Here's the Thing about the M3 Macbook Air...

Usually it's the easiest laptop in the world recommend. This time, there's a wrinkle...
Get a dbrand leather skin at dbrand.com/shop/leather
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Tech I'm using right now: www.amazon.com/shop/MKBHD
Playlist of MKBHD Intro music: goo.gl/B3AWV5
Laptop provided by Apple for review.
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[@simongiraffe]

$200 dollars too get 8 more gigs of RAM should be illegal

[@RadioNul]

This is the company that sold a monitor stand for $1000

[@clubkevyumba]

@@RadioNuldon't forget the wheels for like $700 lol

[@istvan368]

Its like when you want to buy a porsche. If you put everything into it, its waaaaay more expensive

[@bobbytables464]

@@istvan368 Except this isn't a Porsche, it's a midrange laptop. For $999 you can get a PC laptop with a vastly superior OLED screen and a usable 16/512 of ram/storage. Is Mac OS worth a $500 premium?

[@8tonystark8]

Why? Sheepple will always buy it regardless

[@victorozurumba2300]

repeat after me , if you've already got an m series laptop , you DO NOT NEED THIS

[@seantnichols]

100% I have an M1 Pro and won’t need a laptop for quite a while.

[@shorya8202]

wont be upgrading my m1 air for another 2 years

[@poopyjohn8182]

Also repeat after me, even if you’ve got a capable Intel laptop, you still DO NOT NEED this

[@Nov_Net]

Also repeat after me: "even if you don't already have an m series laptop or a capable Intel counterpart, your broke ass can't afford this anyways😂"

[@GeomeTeamCraft]

Hehe I’m buying it now (I’m not)

[@rayok_zed]

Marques is the only one that can call out Apple and still get invited and receive review units 😂

[@Swashcuff]

and still get called out by haters for not calling out Apple when he does it ALL the time haha

[@jermaineallen2879]

I know right I was like damn way to call them out. 😊

[@therambler3713]

​@Swashcuff Yeah because its no secret that he owns the full Apple ecosystem. You have to be really sтupid to expect an honest review of Apple products from him. 😂

[@soulfires17]

Where is he calling out Apple? This entire video is promoting Apple equipment

[@rayok_zed]

@@soulfires17 Calling out a person/company doesn't mean you can't recommend their products. You know what? Hold on. What did you mean he didn't call them out? He mentioned their predatory prices (he's always done that) and he mentioned severally the SSD problem.

[@JoeStuffzAlt]

It's refreshing to hear someone say "if you are doing lightweight work, consider the older gear"

[@volvo09]

Yes! No need to getodern stuff to browse the web and pay bills. I love computers and I don't have anything newer than a 6 year old desktop and a 7 year old laptop... All my other computers are much older. I have no need to get a modern computer, no need to pay out for un needed horsepower.

[@paulcleary8088]

@@volvo09 There is no need to get a Macbook Air at all for most people. They could honestly do virtually all of this lightwork stuff on a $350 Chromebook.

[@sharkpyro93]

@@paulcleary8088 of course they choose not to, for obvious reasons

[@blazed85]

Just get a m1 as long as it isn’t a 13 inch. Unless you really need a smaller screen.

[@Anthony-kp7sf]

I have an m3 and its amazing and this KZbinr is a joke amongst people who actually give a sh*t about tech but yoodle hoo or whatever

[@D369_]

Thanks for not being afraid of really calling out the ridiculous pricing of upgrading the machines from base. Everyone needs to share this video.

[@MortonSeinfeld]

Yeah bro, no one's ever criticized Apple for charging so much for memory. So brave. So courageous.

[@MMAli-rq8kd]

Agreed! Than you MKHB for not selling us out!

[@user-zy7ou5vh3u]

@@MortonSeinfeld Meanwhile Dell, Asus, HP etc do the exact same thing.

[@gimmemycash3418]

They won't stop doing this, it makes them a lot of money

[@kay94]

@@user-zy7ou5vh3u Dell, Asus and HP don't charge $ 1000 for a stand and $ 400 for wheels with no brakes. And if they did they would be called out massively, and they wouldn't sell. Apple is the only company whose greed is paying off.

[@aidenthornburg3170]

“M1 Air from walmart” - $699 BRAND NEW. I think thats really the way to go for anyone who just wants a mac and does most of their work in a web browser (lots of people)

[@ilmanakbar]

I wouldn't say M1 Air is right for those do their work in a web browser. Have this for the past 3 years, and the 8 GB of RAM is definitely limiting my workflow. I can use 20+ Google Chrome tabs and I have to close it all every time I want to do more

[@gullible119]

@@ilmanakbaryou do know chrome is a memory hog?

[@PSNvncenzos]

​@@BajGer12331 I C BAJ

[@Drew1218s]

@@ilmanakbarI’m a graphic designer and I also have 20 or more tabs open on a base m1 air. It slows down sometimes but it’s not by much. The m1 MacBook Air is still very much a great choice for those who do real work. It’s also very affordable making it the best value Mac right now.

[@Epicgamer_Mac]

Well it’s also a brilliant idea for Apple to have a competitor to the humble Chromebooks of such low quality that all the schools still refuse to stop buying… it’s bc that’s what they can afford, and if this trend continues maybe we’ll start seeing kids get actually good school computers 💻

[@Tsepz]

Warching this on my M1 MacBook Air, still very happy with it. It is good to see the incremental improvements in each of these releases though, because when one replaces their M1 in a few years there will be a nice jump.

[@IR240474]

Me too, base model. I have an external USB hub with two 1TB NVME external drives attached on one USB port, and the apple usb white usb connector for power, external monitor and a 3rd 1TB external SSD. After 18 months, I have 65% internal space left, but 256 GB is so small. But love the M1.

[@jocelitojoe]

M1 air still good to video editing in Davinci resolve.

