David Hanak Apple today introduced the long-awaited successor to the popular MacBook Air. The novelty has a better display, a completely new chassis, better battery life, new and more powerful components, and overall it has a modern impression, which is exactly what we expect from MacBooks in 2018. The problem is that the current range of MacBooks makes little sense and can seem quite chaotic to the average user.
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Dan Pražák With the arrival of the new MacBook Air, nothing else has changed. Apple just added another product to the offer, which can be purchased in the price range from 36 to almost 80 thousand crowns. If we look at the MacBook offer from the current point of view, we can find here:
- Desperately old and in no conceivable way acceptable (original) MacBook Air starting at 31k.
- 12″ MacBook starting at 40 thousand.
- New MacBook Air starting at 36 thousand.
- MacBook Pro in the version without Touch Bar, which in the basic configuration is only four thousand more expensive than the basic MacBook Air.
In practice, it looks like Apple sells four different models of its MacBooks within the range of nine thousand crowns, which can also be configured quite richly. If this isn't an example of an unnecessarily fragmented product offering, then I don't know what is.
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First, let's look at the presence of the old MacBook Air. The only reason this model is still available is probably the fact that Apple significantly increased the price of the new Air and still wants to keep some MacBook in the sub-$1000 range (the old Air started at $999). For an uninformed customer, this is basically a kind of trap, because buying an old Air for 31 thousand crowns (God forbid paying extra for any additional fees) is pure nonsense. A machine with such specifications and parameters has no place in the offer of a company like Apple (someone could argue that for several years...).
Another problem is the pricing policy in the case of the new MacBook Air. Due to its higher price, it comes dangerously close to the basic configuration of the MacBook Pro without Touch Bar - the difference between them is 4 thousand crowns. What does the interested party get for this extra 4 thousand? A slightly faster processor that offers higher basic operating frequencies (Turbo Boost is the same), but a generation older design, together with stronger integrated graphics (we will have to wait for concrete values from practice, the difference in computing power can be considerable, but also doesn't have to). Furthermore, the Pro model offers a slightly brighter display (500 nits against 300 for the MacBook Air) with support for the P3 gamut. That's all from the extra bonuses. The new Air, on the other hand, has a better keyboard, offers the same connectivity (2x Thunderbolt 3 ports), better battery life, Touch ID integration into the keyboard and is smaller/lighter.
Update 31/10 - It turns out that Apple will only offer a 7W processor (Core i5-8210Y) in the new MacBook Air, while the old Air had a 15W processor (i5-5350U) and the Touch Bar-less MacBook Pro also had a 15W chip (i5-7360U ). Conversely, the 12″ MacBook also contains a less powerful processor, namely the 4,5W m3-7Y32. We will have to wait a few days for the results in practice, you can find a paper comparison of the above processors <a href="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1932/8043/files/200721_ODSTOUPENI_BEZ_UDANI_DUVODU__EN.pdf?v=1595428404" data-gt-href-en="https://en.notsofunnyany.com/">here</a>.
Gallery of the new MacBook Air:
Gallery
Something similar happens when comparing the new Air with the 12″ MacBook. It is basically four thousand more expensive, its only benefit is its size – the 12″ MacBook is 2 millimeters thinner and less than 260 grams lighter. That's where its advantages end, the new Air handles everything else better. It has better battery life (by 2-3 hours depending on activity), offers better configuration options, Touch ID, a better display, more powerful hardware, better connectivity, etc. Indeed, the above, and completely marginal, differences in size are the only and sufficient reason to keep the 12″ MacBook on the menu? Is such a difference in size even relevant to the average user?
I honestly expected that if Apple really comes up with a new MacBook Air, it will "combine" several current models into one and greatly simplify its product offering. I expected the removal of the old MacBook Air, which would be replaced by a new model. Next, the removal of the 12″ MacBook, as it no longer makes much sense given how small and light the Air is. And last but not least, the removal of the basic configuration of the MacBook Pro without the Touch Bar.
However, none of that happened, and in the coming months Apple will be offering four different product lines in the range of 30 to 40 thousand crowns, which could very easily be replaced by one model. The question remains, who's going to explain this to all those potential customers who aren't that well informed and don't have any deep knowledge of the hardware?
In the specification to which you refer, the TDP of the processor is 7W.
https://ark.intel.com/products/189912/Intel-Core-i5-8210Y-Processor-4M-Cache-up-to-3-60-GHz- In addition, according to Intel, it does not support 5K, which according to Apple Air can. What I'm most interested in now is whether the new Air has a fan or not? There are videos where they say it doesn't have one, but then what is the thing on the left? https://ibb.co/fCaEL0 ?
As for the old MB Air, it seems to me that maybe Apple is counting on lower prices through partners. This has already happened several times in the past, I myself bought an MB12 for a significantly lower price than it was at the Apple store at the time, after all, I bought my first Powerbook 12 a long time ago in a similar way. The reason is probably the effort not to lose face by lowering the official price, however, there is room for various "maneuvers".
And the fact is that the basic MB Air with an "official" price of 31k can now be easily bought for 25k, which is no longer a negligible difference...
Whether it's worth it for this price would be a long discussion, I'm only describing the condition and the fact that the price difference will probably be bigger in reality.
