M1 Macbook Air Impressions
I’ve been using the M1 Macbook Air for a few weeks now and I must say I am impressed. It’s another first of its kind for Apple. A full blown “computer” or Mac I should say that Apple elevates to the next level to control the experience. This Mac has a processor built by Apple. Now although this doesn’t really have any external changes, the enhancements under the hood are quite impressive.
Let me start off by saying this update to Macbook Air is just about as momental of a moment when Steve Jobs pulled the original Macbook Air out of an envelope on stage back in 2008.
To start off with, one of my favorite things is that since Apple now is running its own processor, you can natively run iPhone and iPad Apps directly on your Mac! How cool is that? To do this you navigate to the App Store, type in the App you’d like to install on your M1 Mac, and select iPhone & iPad Apps. From there you should be able to see the mobile App you’re familiar with from your iPhone. With a click of install you will be on your way and have the full blown mobile app at your fingertips on your Mac. This is quite nice and will open the door for even more innovation and a better user experience across the ecosystem.
One of my personal favorites is the mobile App by MIRROR can now be run directly from your Mac. How amazing is this, that you can Airplay Mirror this for a live or pre-recorded classes to your TV screen. It’s simply a step further to give users in the Apple ecosystem more choice and control over their computing experience.
As all Apple products, security is at the forefront of everything this Mac does. This new M1 chipset elevates security to the next level as the processor, I/O, security, and memory are all built together on a single chip. This is also a benefit for speed, as with the processor, ram, and hard drive on the same chip, the read/ write speeds are incredibly responsive! You’ll notice this with boot times, waking from sleep, and also when launching Apps to start.
Now although all third party Apps are not built from scratch for the M1 Mac, Apple so cleverly brought back their technology called Rosetta. This has been around for years, as Apple used this same mentality when they transitioned from Motorola Power PC to Intel processors in 2005. I was able to see this in real time when I installed the “Sonos'' App on my M1 Macbook Air. The Sonos App works seamlessly, no issues at all, and that’s because Apple enabled the install via Rosetta to play nice with this new Apple Silicon Processor. I did get a prompt like the picture below, but all I had to do was authenticate with my local admin account, and Rosetta did the rest.
Another notable feature to call out is the battery life. I’m beyond impressed with the battery life and performance of this new M1 chipset. It seems like I rarely charge this Macbook Air, and I’ve lately been using it hours every single day. Apple states on their website that the Macbook Air gets 18 hours of battery, and I believe it’s pretty true to life. It really is a battery that will last you all day.
Something that also seems to usually go hand in hand with battery life is how the engineering team was able to manage thermal management. I want to call out that the M1 MacBook Air has NO Fan whatsoever. This Mac runs completely silent. I love this feature, as I’ve now used this M1 MacBook Air on my lap for many hours while I was really pressing it and it really does a good job at keeping cool.
Included in all M1 Macs
Yet another feature that will future proof this M1 Macbook Air is Wifi 6 is included. This in time will become the new industry standard of Wifi speeds. Majority of people’s homes and businesses aren’t even using this yet, but the good thing with this Mac is that when you upgrade your home wifi, the Mac will automatically be able to take full advantage of the new tech. This new Wi-Fi card is included in the M1 MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and Mac mini.
I feel the M1 Macbook Air is the best portable Mac you can buy today factoring in cost, portability, functionality, and longevity. I truly believe this Mac will be around for years to come, as Apple has a very good track record with their Mac lineup for first in it’s category. The future looks bright with the Apple M1 Processor. This is the start of something new, that will surely pave the way for the next generation of future Mac products.
Be well.
-Joe