[@FLM_OFF]

Is m1 Macbook air still good, for school work, watching youtube vids, and having a lot of tabs open?

[@IR240474]

@@FLM_OFF I believe so, it does everything you would need for college work, and it will run small ollama models like phi3 and small llms, as 8gb of memory is not great for AI, but for programming webdesign etc, its great. i don't use adobe so I do no know about that, But 3 years later, its on par with my new Mac Pro M3 with 18gb of ram for AI models. The M1 is soother, if possible upgrade the ram and HDD size, as 256 gb is small, so I use an external nvme 1gb drive using the USB and external case for the nvme drive. i have 2 1gb external drives, 1 monitor another external SSD 1gb drive, and its magic. Add you apps to the external drive to save space on your mac HDD if 256gb, this is great as the nvme drive and USB 3.1 is fast enough for the mac not to know as the speed is great and running apps on external drive called Applications, it works, also t=if folders are big, move them to external drive and right click and make sym link, copy the new folder to the mac drive and then rename to regional name, remove sync. and that saves gb's of space.!! Good luck and the M1 will serve you well, as mine still does.!

[@_rpeezy_6419]

It's so refreshing to hear this from a tech guru like yourself! I remember back in 2010 I bought my first Apple Laptop - it was an "open box" MacBook Air from Best Buy for hundreds less than a new one. It gave me years and years of use and even was still very usable when I replaced it. Co-signing your advice 💯

[@mrbeastsgaming]

Still using my pro 2012 to date, got used for 250$ in 2015 and put an ssd and that’s it

[@quickpstuts412]

Yes, I love how long Macbooks last.

[@FunAndGamesAnimation]

I somehow missed the fact that they released the m3 Mac air

[@evank8459]

m2 is finally a decent value

[@UsTube.]

Ye

[@wayando]

Time to get M1

[@FayezButts]

They didn't do a keynote or anything, just announced on the website. So there wasn't much to miss lol

[@Ascended-0]

Same ngl

[@mjefferson3223]

I have the base m1 MacBook Air and it still runs like butter. Probably won’t need to upgrade until M5 or M6

[@erichill414]

That’s what I plan on doing.

[@nicolasb.henry294]

I bought a M2 because I didn't have any M1 but have an IMac and an iPad so no need for an M3

[@josephjoestar515]

Same. I don't think they meant to make the M1 Air so good lol.

[@hector4913]

@@josephjoestar515 True... I mean, the jump was from Intel series to Silicon M1-series . Besides, I feel Apple's RAM & Storage upgrade is.................A HUGE SCAM !!! edit : Also... 8 GB RAM with 2024's workflow need...& must remember that it's not RAM, but "Shared Memory". At least give 12GB on base M3 if it was 8GB on M1.

[@scrappybadger4369]

Same, love my m1 air. I use it for web browsing and music production and technically speaking, probably neither of us will "need" to upgrade until the software is so far ahead that it's actually slow, or our needs change. Though, with consumerism and all, we'll want the shiny new thing sooner or later haha

[@PS_Travels]

We use a base spec M1 MacBook Air for our videos using Final Cut Pro. Still a fantastic laptop and never had any issues with it.

[@MrAmoRay]

Awesome review! This has been VERY helpful for me on selecting for my son's laptop. I had to explain the difference between a need and a want. He needs a new laptop that can handle his daily school work. He does NOT need an M3 Pro or the 36 GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. Your review cements practicality and reality. Thank you.

[@Kylenasru]

Yeah, pro is just overkill, especially for school work. M3 Air is more than enough. You’re a good dad.

[@MelissaAndAlex]

My MacBook Air m1 is the best computer I have ever bought. Zero issues editing. Battery still incredible.

[@EliStettner]

Mine has developed screen issues.

[@fasn279]

@@EliStettnerwhat issue?

[@EliStettner]

Left inch of the screen has vertical striping, mostly totally black. It changes frequently when I put any pressure on the screen. Apple wanted ~$400 to fully replace the top display, not just the LCD. @@fasn279

[@Blubbluh]

@@fasn279mine screen broke on its own twice. The m1 has a design flaw. The screen will break at some point. There’s a class action lawsuit about it and tons of threads on it.

[@just_a_random_dude3]

mine also broke except it is an intel macbook with the butterfly keyboard might have gotten a crumb stuck inside

[@bikashnath01]

Still rocking my M1 Macbook Air 2020, and it has been great without any hiccups as per my usage. No need of any upgrade for me for a long time.😌

[@miffygames9099]

Do you use any heavy apps on it, just bought one yesterday and i wanna use it for music production

[@stingfiretube]

Or just throw it away, MacBooks are useless obsolete machines. Embrace Nvidia and intel.

[@botanicalsoul1490]

@@miffygames9099I have been using base M1 Macbook Air for Dj software and also Ableton Live and it runs pretty well. I would say it starts to run little hot after a certain amount of time

[@_H_A_R_S_H_I_T_]

Does ur m1 freeze if you have more than few tabs open on browser?

[@Benjamin-James]

Same here (2021) air with 16gbs of ram. I use premier, avid, and FCPX on it with no issues. Rendering 4K stuff and coloring Slog3 fine. The only slow part is the exports. But if you manage your workflow properly, this isn’t a problem. The only time I find it getting slow is when I’m exporting, and rendering, AND Uploading at the same time. Which is rate

[@manavpatel2615]

The wall paper is amazing

[@user-kv3qp9zo5s]

The "enabler" thing is quite true. I've been doing heavy coding for over 3 years with a base M1 Macbook Air and it's still going strong. It paid for itself hundreds times over haha

[@leoniusxmonsterxx42]

I will buy 1 macbook air for every like this comment gets

[@SuperFilmregisseur]

Sold

[@prakharlal9909]

Done... Now ship one out to each one of us

[@LoganT547]

RIP bro's bank account

[@Forrest_O.]

Can I have one? Please?

