. The screen suddenly had many horizontal lines appear across it when it broke. I was told the display was faulty, nothing to do with cooling. It also has nothing to do with how thin it is as most of Apple’s display’s have even less space. I just got unlucky with one of the early models.
I struggled with what to buy, M1 or M2? But what do we know? M1 is a terrific computer and has proven itself. M2, we just don't know. There is some talk that the M2 is just too strong for a no fan laptop. I also fear that there will be other bugs in the M2. If M1 is virtually perfect, why spend a lot more money for something that is speculative and untested in the real world. So, I have ordered an M1 with 16GBs and 1TB of storage. I did also get the AppleCare. My last Mac laptop had a key stop working after a couple of years, and it was fixed at no charge thanks to AppleCare.
looks like i'll need to go with the base spec option 2 (10 cores) with 16mb ram upgrade. i sometimes have been known to open every single app on my device including a tab to a webpage for every one of those apps. \o/
If I will have to chance choose my new Macbook Air i will opt in old M1. Here you can buy M1 usually for 27000 CZK but M2 starts at 37000 CZK. For that price I can find M1 with 16/512 configuration. I do not mind new design, hate mag safe… And perfrimance, M1 is still more than I can utilize.
I use a pretty powerful Windows PC for my work/entertainment, so a laptop is my secondary/backup device. I ordered the 16GB/512GB Midnight M2 Air. Now, I get to deal with the long wait until August for delivery.
Hi, if I run Windows (Parallels) on my MacBook (just when needed or for maintenance, I usually use MacOS), want to do some not AAA title gaming (which is why I have Windows on it) with the 16 gig memory M2 benefit me greatly? I have the M1 MacBook Air 512 gig standard issue right now. Thanks to whoever responds!
If you are running virtual machines then the more RAM the better. I would say def min 16GB of RAM as you can push more to Parallels. Remember this i shared memory so if you are running GPU tasks they will love as much RAM as you can give.
I just ordered a M2 MacBook Air 16GB/512GB upgraded SoC & 67W charger, it's my first Mac and replacing my aging Dell XPS and dead Surface Go (I also have a desktop). I'm excited to give Apple a try, that battery life is just unbeatable.
The “other base model “ $1499 ? No thoughts on why the 10, 8, 512 configuration? I’m really amazed no one, no one, discusses it. I’m betting apple chose it for a reason
i ve ordered a 8/256 as it was the only one quickly available and I am going to travel with over 24h flight but I know I will regret it, I wanted 16gb or 24/512 (as I use W11 (which works beautifully). 8Gb is not plenty, my wife, basic usage puts plenty of memory pressure on her mini 8gb with just Outlook/slack/10tabs open/excel. looking at the MB13, M2 seems to need more memory than M1
I would have waited. If you have something that works now, waiting a little bit now would lead to a longer lifespan of the machine when you upgrade it.
I’m struggling between M2 air 16gb and 512 gb or just going with the 14 inch pro. I’m a business development consultant so need it for research and large deck building primarily. Travel a little but not too much. I have the M1 mac as my main work hub. Thoughts?
Go with the 14 inch pro if you need the better/bigger screen and the included additional ports. If you invest into additional memory AND ssd storage then the price gets really too close to the pro.
I agree with these other replies. If you are using this laptop to make money, do yourself a favor and get the 14 inch MacBook Pro, preferably with the 10 core CPU, as it comes with the faster charger and a better much CPU, as the M2 and M1 Pro with 8 core CPU aren’t that different, especially when compared to the 10 core M1 Pro/Max CPU.
Given the low performance of the 256 SSD in the M2 MBA, the base configuration is probably not a good idea. If money is tight, the M1 MBA would be a much better deal. If money is plentiful, a loaded M2 MBA is similar to a 14” MBP in price and the 14” is a much better laptop. The M2 MBA only makes sense if you love the design (which is very nice, particularly in dark blue) or need a lighter laptop and money is not an issue.
This is a genuine question, Andrew: have you tried the base model with that 256GB SSD? I ask, because I'd like to know what first-hand experience you have of it being 'low performance'. Genuinely interested.
@@MarkEllisReviews I have not tried the base MBA with 256GB SSD, nor will I be. I have decided not to buy a M2 MBA. I will be buying the marginally more expensive base 14" MBP instead. However, numerous reviewers have run benchmarks showing the much lower performance of the 256GB SSD and others have have shown its real world effect running applications like Final Cut.
@@andrewgrant788 That's cool, and you've revealed exactly why this MacBook Air drama is so overblown - you're not its market. It's also why you can't comment on its performance I'm afraid, mate; I'd never review a product without touching it - I'd get lynched (and rightly so!). Benchmarks have zero bearing on what it's like to use this thing in real life - they are totally irrelevant.
@@MarkEllisReviews The MacBook I am buying isn't for me, its for my daughter. I don't think benchmarks are totally irrelevant and I am not claiming to have reviewed the M2 MBA. We can't all test every machine we are considering. I also don't think it's dramatic to point out that beautiful as the laptop is, its value proposition is questionable. Someone who's compute needs are modest would probably be just has happy with the performance of the M1 MBA.
@@andrewgrant788 I guess we are spoiled these days. When the Macbook Air first came out, nobody ever thought about doing any heavy editing on them, it was not meant for it. Now some RUclips reviewers will complain that it gets hot editing 8k films in Final Cut which it technically isnt meant for. If benchmarks and editing is important, its not for you. For basic work, like Mark Ellis, its perfect and has plenty of power.
