Replacing my MacBook Air

 My 2013 MacBook Air is still well and kicking, all but the battery is in good condition. I replaced the battery for a random one off Amazon and it was no good. Eventually the seller refunded my money after I reported the system would just cut off when the battery indicated around 55%. My guess is the power management was poor or the dialog with the laptop's control logic was not good so battery voltage and battery capacity were not interpreted properly. Whatever the reason, I was left with a computer that could be used only when battery was over 60% and that it can shut off anytime the number was below that. The old battery only lasted for less than one hour and I was not sure whether I would be any luckier buying another battery unless it came from Apple (which was pricier). 

OTOH, that laptop had served me well for almost nine years and though it was a top of the line model (that was expensive at the time) with an i7, 8GB or RAM, and a 512GB SSD, I chose to look for a new model to replace it.

But there were a few of things I wanted: I wanted long lasting batteries, backlit keyboard, SD card support (not a dongle) and MagSafe. I was happy to learn that MagSafe was brought from the dead by Apple a couple of years ago and it is now available on some of the newer models (i.e: M2 MacBook Air, M1 Pro MacBook Pro 14" and 16" models and on the new 13" M2 MacBook Pro). 

And given the choice it look like an M2-based model would be a better choice than M1 as being newer is supposed to be better, right? Unfortunately, the new M2 MacBook Air was not available till mid July 2022, so I was hesitant to wait for it or not, but I settled that could be a nice replacement of my again Air.

Meanwhile, I was consuming a number of YouTube videos about the M2 Air and the 13" M2 MB Pro, each having its own set of problems. After doing the math, an M2 MB Air with 1 TB SSD and 16 GB would be around 2200 EUR in Europe. That was a lot of money. It was around the same amount of money that put me off last year when I considered replacing the Air but the then new 14" M1 MacBookPro. Plus I assumed the Pro having cooling fans was not cool anymore as the M1 Air was finless at the time.

During the last week I saw a significant number of YouTubers claiming the M1 Air was in fact a much value than the M2 Air base model. But the M2 Air came with a number of improvements too, whether these were adding enough value to justify the price increase it was unclear. 

However, while I was doing all that math, I came across a good deal on a local seller, offering a 10% discount on the 14" M1 MB Pro, at barely 2000 EUR, that made me pull the trigger and I bought a more capable machine for less money that I would if I would have gone for the M2 Air. 

It is not M2 but M1 Pro is actually offering a more significant computing power, with a larger battery and display. A display which is not larger but better, brighter and more advanced offering 120 Hz refresh rate, plus a built-in SD card and HDMI support for up to two displays. 

What I did not like?

The M1 MB Pro is thicker and heavier than the lighter MB Air, around 300 grams heavier (around 20% heavier).

The Migration Assistant did not work until, after four failed attempts, I upgraded the OS on the M1 Pro. Given it was a 3.6GB update, I hoped that could wait till the migration. 

Then new computer kept on asking me for a code I had to read on the MB Air as there seemed to be a problem with my Apple ID. The culprit appeared to be the credit card linked to the Apple ID had expired. It did not matter that I needed to register a new and valid card to get through the laptop registering process. That card was added to my Wallet but, even though the number was the same as the expired one, that did not update the one on the Apple ID nor I found a way to do that. In fact, Apple claimed that upgrade had to happen automatically from the bank once they issue a new card but, for reasons unknown that did not happen to me. Eventually I solved it by replacing the payment card on iTunes (not on the Wallet, which I did only to find out later that did not help). This made the need to get a code from the old Air to go away.

What I did not expect?

While a lot of guys started noting the 256 GB SSD base model M2 Air showed poor performance I just noticed Apple seems to have ditched the 256 GB.  It appears now it is only available with 512 GB or above. Still, the base model would now start at almost 1900 EUR, which is a hefty price tag. 

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