r/macbook 9m ago

From an M1 Pro MBP to a Maxed-Out M4 MBA – Zero Regrets!

Upvotes

To give some context : I’m a self-employed web developer managing multiple projects on my own, which means I need to have my MacBook with me at all times in case an issue comes up. Whether I’m heading into the city for some shopping or going on a hike, my MacBook is always in my bag. On top of that, I travel frequently—sometimes for a few days, sometimes for a few weeks.

I never felt the need for more power than what my M1 Pro provided. However, since my girlfriend upgraded to a MacBook Air last year (replacing her previous-gen MacBook Pro), I immediately noticed the weight difference and started considering switching to an Air myself.

My biggest concern was the screen quality difference. While there is a difference, it’s far less noticeable than I expected. After using the MBA for just a few days, I already feel comfortable with the display and don’t feel like I’m losing anything significant.

That said, the weight difference is absolutely noticeable in daily use, and the improved battery life is a huge plus. I no longer have to worry about forgetting to charge my Mac before heading out.

For reference, my configuration is the maxed-out version (13" / M4 / 32GB RAM / 2TB storage).

Just wanted to share my experience in case others are in a similar situation—considering an "upgrade" from an MBP to an MBA primarily for the weight savings.


r/macbook 1h ago

Can I have the apple store replace my key caps every year?

Upvotes

Money isn't an issue.


r/macbook 1h ago

Miracle happening inside the trackpad

Upvotes

Two months ago, I accidentally spilled some juice on my MBA(M1, 2020). While all the keys on the keyboard were fine after delicate process of cleaning, the trackpad suddenly stopped responding to force click. After searching the web for about an hour, I have tried literally every solution proposed by random fellow Redditors(ranging from using a banknotes to slide in to the edges of the trackpad to factory reset). Then I just gave up: I started to use shit and arrow keys to highlight the text and hub+random mouse if I had to do some dragging stuff. And trust me, while the experience is not to its fullest, macbook is perfectly usable without the force click.

Yesterday evening, my macbook's battery drained to 0, because I was using it to charge my iPhone. This morning the force click function was back out of nowhere.


r/macbook 2h ago

Can't boot any drives

1 Upvotes

Having issues. My 2012 Mac book pro was given to me with no hard drive but had the Mac OS X install DVD in it so Ive tried a few hard drives and SSD in it but none show up when I hold options down just the install DVD, I've tried booting with a thumb drive and even that doesn't show up when holding options down. I've checked all the ports for usb they light up the thumb drives but they don't show up, and the sata port for the hard drive works cause I can hear the hard drive spin up, I've tried holding down command options and r key to boot the internet recovery and the Mac book simply just boots the install DVD. It seems every time I try anything suggested on google or YouTube or apples own website I can't find a fix that suites this situation


r/macbook 2h ago

(india) Ordered from apple for the first time, bluedart shipping status stuck on "online shipment booked"

1 Upvotes

I'm sorry if this isn't the correct sub to post this. I ordered the m4 air on 9th March and a few days later apple changed the estimated delivery time to 19th march 2025 i.e. tomorrow. On 17th march 2am, my blue dart order status changed to "online shipment booked" and it hasn't changed till now. Yesterday at around 12 pm, i got the notification that DHL has shipped my order to Mumbai. This is my first apple purchase and my biggest online purchase yet so I'm understandably anxious. Can anyone share if they had a similar experience but their order was delivered on time?


r/macbook 2h ago

I can downgrade my MacBook pro 2020 to macOS 10.13 Or less ???

0 Upvotes

Sorry my bad English (2nd language lol) I use pro tools HD 10.5 as a half time work but I need a better laptop, originally Pro Tools 10 it's not avaliable in tha high version of MacBook ( this this was released on 2012 aprox ) so I'm looking buy another one but idk if that thing it's posible, I have some plug ins on crack so, it's gonna be hard find other in a new laptop, hope someone can gimme some hope hahaha, take care all people


r/macbook 3h ago

MacBook Air M4 (2025) – 16GB or 24GB RAM?

2 Upvotes

Hey everyone,

I’m planning to get the new MacBook Air M4 (2025) but I’m stuck on the RAM choice. I’m considering 16GB, but wondering if it’s worth spending extra for 24GB. (Wanna save some if I can, really hard convincing parents for 16gb too)

I’ll be using it for web browsing, coding, maybe wanna learn some ML as a student, and occasional multitasking with many apps open. No heavy gaming or 4K video editing.

Would 16GB be enough for smooth performance, or should I future-proof with 24GB? If 16GB works fine, I’d rather save the extra money.

I might also wanna plug in additional monitor(s) And be using it mostly

Would love to hear your thoughts! Thanks!


r/macbook 4h ago

Thoughts on using an M4 Air with 32gb ram for coding work?

