Transcription
I've been using the MacBook Air M5 since launch, and for a while, I thought it was perfect. Then I tried to do my real work on it, and I realized I'd made two expensive mistakes when I configured it: one with the RAM and one with the SSD. The worst part, once you buy this machine, you can't undo either one.
So, before you buy the base MacBook M5, let me show you what happened when I pushed it, what actually matters, and the version I would recommend instead. So, let me be clear right from the start. This is not a video about a bad laptop. The MacBook Air M5 is generally one of the best laptops Apple has ever made. The form factor is incredible. It's thin, it's light, it's silent, the battery life is ridiculous, and the M5 chip itself is amazing. In fact, in single-core performance, it actually beats my M3 Max. So, the problem here is not the chip, and that's really important. The problem is the overall configuration.
Because when I bought this MacBook Air, I wasn't really buying it with heavy editing in mind. But over time, I liked it so much that I generally wanted it to become my only computer. So, I started trying to do my actual work on it, the same kind of work I do every week: 10-bit footage, heavier codecs, color grading, motion B-effect layers, the usual editing workflow, even for my YouTube videos. And that's where I hit the wall. Not because the M5 chip is weak, but because 16 gigs of RAM is just not enough for this kind of work. The machine starts to feel tight very quickly. RAM pressure climbs, the system starts pushing harder, and on exports and heavier timelines, the heat becomes very, very noticeable. And because this is a MacBook Air, there are no fans to rescue it. So again, the problem is not that this is a bad laptop. The problem is that if you buy the wrong version, this amazing laptop stops disappearing into your life and starts getting in your way. And that is exactly the trap. And for me, that means 24 gigs is the real minimum.
Now, let's talk about money. Because when you land on the product page for the 13-inch MacBook Air M5, the first number you see is $1,100. And again, it looks like a fantastic deal. And probably it is. But that's not really the number I would focus on if you do serious work. Because the first upgrade that actually matters is RAM. And here's where the math changes. If you move from 16 gigs to 24 gigs, Apple doesn't just charge you for the memory. On the 13-inch model, upgrading to 24 gigs also forces you onto the 10-core GPU chip. So, this is not just a simple memory upgrade. It's a bigger step. So, right there, the real starting point for serious work is already $200 more than the headline price Apple leads with. And honestly, I think that's the real minimum because now you've got 24 gigs of RAM, the 10-core GPU, and a machine that actually makes more sense for heavier workflows.
But there's still another problem, which is storage. Because even at $1,300, you still only get 512 gigs of storage. And for me, that's not enough. So, if you work with video, photos, assets, projects, or just want most of your files on the machine, 512 gigs disappear really fast. So, now let's do the next part of the math. If you upgrade from 512 gigs to 1 TB, Apple charges another $200. So, now you're at $1,500. And that, at least for me, is the actual sweet spot for most people doing real work on the MacBook Air M5: 24 gigs of RAM, 10-core GPU, and 1 TB of SSD.
Now, compare that to the alternative people always mention, like just buy external storage later. A few months ago, I probably would have said the same thing. But I don't think that logic makes as much sense anymore. Let me show you why. A Samsung T7, which is one of the most popular portable SSDs out there, is currently around one terabyte, $270; two terabytes, $490. And yes, it's small, it's portable, it's easy to carry, but for real editing work, in my experience, it's not ideal. The read speeds are only around 1,000 megabytes per second. And if you try to work directly off a drive like this with heavier video projects, you feel it because you'll see stutter everywhere.
Now, quick side note here. This T7 Samsung used to cost around $80. That's how much I paid for this and a few more that I have there. But with all this AI development that needs a lot of RAM and SSD, the prices of RAM and SSD completely skyrocket. It's more than double the price now. And the funny thing is that we used to say that we had to pay the Apple tax for SSD. And today, it's actually a way better deal to pay Apple for more storage and more RAM. Crazy times.
So, if you want an external SSD that actually makes sense for more serious work, you have to step up. Something like the OWC Express is a much better option. And that comes in at 1 TB for $130, 2 TB, $600. But here's where the Apple internal SSD starts looking a lot better than people think because Apple charges $200 to go from 512 gigs to 1 TB internally. The OWC Thunderbolt 4 at 1 TB costs $430. So, the Apple internal upgrade is not just cleaner, it's less than half the price. And in my own testing, it's dramatically faster, too. Like double the speed. So, with Apple, you're paying less, carrying nothing extra, and getting more speed. And that is a huge win.
Now, let's make it even more direct. Apple charges $600 to go from 512 gigs to 2 TB internally. The same OWC with 2 TB is $600, and I have one here. So now the price is basically the same, but the Apple internal SSD is still the better experience because there's no enclosure, like a big enclosure, no cable, no separate device, no extra friction. And again, in my own use, the internal Apple SSD is much faster. So at 2 TB, the comparison gets even more brutal. You're paying basically the same money for a worse overall experience if you go external. And if you're thinking about going even further and buying something like the OWC Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 with two terabytes, that costs around $700. And yes, it's incredibly fast, like as fast as the internal SSD of this computer. But the MacBook M5 only has Thunderbolt 4 ports. So on this laptop, you'd be paying extra for performance you literally cannot fully use.
So when you actually do the math, the conclusion becomes pretty simple. The real numbers are not $1,100 and you're done. The real numbers are more like $1,100 if you're a light user, $1,300 if you want the RAM this machine really needs for serious work, $1,500 if you want the storage configuration that makes real sense for most people doing real work. And I think that once you see those numbers clearly, the whole buying decision changes because the cheapest MacBook Air is not always the cheapest MacBook Air.
Now, I want to be really careful here because I really don't want this video to scare anyone away from a genuinely great laptop. So, here's how I would think about it. If you're a light user and you just want a beautiful, fast, silent laptop for normal work, the base model is absolutely fine. If you edit video, even casually, I wouldn't buy 16 gigs of RAM. If you work with large query files, I wouldn't buy 16 gigs of RAM. If you code heavily, multitask hard, or want this laptop to stay comfortable for years, I wouldn't buy 16 gigs of RAM.
So, after using the MacBook Air M5 for a while, here's the simplest way I can put it. This is one of the best laptops Apple has ever made, and I really mean that. But the base model is not the safe choice people assume it is. The chip is not the problem. The configuration might be. And if your work is even moderately serious, the version that actually makes sense is not really the $1,100 machine Apple leads with. It's much closer to $1,500. That's the version I would buy for most people doing real work. 13-inch or 15-inch. If you prefer a bigger display, 24 gigs of RAM, 10-core GPU, 1 TB of SSD, and if you know your files are heavy and you want everything internal, then go to terabytes. So yes, the MacBook Air M5 is excellent. You just have to buy the right one the first time.
If this helped, that's exactly what this channel is for. And if you're still deciding between the Air and the Pro, watch this next because that's where the decision gets really interesting. That's it for this video. I'll see you in the next one. Take care.