'New' old Macbook Air magsafe/usb
Discussion
Having left my beloved, ancient 2013 Macbook Air on the train a week or so ago I am in need of a replacement. Although I j know they are great I don't want to buy a new M1/M2 because:
I don't use it hard enough or often to justify ca £1000 for something I might leave on the train. Just browsing/email/word processing etc. Most of my stuff is in the cloud, and most of my work is done on a desktop PC;)
I have a collection of chargers, peripherals etc which are magsafe/usb based and don't want to have to junk them or carry adapters (which I might also lose, see above).
I like the MBA chassis v much, and also the fact that my old one was still going strong at 11 yrs old. Incredible for a laptop.. So I am looking to go secondhand on a somewhat newer MBA. My question is:
What is the newest MBA that still has the magsafe power connector and regular USB ports?
Tks!
I don't use it hard enough or often to justify ca £1000 for something I might leave on the train. Just browsing/email/word processing etc. Most of my stuff is in the cloud, and most of my work is done on a desktop PC;)
I have a collection of chargers, peripherals etc which are magsafe/usb based and don't want to have to junk them or carry adapters (which I might also lose, see above).
I like the MBA chassis v much, and also the fact that my old one was still going strong at 11 yrs old. Incredible for a laptop.. So I am looking to go secondhand on a somewhat newer MBA. My question is:
What is the newest MBA that still has the magsafe power connector and regular USB ports?
Tks!
survivalist said:
Pretty sure that the 2017 MacBook Air was the last one with a MagSafe 2 power connector and USB-A and displayport connectors. After that it went USB-C. It also the last one without a retina screen.
Tks v much, that looks like the one. I had wondered whether I could have retina screen too, it seems not. Never mind, not a biggie. thebraketester said:
dontlookdown said:
Just browsing/email/word processing etc. Most of my stuff is in the cloud, and most of my work is done on a desktop PC;)
Tks!
iPad would suffice with a case/keyboard ??Tks!
I could also manage with a chromebook but they are flimsy by comparison.
dontlookdown said:
survivalist said:
Pretty sure that the 2017 MacBook Air was the last one with a MagSafe 2 power connector and USB-A and displayport connectors. After that it went USB-C. It also the last one without a retina screen.
Tks v much, that looks like the one. I had wondered whether I could have retina screen too, it seems not. Never mind, not a biggie. 2017 Macbook Air (13" only) was the last one - came with 8GB ram standard, and 128/256/512GB SSD storage options, no retina screen option.
Best mac ever made imho, and is what I am actually typing this from now. I have a 256gb jetdrive lite in the SD card slot too as expansion.
They are my workhorses, for some of the same reasons as you, and on the rare occasions they break, I go buy another, and swap the SSD from one to another, and I'll honestly keep doing that until I can't find them anymore, or until software updates render them completely unusable (which is more likely). I can get an immaculate one for $200.
Not sure when the macbook pro stopped using magsafe, but that is another option if you fancied a retina screen.
Best mac ever made imho, and is what I am actually typing this from now. I have a 256gb jetdrive lite in the SD card slot too as expansion.
They are my workhorses, for some of the same reasons as you, and on the rare occasions they break, I go buy another, and swap the SSD from one to another, and I'll honestly keep doing that until I can't find them anymore, or until software updates render them completely unusable (which is more likely). I can get an immaculate one for $200.
Not sure when the macbook pro stopped using magsafe, but that is another option if you fancied a retina screen.
GCH said:
2017 Macbook Air (13" only) was the last one - came with 8GB ram standard, and 128/256/512GB SSD storage options, no retina screen option.
Best mac ever made imho, and is what I am actually typing this from now. I have a 256gb jetdrive lite in the SD card slot too as expansion.
They are my workhorses, for some of the same reasons as you, and on the rare occasions they break, I go buy another, and swap the SSD from one to another, and I'll honestly keep doing that until I can't find them anymore, or until software updates render them completely unusable (which is more likely). I can get an immaculate one for $200.
Not sure when the macbook pro stopped using magsafe, but that is another option if you fancied a retina screen.
Yes it's the sweet spot for me too. Also like that it is held together by decent quality screws rather than flimsy plastic clips so you can take it apart without everything breaking.Best mac ever made imho, and is what I am actually typing this from now. I have a 256gb jetdrive lite in the SD card slot too as expansion.
They are my workhorses, for some of the same reasons as you, and on the rare occasions they break, I go buy another, and swap the SSD from one to another, and I'll honestly keep doing that until I can't find them anymore, or until software updates render them completely unusable (which is more likely). I can get an immaculate one for $200.
Not sure when the macbook pro stopped using magsafe, but that is another option if you fancied a retina screen.
How does the Jetdrive thing in the card slot work? Like an extra drive? Sounds interesting.
Just have to buy one now. I can get a standard spec VG condition 2017 13" on eBay for ca £275 or there are a couple of used Mac specialists in London with actual stores which sells for a bit more, but you can check over the one you are going to buy of course.
