In my heart of hearts, I’m a PC guy. No really, I am, despite appearances. This is actually my first ever Mac computer, and I just got it this year. Up until this November I’ve been a diehard PC guy, hollering about how overpriced MacBooks are (and they are), and how frustrating the Apple walled garden can be (oh boy can it), but here I am writing to you from the very thing I swore to destroy!
What changed?
Well, a couple things. First, I got an iPad as a gift – at which time, I came to realize that all of my Android apps that I used regularly were available on iOS. That was the first step on the road. Honestly, unless you’re doing a short list of very specific things, modern apps and services are pretty close to platform agnostic (again, with some exceptions). Certainly all the necessary items for me are.
The other big factor for me reared its head with some data breaches and privacy concerns/fights – like Apple’s principled stand after San Bernadino – revealed the company’s commitment (although not perfect, admittedly) to user privacy and proper encryption standards, ie; no backdoors.
After these realizations, I decided to take the plunge and get an iPhone. An SE, to be specific. I liked, and still do like, the form factor. I’ll do a piece on the phone at some point too, but suffice to say it’s been good to me overall.
Only recently did I enter the market looking for a laptop, and discovered that with the sales being offered, the MacBook Air wasn’t as horribly overpriced as it normally would be, and the integration between it, my phone, and my iPad was definitely appealing.
Things like iMessage and AirDrop, as well as session persistence (I can open Chrome on my phone and tap a button on the laptop to open that same app on the same page, for instance) have actually become really useful for me.
So yes, it is a walled garden, and yes, the hardware is more expensive than I’d usually want to pay for these specs, but darn if the hardware isn’t polished and the user experience pretty close to seamless.
Now, are there drawbacks? Sure there are, chiefly that this newest build of the OS, Catalina, removes 32bit support, preventing me from using some legacy apps like older games. And speaking of gaming, it’s just not a gaming computer, though it will comfortably handle medium weight arcade type games, and struggle through games like Diablo III.
Another big challenge is ports. Apple has its reputation of minimalism for a reason, and this Air sports two USB type C ports and a 3.5mm audio jack. That’s all you get for ports, which is annoying if you want to use any normal USB drives or other accessories, but there are plenty of adapters and USB type C cords available so it isn’t too bad for the most part.
That being said, I knew most of this going in, and none of it is a dealbreaker for me. The size and weight of the computer are great for my needs and the build quality is solid, which I appreciate. Some of the ancillary features are also nice and well executed, like the ambient light sensing, the keyboard backlighting, and the fingerprint sensor/power button combo.
Overall I’m quite happy with my purchase, and I could see myself continuing to use Apple for laptops in the future, though for the foreseeable future I still plan to stick to PC for my desktop – Apple still can’t touch PCs when it comes to gaming.
That’s all I’ve got for today – if you find the Air (or Pro) on sale I’d definitely recommend it, but I’d be less than keen on paying full price for one, even with the extra touches.
-T