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Level 1

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Are the new Airs 100% silent even when you hold them close to your ear?

I just picked up an 11 inch Macbook Air (1.6GHz/4GB memory/128GB storage) and I find it to be completely silent unless I hold the system up to my ear. When I do that, I can hear the fan going even on idle.

My question is - when people say that it's completely silent, do they mean that it's completely 100% silent even when they hold the system up to their ears? Or do they just mean under regular use (i.e. with the system on their laps or on the tables in front of them). Don't get me wrong - it's awesome as it is right now. I just want to know if I have a defective unit while I can still return/replace it.

Macbook Air, Mac OS X (10.6.5), Picked up an Air for light development

Posted on Dec 13, 2010 4:57 AM

44 replies

Nov 4, 2018 12:08 PM in response to hawleyrw

Or a MBP, which is completely silent (with SSD). Not a MBA.

Nov 4, 2018 12:08 PM in response to slyguy_28

I confirm. It is much more pleasant to work with a MBP than a MBA, if silence is important for you.

Nov 4, 2018 12:08 PM in response to slyguy_28

I confirm. It is a much more pleasant to work with a MBP if silence is important for you.

Mar 10, 2011 10:11 PM in response to Community User

JoZoz wrote:
Or a MBP, which is completely silent (with SSD). Not a MBA.

Sorry, but a MBP has 2 fans going at 2000 RPM. How can that be quieter than a MBA with only one?

Mar 10, 2011 10:31 PM in response to Community User

JoZoz wrote:
I only speak about the MBP 13", which I compared to the MBA.

It is more silent because (hypotheses) of:

- the design of the case, which seems to amplify the noise in the MBA
- the size of the fan, which I think is smaller in the MBA

We have a 13 MBP here and it is louder than my MBA. So is the 15 and 17 MBP louder.

Nov 4, 2018 12:08 PM in response to Michaelworks

Is that a MBP 13" with SSD ? Because we can compare only what is comparable.

carl wolf

Level 6

14,625 points

Mar 11, 2011 7:28 AM in response to darthjones

"There is a constant whirring noise coming from the left side of the keyboard that is quite audible in a quiet room."
It's the fan.
"I can pinpoint the sound to just under the Q and W buttons on the keyboard. In fact, pressing my fingers over the Q and W buttons muffles the sound."
OK.
"I believe the fan is located in the area below these keys."
Close enough for government work.

The question is not "does anybody else hear the fan". That should not be you concern. You should be concerned whether you find the noise objectionable. The noise is normal - operating fans are not silent.

Nov 4, 2018 12:08 PM in response to carl wolf

"The noise is normal - operating fans are not silent."

With the MBP 13", the fan doesn't make this whirring noise. So, can we really say that the MBA's noise is normal ?

Mar 11, 2011 11:33 AM in response to Community User

JoZoz wrote:
Is that a MBP 13" with SSD ? Because we can compare only what is comparable.

Yes, and the fans (read plural) are louder. Unless you actually have and use both machines, all of your posts are theoretical and not empirical.

Mar 11, 2011 11:57 AM in response to Community User

JoZoz wrote:
All of my posts are empirical. Indeed, as I said above, I used both the MBA 13" 2010 and the MBP 13" 2010 at the same time. And the whirring noise only came from the MBA (in fact, 2 MBA because of the exchange), the MBP (even with a hard disc) was more silent and did not have the whirring noise.

The MBP 13" has only one fan. Did you speak about another model ? In that case, it is normal that your MBP are louder than the MBA.

You still have repair issues with your MBA. Or, at least you think you do. If Apple gave you a replacement MBA because of the "whirring sound", kudos to Apple for great customer service.

Mar 11, 2011 5:27 PM in response to Community User

JoZoz wrote:
Again, as I said above, after a first MBA exchange which didn't solve the problem, I asked for a fan replacement... and the noise was still here. Therefore, I conclude that this noise is present on every MBA 2010 but it is not heard by everybody perhaps because of its hight frequency or the room in which it is running.

Yes, the Apple SAV is really great. But it cannot resolve anything when the problem is not considered as a problem, that is to say when they don't see any problem whereas there is one.

Can you answer to the precedent question : with which MBP did you compare the MBA ?

All three: 13",15",17" (HD asleep on those without SSD). My 11.6 Ultimate is totally silent. Glad I didn't get a 13 MBA as it seems more people complain about them and their physical and software "defects".

Mar 12, 2011 1:11 AM in response to Community User

JoZoz wrote:
Ok, I didn't get that you compared them with a 11" MBA. Indeed, most people complain about the noise on a 13" MBA. To me, it should be explained saying that the 11" MBA's case is smaller than the 13" and, therefore, the noise is less amplified. It is an hypothesis.

I would personally just return the MBA if it bothered me that much, and wait until they had something that meets my expectations. Life is too short..... I am very happy with my 11.6 and all the other Apple products I have. If I forget, I pull out an old PC laptop and I'm brought back to reality quickly. Good luck with your issues and sorry you aren't happy with your MBA.

Mar 14, 2011 1:01 AM in response to darthjones

Hi all,

I am in the same boat that JoZoz. My MBA 11.6 fan makes now this annoying high pitch noise when at his minimum speed of 2000 rpm. And I am now pretty sure it was not the case few weeks ago.
So I think it is all down to the quality of this cheapy tiny fan they put in this extra slim case. Or the poor grease they put on the axle, which is enough to keep it silent for a few weeks/month, but as soon as it "evaporates", here comes the noise.

Really p....d off by poor construction quality of Apple products lately :-((

Apr 5, 2011 9:52 AM in response to claudemarchand

My Air is completely silent even in a silent room UNLESS I put the laptop to my ear, then there is a SLIGHT, I repeat SLIGHT sound. I am very sensitive to high pitched noises, and my MBA doesn't bother me at all. This is as silent as a laptop will be for a long time.

Are the new Airs 100% silent even when you hold them close to your ear?