[@phulioyuong3659]

Done now do it

[@MihneaStoian]

The Air is for people using 80% browser/office apps, 10-15% communication apps and 5-10% creative apps. My wife is using the M1 Air base model and the thing doesn't skip a beat. I have a M1Pro and we always use her Air for travel and even just looking stuff on the couch - the lightweight, size and insane battery life just can't be beat. I used to use it for photo editing, and I never-ever saw it struggle with 25MP raw images.

[@nicholasjaworski9368]

My 2015 mbp also doesn’t struggle with my 24mp uncompressed raw files

[@nautica1504]

99% of people use laptops for browsing internet, watching videos and the like. I wonder why Apple sells them? PS you don't need to spend $1k to do that.

[@timsbird1971]

I use my M2 Air for all my home based development work. It has 16Gb and 512 drive and I paid the same as the base model M3 on sale. It is in every way comparable to the high powered Windows PC (supplied by my employer) I use for all my daily development work. Plus is has a nicer screen, keyboard, etc.

[@onyxkane]

if you think your 1000$ laptop not struggling with 25MP images is "good performance" then i'm really sorry for you.

[@bikeman7982]

@@nicholasjaworski9368 But I'd think the fan would run a lot and the battery life would be greatly reduced?

[@DeeJayAdverb]

Bro your video's are mixed so well lol Out here watching your stuff on various studio monitors and it always sounds SO FIRE and the levels are SO ON POINT! Also, cool video :)

[@jermaineallen2879]

Thanks for the update and the onsite always a pleasure on this channel

[@digitalizeddeath]

I’m suing you for not commenting on Linus Tech Tips video See you in court pal

[@federicolanzarotta9187]

I have an observation: I am a designer and filmmaker, I run a studio in Barcelona and for context my main rig is a custom built pc with a 5950x and 3090ti from a couple years back. Now, I bought an M2 Macbook Air, 512gb, 16gb of memory literally just for emails presentations and light work on the go, yet one day as I was on set offloading and SSD from our RED Monstro main rig and our Action shots form the BMPCC 6Ks, I tried laughing between me myself and I, to open a davinci resolve session and dump some of the RAW 5:1 8K footage and some of the 3:1 6K in a 4k timeline, pressed play and to my surprise, it didn't miss almost any frames. I added base convertion LUTs and you know what ? I still had smooth playback. To be fully honest I am still today blown away by how much more accessible handling RAW footage has become, but even more so by the M2 Air, that thing has no business being able to handle such files and yet it does.

[@wotwithbert7591]

May i come work for you despite not having film experience and being layed off a tech software development job soon? Just curious 😂

[@Haligonian]

This has been my experience too. The leap from Intel to M1 was so great, I don't think our ideas of what sort of computers people need for what kinds of workflows have caught up.

[@spirouzi]

do you think it will still smooth with 8gb model?

[@colonelsanders8320]

just got the same m2 15" mba thank god I saw your comment and how capable it is i havent really started doing heavy works so this ensured me.

[@GiselaSerra]

@@spirouzii’ve got an 8gb m1 and it struggles if i’ve got multiple things open or i’m working on some 1080p footage with some effects applied on, 16gb should be the norm nowadays

[@Scott-xl3sc]

I completed my entire doctorate (coding, modelling, data analysis, video editing to design experiments, and rendering some graphics for publication) on my base model M1 MacBook Air and it didn't miss a beat. There is only a small minority of the population that would actually need anything more. Don't get me wrong I always want a new toy but I wouldn't actually benefit at all by getting the M3.

[@RickGregory]

Yeah this is what drives me up a wall when MB spewed the "it's good for light browsing" line.

[@williamrgrant]

I have an M1 Pro 16” with 16GB ram and 1 TB hard drive. Fantastic machine, but I routinely bring it to its knees with 20-30 browser tabs, a few VSCode windows for coding projects, and Resolve open for an occasional video project. Unless you are crazy diligent about closing all unrelated apps, 8 or even 16 GB or ram is easily a limiting factor.

[@mgscheue]

@@RickGregoryYes, it’s good for far more than that.

[@Matt-pq4tq]

I’ve used a base M1 for several years in college and have never ONCE had an issue with RAM or storage or battery. 90% of people will be fine with it. Unless you do video editing or rendering or something intensive like that, which most people don’t, you won’t have any problems. I think Marques’ perspective is skewed because he does so much of that and is constantly surrounded by much more powerful tech. But maybe I’m also biased pretty diligent about closing tabs that I don’t need, and I use Safari which is more efficient than chrome. But I can have several safari & vscode tabs open at once without issue

[@aryan___9955]

so its enough if I get a M2 air huh alr

[@darkstepwarrior88]

Absolutely solid documentary. The dedication for hos character spawn goes so deep.

[@omiomardreamer0929]

That was the most excellent approach in delivering concept. I have seen in a very long time. I loved it. I loved it. I loved it.

[@henryfernandez4493]

I've always loved Marques for being fair of explaining and calling out the companies like the Apple.

[@footballreaction7863]

and car people hating him for no reason and say apple rider ... but ya he is fair

[@maya_coqsalonga]

He's my #1 tech reviewer/influencer.

[@GreatTaiwan]

@@footballreaction7863 he's fair he said his daily driver and what prefers is android over ios still not hating on it for no reason and still even after praised by apple in their keynote he calls out their predatory pricing

[@johnswanson217]

M1 Macbook Pro attached to 2 monitors through DisplayLink, running Geforce Now and 4K Netflix at the same time without any problem! It's now 3 Years old!

[@Maicolacola]

I love my M1 MBP. Such a beast. I spilled coffee on it and fried it temporarily, but got it fixed. Had it not been revived I’d honestly just buy another M1 and save the money than get the latest M#.

