Choosing among the many Mac models may not be easy, especially if we have never had other Apple products before and we decide to go to Apple-branded laptops or desktops driven only by curiosity or the desire to own a beautiful object to show (and from this point of view, Macs are unrivaled). Before spending even considerable amounts on one of the Apple products mentioned, it is worth taking just a few minutes to read the following guide, so that you can make a sensible choice and buy the right model for us.In the following guide we will show you how to choose a mac, showing you all the tricks to find out if the model examined is a new generation model (therefore released in the last 6 months) or a model of the past generation or an even older model (definitely to be avoided).READ ALSO: Is it worth buying the latest-generation MacBook?
Things to see before choosing a Mac
As mentioned in the introduction, it is not enough to go to the department or to an Apple store in a shopping center to be sure of buying the latest models: we must necessarily know some particularities of Macs and MacBooks, so as to avoid the bad ones. surprises later. The objective of the guide is in fact to make you buy only the newer Mac models, giving you the knowledge you need to avoid older models or models unsuitable for the work we intend to do on them.
Mac models available
The following Mac models are currently commercially available:
- MacBook Air: Latest Apple notebook model available, designed to be lightweight, durable, and with long battery life. This note is ideal for those who study a lot outside the home and want to have the power of an Apple always at hand.
- MacBook Pro: The enhanced version of Apple laptops, with more powerful processors, more memory, and even more beautiful display. These laptops are reserved for those who work a lot with graphics and sound when on the move, so as to have maximum power without ever having to turn on a desktop PC.
- iMac: the Apple desktop computer available as an All-in-One device, i.e. with the hardware components included in the monitor body (available in various sizes). The ideal choice for those who work a lot in the office and need a desktop computer that is always fast, easy to use, and beautiful in appearance.
- Mac mini: this desktop computer looks similar to a TV Box and is ideal for those who want a small desktop computer to which any monitor of their choice can be connected. This computer is a good compromise between price and performance, to the point that we recommend future new Apple users to start with this model to get started.
- Mac Pro: the real Apple desktop computer, complete with a perforated aluminum case. Reserved for those who work a lot with 3D graphics, with DJ audio processing, those who work with professional photo editing, or for those looking for maximum power from a computer with a macOS operating system.
Already knowing all commercially available Mac models will allow you to carry out the first skimming and focus attention on a specific model, choosing the one suitable for the type of work to be carried out or the use we plan to do with the chosen Mac.
How to recognize new-generation Macs?
There are many versions of Mac Mini, MacBook, and MacBook Pro on the market, and not always the selling price can be used as a parameter to choose the most recent model since all Macs tend to cost very much (perhaps only the Mac Mini has a “slightly” more accessible price). As of this writing (April 2021), the latest Macs can be recognized with ease verifying the type of processor used.
Apple has indeed released its own first processor developed internally (without Intel’s support, as done so far): this processor is called Apple M1 and it is currently a good way to immediately recognize the new Apple devices without having to put up with the whole technical datasheet. Unfortunately, these processors use a completely different architecture than Intel (the now proven x86 or AMD-64): in this phase of “transition” many programs are not available on Macs with M1 chips (but we are sure they will soon become, given the huge investment made by Apple to become independent from Intel ).
If traditional programs or Windows programs are indispensable for us, we can always focus on the latest Mac models with Intel processors, still widely supported by Apple and updated regularly. On them, we find all the programs and apps developed so far, but the performance is vastly lower than Macs with M1 chips.
Buying Guide
In this chapter of the guide, we will show you which Mac to buy, making the necessary distinctions between the models with the M1 chips (newer and faster) and the models with Intel processors (more compatible).
The cheapest Mac model we can buy is the Apple Mac mini (con chip Intel), available on Amazon for less than 700 €.
This compact Apple computer features a 3.6 GHz quad-core Intel Core i3 processor, Intel graphics chip, 8 GB of RAM, 256 GB of internal memory, HDMI out, two USB 3.0 ports, 4 Thunderbird ports (USB-C ), Ethernet socket, Dual-Band Wi-Fi module, Bluetooth connection, passive cooling system and macOS Big Sur operating system.
If, on the other hand, we want the latest model of the laptop we can focus on the Apple Mac mini (con chip Apple M1), available on Amazon for less than € 800.
The shape is practically identical, but totally changes the heart of the system with an octa-core Apple M1 chip processor, dedicated graphics chip with octa-core, 8 GB of RAM, 256 GB of internal memory, HDMI output, two USB 3.0 ports, 4 Thunderbird ports (USB-C), Ethernet socket, Dual-Band Wi-Fi module, Bluetooth connection, passive cooling system, and Mac OS Big Sur operating system.
If, on the other hand, we are looking for a new Apple laptop we can focus on the Apple MacBook Air (13″, Chip Apple M1), available on Amazon for less than 1100 €.
This laptop comes with a Unibody aluminum body, 13-inch Retina display, Apple M1 octa-core processor, 8-core dedicated graphics, 8 GB of RAM, 256 GB of SSD-type internal memory, FaceTime webcam, Wi-Fi connection -Fi Dual Band, Bluetooth connection, 16-core Neural Engine artificial intelligence system, and mac OS Big Sur operating system.
The top of the range among Apple laptops is undoubtedly the Apple MacBook Pro (13″, Chip Apple M1), available on Amazon for less than 2000 €.
On this laptop, we find a Unibody aluminum body, 13-inch Retina display, Apple M1 octa-core processor, 8-core dedicated graphics, 8 GB of RAM, 512 GB of M.2 internal memory, FaceTime webcam, Wi-Fi connection -Fi Dual Band, Bluetooth connection, 16-core Neural Engine artificial intelligence system and mac OS Big Sur operating system.
If, on the other hand, we do not mind compromises and look for the top of the Apple range for desktop computers, just take a lookApple iMac Display Retina 5K, available on Amazon for less than € 2500.
On this All-in-One we find a 27 “Retina 5K display with 5120 × 2880 resolution, 10th generation Intel Core i5 6-core 3.3 GHz processor, 8 GB of RAM, 512 GB of internal memory. SSD type, AMD Radeon Pro 5300 graphics, two Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports, four USB-A ports, Gigabit Ethernet port, Wi-Fi module, Bluetooth connection, and macOS Big Sur operating system.
Conclusions
In the end, choosing a brand new Mac is quite simple, also helped by the technological shift brought about by Apple with its new M1 chips. When these chips become common on all Macs, then we will have to pay attention to the production date of the chosen Mac or the date of release on Amazon or on any other e-commerce site, so as to find out immediately if we are going to buy a Mac. new or an old Mac.
Always Mac-themed, we can read our guides Because Macs are PCs and there is no more difference e the ways to use a Mac Mini as a PC, TV Box, and NAS