2:11 “For everyone else, 8 GB of unified memory is plenty.” I’m going to stop you there Mark. If this Mac was under $1000, if it had the faster SSDs and the SSDs were replaceable rather than soldered, if macOS actually could actually function well with 8 GB of memory, then maybe I could say I agree. But I just can’t. At $1200, 8 GB is lousy. Swap memory kills your SSDs limited read/write cycles faster and with the slower SSDs this generation, it makes the system drastically slower. And if you add this to the constant memory leak issues in macOS Monterrey (I don’t know about Ventura, but that’s still about 2 - 3 months away for a stable version), and I would honestly have to disagree. There’s no way that 8 GB will cut it anymore except if all you do is use Safari with no more than 5 tabs at once, listen to music, use Microsoft Word or Apple Pages, or do VERY basic things like these. Apple should have just ended the 8 GB of RAM option and/or lowered the base model to $999.
We'll have to agree to disagree on that one, Cameron - I've not experienced any of those issues, and I've worked my 8GB M1 MacBook Air to the bone running this business. I still maintain we live in a very different world now with unified memory for the vast majority of normal users.
Nearly every base Ultrabook in Windows-land is 8GB and some even come with 4GB so you may be having a workload that is not comparable to a lot of consumers (we are not talking prosumers here). So why do MS, Samsung, LG, HP, et al all start with 8GB? It is because the vast majority it is all they need and the odd slowdown is not as important as the money saved. So you are pretty wrong here for the vast majority of ultrabook users. Maybe you are mixing it up with semi-pro users or prosumers or gamers, and then I can agree that the majority then need 16GB+, though some could still be okay with 8GB. I monitor my workflow, typical ultrabook fare, office and browser tabs and 8GB is enough as when you do not use pro apps you can get 3-4GB of near-instant compressed memory (I see that on my stats) and up to about 4GB of swap is super fast (once >4GB swap then slowdowns). So 8GB is de facto 16GB on non-pro stuff. When you use pro apps they eat RAM for breakfast meaning you lose nearly all potential compressed RAM and swap is dedicated to the browser and can slow down that and other apps. If you want the headroom then buy 16GB but many of us know what we use and therefore need and know 8GB is fine so you are just reflecting your usage and I have no idea what you have that can eat your memory (monitor, security apps, apps that leak RAM, browser extensions, etc). I keep a tight ship rather than bog down my system and that means cleaning out cache daily (YT can build 1.5GB in a couple of hours). I agree with 8GB being fine for most for ultrabook workflows but add that if you can afford it, then 16GB is a good investment. The speed of storage is not going to be important for they vast majority of casual users.
I’ve got an M1 8Gb. I’ve edited and rendered several 4k RUclips videos with FinalCut, ran a Kali Linux virtual machine with 4Gb for work, played games like WoW, and several more things. I’d bet that’s a bit heavier usage vs the average user. I’ve never experienced any “out of memory” errors as some others have received. However, I’ll still be getting at least 16Gb in the next one.
@@tyler4723 Having used the M2 I can say it is a bit buggy and that it probably needs some updates to fix the issues. Those could be developer-side or macOS side. The M1 had issues initially and we see with ARM (Pixel 6, S22, Xiaomi, SQ1) that they do take a while to be optimised. Even check out Intel’s new 12th-gen where Windows still has not been able to optimise the efficiency cores (hence poor battery life), but nothing on this from the YT cabal, probably due to the billions Intel is throwing to convince people not to dump their chips. Your workload def needs 16GB of RAM to stop the swap as that will wear your storage and even though it is unlikely to kill it, cells will wear and become redundant. Anyway why would anyone trade RAM for swap? Just get 16GB if you are keeping your machine for a long time as it will pay you back in the long run.
@@andyH_England What if I just want to use the Air 8GB as a simple Web/Arduino portable machine. No video editing, no gaming (have a main AMD rig for all that jazz), nothing intensive but want to be on the Mac platform (not iPad BS),,,, would it be okay without 16GB?
I’ve gone for full high-end spec: 10-core GPU, 24GB memory, 2TB SSD, 67W charger and Final Cut Pro just because I want the best performance functionality possible for video editing even if I probably won’t use it as frequently as most people that would buying this high-end configuration. What I did leave out was Logic Pro because I don’t really understand what that is or why I’d need it. Might look into it in the future though. Oh and I went for the gold-light sheen Starlight colour. It look so attractive. I got the Apple Care+ too just to be safe.
@@OverEntusiast yeah but then I would have had to add on the specs anyway so it would end up being more expensive regardless Besides I’m happy with the M2. It performs exactly how I expect it to.
Some advice is well worth ignoring. The new M1 Macs use a mixed RAM and SSD in the so-called Unified Memory. If they run out of RAM they start swapping to the SSD. A problem exacerbated by the RAM also being used by the GPU. Unfortunately the Macs with a lousy 8Gb of RAM, don't have enough SSD storage either. My MacBook Pro M1 Pro has 16Gb of RAM and 512Gb SSD. Because I am concerned about the life of the internal SSD I work to an external USB C SSD, keeping the internal SSD only for internal caching, email, Apps and other files that the System writes internally. Despite all these precautions I the Mac freezes or has sharp slowdowns when the Mac runs out of memory and starts swapping files to the SSD. These are quite weird and not something I experienced on older and much slower Macs. The M1 blanks web pages, where they load but don't render. Presumably the GPU has run out of RAM/SSD space or choked somewhere along the chain. I DEFINITELY do NOT agree that "8Gb is enough". This has been a long standing myth circulated for countless Macs with inadequate RAM/Storage because Apple charges way too much for RAM and SSDs but covers their arse by saying Macs magically use what they have "better". The story always goes; yes it is horrendously expensive BUT "you don't need as much RAM for Macs". B.S. That is a straight out con job. The suckers who fall for it only find out too late after they have bought the under-powered Mac, that they can not upgrade. You are stuck with what you bought. Run out, or have any of it die, and you own a brick, not a Mac. IGNORE the price on base model Macs, the real price should be stated for the higher configuration that you WILL need to get the supposed benefits of the new models as hyped by Apple.
If you've pre-ordered an M2 MacBook Air, which part of the buying process took you the longest? What was the hardest decision?
10 core gpu makes the graphics crispier
I went with it
Storage😅 and getting apple care plus
Ram ! Can justify 16gb for 200$ and I am only using the laptop home usage
Apple care+
10 core GPU, 16 GB RAM and 512 GB SSD, with 67 W charger. I would like a machine that will never hit its limits with Lightroom editing, and figured I could rest easy with this configuration. I decided I valued fast charging more than dual charging.
This is my first Mac. Ordered an M2 8GB 256 w/ apple care for peace of mind. 🤞🤓
Enjoy!
I opted for 10 core GPU, 16 GB unified memory, and 512 GB ssd varient as it's going to be my primary computer and i am planning to use it atleast 5 -7 years.
What colour did you order?
Can't decide between midnight and silver... Think the midnight is a fingerprint magnet
@@ashleyvandescheur I’d go silver if you plan on keeping it for more than a few years. I can’t imagine the dark finish on the midnight color wearing well
@@TheMstwntdLMSV123 Good point! Silver it is!
Went all in with 10 core GPU, fast charger, 24gb Ram and 2TB option. Hope it will last a couple of years
It'll last longer than that ;)
Ouch!
I ordered the M2 MacBook Air base configuration, but I added the 67w charger. I figured it might be nice to have the faster charger for just $20 more. This Air will be my portable laptop for everyday tasks. My desktop setup will handle the heavy-duty tasks.
And the M1 MacBook Air is definitely NOT obsolete! It’s a fine solution for a large group of computer users.
This is the most helpful video I’ve seen about how to decide which specs to get on the M2. I think Apple makes it confusing because they want you to get nervous and upgrade the specs and the tech guys that make videos want the best of everything because they use it for so many high performance activities. A lot of just need it for basic things, anyway, thanks for a really helpful video!
Glad I could help!
Great advice: I got 16GB 512GB. I have to say that modern macs are way less robust than they use to be! iPhones included
Must be very hard to have a tech channel. Also expensive since you need to review all these products. Thank you for your efforts. Great video.
Wow, that's refreshing! Thanks ;) It is indeed a big investment in time, resource, and budget - but boy, I wouldn't change it for the world.
One of the great things about Macs is how long they last. Many users will use their new MacBook as their primary computer for 5+ years. So the question shouldn't be whether 8GB is enough memory for 2022, but for 2027.
Ye. 2012 Macbook Air owner here. It lasted very long thanks to the 8GB BTO.
This is 100% the comment I was looking for. And actually, 8 GB of RAM isn’t even enough because I’ve seen Macs with that much memory Macs constantly using swap memory, which increases the limited lifespan of the soldered SSDs, and will eventually lead to a paperweight of done too often over several years. Add that to the slower SSDs, and I think 16 GB of RAM should have been the baseline.
@@cameronbosch1213 Do not mind SSD usage for swap. My old M1 MBA with 8GB RAM had average 20GB written per day, so with margin 8TB/yr. Typical SSDs have 150TBW granted by manufacturer, so even 10TBW/yr means 15yrs, but it is just guarantee not real lifespan, Had 120GB SSD in 4GB windows machine, after 8yrs 175TBW and mostly 100% condition. My old gaming PC had 3yrs 256GB SSD for system, apps and documents… 32GB RAM, swap dissabled… 24TBW after 3rsy, so PC had even bigger SSD usage with 4x bigger RAM.
I switched to 16GB model MBA, becouse 8GB was just rented, but right now my typical usage is about 15GB/day, so only 5GB/day difference. I even do not notice any perfromance differrence between 8 and 16GB model.
@@Wokiis I had a (maybe 2008-9?) 27" iMac that lasted for 10 years and was still going strong when it stopped getting security updates because the CPU architecture wouldn't support all the new features. If it wasn't such a space heater I'd probably install Linux on it rather than leave it in the closet...
@@jirikocman I agree that currently 8GB is probably fine for performance for most users. But given the performance of these CPUs, the memory will more likely be the bottleneck a few years down the road. Most users will probably be better served in the long run by an M1 with 16 GB over an M2 with 8GB at the same price point.
I ordered the 8gb 512gb ssd version on Friday. I woke up on Saturday and cancelled it. I’ll save myself £600 and stick with the m1 version because really the difference is so subtle it’s just not worth the extra.
Smart man!
Got the 512gb model with 8gb of RAM
Nice video as always... I opted for the 16gb 1tb... as that's the spec I went for the M1 MBA - very excited! I would say AppleCare is better paid for after the date as a subscription - you get to spread the cost and it lasts longer... personally a win win! been a god send for the MBP 16 Max!
Can you do this in the beginning? Couldn't see an option outside of the 2/3 year Cover - I've got it for my iPad, but didn't know you could pay monthly for AC+ on MBA!
Huge dollops of commonsense in this vid Mark. Be careful - it’ll never catch on! 😆
I know we probably need to wait for MaxTech & the rest of the guys to run their tests but can I put this out there? Nobody needs 24GB on a MBAir. For the money, buy a 14” MBP instead. Amirite? 😆
Another Wonderful & Articulate Apple M2 MacBook Air Video by you. You are a class act sir.....😝👻👽👽👽
Hi Mark. Great video. Regarding Apple Care and the Warranty. It’s also worth remembering that under Consumer Law in the UK you may be entitled to a free of charge repair, replacement or refund from the seller if the goods are defective or do not conform to the contract of sale. In England and Wales this lasts for 6 years (5yrs in Scotland).
I’ve used this to replace hard drives in iMacs, TVs, VR headsets and many other expensive devices for free, long after the warranty has expired. This is why I always purchase from a retailer I think will still be around in a few years time!