[@veryrealperson6]

@@MaicolacolaSame. Bought mine around 6 months ago and it’s an absolute monster for video editing

[@Pathfinder133]

That's crazy man...A $500 windows PC could never do that lol

[@gzarari]

a 400$ laptop can do that bro, my laptop is 2years old windows machine with m2 ss2 and works flawlessly. Flexing for those things is dumb because the point stands. 8gb ram for 1100$ is too much

[@Andrew-pv8oz]

@@gzararifacts

[@UrbanSasquatch]

The transition from review to sponsor was pretty smooth

[@djdontgetcooked]

I've been using M1 air 16 512 since release for development and design work. What a beast! I even have one of the newer models 16 inch but I still use the Air 99% of time

[@Lori-Hutchison]

I never noticed but dammn the audio quality of your videos is incredible.

[@DatTruckinGuy]

Still rocking my M1 Air with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage; hasn’t given me not one problem since I bought it. Fantastic machine. Thought about upgrading to M2 with more storage, but for what?

[@Cargo_Bay]

At this point, you’d only really benefit if you wanted to free up a port (as it has MagSafe in addition to the 2 usb c ports). But other than that, the m1 is still an excellent machine.

[@nofood1]

It’s the reason I sold it. Can’t stand it. That extra hole makes everything so much better!! (That’s what he said)

[@kaiser4ya]

Nice one. Thanks for suggesting and analyzing the prices

[@MiaBellaJordan]

I just bought this and of course you have a video on it 😂 you have a video for everything !!! This is my first macbook purchase ever i’m excited!

[@coffeecomputersandmore2300]

I am a public high school teacher that is currently using a 2020 MacBook Air M1 for 8-10 hours per day of classroom use. Everything I do is projected on a screen and the bulk of of work uses Google apps and Google Classroom. The M1 runs circles around my old i5 MacBook Air that I had been previously using. I never considered a new MacBook before until these M1s came out and changed my mind. I now want to pick up an M3 Air for personal use. Even the $699 M1s that Walmart is selling easily handles basic tasks for a non power user.

[@CallMeVidd]

I remember I had a 2019 intel MacBook Pro for art school and that thing was DREADFUL I honestly never saw it at peak performance because it was constantly burning

[@rp2895]

why would you get an M3 over an M1 then? or even M2?

[@officialhideyo]

So if you are a non power user why are you considering getting an m3 air? Why not get a M1 or M2 for cheaper?

[@Haligonian]

As someone who has used an M1 8GB Air and an M2 24GB Air for software development, the difference in price does not justify the difference in performance. Especially for compute-light tasks like you're doing, I would highly suggest saving money and getting an M1 or M2 instead of the M3. Also, the M1 has better speakers and a bigger trackpad, they took a step backwards with the design there.

[@Codyslx]

​@@julm7744 💀

[@emmanuel_nwogu_medic]

Always the best reviews. You always hit the nail on the head. Thanks

[@Lefsler]

I still have my "day 1" M1 MacBook with 16GB and have no problems, while I do not work with photo/video editing, for C++/Rust development it works great, I also leave tons of tabs and even different browsers open and the thing is super fast.

[@user-wj3ns7oh4u]

Got procured an M2 at work earlier this year. It’s awesome and I don’t think I’ll need to upgrade in the next few years. Totally love it.

[@TheSakMusik]

Same but what pisses me off is that 2 months ago they reduce the price for more than 200$

[@bobbobson6290]

@@TheSakMusik that always happens with tech. Just don't think about it.

[@az33135]

same here! i love also my m2

[@uff3511]

I have an M1 with 8GB RAM & 256GB Storage. I am this kind of MacBook Air user doing office stuff, watching videos, sometimes bigger Excel's and PowerPoints. For these use cases my notebook is fully enough. I am so happy and satisfied with the performance. I am not even thinking about upgrading in the next 2 years. But well, maybe I am the minority, but honestly - I don't think so :) I might be the minority in these comments. But not in the mass market.

[@WRiley-yz4by]

how does it work with multiple websites of chrome + zoom running at the same time?

[@ExperienceCN]

My 2015 base spec MacBook 12“ has 8gb ram and 256gb storage. It has held up strong but I wouldn’t buy a MacBook almost 10 years later with the same specs.

[@vidgamarr5126]

I have the same Mac for the same kind of stuff and it is fantastic. Only reason I’m trading it in towards the new one though is because I’d like more storage and MagSafe is back, which is amazing I’m not sure why they got rid of it to begin with.

[@michaelwatson7211]

yeah you think so now, but if you are regularly going over 8gb of memory needed it will swap memory onto the hard drive. That puts loads of write cycles on the drive that they are not designed for. And if it ever breaks you can't replace it because they are soldered straight onto the mother board.

[@liamdoyle507]

Yup same here

[@user-tp4dd2zl6j]

I really love the honesty

[@magnetoYT0]

Your video's aspect ratio perfectly fits my Pixel 3a display.

[@aldeno8055]

I opted to get the M1 Air 16 GB w/ getting an external SSD for storage, probably the best value for my buck. But Apple needs to up their RAM for their base models and the upgrades are so overpriced like everything they sell.

[@aliciasam5239]

They also need more features. A windows laptop can do better with better features. Comparing my bros Asus ZenBook to my Mac air 16gb. Mine is more expensive but his is better in terms of screen performance , features like charge only to 80% , fan mode, blurry etc. All these l have to install applications etc

[@hpenvy1106]

how about buying some other laptop/notebook?

[@nerd20fromdiscord]

@@aliciasam5239not really, the macbook will still last twice as long on battery while being completely silent and not losing any performance when its unplugged from the wall 🤷‍♂️

[@eomoran]

Unfortunately not really. Base storage yes, base memory? Nah, virtually everyone is fine with the 8 Gb they give. 8GB of memory is different depending on the device. Compared to a phone it’s probably equivalent to 16 GB especially with how optimised Mac is over windows. Just stop using chrome as a browser and you’ll be a okay

[@IdiotRace]

@@aliciasam5239 Optimised charging or charge to 80% is an OS level feature and it's available on Intel and AS MacBooks. Literally I can see my M1 MBP that I'm typing on doing it now.

