2010 MacBook Air upgrade?

[Rushjob]

We've got a late 2010 MacBook Air that's really convenient to use, but is a bit slow at times.

For an IT neanderthal, what is the most cost effective way of getting it to go a bit quicker without buying a new one?

Ta

[Rushjob]

PS.

I looked in the pinned OSX thread, realised it was written in Sanskrit or something similar so posted a new Q......

[megaphone]

Get a new MB Air with the M1 or 2 chip. They fly. There are some new models out, and some recent models available on the Refurb store.

There is a long thread, https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[bitchstewie]

Realistically it's 13 years old there isn't going to be much at all that you can do as it's already got an SSD in it and from memory you can't expand the RAM.

You could reinstall OS X but it's still a 13 year old laptop.

[megaphone]

If you really don't want to buy a new one, then yes a fresh install of the OS will probably speed it up, also make sure the SSD is not too full, you need to leave some free space for it to work properly.

Problem is it is now too old to run the latest OS, however, there are ways around this using OpenCore Legacy Patcher, I have a 2013 Air which is running Ventura 13.2 using OCLP. You need to be a bit tech savvy to set it up. Make sure you back up before you do anything!!!

https://dortania.github.io/OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher...

This chap goes through it all well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-huRykhjs6g

[AndyWoodall]

I managed to make a 2009 MacBook Pro last me until 2018/19, but the last few years were very sluggish.

I upgraded at the end of 2021 to a new MBP, I’d recommend you do the same. The M1 Air is still available for around £950, sometimes less, and is a machine.

[ajprice]

There are M2 MacBook Airs in the Apple refurb store for £979 at the moment https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/refurbished/mac/macb....

If it's too much and you don't need a portable, refurb M2 Mac Minis start at £549 https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/refurbished/mac/mac-....

If you want a Mac to last as long as your MBA has, go for more RAM than the standard 8GB.

[Rushjob]

Thanks all, think it's maybe time to dip into the savings jar.....

[vaud]

Rushjob said:

Thanks all, think it's maybe time to dip into the savings jar.....

13 years is pretty impressive. A new one will be amazing and their battery life is superb.

[Speed 3]

You've done a great job keeping it going that long. From memory MS based laptops age pretty quickly compared to Macs. We find 6-7 years is the sweet spot for changing MBA's. That's helped by buying them through our own companies so effectively 40% cheaper with VAT & Corp Tax savings. Roughly £100/year is pretty good value IMO, normally get about £150 selling the old ones. Advances in chip & battery are essential to run modern OS/apps effectively. Well worth dipping into the piggy bank for.

[rustyuk]

I'm writing this on a 2013 MacBook Pro. They sell for around £170-£220 on eBay.

I still use mine to develop software too.