Lucky you. I had to fight with Dell regarding a (at the time) less than 2 year old XPS laptop. It took almost a year to replace the defective laptop, and the process was so bad, I eventually had to escalate the issue to REALLY high levels within Dell before I got a laptop. Only recently after I clean installed the replacement has it been good, but that was 4 years of the laptop’s life essentially wasted…
@@cameronbosch1213 that’s rough. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had battles with some retailers, Game…JL to name a couple where I’ve had to pull the old “email the CEO directly” trick but never had a problem with Apple or Amazon (I would flag that neither have actively reminded me of my Consumer Rights tho…)
Good point.
@@onepizzaboy3369 I’m currently using Asus and Apple, and neither have been THIS bad.
I love your videos Mark! You give honest, straightforward advice for everyday users. I'm going for the 16GB RAM / 1TB SSD option to future proof the laptop (and I'll store a fair amount of videos on there). I personally prefer editing directly from the device, rather than external SSDs, but financially external HDDs are much better value! Cheers :)
Thank you!
I know I'm a year late but I ordered a an 8c/8c/24GB/512GB in Space Grey, to last me throughout college Computer Science degree and some AI/ML work. Very excited
Loved the video and I’ve gone for the 8 core with 512gb and 16gb of unified memory. I feel the 67 watt charger is worth it for $20 more.
I decided I’m getting the M2 the base 8/256 It will benefit me for many years. Work, documents and photography 👍🏼 thank you for your great videos. Cheers. 😎
Had trouble choosing between 8 gb or 16 gb ram, since I will use it for the danish version of high school/college and mostly work with documents & presentations + I have a gaming pc at home, which can take on the heaviest task with no sweat. Went with 16 gb ram anyways, mostly because i will keep it for long and because my bugdet allow it. Thanks for the help :)
What if i order 10c 256gb 16gb ram instead of 10c 8gb ram 512 gb what will be good for me??? please help me with that
How about editing home videos (5-10 minutes long) or Zoom recordings (60 minutes long) using iMovie? Would the 8GM unified memory still be sufficient?
Have you watched this Art is Right "M2 which is a better upgrade 16GB RAM vs 512GB SSD for the most performance?" ruclips.net/video/YKRO-4BiZrI/видео.html
I need to know when you will be getting your M2 MBA and when we can expect your review??? ;))
Im waiting for my midnight M2 MBA to arrive. I spec the unified memory to 16GB since I observed that 8GB unified memory on my M1 iMac is easily used up with few youtube tabs open playing 4k videos and a few other apps running.
Love your video, it helps me a lot about how i choose my first apple laptop❤，i even cancel my existing order and make a new order😆🙏🙏
Great video Mark! The M1 Air is still a great machine and I recommend it all the time.
Love your straightforward advice to everyday users.
I love this comment!
Great tips. I belong to the first option. So I went in for the base model with the included 30w charger. In my opinion the mba holds charge well so I may not really need the fast charger.
Thank you and well said. Too many out there coming up with fictional scenarios about how the MBA M2 will fail, perform poorly, etc.
The base model is perfect for the casual user & average user who does not have large media files.
I love this video and definitely answers my question about what to upgrade first and instead of the RAM I’m going to upgrade the SSD for sure.
Glad to be of assistance!
I went with an 8/8, 16GB, 512GB, 30W with no AppleCare+. I’m just using it as my personal (productivity and media) machine. It gets around any concerns about 8GB RAM, and the single 256GB SSD performance issues. Spend any more and you are dangerously close to the 2021 14” MBP base, which has no downsides compared to the M2 MBA unless you absolutely need the smaller size.
Can I upgrade my SSD after some years in MacBook Air M2???????
Nope.
Great common sense advice. Thank you.
Glad it was helpful!
Could you tell us how many external monitors we can use with the M2 Macbook Air? Thanks in advance from Bangladesh
One. Apple STILL hasn’t changed it… 🙄
Just one.
Got the midnight 8/8 16/256 model with the 67w adapter. Cannot wait.
No one should get the base 256b model tho. If you did, I kinda feel sorry for you.
I got 16GB 8/8Gpu 35watt dual USB-C charger and apple care+
I ordered 16 gb ram & 256 ssd version. I need more memory to use windows
Great video! I wonder if you could make a similar one for MacBook air m1 in light of this video and having in mind M2 air option :) I am aware you done it or sum up at the end, however, maybe you would like to make another in similar regards as this one?
Thanks! Have a look through my vids - there's a tonne of recent buying advice for the M1 version there :)
@@MarkEllisReviews I did and I got some :) was wonder of your thoughts if there is anything more to add :)
Just add to cart! Haha thank you for your help!
I pre-ordered the base with 16GB ram in midnight color
I ended up with m2 base and upgraded to 512 for the dual chip instead of one hope I made the right decision great video
6:32 Well, I cannot really forget yet the butterfly keyboards (it was a pretty serious issue until the magic keyboard expanded to equip all laptops in 2020 which was only two years ago)... If we move a bit before, then I would also include the pealing anti-glare coating and the swollen batteries.
@Ramp I knew somebody who had a 2016 15 inch MacBook Pro go down with a key that double typed randomly, and after he went to Apple to have it fixed (before the repair program, although I think he was able to get a refund on that service), he still hated the keyboard and put a cover on it. Ever since he bought a 2019 16 inch MacBook Pro and then a 2020 M1 MacBook Air, he loves them and prefers those Magic Keyboards. And he normally LOVES Apple products, just not that one. He always has the latest iPhone Pro Max, an iPad Mini, and he uses that aforementioned M1 MacBook Air for work except for some legacy application that only runs on Windows, which he uses a Lenovo Yoga laptop for.
On the other hand, my mother got a 15 inch 2018 MacBook Pro (to replace a 2008 15 inch Unibody model) and she hasn’t had any issues with the keyboard. Though in my opinion, it only takes a little heat warping the butterfly key switches to deform the keys, and because those models ran super hot, it’s only a matter of time before they warp and start double typing too…
The point is, along with the fact that Apple is quickly killing off their Intel Macs, I would never buy a Mac with a butterfly keyboard for ANY price. (I personally did not like the butterfly keyboard at all for typing, but whether or not you liked it, you have to admit that the reliability was always questionable to the point of not being usable ever again.)
