Intro to M1 or M2 MacBook Air
In 2023, the MacBook Air M1 stands out as a compelling laptop option compared to the newer Air M2. Despite being on the market for over a year, the M1 continues to deliver excellent performance for everyday tasks and even lighter photo or video editing workloads.
It appeals particularly to average users who need a lightweight laptop with an impressive 18-hour battery life. In this post, we will delve into why the M1 Air continues to shine brighter than its successors and why we believe you should still choose the M1 over the M2 in 2023.
Part 1: Price
The M1 MacBook Air, with a starting price of RM4399, stands as the best value option that remains. It delivers a robust metal build, an excellent keyboard, trackpad and display, all within the reach of students and professionals. With a battery life of up to 18 hours, it’s an ideal choice for everyday users.
With a starting price of RM5199, the MacBook Air M2, a revised version of the MacBook Air M1, offers several noticeable upgrades. These upgrades include an ultra-thin design, a larger 13.6-inch display, a brighter screen, additional GPU performance, better speakers and camera, an excellent keyboard and trackpad and more ports and configuration options for memory and storage.
Doesn’t it sound tempting? Well, in our opinion, the significant increase in price may not justify the additional hardware benefits or performance value for most users, thus making the M1 MacBook Air a more cost-effective choice.
Part 2: Specifications
The M1 MacBook Air, with its affordable price, impresses with remarkable specifications. Its M1 chip represents a significant leap in performance compared to its Intel predecessor, even surpassing some higher-end MacBook Pros from the past. This makes it an ideal choice for professional applications.
Furthermore, the 13.3-inch Retina display delivers a vibrant and crisp image that enhances the pleasure of working on it. Its brightness of 400 nits makes it suitable for most lighting conditions, and users appreciate the absence of a notch as an added bonus.
Although the 720p webcam on the M1 Air isn’t flawless, it proves sufficient for Zoom calls and FaceTime sessions.
CPU Performance Difference M1 and M2 MacBook Air
Comparison M1 and M2 chip, source from Macrumors.com
Both the M1 and M2 chips incorporate four high-performance and four energy-efficient cores. However, there is a distinction in the core names between the two. The M1 chip utilizes “Firestorm” and “Icestorm” cores from the A14 Bionic chip, whereas the M2 chip introduces “Avalanche” and “Blizzard” cores from the A15 Bionic chip. Apple claims that this configuration delivers a notable 18 percent improvement in multithreaded performance compared to the M1 chip.
GPU Performance Difference M1 and M2 MacBook Air
Image source from Macrumors.com
The M2 chip surpasses the M1 in terms of graphics performance, thanks to its two additional GPU cores. According to Apple, the M2 offers up to 25 percent higher graphics performance than the M1 at the same power level, and up to 35 percent better performance at its maximum power.
In early Geekbench Metal benchmarks, the M2 chip achieved a score of 30,627, showcasing a significant improvement compared to the M1’s score of 21,001.
If your intention is to use the MacBook Air for gaming, then opting for the newer M2 model would be a preferable choice.
An example of playing Civilization VI on a MacBook Air with an M-series processor:
Image source from Macworld.com
In the game Civilization VI with High settings, the M2 with a full 10-core GPU, the result approximately 25% greater speed compared to the M1 Air, which featured 7 GPU cores.
Webcam and Speakers
The M2 chip introduces a webcam that supports a resolution of 1080p, which significantly surpasses the low-grade 720p FaceTime HD camera found in the M1 MacBook Air. As a result, the M1 MacBook Air and M2 MacBook Pro stand as the only laptops equipped with the older camera technology.
Furthermore, the M2 MacBook Air updates the speakers by incorporating four speakers that provide support for 3D audio, also known as Spatial Audio, instead of relying on a stereo system. Additionally, the 3.5mm headphone jack offers advanced support for high-impedance headphones.
More about Spatial Audio
Apple’s spatial audio technology actively takes 5.1, 7.1 and Dolby Atmos signals and applies directional audio filters to adjust the frequencies that each ear hears. This allows for virtual placement of sounds anywhere in 3D space, creating an immersive experience. Sounds can be perceived as coming from the front, sides, rear and even above, simulating the audio experience of a cinema.
What makes Apple’s spatial audio unique, especially in relation to movie soundtracks, is its ability to not only provide virtualized surround and Atmos sound, but also track the movement of your head using accelerometers and gyroscopes present in devices like AirPods 3, AirPods Pro, AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Max and Beats Fit Pro. This tracking ensures accurate sound positioning according to your head’s orientation.
Additionally, Apple’s spatial audio technology takes into consideration the position of your iPhone or iPad screen. As a result, the sound is placed in relation to the screen, allowing dialogue to remain anchored to the actor on the screen even if you turn your head or adjust your device, delivering a consistent audio experience.
Pro Tip 1
In our opinion, an 18% improvement may not be compelling enough for most users to justify paying an additional RM800 for the M2 chip, unless they frequently push their device’s load to 100%. If that level of usage is common for you, then considering the MacBook Pro might be more suitable.
Pro Tip 2
Instead of spending an extra RM800 on the M2 chip, we recommend considering investing that money in the AppleCare Protection Plan for Mac (ACPP). The ACPP costs RM699 for the MacBook Air and provides three years of additional hardware service options and expert technical support directly from Apple.
While some people believe they don’t need AppleCare because the MacBook Air rarely experiences breakdowns, it is important to note that any repair on a MacBook Air will likely cost more than RM699. Therefore, choosing the AppleCare Protection Plan can offer peace of mind and potential cost savings in the long run.
Part 3: Charging Port
The magnetically attached MagSafe port charges the M2 MacBook Air, alleviating concerns about accidentally pulling your MacBook off the desk when stumbling over the cable. Meanwhile, the M1 MacBook Air still charges using the USB-C connector.
Part 4: Battery capacity and usage hours
The M2 MacBook Air surpasses the previous generation M1 in battery size, boasting a 52.6-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery compared to the M1’s 49.9-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery.
When tested the movie playback battery life on both sizes of the M2 MacBook Air and the M1 MacBook Air, the difference between the two M2 models did not turn out to be as substantial as one might anticipate, despite the larger battery in the bigger MacBook.
Both M2 models excel in battery life when compared to the M1 MacBook Air and are on par with the 14-inch MacBook Pro.
Image source from Macworld.com
Conclusion to M1 or M2 MacBook Air
When comparing the M1 and M2 chips, it’s a win-win situation for everyone as both chips deliver impressive performance.
For users who primarily engage in tasks like web browsing, word processing, email and watching video, the M1 MacBook Air remains an excellent choice in terms of value. The base model, equipped with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD storage, offers a cost-effective solution for those who don’t require demanding tasks such as high-resolution video editing.
On the other hand, power users with heavier workloads and a need for multi-screen sharing are advised to consider upgrading to 16GB of RAM.
However, if your priority lies in keeping up with the latest technology, the new M2 chip in Apple computers provides a quantum leap in performance and productivity. Not only does it offer better performance, but also features a more modern design, an improved display and various smaller yet noteworthy enhancements such a magnetic MagSafe.
Contact us
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Contact us today for any inquiries you might have or visit us at ypmac.com.my