Has anyone managed to find out if the new Air has a fan? In some "hands on" videos they mention that no but so what: https://ibb.co/fCaEL0 the thing on the left?? The processor used should be: https://ark.intel.com/products/189912/Intel-Core-i5-8210Y-Processor-4M-Cache-up-to-3-60-GHz-
in the article of errors as poppy seeds.
see "Update 31/10 - It turns out that Apple will only offer a 5W processor (Core i5-8210Y) in the new MacBook Air, while the old Air had a 15W processor (i5-7360U) and the MacBook Pro without Touch Bar also had a 15W chip (i5 -5350U)"
The processor of the new Air is 7W and not 5W, the latest macbook pro without TB does not have a 5350U but a 7360U, and the old Air does not have a 7360U but a 5350U.
Another mistake is that in the article the author did not mention the brighter display of the Pročka 500nits vs 300nits
So I don't know, but I don't think the complete range of macbooks is such a chaos, as the title of the article states. Now it's really up to everyone. Although it is true that only a fool would have gone to the original Air...
Macbook 12"
Macbook Air 13,3" (original)
Macbook Air 13,3" (new-more expensive)
Macbook Pro 13"
Macbook Pro 15"
I think it will be like this: Those who want ultra-portability go for a 12-inch MacBook. There is a price to be paid for ultraportability, but the 12-inch MB is no more expensive than the new Air. It has a base of 256GB of RAM. Air only 128. If you pay extra for Air for 256GB, you are at 42 thousand. If you need more power, there's the MB Pro. Without or with Touchbar, 13 or 15. It depends on the needs. It is clear that due to the very large memory surcharges, the models overlap. If you put a 1,5GB disk in the Air, you attack the MB Pro with total clarity. But with the same disks, the MB Pro will be significantly more expensive. With Apple, it is simply important to think carefully about what I need the computer for. Choose the model and memory sizes accordingly. I like Air. 12 The Macbook is too small, I probably won't use the MB Pro. I consider the Air for 42 with 256GB as the upper limit of how much I'm willing to put into the wallet.
I see that the gentleman is an expert...
He keeps the old Air mainly because of companies and schools...so that they have the opportunity to have the same products. They maintain it better, etc. There is a slower time to update the new hw. This is how Apple did it with the iPhone and MacbookPro...etc. Otherwise, I agree with the position of the Macbook, it is a completely useless product... maybe if its price dropped significantly, it would only make sense. Only because of components such as RAM and SSD, this will most likely not happen. Otherwise, the new Air is a beautiful product, it will take some time for people to try the price, but it will definitely fit :o)
Well, apple has been screwing up for a while now. It is kept afloat by MacOS or iOS. I know that apple was never a manufacturer that sold the best hardware and it was always mainly about SW that could squeeze the maximum out of the given HW. In the past, at the same time, it was always able to upload excellent software to hardware that was chosen with regard to the best possible user experience. Now it is no longer the case and I think that the time when Apple reigned is irretrievably gone. No one will tell me that removing TouchId from the iPhone was a major mistake, and I will also be constantly amused by all the users who point the camera at themselves in order to open their phone. It's just laughable and it's a straight jump back from putting your finger on the button. The second major mistake was the removal of the 3,5mm jack, especially when we consider that Apple stopped selling iPods (the Touch is simply an iPhone without calls, it certainly cannot be compared to available MP3 players such as the Sony NW-A45). The third mistake is Apple's excessive pressure on customers regarding additional purchases of accessories. Not giving an iPhone for 30 a reduction for headphones worth 250 CZK, when the manufacturer decides not to put a 3,5 mm jack in the phone, is seriously ridiculous. At the same time, there is no longer a time when Android did not work, crashed and crashed, and iOS lost its probably biggest advantage - stability. The most incomprehensible step, however, is the excessive size of iPhones. It is no longer focused on the best user experience, but is based on the trend of phablets, against which Steve Jobs spoke when he was still alive and declared that the iPhone would never be of such dimensions. And I have big hands, long fingers, I can hold the phone, but it doesn't handle well, it doesn't fit as well in the hand as the Samsung S9ka (I have to point out that I have an iPhone 6, just because the new iPhones are simply shitty to use). I have had a MacBook since about 2007, now I have a version from 2016. And now when I buy a Mb it will have no HDMI, no USB 2.0, no SD card reader. In short, I don't want to buy new devices from Apple, not because I don't have the money for it, but because their new "better" machines would limit me and I would have to carry reductions with me or actually buy a much worse device with a much narrower portfolio functions. I think that the end of Apple has already begun and in time it will fit somewhere in the textbooks. Poor Steve would cry if he saw this. At least his legacy is all the more remarkable when you can understand in retrospect how much influence he had on the running of such a huge company as Apple still is today.
If the end of Apple has begun and it's going to hell just according to your arguments, then I'm fine. The technologies you cry about are history and moving forward. Steve Jobs would have been dancing with joy, only he died when these technologies were at their peak, so many people think he would still be stuffing them there today. Nonsense. Move on, turn your head from back to front, look to the future and you will see the meaning of what Apple does and why it does it. And if not, look elsewhere, there they are desperately trying to graft the old with the new - full-body display and touch ID at the same time, so they slap it on the back, face scanner, Apple has it, so they have it there too, what's up , that it doesn't work rather than it works. It's there and users are patting themselves on the back for having both touchID and face unlock and the backward iPhone doesn't have both.
The only thing that annoys me is that. that Éra (as I affectionately call it), I've had it for 4 years now and it still works 100%. I used to replace my Vaio every year and throw it in the bin. I would quite buy a new machine, but why on earth if it works. A terrible dilemma.