[@Mazwun]

The fact that I’m still using a MacBook Air I got in 2014 with a 1TB external hard drive to edit videos in Final Cut Pro is insane. These things just don’t die lol

[@goated6146]

I have a mbp from 2015 and I even produce music on it and I don't really see a huge need to upgrade yet almost 10 years later. Like I've been debating on getting a silicon for so long and I still cant justify it.

[@Mazwun]

@@goated6146 exactly lol

[@NikTheMusicKid]

I’m excited to get mine. I just ordered the 13” with a few bumps in specs. I’m coming from a 2011 MacBook Air which was the lowest spec available when I bought it.

[@Waffles783]

M1 Air is still amazing for professional software engineering with mid-scale compiling/builds/etc. The fact that you can get it for $650 is pretty wild. Plus it's repairability is pretty decent. I've replaced the battery and monitor myself no problem.

[@leonardourbanavicius]

This. Man, you can basically do a lot of things professionally with airs, music production, etc. Obviously not everything, but it’s fine for a lot of professional stuff

[@lifelongez]

That's true, however it's worth considering M1 MBA came out in 2020 and Macs tend to get around 5 years of software support.

[@neuralgarden]

I've got a base M1 Pro, been using it for years and it runs super fast even with 10+ tabs open, and 5 programs open too. The M1 Air is also nice and an insane value for the money right now.

[@JG-pw1wp]

I edit my Canon R6s 4k 60fps on my M1 Air just fine using Final Cut.

[@littlebighumancom]

Exactly. My daughter studies computer science and still uses the M1 daily (VS code, Eclipse, iTerm2, Docker, etc.), use MS Teams, Office, Azure, AWS, etc, etc. Problem with youtubers like Marques is that they never worked a normal job and when they think "professional" they think video editing.

[@Terd2402]

I just recently bought a MacBook Air M1 to replace my Mid 2012 MacBook Air. I had a love/hate relationship with my MacBook Air but I never felt like I needed to upgrade to run basic tasks and I have an iPad and iPhone that I primarily use. It is running macOS High Sierra 10.13.6 and I intentionally kept it at that version because anything newer would cause the computer to overheat and run slow. When I saw that Walmart had an M1 for only $699 I jumped on that deal. While I am enjoying the UI changes and new features over my old MacBook, it somehow still feels like I am using the same computer when doing the same basic tasks. Nonetheless, I am very happy with my purchase and hopefully it lasts me just as long as my first MacBook Air from 2012. Which in all actually is still in like new condition. I am very proud of that lol, I only ever had to reset it once and replace the battery once. Overall, I highly recommend the M1 for anyone on a budget who needs a computer for work, school or even entry level video production. M series chip is a huge upgrade from any intel based Mac.

[@magonazz1]

Yeah, I agree, these apple silicon machines are very impressive from what I'm hearing all over the world. So, any plans with your old macbook? 😁😁 would you mind passing it over to me?😁😁 please,

[@magonazz1]

I agree, those bezels are huge, but then again, my current pc is a 2009 dell, so even that 2012 macbook air, performance wise, it would be an upgrade hahaha, I wish I could show you the condition it's in right now, hahahaha it's a sad story🤣@xahst 🤣

[@dorussecondaccount]

don't know about that guy but if someone actually gave me a pc for free it can be as slow and weak as it wants to I only care if it works, besides never had a mac one so would be cool (not asking for anything, just explaining the reasoning)

[@magonazz1]

valid point. @@dorussecondaccount

[@ernestpobleteperez]

Love your reviews man, thanks for the honest tips

[@luismedina8502]

Great video as always Marques. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us.

[@hanys85]

This feels like a classic mkbhd review. Refreshing

[@Jhones9696]

I'm watching this on my base model M1 Macbook Air. This thing is aging like fine wine, love it.

[@mpls_link]

same here, its my daily driver

[@sargfowler9603]

There are so many people on KZbin saying exactly the same thing!

[@trummis90]

same

[@skylinefx049]

It's getting better year after year, right?

[@MyFriendlyPup]

8gb though... you need 16

[@jeffsramos]

I bought an M1 MacBook Air base model when it was released. Now that I’m a graphic design student doing design work I’ve considered upgrading only to get 16GB memory and 512GB storage. For now I’m doing fine but I do worry about storage.

[@dean1860]

Got the M2 8&256GB recently for school. Works for my basic needs.

[@MauriceVanrumbeke]

I’ve been coding games and websites for about a year now on the base M2 Air model without any problem. Love this machine

[@eddiesbarnes]

Side note, I’ve still got 13’ MacBook Pro 2013 with Retina display and it works like a dream for surfing and streaming! It never ceased to amaze me 😁

[@kilruf]

Love my MBA 15" M2 base model. Does all my school work, word processing, media consumption, etc. perfectly fine. Everything else I just use my gaming PC.

[@IImooksterII]

Bought my first macbook a few weeks ago. Decided between M1, M2 and M3. M2 base model with reduced price was the purchase. More than satisfied.

[@richiemohanty5107]

I have a M2 Macbook air with the base config and i will say Marques is spot on. I use it as my travel device and for browsing, and i run android studio and xcode projects on it from time to time. No issues. My main device is a gaming laptop and that does most of my heavy lifting when i need the additional power. Understanding what your use case is for a new laptop goes a long way in making an informed decision and spending your money wisely.

[@timsbird1971]

I was lucky - I wanted to replace my (showing the creaks) 2018 i5 MBP with an M based device. Went the week the M3 air was released. Got a 15 inch M2 with 16GB and 512 drive for the same price as the base model M3... I consider that a bargain. Planning on giving it a 5 year or so life like the MBP. Seems well up to the dev tasks I'm pushing at it so far.