@Ramp I purposely avoided to buy one when I heard of the story (I kept my 2015 Retina MBP until I switched to the M1 Air). Five of my friends did though, some of them multiple times with the same computer. You were lucky or my friends were unlucky you choose! In the end there were far too many unlucky people for this issue to be ignored. So many that Apple had to set up a service program to all of the laptops equipped with the butterfly keyboard if you remember. The fact that their service program even included the 2019 15"and 13" MacBook Pros at the very time of their release was the furthest that Apple went to implicitly acknowledge the issue. The service program was only discontinued to the models released after the 2019 16" MacBook Pro (which all have the magic keyboard).
@Ramp My wife had two laptops in a row with the butterfly keyboard that eventually had double-typing keys. She's a fast typist (140+ wpm) and hits pretty hard, so I don't know if it was just luck of the draw, or if they keyboards were especially bad for typists who type hard, or both.
Great video! I went with the m2 air 8 cores on cpu and gpu 16gb memory and 1tb storage in midnight with the dual 35w charger. Can’t wait to get my hands on it!
Same! Arriving estimate is 5 - 12 august. What about you?
Hmm. Why not go for the M1 MBP 14” with 16GB & 512GB SSD? It’s almost the same price & it has a lot of upgrades on the M2 Air?
Me too except I got 512 GB
@@AyoHues how is it the same price? There’s a $500 difference I think.
Can you do a video soon about external SSD storage? That is a topic i am certainly interested in learning more about.
Great video and keep up the excellent work.
Thanks! Yes, there's some stuff in the pipeline about this (one day!).
It was a while ago I grant you but there was a video about "cheaper" chargers that were basically crap and some caught fire due to their poor design and manufacture. Just a heads up for those tempted to skimp on chargers. Electrickery can be a dangerous thing.
That’s why I would 100% pay the $20 or so extra to buy the faster 67 watt charger when you buy the laptop. It really makes it charge much faster.
Do you think that a fully specced M2 Air would handle video better than my 2018 MacBook?
2.2 GHz 6-Core Intel Core i7
32 GB 2400 MHz DDR4
Yep!
@@MarkEllisReviews Thanks!
Very helpful thank you looks like im going to go for the 16gb and 512 gb version with the dual charger as its my first Mac
I went for the same. First Mac for me, pretty excited
Can ssd be upgradable in MacBook Air M2 after some years???
With external SSD's
I have two options either,
1. 10 Core GPU, with 8GB Ram and 512GB SSD Macbook Air
2. 8 Core GPU, with 16GB ram and 512GB SSD Macbook Air
I think that I would rarely need the 10 Core GPU and that 16GB Ram would be more useful. Please give me your thoughts?
You've answered your own question ;)
@@MarkEllisReviews I have just looked a pricing where I am located:
And My Spec Comes to $2639 for the 8 Core GPU and 512 GB SSD and 16GB Ram upgrade. If I add the fast charger since it comes with the 30W it comes to a price of $2679 if I then add the price of a USB C hub since I need HDMI 4K it comes to $2755. There is a retailer here and they have the 14 inch Macbook Pro M1 PRO with 16GB Ram and 512SSD for $3059 there is a price difference of $300 NZD (New Zealand Dollar) Would you suggest me upgrading to that.
Okey
Hi Mark, your videos are great. Thank you for your guidance.
I will be ordering the model that gives 35w or 67w charger free. Please which would you recommend? Anyone who can advise I’d really appreciate it.
This is a really useful video. I think I am going to wait however with my 16" intel MacBook pro for now but the air is in my near future and the trade in value for my mac is decreasing rapidly. On a side note, what watch are you wearing?
Yes, I would like to know what watch as well
G-Shock ;) www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07PFF5GZD/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Hi Mark,
My wife and I want to switch from Ipad to macbook air M2. It’s going to be our macbook at home and we are will use the mac for browsing, writing documents and keeping or vacations pictures on it. Which configuration are you suggesting to buy. Please consider it that we probably going to sell it in 5 6 years and we don’t have financial difficulties.
Best Regards
Jahan
I will only use it to browse the web, email, pages, watching RUclips videos and looking at my pictures that are stored in iCloud.
Is the base model enough for me?
I would like to keep it for a few years, but I know my use will remain the same.
Please help.
8 core or 10? I like the idea of crisper graphics with the 10, but is it really a battery drain and is heating up a problem? And does that outweigh the graphics advantage? Can’t find that answer anywhere. The $ difference isn’t much, so that doesn’t really factor in. Either way, I plan to go with 16 GB unified memory and 512 SSD, 67 charger and no apple care (yikes!).
"8GB obsessive", love it 😀
I'm a glutton for punishment! I'm hanging onto 2 - 21.5" iMacs (Late 2011 Catalina OCLP & Late-2013 Monterey OCLP), but I have the M1 13" MBP base model and it has done me well with graphic work, Video Editing and Clerical stuff... With the new MacOS coming, I just bought a refurbished Mac Mini 8GB unified memory 512GB SSD and a LG 32" QHD (1440p) Monitor, that will replace the 2013 iMac on my desk. I finally ordered a WD Blue 2TB NvME SSD and 2 10Gbps enclosures to test out on both the M1 Mac mini and M1 13" MBP, if they seem junk, I will get a TB3 enclosure!
