Anyone here use an M1 mac ?

[BearFBI]

Im in the market for a new laptop and the M1 macs are outstanding. Im a windows guy and the M1 Macs are just too great to miss. Performance, Battery life, and overall design is unbelievable. ALSO THE MAC AIR'S ARE SUCH A GOOD PRICE. I'll have to get used to MacOS but oh well. It cant be that bad. 

Does anyone here use the latest M1 macs and if so how have they been performing for you ?

[NDesai]

If you like using Windows, get a windows laptop. You will save some money. No matter how much i try to move over to MacOS, i just can't get used to it. I don't have M1, but have the old MacBook air with BigSur. Battery is awful on BigSur, it was never that bad on Catalina. If i were to guess, it's Apple that is messing around with software. Believe it or not, Apple will do their tricks to manipulate performance now that they control the entire chip and only they know how its made. Expect M1 devices to slow down within 3 years or so when Apple will be recommending you get their M4 chip devices for even better performance. 

[Korth]

@BearFBI 

lol you don't need to convince me that WinOS is not a good system, I've already said that in this thread (and a number of other threads).

Louis Rossman already doesn't like these M1 machines.

Pros: He promises that "this year's computer is faster than last year's computer."

Cons: His three 20 minute videos explaining new variations on Apple's old tricks which ignore advertised specs and put limits onto actual compatibility, performance, and longevity.

[BearFBI]

@Korth Windows is littered with bugs. My start menu decided to shrink into a small little one when I open it. The issue started ever since I started connecting to external displays that are bigger. Have tried everything to try an fix it. I just have to reimage it I guess. Lol 

I mean I'm really curious what this new "sun valley" windows overhaul will bring. Looks pretty slick. Hopefully nee bugs don't get introduced.

[Korth]

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@BearFBI wrote:
Apple did SUCH A GOOD JOB that its tempting A WINDOWS USER switch over to mac. 

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Maybe Apple did a good job, or a great job, or a mediocre job.

But they would have to do a truly awful job to make something worse than what WinOS has become.

[BearFBI]

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@rhbcc wrote:

I recently got an M1 for my partner and apparently after 5 days of heavy usage - Netflix streaming and browsing, from 100% the battery was only down to 91%

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I believe you. Battery life and performance is just SO IMPRESSIVE. 

Apple did SUCH A GOOD JOB that its tempting A WINDOWS USER switch over to mac. 

[rhbcc]

I recently got an M1 for my partner and apparently after 5 days of heavy usage - Netflix streaming and browsing, from 100% the battery was only down to 91%...............

Personally I still use and currently typing a '15 MB air and honestly I cant make the jump purely because the USB ports are my main issue without me shelling out for a usb adapter/dongle. I still love my MB air so much!!!!!

[BearFBI]

@Korth Well I mean I'm not saying the M1 mac is 100% perfect. 

There is ONE BIG ISSUE. You cant run x86 apps. Well you can through Rosetta 2 but there are bugs with certain programs. Most of the apps I use are already are M1 optimized or work well with Rosetta, but for apps like Premier Pro I've heard it has many issues through Rosetta 2. This will get fixed over time. Most of the compatibility issues are already fixed. 

Of course I have watched many reviews, long term reviews, and researched the heck out of this laptop and here is a list of the cons I've found. 

- Only two usb4 ports on the Mac Air

- Compatibility issues with certain applications 

- Windows 10 isint optimized for bootcamp on M1 (You have to emulate windows instead)

- M1 macs don't support eGPU

- Limited upgrade capabilities 

- currently there is only support for 1 external display (apple found a way around this and the next macs will support up to 6) 

- Okay looking 720p front facing camera. 

Most of these issues are going to be fixed in the 2021 model of macs. I won't be buying a new laptop untill September - December so by then I'll see what the 1 year reviews say of the M1 laptops. Also by then they'll have the 2021's out and probably 99% of their compatibility issues fixed. 

This is why I asked if anyone here had the latest M1 mac. I'm curious what they have to say about it. 

[Korth]

If you buy an M1 (and I think you've already basically decided that you will) then I'd be interested in your first impressions. And in your observations after a month or two of real use.

Maybe it'll prove to be more than adequate for everything you want it to do. Maybe it'll have some drawbacks or limitations which make you unhappy. Maybe you'll think it's insanely awesome for the price and form factor. Maybe you'll think it's kind of a ripoff you shouldn't have bought.

Modern silicon does offer impressive density of performance and efficiency. But there's always a tradeoff built into it somewhere, especially when not buying the top-tier parts which command elite enthusiast prices. Every machine has limits and will struggle when working beyond them.

[BearFBI]

@Korth Eh again I have to disagree with you.

"And that they just can't contain much power or cooling, they can't sustain maximum peak performance, they get hot a little too quickly and they cool down too slowly. Tradeoff specs for fashion and convenience. The clunky bulk on other machinery sucks but it's there for good reasons."

Think of it, Do our phones use fans ? No they dont. Phones use ARM based processors which produce much less heat. Apple thought it was a good idea to just create an ARM based processor using their knowledge with their phone processors for a mac. In the end apple realized the needed no fan. 

From all the reviews ive seen that the M1 mac air without the fan stays surprisingly cool. Now it does do a bit of throttling to achieve that, but it only throttles by 10% even with 6+ hour sessions of gaming. 10% is nothing for the tradeoff of portability. 

Also I have to disagree about power. Again think of it, the latest flagship phones have INSANLEY fast processors. A M1 chip is 5x more powerful than a latest phone processor. M1 packs a LOT of power. The benchmarks compared to other laptops in its class speaks for itself. 