[@hamletgolucky3628]

@@timsbird1971would you recommend M3pro or M3?

[@timsbird1971]

@@hamletgolucky3628 for the money a 2023 M2 Air with 16gb and 512 - it will do 95% of what 95% of people need and save a chunk of money

[@alexsinov]

Sir, I would just say that you would be/(are?) an amazing product manager. Great video!

[@WickyLibra]

I just bought the Macbook Air M1 and have been absolutely loving it!!!

[@swadhinnandy]

I'm a student.. I am going to buy a MacBook air. Which one would be worth my money? The MacBook air m1 base variant or MacBook air m2 base variant, which is now $200 cheaper.. I am confused about m1 air which has a less brighter display and old vibes on the design including a thick bezel .. suggest me please

[@drv3973]

I'm responding from one now. Bought it 2.5 years ago. Never owned an apple product before. Best purchase I've made.

[@tannerbeck8997]

@@swadhinnandy I have an M1 and I'm upgrading to an M3. For the usual everyday use? M1 all the way. Works fine, from Office, to recording, even to playing WOW. I just got the M3 because I wanted a 15 inch display. Otherwise I would stick with the M1 because a Mac usually lasts for like years to come and still working fine. So if thats all you need? Log Battery live, watching movies, doing office work and an occasional editing/basic 3D work - Get an M1.

[@swadhinnandy]

@@tannerbeck8997 have you carried out your MacBook? As I am a college student, I have to carry it with me maximum time. A lot of people faced the display cracking issue. Could you please tell me about this? I am a little bit afraid about it.

[@swadhinnandy]

@@drv3973 is it still relevant in 2024? What's your opinion?

[@jj8383]

You sir are the king of crazy call outs quite frankly 😉

[@i.d.6492]

I'm a student and I'm still using 2017 MacBook Pro with 8gb of ram. It gets little hot under heavy load of homework over long period of time but other than that still works and does everything today that most students will need. Touch bar works, speakers work, like a normal regular laptop and surprisingly I'm still getting software updates. One thing is battery isn't great but that's expected as it's considered ancient by todays standards.

[@bodigames]

I got a 2019 MacBook Pro and the battery life is pissing me off. But I also don’t want to replace it because it’s so expensive so in that case I could just buy a new laptop…. but I’m not giving in. I’m keeping the thing for at least another year.

[@thatcherfreeman]

Y'all would probably have a lot to gain by switching to an Apple silicon MacBook, the battery life on five year old Intel Macs is pretty bad

[@reduchimaki]

the m1 mac air battery life is crazy. i get 20 hours (including gaming, hw, etc.) if you ever upgrade, get the m series macs

[@josephjoestar515]

@@reduchimaki Ok what the heck? I don't get nearly that much.

[@byalexc]

Mine died last year 🥲 2017 MacBook Pro gave me a lot of problems 😭

[@94SL3]

Watching this on my base M1 from the last two years. I run docker for full-stack web development, edit photos and some basic videos and do all the other lightweight stuff anyone does. It's a beast and I couldn't go back to anything else. Due to the form factor, I don't even think I'll upgrade any time soon albeit my intention was to get the pro later down the line.

[@JoeSiegler]

I upgraded to this a few days ago from a 2015 Intel MacBook Pro. Most of the comparison comments I see are based off of recent computers, not so much upgrading from an older one. This will be night and day better for me.

[@SVTStrikesback]

I’ve been watching these reviews for a while. Totally legit and definitely one of the best if not the best reviewer out there.

[@PatrikRasch]

Been using the base M1 air for the past three years for studying programming and some lightweight app building in xCode and I've genuinely never had a single issue. Of course, I'd love the Pro, but it's wild how good the base Macbook air is.

[@lockhart1895]

@@XeZrunneryou have no idea of the 32gb of ram glory 💀 upgraded my windows laptop from 8 to 16 to 32 I’ve got over 70 tabs on 6 workplaces the most I ever use I’d say is between 45% and 55% ram usage everything is smooth and fast never have to close anything

[@jlatoo]

@@lockhart1895 Mac OS is way different, I could have eight tabs open on Firefox and be using 14 gigs of ram already

[@Fennecbutt]

​@@XeZrunnerlmao I use a 16gb m1 mb pro and it becomes unusable for development, Apple's ram prices are joke. Sure if you're only running xcode and that's it...but really a developer is running slack, teams, browser with a million tabs, ide, request runner like postman, vpn, etc etc. 8gb isn't enough, 16 isn't either. But I'm not paying Apple 400£ for ram worth like 150£ retail value

[@bossanesta]

super lightweight and yet you can plugin a 4k external monitor at desk . i even got a portable usb-c monitor when i work during “workation” road trips.

[@carsonj4031]

I just bought an M1 base model from Walmart (Best Buy was sold out) and this is the first Apple product I've bought since 2016 and my first Mac ever. We'll see how it goes i guess.

[@erichill414]

I love mine and have no complaints.

[@jeffersonmp4]

rip

[@andrewe.7907]

My goto guy for reviews delivers again!!

[@nelsonsack2694]

How do you have such high quality sound? It's the best I've heard on you tube.

[@pfakx]

This man is so advanced he did a promo so quick and subtle I didn't even notice but I noticed.

[@gorgolyt]

Incoherent comment.

[@pfakx]

@@gorgolyt slow user

[@Ubernaught012]

So, you noticed.

[@clubkevyumba]

one i'll always appreciate about you Marques is that you don't encourage people to buy something they don't need. I dont have a macbook at all but have been looking into it and honestly, the M1 air's seem to be a great entry point while not breaking the bank.

[@passcsecenglish7071]

This is my first time watching you and this was an excellent review. So much so that I’m shocked. Good job.

[@AlexSquared]

lmao

[@refresh77]

Great review and recommendation!