I was going to trade in the M1 13" MBP and per-order the M2 Air, but hearing so much grief, I'll wait until October with the hope that bugs will have been sorted out? If things are good? M2 Air with 10 core GPU 16GB Memory 512SSD, for Road Warrior use, which the Base Model M1 13" MBP is doing right now... besides sitting on my desk running the 32" 1440p in clam shell mode
It's probably worth considering whether your MacBook Air is your only machine. My M1 MBA is the basic machine, and after using it from launch there is still 180 GB of the 256 GB SSB unused. There's an awful lot of files on it, but they are mostly office files - spreadsheets, invoices, presentations. These take up little room. I operate the finances of a small charity in about half the space of 50 GB of iCloud.
It's not my only machine - I have a Mac studio too. I don't edit video, my cameras can't do 8K, but I do edit lots of photos. But I rarely keep more than a couple of months photos on the Studio SSD, instead I have 20 years worth on an external SSD. I don't need them all on the internal drive, and a permanently connected external SSD works fast enough for me to scan though them all if needs be. I can easily unplug it and connect it to the MBA if the Studio is not available for some reason. And the Studio handles all my backups to external drives via scripts too - the iCloud files are backed up externally too.
Backups are important and rarely mentioned in these considerations. If an MBA is your only machine you need to think about this. The cloud isn't a backup. Ideally you need at least three external backups, including one off-site. There's a lot of discipline needed to back up a portable computer. It's much easier for a desktop.
I get those illusive RAM out of memory messages regularly with my m1 mac book air. I have 16 GB. And I'm doing nothing special. browser, discord, messages, and photos... a handful of menu items. I wish i could figure it out!
I hate that this is the case, but I’d consider AppleCare+ a non-negotiable due to how unrepairable modern Apple hardware is. Even if you’re careful, non-user related defects still occur. Personally, I’d rather spend the money now than regret it in the future when I have to buy a whole new device
I just purchased the midnight blue Sony WHXM4, re watched your videos on the both and thought yea sod it im going for the xm4 especially as I got them brand new on Amazon prime day deal for £209 with some extra bluetooth 5.0 Dongle thing that I’ll never use but yea effectively £180 cheaper than the XM5!.
Ordered my M2 macbook air first day available, midnight, 16GB RAM, 10-core, 1 TB hard drive, 67W charger. cannot wait for early august!
Remember in the UK that the warranty is 1 year but the consumer rights laws gives up to 6 years and Apple will fix your kit.
16, 512, 67 watt charger. Looking for several years use and it’s for 11th grader who I think will need fast charges.
I really wish the Ram and SSD were user upgradable.
I am on the fence between buying the zephyrus g14 2022 or the m2 MacBook Air I just don’t know what to stick with.
Great Video and clear too! I'm not a RUclipsr but, I am thinking of doing maybe a short series of my experience with Invisalign. Editing at it's basic really. FHD and UHD but nothing with special effects etc (never say never) I was thinking M1 Pro 14 but with price in mind, I'm thinking the MacBook Air ME. What do you think? TIA
If you upgrade storage and RAM, the base 14" MacBook Pro with the M1 Pro and 16/512GB is clearly the better buy!
I ordered the Midnight M2 MacBook Air 8-core GPU, 16 GB, 512 GB, and 35 Dual charger
To be honest, I'm still a bit undecided about which one to get since I believe I would be ok with the base config but I'm just too worried that in 3-5 years it will become slow and nearly obsolete but I have the budget for just one upgrade. Help!
Best Buy having a sale on M1 MBP 14 base for $1799 with a $55 discount for tech members made me cancel my M2 MBA pre order. Definitely made the right choice!
I am an office man and working in a typical office work stuff. The 16GB RAM is not enough!
My m1 imac recently had the screen die out of the blue. I was told that I did nothing wrong and that is was just a hardware issue. It was a free fix with applecare. If I didn’t have it, I was told it would have likely cost $700-$800.
The M1 iMac is honestly a rip-off, even from Apple. Heck, even the M1 Mac Mini is a better bargain… Not surprised it failed, given how thin they made it…
@@cameronbosch1213 Can you elaborate on what you mean by "failed", please? Genuinely interested to hear if I've missed some official news on this?
Fair enough! As good a reason as any to buy it!
@@MarkEllisReviews I’m saying that I’m not surprised that the original commenter’s M1 iMac screen failed, because the base model has inadequate cooling and it is very thin.
@@cameronbosch1213 My iMac isn’t the base model and has the dual fans. The screen suddenly had many horizontal lines appear across it when it broke. I was told the display was faulty, nothing to do with cooling. It also has nothing to do with how thin it is as most of Apple’s display’s have even less space. I just got unlucky with one of the early models.
I struggled with what to buy, M1 or M2? But what do we know? M1 is a terrific computer and has proven itself. M2, we just don't know. There is some talk that the M2 is just too strong for a no fan laptop. I also fear that there will be other bugs in the M2. If M1 is virtually perfect, why spend a lot more money for something that is speculative and untested in the real world. So, I have ordered an M1 with 16GBs and 1TB of storage. I did also get the AppleCare. My last Mac laptop had a key stop working after a couple of years, and it was fixed at no charge thanks to AppleCare.
looks like i'll need to go with the base spec option 2 (10 cores) with 16mb ram upgrade. i sometimes have been known to open every single app on my device including a tab to a webpage for every one of those apps. \o/
If I will have to chance choose my new Macbook Air i will opt in old M1. Here you can buy M1 usually for 27000 CZK but M2 starts at 37000 CZK. For that price I can find M1 with 16/512 configuration. I do not mind new design, hate mag safe… And perfrimance, M1 is still more than I can utilize.
I use a pretty powerful Windows PC for my work/entertainment, so a laptop is my secondary/backup device. I ordered the 16GB/512GB Midnight M2 Air. Now, I get to deal with the long wait until August for delivery.
24gb M2 Air with 2Tb ssd or 14” MBP with 32gb and 2tb ssd??
I'm thinking of just upgrading the RAM to 16GB and SSD storage to 512GB, what do you think? I'm starting my Computer science major next month!