"They're also harder and costlier to get repaired."

Now I do agree with that. But I mean whats the most failure prone part on a laptop ?... its fan. Macbook Air has no fan so no moving parts and theres no dust or outside air getting inside the machine. It should technically be bulletproof. Second biggest point of failure is SSD, Apple SSD's are pretty strong so I wouldn't worry. 

 "Apple won't sell you a replacement "non-replaceable" battery when you need one. Apple will do everything they can to obstruct third-party repair or recovery."

100% Valid point. Battery replacement could be pricey too. Although you wont have to replace it as often as an intel machine because battery degradation from a 20 hour battery is still going to degrade but it will last longer than the batteries on most intel machines. 

"For me that's the deal breaker. I realize mobile computers are basically disposable, only seriously intended to work 2-3 years, if nothing else they'll get obsoleted and have broken compatibility because of forced "updates" down the line. But I'm not interested in buying something that comes with a we-have-your-data-hostage obligation to buy its replacement."

I mean.. Apple has a good reputation with their MacBook's. Their intel macs are garbage and slow but even the oldest of the garbage macs still get macOS updates and run fine to this day. I am not sure if this will change with M1. The latest M1 macs will definitely get obsolete faster in its market segment but if you compare it to the intel market, It should technically last longer. 

I am stuck on what laptop to buy. A clunky one wont fit my needs. Laptops are for working. Portability and Battery is a MUST. Not to mention an enjoyable typing experience. 

[Korth]

The Apple laptops are made in the same factories which make the PC laptops. Same corner cutting materials. Same cheap plastic. It's just a different colour.

The Apple laptops are slim and elegant, not chunky and clunky. But that means they're also fragile and delicate. And that they just can't contain much power or cooling, they can't sustain maximum peak performance, they get hot a little too quickly and they cool down too slowly. Tradeoff specs for fashion and convenience. The clunky bulk on other machinery sucks but it's there for good reasons.

They're also harder and costlier to get repaired. AppleCare is pretty good in some ways, pretty useless in others. If the machine fails due to component faults then any data you haven't backed up onto the Apple cloud is basically gone forever. Apple won't replace a broken screen (because you broke it), Apple won't sell you a replacement "non-replaceable" battery when you need one. Apple will do everything they can to obstruct third-party repair or recovery.

For me that's the deal breaker. I realize mobile computers are basically disposable, only seriously intended to work 2-3 years, if nothing else they'll get obsoleted and have broken compatibility because of forced "updates" down the line. But I'm not interested in buying something that comes with a we-have-your-data-hostage obligation to buy its replacement.

[BearFBI]

@Korth I feel the same way about apple. I'm not an apple fan or an apple hater. 

"Those are all (well, almost all) fairly impressive little machines. But the same money towards a PC laptop will get far more performance for the buck, even the best M1 can't compare vs a mid-end Ryzen setup which costs <$1K."

Yes but those laptops can be fairly clunky and are made out of plastic, they usually have terrible screens, Keybaords, And trackpads. Sure performance may be great but they are not really intended for work. 

I'm talking about an ultrabook here. All the other ultrabooks I can think of are way more expensive and less powerful than the M1 mac air. 

Also the BIG deal here is battery life. Battery life is 100% important and AMD or Intel processors draw way to much power. 

At then end of the day there's no other ultrabook that compares to the M1 mac air for the price. 

Also with apple student education pricing the mac air is like 1170$. 

[Korth]

Apple's "M1" SoC is pretty impressive silicon.

But not as impressive spec with the price point they're packing it into - $700-$900 Mac Mini, $1000 MacBook Air, $1300 MacBook Pro. Those are all (well, almost all) fairly impressive little machines. But the same money towards a PC laptop will get far more performance for the buck, even the best M1 can't compare vs a mid-end Ryzen setup which costs <$1K.

I'm not an Apple fan. But I'm also not an Apple hater.

• iOS is actually a very well-designed, clean, lightweight, yet robust operating system. I don't really use iOS so I don't really know what I'm talking about (I prefer my linux, of course). But I have used WinOS for decades (and still do when I must) so I can confidently say that Win10 in particular is a kludgy pile of invasive bloaty unstable garbage - there's no way that iOS can do any worse.
• You're gonna pay a little extra because of that shiny Apple logo, basically buying fashion. A necessary cost for some people, an unacceptable waste for others.
• This entire Apple M1 thing is first gen. And we've all seen how badly Apple's (and Samsung's) first gen offerings usually turn out after launch. Even avid Apple fans have learned to wait until second gen rolls around.
• Apple's entire software "ecosystem" is actually quite good if you use a collection of Apple products. The famous Apple marketing is "it just works". But it's a pain when you mix and match Apple software on Apple devices with non-Apple components. Apple and Google and Microsoft and Intel and AMD and Samsung have all devised little ways to keep their data (your data) segregated across different types of machinery - there's always workarounds but a pure-Apple (or other pure-OEM) pile of machinery is always going work faster, easier, better.
• Back in 1984, Apple made a famous commercial which was a clever parody of 1984. Now in 2020, Apple eagerly welcomes all of its little iBrothers. The other OEMs are just as evil. But Apple is actually trollish and belligerent about it - Apple vs FaceBook is the most recent example - they want to control your accounts, your cloud, your data - they don't want to let other companies datamine Apple customers on Apple devices. For the Apple consumer this is usually a good thing for as long as you keep being an Apple consumer using Apple stuff (buying a new iPhone every 2-3 years, etc) - but it's not a good thing if/when you ever want to buy an Android phone or Windows PC instead.