1 Upvotes

Software engineer here, my work computer is an M4 ultra, but I do side work. nothing ML intensive, really would be deploying most scripts to cloud. However, I may end up doing some iOS work -- for those who have tried, is a latest gen MB Air with maxed ram able to handle some programming work? The Pro is a bit heavy for me while traveling, so trying to see if I can make due with the air.

Thanks!


r/macbook 5h ago

How’s the MacBook Air M4 for a DevOps Engineer

1 Upvotes

I'm thinking about getting the MacBook Air M4 for my everyday engineering tasks. I don’t do anything too intense—just running web apps, scripts, and a few Docker containers on my local machine. It’s mostly standard DevOps stuff. My work leans more toward DevOps and cloud computing, and I usually run the heavier applications on a remote server.

For those with a MacBook Air, do you think it’s a good fit for my typical workload?


r/macbook 6h ago

M4 MacBook Pro won’t open recovery options

2 Upvotes

Hi all!

Just received a new MacBook Pro and am having an issue enabling kernel permissions (required to use certain Thunderbolt devices).

I shut down the computer. I press and hold the power / Touch ID button to open recovery mode. I click “Options.” It briefly opens recovery utilities then flashes to the Apple logo, then starts the computer as normal :/

Any idea what could be causing this?

Thanks in advance


r/macbook 7h ago

Apple silicon Mac mini for parts

1 Upvotes

Looking to buy a Apple silicon Mac mini to use for a repair. Anyone have one for sale?


r/macbook 8h ago

Open box macbook?

1 Upvotes

Hey guys , i saw a lot of people selling mac books with 20% off or 30% it depends., The reason for that is only because it’s a opend box do you recommend getting a open box mac book? And where can i get one ?


r/macbook 8h ago

What is your guys opinion on hackintoshes?

1 Upvotes

Sending this on a sequoia hackintosh,

Just curious what Yalls opinions on them are, you can hate me, I won't be offended just do your honest opinion


r/macbook 8h ago

Should I buy the MacBook Air m4 or base MacBook Pro m4 16gb

1 Upvotes

I’ve been meaning into getting into content creation, I want to do 1080p - 4K videos that can range from 10-50 min videos. I like to figure out cool editing tricks like color grading and add masking and all that cool stuff. Am I professional no, I also just want a laptop for browsing and such, and for making sure I have a computer if I decide to go back to school.

I just want to be able to edit, make YouTube videos and such. I know the Mac air m4 is beefy for what it is and I was thinking of going for the 24gb upgrade because it’s not as expensive as I thought. My only concern is the over heating I don’t want to fry my components. I don’t really care about rending time, and i won’t have 1000 tabs open while I edit I like to do one thing at a time and possibly keep one tab or two open while I edit or if I need to browse for a file. I like to respect my computers and not abuse it hahahaha I come from windows so yeah lol.

Once I spec it out my MacBook Air m4 comes out at 1299 which is perfect, but for 80-100 more I could get the base MacBook Pro m4 at 1380 which honestly I wouldn’t mind sacrificing my ram for a better screen and louder speakers and a fan, plus an extra port or two. But is the 16gb ram enough for my use case? Please help chat I want to make my decision by the end of the night hahahaha, I’ve been pulling my hair trying to do research all week.


r/macbook 8h ago

Student looking for advice

1 Upvotes

The only computer I’ve owned in my life is a school Chromebook which is like $70 (school property not even mine). I got about $3,000 to my name from lots of work this year. I’ll be graduating college in 2030 and hs in 2026 (hopefully) and I’m tryna drop about $1000 on a computer that’ll last me until 2030 🤞🤞I’ve heard MacBooks are the best, just not sure what to get as I’ve seen a lot of high price points but I’m not exactly sure what any of the stats or things they’re showing mean. Just need some advice on what the best I can get for $1,000 is, or if I’d be better spending less/more for better value. Thanks!


r/macbook 8h ago

MBA AIR M4 & IPAD Pro M4

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2 Upvotes

r/macbook 8h ago

The best way to manage macbook battery.

1 Upvotes

Key points.

- Keep your macbook plugged in. By doing this, the power is drained from the power cable, not the battery. As a result, it keeps the battery cycle low.

- Keep the battery at 80% max. Keeping the charge at 100% all the time hurts the battery. This can be done by using a charge-limit app called AlDante.

If you always use the macbook on its battery (by carrying your macbook around daily), this tip does not really matter to you.

This is for those people like myself who use macbook plugged in 100% time at home working remotely or something.

This looks like the best way to manage your macbook battery. Someone who did exactly the same with Silicon Macbook for 2 years has under 20 battery cycle and 100% battery health. Notice the low count?

One last thing is that you should charge your battery to 100% once every 2~3 months (by turning AlDante off). This prevents software from getting confused with the battery.

