I have an used, beat up MacBook Air 2015 - and I can’t afford a new laptop for a long while. My situation is a bit messy and sad at the moment.

I can’t use MacOS on it, because the battery was replaced by a third party and MacOS freaks out about it and locks the CPU to 400 MHz.

I can’t use Windows on it, because the Intel HD Graphics drivers are no longer maintained and all versions compatible with Windows 10 and Windows 11 have a regression that disables the internal display - there’s nothing you can do about it, they only run on external monitors.

And there’s an unknown bug on the Linux open source MESA drivers that, on the HD Graphics 6000, also causes a black screen unless you use nomodeset, which is terrible for battery life and performance. I tried the latest Ubuntu, Ubuntu LTS, Linux Mint, Fedora, Bazzite, Arch, Endeavour and Opensuse Tumbleweed - every single distro was affected.

Except Pop!_OS. Maybe someone with more Linux knowledge could isolate what they’re doing different than everybody else, but man am I’m glad I decided to test this last .iso as a last ditch effort.

Also, thank fuck for open source operating systems, otherwise this device would literally be shiny electronic waste thanks to Apple’s proprietary battery bullshit.

      • pythonoob@programming.dev
        0·
        8 months ago

        Their computers and software aren’t shit. They’re actually pretty good.

        They ruin it by being shitty and charging ass loads of money

          • chiliedogg@lemmy.world
            0·
            8 months ago

            He’s saying that they would be a good value if it weren’t for the price.

            Which applies to most things. If a HP printer used $2 ink refills it would also be a good value.

            • acockworkorange@mander.xyz
              0·
              8 months ago

              I wouldn’t go that far. My wife got one without consulting me. It’s garbage. 3/2 of the features are so badly implemented that it’s not worth the trouble. And then there’s the ink issue.

              • pythonoob@programming.dev
                0·
                8 months ago

                It’s not that hard of a concept to grasp tbh.

                If something is worth comparatively little money for it’s implicit value, the it has good value.

                  • pythonoob@programming.dev
                    0·
                    8 months ago

                    If you saw some grapes on sale that looked delicious and not even close to spoiled for .99 cents a pound, where they’re usually 3.99 a pound, would you not say, yeah that’s a good value?

                • InternetCitizen2@lemmy.world
                  0·
                  8 months ago

                  Exactly, if it was repairable that adds to the utility. And there are benchmark that show their arm chips are worthwhile. But not being serviceable and expensive makes them not the best market offer.

      • InternetCitizen2@lemmy.world
        0·
        8 months ago

        Something that is a “good value” means you get a lot for the money paid. You cannot ruin a “good value” proposition with a bad price, because the price is an inherent component of the “good value”.

        See you are very close to get it it, but I think your assumption is incomplete. There is more to the value than just the cost: there is the opportunity cost and utility.

        If Apple doubles their price all of the nice things and features are still there. It still has the 18hr battery, but more people may be comfortable with the shitty battery of an intel (not to mention the new opportunity of getting a new phone with the saved money). If Apple keeps their price the same, but made things repairable then their pricing might feel more justifiable. If you pay too much for your house you won’t have much left over for furniture. The price is an important component, but I think you’re evaluation is too hollow.