[@AgentGold-AI]

00:03 🚀 Intro to the new MacBook Air update 00:15 🆕 New features: anodization & M3 chip 00:34 🤳 Mention of channel sponsor Dbrand 00:50 💻 Deep dive into the M3 chip upgrade 01:35 🌍 MacBook Air's popularity & user base 01:55 🔍 Why the new MacBook Air might not be the best pick 02:18 🔋 M3 chipset's performance & battery life 02:26 🖥 Dual external display support with M3 02:35 💾 Improved base storage on M3 models 03:20 💸 Addressing the base spec and pricing issues 04:32 🤔 The "starting at" pricing fallacy 05:06 🔄 Apple's markup on spec upgrades 05:39 🏷 2024 MacBook Air pricing tiers explained 06:52 🎯 Who is the base M3 MacBook Air for? 07:39 💡 Walmart and Best Buy's deals on older models 08:02 💼 Use case scenarios for Apple silicon MacBooks 08:56 🌟 Final thoughts on the M3 MacBook Air Key Moments by Agent Gold AI

[@Got2EatPizza]

I use the M1 entry level MacBook Air for editing on Final Cut Pro using plugins etc, and for photoshop, Lightroom etc. and I love it 🥰- doesn’t slow my workflow. I use an external hard drive though.

[@cz2301]

I also use external drives since i dont trust macbooks - they may always crash and erase everything you,ve got in storage. It happened once to me (in 2015 i think). Glad to know that you can use your Air for heavy video editing. I always thought macbook airs were for light office work and always opted for macbooks. I use a lot of Photoshop and Illustrator and my files are like 100x70cm big, 300dpi. Would you think it could work with an air like yours?

[@Got2EatPizza]

@@cz2301 - I would say yes because I do heavy editing with it, so just ensure that I keep it quite ‘clean’ - I delete unnecessary docs/images from the computer regularly. I don’t do 4K editing- not sure if that makes a difference. Got all the adobe packages I use loaded on it and some other image upgrade packages. I use LaCie rugged external now as I lost all my data on a normal LaCie - it dropped just 10 cm onto the floor in 2019- everything gone!

[@sebster6031]

So i just picked up one of the last M1 Airs that was available. At 16gb i plan on keeping this for a long time. What a machine!

[@danielfichtner667]

I've got an M1 MacAir base config and I'm super happy with it. It's my internet browsing and media machine. Does the job perfectly well. For developing I use my Tower or my beefy laptop from work.

[@Foreignvibesss]

I went ahead and bought the 15in M3 because this is my first MacBook and so far I’m loving it

[@SteveSearle]

Me too

[@vildeelisepladsensolberg4993]

I recently upgraded from MacBook Pro 15 inch 2019 to MacBook Pro 14 inch M3, and so far I'm loving it! I loved my Intel-based MacBook though, but the screen started to glitch and the company I bought it from couldn't fix it. The fans on this model tho....fantastic!

[@kinnn9258]

does yours die really fast or just me??

[@GreatTaiwan]

@@kinnn9258 give it back that's fault unit shouldn't day if you are browsing in like 6 hours of usage you should have still around 20% would say

[@TheDataArchitect]

Which color?

[@chr10s]

The fact that people actually overpay for what should be a base spec is insane

[@XxZannexX]

What choice do you have if want or need MacOS?

[@leoxo4685]

@@XxZannexX well thats the whole reason why Apple can and will charge this much for spec upgrade

[@MrPatateHead]

​@@sys-administratorApple has been known for years for overcharging for RAM and storage size.

[@leoxo4685]

​@@sys-administrator for 1199 you can get a ASUS Laptop with lower FHD instead of 2k screen, with AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS and RTX 4060, but with 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD. So yeah, you can get a very decent windows laptop with better memory and storage.

[@adredy]

insaine is selling models from 2017 for £1000 :)

[@DMPLAYER1000]

Base spec is very much usable. I use a base m2 air and as an undergraduate student I have a ton of safari tabs open, multiple pdfs, excel, word, goodnotes, spotify and maybe a few other things here and there open. I also like to program on my bed while airplaying to my tv to use it as a second monitor, and as long as you’re not running multiple vms and/or intensive AI workloads, then this will be a good computer for what you need.

[@ichirofakename]

thanks for the good advice. I'm going M2.

[@jirehpsalmpaule6077]

I have my base M1 air, for almost 3 years now, never had issues with. Just use it casually, wont upgrade til it breaks.

[@aajayjayakumar2430]

mkbhd videos had the coolest and dopest intros

[@Jack2421992]

Today i learned a new word, "patina". Now i know why they look like that over time. Thanks Marques

[@ohhellnooooo8233]

I have the M1 air with the tiny amount of memory and... it has never stuttered or slow down. it's great. obviously I don't do video editing.

[@pathway1]

Glad to see Marques finally calling out Apple for their crazy prices

[@Profy00]

When didn't he?

[@Gurenn83]

Not just Marques but others have called it out as well. But it is not like Apple will listen - knowing them they might even consider an increase in a few years.

[@keetlecorn]

he made a whole video on the apple pricing ladder, everyone is aware on how crazy their prices get

[@MarkStoddard]

Their prices are very reasonable IMO. Their hardware is amazing. The only laptop I've dropped serious cash on was a Razor and the hardware and service turned out to be trash. I love my first gen Surface Laptop, but I'd probably get an Air because how cheap they are. Wish they had the Surface screen though.

[@NghiaTran-er5mp]

It's 2024. It just becoming more and more unacceptable for such base specs and upgrade prices.

[@katherynlove]

Great video! So real and honest, thank you! Tell us more about what you recommend for video editing and why! Why go for a pro over an air or the other way around and different specs for each etc.

[@deadwalking100]

Very helpful and useful insights. Thank you!

[@DefinitelyNattox]

I got a M2 MacBook Air in August of 2022 for college, mainly for normal school use (docs, chrome, etc). It’s still really good.

[@fasn279]

Should’ve got a Chromebook ?