If you can comfortably afford it - go for it!
Hi, if I run Windows (Parallels) on my MacBook (just when needed or for maintenance, I usually use MacOS), want to do some not AAA title gaming (which is why I have Windows on it) with the 16 gig memory M2 benefit me greatly? I have the M1 MacBook Air 512 gig standard issue right now.
Thanks to whoever responds!
If you are running virtual machines then the more RAM the better. I would say def min 16GB of RAM as you can push more to Parallels. Remember this i shared memory so if you are running GPU tasks they will love as much RAM as you can give.
I just ordered a M2 MacBook Air 16GB/512GB upgraded SoC & 67W charger, it's my first Mac and replacing my aging Dell XPS and dead Surface Go (I also have a desktop). I'm excited to give Apple a try, that battery life is just unbeatable.
I need the RAM to build web applications/run docker.
I feel like if you’re stretching the budget for an M2 air you should just go for the 14in MacBook Pro
Some people just want a MacBook Air, mate. Which is cool.
What’s the best choice for a student?
I pre ordered a base MB Air M2... I'm currently writing this from a base (8g/256) MB Pro i5, now 10 yrs old and its still running like a champ!
How has it been so far? Do you have any slow downs? Thanks
The “other base model “ $1499 ? No thoughts on why the 10, 8, 512 configuration? I’m really amazed no one, no one, discusses it. I’m betting apple chose it for a reason
It’s a quick shortcut to a slightly better model. Not much to say about it really; you’re taken into the same spec process whichever one you choose.
@@MarkEllisReviews yes, but WHY that particular combination/configuration? from all the discussions the consensus is 8, 16, 512.
i ve ordered a 8/256 as it was the only one quickly available and I am going to travel with over 24h flight but I know I will regret it, I wanted 16gb or 24/512 (as I use W11 (which works beautifully). 8Gb is not plenty, my wife, basic usage puts plenty of memory pressure on her mini 8gb with just Outlook/slack/10tabs open/excel. looking at the MB13, M2 seems to need more memory than M1
I would have waited. If you have something that works now, waiting a little bit now would lead to a longer lifespan of the machine when you upgrade it.
How to? Just keep the M1 :D
67W charger is $20, not $30.
It’s £30 in the uk - hopefully I made that distinction in the video (pretty sure I did).
I’m struggling between M2 air 16gb and 512 gb or just going with the 14 inch pro. I’m a business development consultant so need it for research and large deck building primarily. Travel a little but not too much. I have the M1 mac as my main work hub. Thoughts?
Go with the 14 inch pro if you need the better/bigger screen and the included additional ports. If you invest into additional memory AND ssd storage then the price gets really too close to the pro.
If it’s for your work purpose, you should go with the 14 inch MBP
I agree with these other replies. If you are using this laptop to make money, do yourself a favor and get the 14 inch MacBook Pro, preferably with the 10 core CPU, as it comes with the faster charger and a better much CPU, as the M2 and M1 Pro with 8 core CPU aren’t that different, especially when compared to the 10 core M1 Pro/Max CPU.
Given the low performance of the 256 SSD in the M2 MBA, the base configuration is probably not a good idea. If money is tight, the M1 MBA would be a much better deal. If money is plentiful, a loaded M2 MBA is similar to a 14” MBP in price and the 14” is a much better laptop. The M2 MBA only makes sense if you love the design (which is very nice, particularly in dark blue) or need a lighter laptop and money is not an issue.
This is a genuine question, Andrew: have you tried the base model with that 256GB SSD? I ask, because I'd like to know what first-hand experience you have of it being 'low performance'. Genuinely interested.
@@MarkEllisReviews I have not tried the base MBA with 256GB SSD, nor will I be. I have decided not to buy a M2 MBA. I will be buying the marginally more expensive base 14" MBP instead. However, numerous reviewers have run benchmarks showing the much lower performance of the 256GB SSD and others have have shown its real world effect running applications like Final Cut.
@@andrewgrant788 That's cool, and you've revealed exactly why this MacBook Air drama is so overblown - you're not its market. It's also why you can't comment on its performance I'm afraid, mate; I'd never review a product without touching it - I'd get lynched (and rightly so!). Benchmarks have zero bearing on what it's like to use this thing in real life - they are totally irrelevant.
@@MarkEllisReviews The MacBook I am buying isn't for me, its for my daughter. I don't think benchmarks are totally irrelevant and I am not claiming to have reviewed the M2 MBA. We can't all test every machine we are considering. I also don't think it's dramatic to point out that beautiful as the laptop is, its value proposition is questionable. Someone who's compute needs are modest would probably be just has happy with the performance of the M1 MBA.
@@andrewgrant788 I guess we are spoiled these days. When the Macbook Air first came out, nobody ever thought about doing any heavy editing on them, it was not meant for it. Now some RUclips reviewers will complain that it gets hot editing 8k films in Final Cut which it technically isnt meant for. If benchmarks and editing is important, its not for you. For basic work, like Mark Ellis, its perfect and has plenty of power.
2:11 “For everyone else, 8 GB of unified memory is plenty.”
I’m going to stop you there Mark. If this Mac was under $1000, if it had the faster SSDs and the SSDs were replaceable rather than soldered, if macOS actually could actually function well with 8 GB of memory, then maybe I could say I agree. But I just can’t. At $1200, 8 GB is lousy. Swap memory kills your SSDs limited read/write cycles faster and with the slower SSDs this generation, it makes the system drastically slower. And if you add this to the constant memory leak issues in macOS Monterrey (I don’t know about Ventura, but that’s still about 2 - 3 months away for a stable version), and I would honestly have to disagree. There’s no way that 8 GB will cut it anymore except if all you do is use Safari with no more than 5 tabs at once, listen to music, use Microsoft Word or Apple Pages, or do VERY basic things like these. Apple should have just ended the 8 GB of RAM option and/or lowered the base model to $999.
