Hi all. Now that it looks like the BTS promo is starting tomorrow, I am ready to pull the trigger on my new laptop. Please help me decide. I have 2 options that I am down to:
1) I can get a refurb i5 MBP with retina display, 8gb of ram and a 256gb SSD for $1440 plus tax OR
2) I can get a brand new 13" 2013 Haswell MBA (i5/8gb/256gb) for $1339 plus tax.
I am a web designer/programmer and use Adobe Creative Suite and Adobe eLearning Suite primarily. Otherwise, I will just be doing basic tasks (web browsing, email, watching HD video on Netflix/Youtube, etc.) and some LIGHT gaming (older games that perform just fine on my crappy windows box).
Here is where things get interesting. I will be traveling abroad for over a year in a third world country, the most days I will be carrying the laptop in my backpack for hours at a time. I love the portability of the MBA. But I am just nervous about whether or not it is feasible as my ONLY computer for over a year. I should mention that my current Windows pc is an entry level machine (2.1ghz pentium processor, 6gb ram, Intel HD 4000 graphics, 5400rpm hdd) - and it works just fine for my uses - which is why I suspect the MBA will be just fine for me. However - when I can get a refurb rMBP WITH A SSD for just $100 more...
What would you do? If I can get the super-portable MBA and be happy then that would be ideal. But I also need PERFORMANCE, right? Somebody help me decide!!!!!!
1) I can get a refurb i5 MBP with retina display, 8gb of ram and a 256gb SSD for $1440 plus tax OR
2) I can get a brand new 13" 2013 Haswell MBA (i5/8gb/256gb) for $1339 plus tax.
I am a web designer/programmer and use Adobe Creative Suite and Adobe eLearning Suite primarily. Otherwise, I will just be doing basic tasks (web browsing, email, watching HD video on Netflix/Youtube, etc.) and some LIGHT gaming (older games that perform just fine on my crappy windows box).
Here is where things get interesting. I will be traveling abroad for over a year in a third world country, the most days I will be carrying the laptop in my backpack for hours at a time. I love the portability of the MBA. But I am just nervous about whether or not it is feasible as my ONLY computer for over a year. I should mention that my current Windows pc is an entry level machine (2.1ghz pentium processor, 6gb ram, Intel HD 4000 graphics, 5400rpm hdd) - and it works just fine for my uses - which is why I suspect the MBA will be just fine for me. However - when I can get a refurb rMBP WITH A SSD for just $100 more...
What would you do? If I can get the super-portable MBA and be happy then that would be ideal. But I also need PERFORMANCE, right? Somebody help me decide!!!!!!