M1 sale at BB vs late 2020 I5

Hi. I have a late 2020 Intel 512gb I5 MBA. Best buy has M1 on sale for $799, M2 for $1049. Both base models. They also offer $350 for trade in vs $75 via apple. I'm not a power user. Is this a worthwhile upgrade? M1 or M2? Thanks for any input.

I had that exact same Air you have and moved to the M1. It was night and day. With the i5 I'd struggle to get 5 or 6 hours of battery life. The M1 easily gets 10-12 hours. With the i5 Air the fans were always spinning up and the bottom started getting warm. The M1 doesn't have a fan at all, rarely gets warm. And the crazy part is, the M1 is also just way way faster at everything. I ran one of those Maps fly-by 3D tours on both machines side by side and the Intel Air was skipping frames like crazy and the fans were blasting by the end. The M1 Air played super smoothly the whole time and didn't even get warm.

I can't speak to the M2 Air, but the design looks really nice and I gather it's marginally faster -- though it's not going to be anything like the difference between the Intel Air and the M1 Air.

I know this all sounds pretty over the top, but I've been using Macs for a long time and that was the most dramatic upgrade I've ever experienced.

ignatius345 said:

I had that exact same Air you have and moved to the M1. It was night and day. With the i5 I'd struggle to get 5 or 6 hours of battery life. The M1 easily gets 10-12 hours. With the i5 Air the fans were always spinning up and the bottom started getting warm. The M1 doesn't have a fan at all, rarely gets warm. And the crazy part is, the M1 is also just way way faster at everything. I ran one of those Maps fly-by 3D tours on both machines side by side and the Intel Air was skipping frames like crazy and the fans were blasting by the end. The M1 Air played super smoothly the whole time and didn't even get warm.

I can't speak to the M2 Air, but the design looks really nice and I gather it's marginally faster -- though it's not going to be anything like the difference between the Intel Air and the M1 Air.

I know this all sounds pretty over the top, but I've been using Macs for a long time and that was the most dramatic upgrade I've ever experienced.

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Definitely the battery is playing a factor in my decision. Seems like I'm always charging mine. Thanks for the insight!

ignatius345 said:

I had that exact same Air you have and moved to the M1. It was night and day. With the i5 I'd struggle to get 5 or 6 hours of battery life. The M1 easily gets 10-12 hours. With the i5 Air the fans were always spinning up and the bottom started getting warm. The M1 doesn't have a fan at all, rarely gets warm. And the crazy part is, the M1 is also just way way faster at everything. I ran one of those Maps fly-by 3D tours on both machines side by side and the Intel Air was skipping frames like crazy and the fans were blasting by the end. The M1 Air played super smoothly the whole time and didn't even get warm.

I can't speak to the M2 Air, but the design looks really nice and I gather it's marginally faster -- though it's not going to be anything like the difference between the Intel Air and the M1 Air.

I know this all sounds pretty over the top, but I've been using Macs for a long time and that was the most dramatic upgrade I've ever experienced.

Click to expand...

I'd pretty much echo this. I've got a friend who has a Core i5 Mac Mini from 2019, I think it was. I forget the exact #'s but he went and ran certain benchmarks against his Mac Mini, then did the same against an MBA M2 in store, and was pretty amazed/pissed at how easily/quickly the tests ran on the M2 in comparison to his Mac Mini.

I can't tell exact #'s, but I do know I've had my laptop (MBA M2 with 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD) off the charger and have run it for at *least* 10 hours, and I think it still has something like 37% battery life. I'd cheer if my previous laptop (Core i5 with 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD) could get a full 4 hours on battery. LOL

M2 airs on sale for $999 at Micro Center right now. Best price around! See if Best Buy will match!

Edit: just noticed Amazon has them for $999 too.

Without a doubt worth the upgrade, whether you do M1 or M2. Personally, I'd go with the latest and greatest if you can afford it. Much better screen on the M2.

Massive upgrade for you either way.

lambertjohn said:

M2 airs on sale for $999 at Micro Center right now. Best price around! See if Best Buy will match!

Edit: just noticed Amazon has them for $999 too.

I bet Best Buy would price match on that.

Zippy3505 said:

I bet Best Buy would price match on that.

I believe Best Buy will price match just about anything.

Kung said:

I'd pretty much echo this. I've got a friend who has a Core i5 Mac Mini from 2019, I think it was. I forget the exact #'s but he went and ran certain benchmarks against his Mac Mini, then did the same against an MBA M2 in store, and was pretty amazed/pissed at how easily/quickly the tests ran on the M2 in comparison to his Mac Mini.

I can't tell exact #'s, but I do know I've had my laptop (MBA M2 with 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD) off the charger and have run it for at *least* 10 hours, and I think it still has something like 37% battery life. I'd cheer if my previous laptop (Core i5 with 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD) could get a full 4 hours on battery. LOL

Click to expand...

I may sell the older one on eBay? Looks like trending prices are higher. Idk. Would be super ez to trade in.

I would definitely get the m2 air for $999, thats a great deal for a fantastic laptop and a much more modern and brighter screen. I love my m2 air, haven't charged it in over 2 days now and still at 43% as I type this.

Zippy3505 said:

I may sell the older one on eBay? Looks like trending prices are higher. Idk. Would be super ez to trade in.

Remember to factor in shipping, eBay/Paypal fees (I think this is like 10 or 12%), and the risk of getting a scammer buyer. I frankly would either sell locally in person or just take the trade in.

Looks like the Amazon deal was a one day only deal. Back up to regular price now. But if you have a Micro Center in your city, they're still $999 there and I'm pretty confident BB will match that. We have a MC here in Dallas and they have plenty of all colors in stock. Good luck with whatever you decide to do!

I got the M2 midnight at Best Buy. They were only gonna give me $200 on trade, so I sold Intel one to my sister in law who needed a new computer instead. This new one is FAST!! Thanks for the input!

Zippy3505 said:

I got the M2 midnight at Best Buy. They were only gonna give me $200 on trade, so I sold Intel one to my sister in law who needed a new computer instead. This new one is FAST!! Thanks for the input!

awesome! Enjoy the new machine, they are stupid fast for a fan-less laptop. Still have 12% battery and hasn't been charged since Monday!