We'll have to agree to disagree on that one, Cameron - I've not experienced any of those issues, and I've worked my 8GB M1 MacBook Air to the bone running this business. I still maintain we live in a very different world now with unified memory for the vast majority of normal users.
Nearly every base Ultrabook in Windows-land is 8GB and some even come with 4GB so you may be having a workload that is not comparable to a lot of consumers (we are not talking prosumers here). So why do MS, Samsung, LG, HP, et al all start with 8GB? It is because the vast majority it is all they need and the odd slowdown is not as important as the money saved. So you are pretty wrong here for the vast majority of ultrabook users. Maybe you are mixing it up with semi-pro users or prosumers or gamers, and then I can agree that the majority then need 16GB+, though some could still be okay with 8GB.
I monitor my workflow, typical ultrabook fare, office and browser tabs and 8GB is enough as when you do not use pro apps you can get 3-4GB of near-instant compressed memory (I see that on my stats) and up to about 4GB of swap is super fast (once >4GB swap then slowdowns). So 8GB is de facto 16GB on non-pro stuff. When you use pro apps they eat RAM for breakfast meaning you lose nearly all potential compressed RAM and swap is dedicated to the browser and can slow down that and other apps.
If you want the headroom then buy 16GB but many of us know what we use and therefore need and know 8GB is fine so you are just reflecting your usage and I have no idea what you have that can eat your memory (monitor, security apps, apps that leak RAM, browser extensions, etc). I keep a tight ship rather than bog down my system and that means cleaning out cache daily (YT can build 1.5GB in a couple of hours). I agree with 8GB being fine for most for ultrabook workflows but add that if you can afford it, then 16GB is a good investment. The speed of storage is not going to be important for they vast majority of casual users.
I’ve got an M1 8Gb. I’ve edited and rendered several 4k RUclips videos with FinalCut, ran a Kali Linux virtual machine with 4Gb for work, played games like WoW, and several more things. I’d bet that’s a bit heavier usage vs the average user. I’ve never experienced any “out of memory” errors as some others have received. However, I’ll still be getting at least 16Gb in the next one.
@@tyler4723 Having used the M2 I can say it is a bit buggy and that it probably needs some updates to fix the issues. Those could be developer-side or macOS side. The M1 had issues initially and we see with ARM (Pixel 6, S22, Xiaomi, SQ1) that they do take a while to be optimised. Even check out Intel’s new 12th-gen where Windows still has not been able to optimise the efficiency cores (hence poor battery life), but nothing on this from the YT cabal, probably due to the billions Intel is throwing to convince people not to dump their chips.
Your workload def needs 16GB of RAM to stop the swap as that will wear your storage and even though it is unlikely to kill it, cells will wear and become redundant. Anyway why would anyone trade RAM for swap? Just get 16GB if you are keeping your machine for a long time as it will pay you back in the long run.
@@andyH_England What if I just want to use the Air 8GB as a simple Web/Arduino portable machine. No video editing, no gaming (have a main AMD rig for all that jazz), nothing intensive but want to be on the Mac platform (not iPad BS),,,, would it be okay without 16GB?
I’ve gone for full high-end spec: 10-core GPU, 24GB memory, 2TB SSD, 67W charger and Final Cut Pro just because I want the best performance functionality possible for video editing even if I probably won’t use it as frequently as most people that would buying this high-end configuration. What I did leave out was Logic Pro because I don’t really understand what that is or why I’d need it. Might look into it in the future though.
Oh and I went for the gold-light sheen Starlight colour. It look so attractive.
I got the Apple Care+ too just to be safe.
For video editing you shouldve gone for the Macbook pro 14
@@OverEntusiast too expensive. And I wanted the starlight colour
@@Girl4Music base model macbook pro 14 is cheaper than the specs youve listed above.
@@OverEntusiast yeah but then I would have had to add on the specs anyway so it would end up being more expensive regardless
Besides I’m happy with the M2. It performs exactly how I expect it to.
Some fraudsters are using your names to send messages to that I won prizes
Please inform everyone
Thanx
This is common among tech channels, and sadly, there isn’t much anybody except RUclips can do to stop these scams.
Honestly, you made deciding for which specs to pick so much easier ! can't thank you enough! which accessories do you recommend ?
Some advice is well worth ignoring.
The new M1 Macs use a mixed RAM and SSD in the so-called Unified Memory. If they run out of RAM they start swapping to the SSD. A problem exacerbated by the RAM also being used by the GPU. Unfortunately the Macs with a lousy 8Gb of RAM, don't have enough SSD storage either.
My MacBook Pro M1 Pro has 16Gb of RAM and 512Gb SSD. Because I am concerned about the life of the internal SSD I work to an external USB C SSD, keeping the internal SSD only for internal caching, email, Apps and other files that the System writes internally.
Despite all these precautions I the Mac freezes or has sharp slowdowns when the Mac runs out of memory and starts swapping files to the SSD. These are quite weird and not something I experienced on older and much slower Macs. The M1 blanks web pages, where they load but don't render. Presumably the GPU has run out of RAM/SSD space or choked somewhere along the chain.
I DEFINITELY do NOT agree that "8Gb is enough". This has been a long standing myth circulated for countless Macs with inadequate RAM/Storage because Apple charges way too much for RAM and SSDs but covers their arse by saying Macs magically use what they have "better".
The story always goes; yes it is horrendously expensive BUT "you don't need as much RAM for Macs".
B.S. That is a straight out con job. The suckers who fall for it only find out too late after they have bought the under-powered Mac, that they can not upgrade. You are stuck with what you bought. Run out, or have any of it die, and you own a brick, not a Mac.
IGNORE the price on base model Macs, the real price should be stated for the higher configuration that you WILL need to get the supposed benefits of the new models as hyped by Apple.
You should start a RUclips channel.