Anyone got any seller recommendations?
dontlookdown said:
thebraketester said:
dontlookdown said:
Just browsing/email/word processing etc. Most of my stuff is in the cloud, and most of my work is done on a desktop PC;)
Tks!
iPad would suffice with a case/keyboard ??Tks!
I could also manage with a chromebook but they are flimsy by comparison.
I have 2 chromebooks in the boot of each car, so something is available to use without me carrying them around. I think they are Lenovo Yogas or something like that. Both bought on FB Marketplace for around £150 and if the worst happens and the car is broken into it's not losing a MacBook cost.
dontlookdown said:
How does the Jetdrive thing in the card slot work? Like an extra drive? Sounds interesting.
Just sits in the SD slot, flush. https://www.transcend-info.com/product/memory-card...
GCH said:
Just sits in the SD slot, flush.
https://www.transcend-info.com/product/memory-card...
Is the benefit of this over a USB stick/micro-SSD is that it uses a slot you don't use for anything else?https://www.transcend-info.com/product/memory-card...
mmm-five said:
Is the benefit of this over a USB stick/micro-SSD is that it uses a slot you don't use for anything else?
Pretty much. I’m always using the USBs for stuff, but the SD card rarely gets used for anything except this. So it sits almost completely flush, and it is fast enough to just sit there and be treated as an extra internal drive. Really useful, and if you do need the SD slot for something else, it’s easy to remove. I’ve been using them continuously for over a decade. dontlookdown said:
Yes it's the sweet spot for me too. Also like that it is held together by decent quality screws rather than flimsy plastic clips so you can take it apart without everything breaking.
How does the Jetdrive thing in the card slot work? Like an extra drive? Sounds interesting.
Just have to buy one now. I can get a standard spec VG condition 2017 13" on eBay for ca £275 or there are a couple of used Mac specialists in London with actual stores which sells for a bit more, but you can check over the one you are going to buy of course.
Anyone got any seller recommendations?
CEX and Backmarket are both worth looking at. 2015 MacBook Pro with the older ports and a retina screen seems to be around the £300 mark, although potential bargains to be had on eBay. These models seem to be pretty serviceable in terms of new batteries and SSD (should they fail).How does the Jetdrive thing in the card slot work? Like an extra drive? Sounds interesting.
Just have to buy one now. I can get a standard spec VG condition 2017 13" on eBay for ca £275 or there are a couple of used Mac specialists in London with actual stores which sells for a bit more, but you can check over the one you are going to buy of course.
Anyone got any seller recommendations?
Just to put you all out of your misery, an update on Magsafegate;)
I went for a s/h 2017 MBA, bog standard spec as that's all I need. £300 from MusicMagpie, described as in Very Good condtiion. It has a few small marks and scratches on the case but is substantially less battered than the one I left on the train.
It all works perfectly (typing this on it now) and the battery seems to be in reasonable order. It's easy enough to put a new one anyway if it turns out to need it. Time Machine back up a breeze of course. Even managed to remember my AppleID password although I never use it.
It is such a pleasure to be using an MBA again, the emergency Lenovo lappie I disinterred from a drawer really was a hateful thing by comparison, even though it was not a base model by any means. Heavy - yet also flimsy - and completely unbalanced when actually on your lap.
Ironically they did send me the later type of charger with a phone type USB C -plug. Of course, I already have 3 old magsafe chargers so never mind. My daughter can have it as a spare for hers.
On the one hand, £300 for a 7 yr old laptop is a lot of money. But on the other, these old MBAs are still 10x better than anything you could get new for that price. I'm happy with that.
I went for a s/h 2017 MBA, bog standard spec as that's all I need. £300 from MusicMagpie, described as in Very Good condtiion. It has a few small marks and scratches on the case but is substantially less battered than the one I left on the train.
It all works perfectly (typing this on it now) and the battery seems to be in reasonable order. It's easy enough to put a new one anyway if it turns out to need it. Time Machine back up a breeze of course. Even managed to remember my AppleID password although I never use it.
It is such a pleasure to be using an MBA again, the emergency Lenovo lappie I disinterred from a drawer really was a hateful thing by comparison, even though it was not a base model by any means. Heavy - yet also flimsy - and completely unbalanced when actually on your lap.
Ironically they did send me the later type of charger with a phone type USB C -plug. Of course, I already have 3 old magsafe chargers so never mind. My daughter can have it as a spare for hers.
On the one hand, £300 for a 7 yr old laptop is a lot of money. But on the other, these old MBAs are still 10x better than anything you could get new for that price. I'm happy with that.
mcflurry said:
Now that you have the new one, think the rule is the old one will turn up safely in lost property 
I did think of that, and popped into the lost property office at Cannon St before ordering the replacement. No guarantee it won't turn up anyway;)
I was wondering whether I should change any passwords? I don't use keychain and nothing was logged in when I lost it.
Gassing Station | Computers, Gadgets & Stuff | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff