What's the fan noise like on the 13" i7 MBA?

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Level 7

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What's the fan noise like on the 13" i7 MBA?

Dear folks,

My otherwise great 2011 13" MBA just doesn't have the battery life I want, so I'm looking at getting one of the (newer) MBAs -- specifically, another 13" with 256 SSD and 8GB RAM. So now I'm debating the processor -- would obviously like as fast as possible (since it's not really the price that's my biggest consideration, but rather portability and battery life) but I'm a bit concerned about fan noise running a hotter CPU.

Anyone have any real world experience they'd like to share? I'm not a gamer, but I will be using this for desktop video editing and general graphics with the Adobe Cloud suite of products (and, yes, I know a Pro would be a faster, better fit for that, but I do love the MBA for the form factor and am willing to live with a bit slower times -- I can always drink coffee while it renders :>). Right now with my current MBA the fan almost NEVER comes on. It's truly wonderful, almost like my iPads, but the fan noise on my Surface Pro (yeah, I'm a little bilingual) is truly annoying.

If people using the i7 are noticing more fan noise then I can easily step back to the i5, but if it isn't much (if any) of a factor I'd prefer the faster one. TIA for any ideas, thoughts or winning lotto numbers.

MacBook Air

Posted on Apr 23, 2015 4:16 PM

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Answer 1

Apr 24, 2015 4:15 AM in response to Mike Kelley

Hi Mike....!!

I would rather recommend you to go with the i5 processor than the i7.

Basically, you won’t notice any difference in the i5 and i7 processor in the Macbook Air. The i7 processor only does its magic trick when you are doing multi tasking and you want to run all those applications and processes all at the same time buttery smooth without choking up your macbook.

Also, note that an i7 processor will generate more heat to keep itself running more efficiently which in turn will trigger the fans high. If you are this kind of user than the i7 is the way to go or else stick to the i5 processor and some your money.

Also, in the Macbook air the mentioned i7 processor is not a quad core usually found in the 15” pro’s but is a mere dual core i7 processor which is not that great compared to a quad core i7. So its not practical to choose a dual core i7 and waste your money.

Note that most users will be very well satisfied with the i5 processor even while doing graphic intensive work like "Adobe Cloud Suite editing products", provided they don’t run dozens of graphic intensive programmes simultaneously....... which may choke up the processor.

LONG STORY SHORT

Get the Macbook Air with the i5 processor rather than buying a dual core i7 Macbook air..... Thats what I would recommend.... I hope now its much clear.

Hope this helps.....

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Answer 2

Mike Kelley Author

Level 7

29,298 points

Apr 24, 2015 7:46 AM in response to Grane Duke

I appreciate you taking the time to write such a thoughtful response.

Still, I'd like to hear from any folks who actually have the new MBA with the i7 processor. It consistently clocks at 20% faster at nearly all benchmarks, while using the same TDA, which tends to lead me to believe it will run just as cool if not cooler (since it won't have to work as hard at some things). The Broadwell CPU (which was released early this year) is very efficient and may run very differently than anything we've seen in the past, making it hard to judge based on previous experiences.

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Answer 3

Sep 23, 2015 8:11 PM in response to Mike Kelley

I'm interested in this too.

Mike, which one did you buy? How's the fan noise?

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