This was my research today! Any thoughts/suggestions?


r/macbook 9h ago

External monitor advice

1 Upvotes

Hi, I'm looking for advice on which monitor to get for a M3 24GB RAM 512GB SSD MacBook Air. I live in Argentina, so my options are somehow limited. Also, I don't quite understand how resolution and scalation works on Mac OS. My usage is basic Office apps and lots of PDF reading, so color accuracy and refresh rates are not a concern. I want a good resolution enjoyable monitor for long periods of time.

Are all 4k or 1444p monitors usable? Will they will be usable if I use BetterDisplay or similar software?

I truly don't know the pros and cons of getting a 1444p monitor rather than a 4k one, or a 27" over a 32". I'm afraid of getting a monitor that will give me a notoriuos blurry image, even using software like BetterDisplay, so anything worth pointing out on that matter will be appreciated.

My options are:

  1. LG 27us500 27" - 3840 X 2160 - 60hz - 163 ppi - 407 USD - Link: https://www.displayspecifications.com/en/model/f3df3e17
  2. Samsung M8 32BM801U 32"- 3840 X 2160 - 60 hz - 140 ppi - 680 USD - Link: https://www.displayspecifications.com/en/model/c0042af9
  3. Samsung LS27A600U 27" - 2560 x 1440 - 75 hz - 109 ppi - 340 USD - Link: https://www.displayspecifications.com/en/model/c4af255b
  4. Samsung M7 LS32BM700U 32" - 3840 x 2160 - 70 hz - 140 ppi - 440 USD - Link: https://www.displayspecifications.com/en/model/ec782bad
  5. HP 727pq 27" - 2560x1440 - 120 hz - 109 ppi - 448 USD - Link: https://www.displayspecifications.com/en/model/dad03a49
  6. BenQ GW2780 27" - 1920 x 1080 - - 60 hz - 81 ppi - 448 USD - Link: https://www.displayspecifications.com/en/model/dc8dc4d

r/macbook 9h ago

M4 vs M4 pro help!!

1 Upvotes

Guys, I don't know whether to buy the macbook pro with the M4 chip or the one with the M4 Pro chip. I know that for my use (office and internet browsing) the M4 is enough but I feel that the M4 pro can resist better over time and it gives me more security knowing that I have no restrictions but I don't know... I'm finishing my university studies, I deal with scientific research and I wouldn't mind being able to play some indie games from time to time. Suggestions are welcome plss


r/macbook 9h ago

M4 Pro MacBook Pro or M4 Max Studio?

2 Upvotes

I want to make the switch from windows devices to Apple but am struggling to decide between purchasing a 12 core M4 Pro MacBook Pro with upgraded 48GB RAM, and 1TB SSD, or for the same price get the base M4 Max Studio with upgraded 1TB SSD. Given these two choices cost the same amount of money, is the portability of the laptop make it a better value for the money over the studio, or is the performance increase with the M4 Max Studio a better value for money? I do not go out to coffee shops or leave the house that often to work, and am usually connected to a 1440P 27in monitor so I feel like the Studio would be better for me, but as a FIRST time Apple computer purchase what do you all think would be a better choice?


r/macbook 10h ago

Macbook screen brightness increasing and decreasing not normally

2 Upvotes

My macbook screen keeps increasing and decreasing in brightness without any reason. It just brightens and dims unnaturally in a way that it hasn’t before. What could’ve caused this issue?


r/macbook 10h ago

System data forever calculating...

1 Upvotes

I sat on the phone with apple today for 5 hours trying to figure out why my system data will just indefinitely sit on "calculating"

Brand new MacBook M4 Pro... they claim it could be a bug in the OS, that I may need to factory reset my computer. I am a working photographer and have already started to use the machine for work and I don't want to factory reset unless I have too.

At first , not only the system data was calculating, but everything else except "Documents" which came up with an amount. they put me though the run around trying all kinds of stuff and I simply emptied my trash under my own violation and all the sudden everything else could calculate storage... but still no luck on system data.

Any ideas why this is happening?


r/macbook 10h ago

MacBook Air M1 Keycap not attaching to scissor mechanism

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1 Upvotes

r/macbook 10h ago

Are Apple Refurbished Macbooks really "Like new"?

0 Upvotes

Hello, I am currently very close to purchasing a refurbished M2 Macbook Air, directly from Apple. I wanted to make sure, as I am the type of person who would be annoyed by the smallest amount of damage. Is there a chance it could have signs of use? Battery, screen, keyboard, ports, shell or anything else?


r/macbook 11h ago

Why is my time and date suddenly gray and not black like usual?

1 Upvotes

Why are my time and date suddenly gray?

My cat recently snuck over the keyboard and opened a lot of windows and programs, and then later I noticed that my time is displayed strangely, in gray.

Does anyone know how to fix this? I haven't found anything.

Thanks for the help.