[@Namka19]

And it's gonna be good for the next 5 years.

[@schneckenwilly]

What do you mean it‘s still good? This thing ain‘t even a year old lmao.

[@ip5799]

it’s still good? are you being serious? of course it is

[@kresimircosic9035]

tell me your family is rich without telling me your family is rich

[@gnocchidokie]

I'm glad that the new aluminum treatment isn't all that much of an improvement, it makes me feel better about my m2. Just sad that I'm missing out on ray tracing, but I just emulate older games anyway (and also switch games flawlessly) so I'll get over it. I went with 16gb ram, and for an insanely thin and light 15" I feel like I got my money's worth.

[@advaitjuluri]

Getting my new MacBook Air m3 in 2 days ! Really excited 🎉

[@justcallmeboss7119]

How is it?

[@AdrianJarvis-zk7ld]

I got the base spec M1 MBA last month for under £700 UKP. Absolutely fine for browsing, office, music and occasional media editing.

[@Vikushu]

I actually agree with you that 8 GB RAM will allow any average user to do just the basics. The main problem I have with Mac computers, however, and what a lot of average users don't realize, is that you don't need to spend $1000 to do "just the basics". In my opinion, the M1 Macbook Air is finally at the price point it should have cost 2 years ago.

[@EliStettner]

In regular browsing on my Mac, one window for research and one for a google doc, I regularly run up to 11 gb. [edited, I originally wrote 16gb here. I think I meant to write 11/16 gb.]

[@Vikushu]

@@EliStettner Either one of the websites you're using has a memory leak, you're working with large files, or you have too many tabs open.

[@sol_in.victus]

That kind of reminds me of when people argue how "apple is better than windows/android". They compare a $1000 laptop, or a $900 dollar phone, to the $200 budget android their little cousin uses, or $400 laptop their grandpa got. I think if you're willing to get refurbished/used stuff (which admittedly many users arent and i get it) you could probably get a great day to day web browsing/office use laptop for like... 350/400 dollars, save for the battery life issue (IMO Macbooks' greatest strenght)

[@riley1636]

@@EliStettner That sounds like a memory leak lol

[@goncaloduarte4683]

That's what I say, my sister does the basics, so I recommended her a Acer Aspire A314 with a Ryzen 3 7320U, 8gb of RAM and 512gb of storage for less than 400€ (I looked deep for a deal, but remember in Europe tax is included) and this does more than she needs, great performance and 10h battery life. Another thing is that stuff like USB-A is super useful for people that only do the basics, sharing any flash drive, connecting a mouse, connecting any phone, connecting to a printer because it's acting up, etc. this doesn't have anything to do with "starting at" issue, but these type of things are much more important for basic use than a nice screen, aluminum body and RT capabilities.

[@yalopov]

base m2 macbook air 15 inches has been an amazing machine for me as a software developer

[@SpiDey1500]

For me two. ChatGPT runs like butter in safari !

[@hsvr]

what do you develop for

[@lukmanabdulkarim1124]

yeah bro, @yalopov, is it for web @@hsvr

[@user-th1jo8uj7b]

I've got the 8gb m1 base and was super happy with it for any dev task in front of me. But my company uses vs code dev container now, and with running frontend frameworks through the decontainer, the 8Gb are definitely not enough. Docker tells me that the whole container wants to use 6GB of ram which leaves two GB for OS and the chrome instance running on my host. Everything slows down significantly. So no home office with the m1 air for me anymore. I now need to take the work laptop home from the office each time...

[@yalopov]

@@hsvr java - react dev, running intellij idea and rancher, it's been pretty smooth so far

[@LVang152]

I have a 2013 MacBook Air and love it.

[@NathanNJ300]

One thing to keep in mind when buying previous gen models with Apple is they are closer to the OS update cutoff. If staying with the current OS for years matters to you, Macs get around 5-6 years from when new before they stop getting the big named updates. They still get security updates for a while longer but some features like what syncs with the iPhone etc can get dropped.

[@quietdayinmylife]

you are so real for this!!!!! thank you for helping us save especially in this economy!!

[@mitch3152]

I have the M1 Base model and love it, as you said for people who just want to browse the web and watch movies, tv shows as a content consumption machine it's perfect!

[@fasn279]

Chromebook could do that too? For cheap

[@andyH_England]

@@fasn279@fasn279 But their battery life sucks, and performance is 3year+ behind (future-proofing) and also are mainly built cheaply, and usually low compared to premium MB Air. The extra money is easily worth it.

[@wasabi_with_sushi]

3 years with the M1 Macbook Air. Use it for watching stuff mainly. Works perfectly fine. Not planning to upgrade, but damn the design and black color of M2 and M3 looks fabulous. For more powerful actions (e.g. photo editing, gaming and etc.) I have my latest PC :)

[@jaynunez8258]

watching this video on my Macbook Air 2017. It was 128GB when I bought it in 2017 but I upgraded the SSD to 1TB. Still works like a charm for me. I just use it for my studies.

[@makeupwith_jojo]

I love your honest reviews. The fact that you know that these brands watch your videos and you’re still brutally honest is one of the best things about your channel. Thanks for always keeping it real and informed 🔥🔥🔥

[@wordcore]

And the masses were saying his controlled by Apple...😂😂

[@Vesquility]

I just picked a base m3 air up and I love it. I upgraded from a 2018 macbook air. One of the big reasons I didn't go with the m2 is because of the SSD. I need fast speeds for my work. 8gb sounds like nothing but for what I'm doing it is significantly more than enough for me.

[@furTron]

What kind of work do you do that requires such speed and 180 SECONDS is too slow for you to fill the entire SSD?!

[@Vesquility]

@@furTron you would be surprised by the difference between the m2 and m3 mba speeds. I mean you saw it in the video, it’s literally almost double

[@orsacbollard8147]

Great video I really wanted to know if the new MacBook was even worth getting but now I have a better idea thanks