MBA or iMac - i am retarded

personally i wouldn't consider the MBA to be a primary machine(especially without an external drive). Although that depends on your needs, Maybe another macbook or pro would better suit your needs? Would you really use your mac so much if it was tied to your desk?

How much is "a lot"? If your only machine now is a 2007 MacBook the new MBA should be plenty. The iMac is a sweet machine though, so it depends on how mobile you want your setup to be.

How full is your hard drive now, and what size is it?

Looks like external drives are the answer ... or a bunch of MBAs

The MBA is very limited in storage but you get that faster boot time and small form factor. It is very aesthetically pleasing and very portable. I bought the iMac 27" about a month ago and the screen size, storage, speed is just amazing. I am very pleased with it and have barely used my MBP since.

ltb7 said:

so basically even if i get the full tripped out 13 MBA, it will not hold all of the media i have or will have w/out an external drive?

am i better off going the imac route now w/the 2011 hopefully cooler ipad for portability??

thanks for the help!

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Its hard to say. 10k pictures may or may not be a lot of storage space. Are we talking 1mb files, or 15mb files? Tell us the total size of your picture, music, and video folders for us/you to really know if it will work. I have 20k photos, 5k songs, and use 130GB for those on my 13" AIR but it works since I have a 256GB version.

You could get the 13" MBA with 256GB FS to fix everything in your MB now. However, considering $, it is much more economical to get the 13" MB Pro. Since you are not traveling, the lighter weight of MBA is not that important. On the other hand, with the MBP, it is a much faster processor and you are not limited to 4 GB of RAM. You can still have 'everything' within one computer, and use it on your bed or anywhere in the house.

There are also MBP refurbished models available at Apple online store for extra saving.

To get an MBA that truly suits your needs you would have to get the top spec one. At that point I would recommend getting a MBP. An iMac would be more powerful than either, but it sounds like you enjoy the portability. Though your suggestion on an iMac and iPad would work perfectly.

Flip a coin. Problem solved.

To me it sounds like you're in the market for a 13"mbp.

You like to have all stored on computer. You like portability. The MBA, although awesome, is not going to be able to meet your basi requirements.

I actually went from the exact same specs (and color). My hard drive died and my logic board had been faulty for quite some time. I ended up going with a MBA because I travel so much so I had no reason to go with an iMac (your situation is different).

I do a lot of photography, and I keep my entire photo collection on a portable external HD, and keep photos from the past year (around 2500 RAW files) on the MBA. I've done a lot of processing, and I don't feel much of a speed change between my faster spec MB and my current MBA. Of course I didn't time anything, so it's all subjective.

I do enjoy the portability, and the ability to develop my photos on the spot. If you don't need to be mobile, an iMac makes more sense (I already have an external 20" monitor I can connect to), and if you need faster specs, then a MBP will probably be an even better option.

EDIT - I saw your subsequent posts. If you want to keep your entire library on your computer, I think the iMac is a better option, with an iPad later for bed surfing. Or a refurb MBP. The MBA will probably not suit you as a primary computer.

Does "value" matter?

The 13 inch MBA that you want could be as follows:
2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM
256GB Flash Storage
Apple MacBook Air SuperDrive
Keyboard (English) & User's Guide
MacBook / MacBook Air / 13-inch MacBook Pro - AppleCare Protection Plan - Auto-enroll
MobileMe
USB Ethernet Adapter
Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter
That would cost $2254 (without an education discount)

The base IMac is $1200.
The base 11 inch Air is $1000.
Perhaps you are better off with both?
I personally do not buy into this argument because I am not a "value" buyer. However it is an argument that a sales clerk at the Mac store tried to make to me and it may make sense for you.

Over Achiever said:

I actually went from the exact same specs (and color). My hard drive died and my logic board had been faulty for quite some time. I ended up going with a MBA because I travel so much so I had no reason to go with an iMac (your situation is different).

I do a lot of photography, and I keep my entire photo collection on a portable external HD, and keep photos from the past year (around 2500 RAW files) on the MBA. I've done a lot of processing, and I don't feel much of a speed change between my faster spec MB and my current MBA. Of course I didn't time anything, so it's all subjective.

I do enjoy the portability, and the ability to develop my photos on the spot. If you don't need to be mobile, an iMac makes more sense (I already have an external 20" monitor I can connect to), and if you need faster specs, then a MBP will probably be an even better option.

EDIT - I saw your subsequent posts. If you want to keep your entire library on your computer, I think the iMac is a better option, with an iPad later for bed surfing. Or refurb. The MBA will probably not suit you as a primary computer.

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Agree with this. You would probably have to buy the top end Air to fit all your files on, and at that price unless you need portability i would go with the iMac.

Oh and i see you have a GF1 Over Achiever

13" MBP with a 500 GB harddisk.

The MacBook Air is largely for those who travel, or value ultimate portability. If there are children around the house I would avoid one. They can be fragile.