Buy 2012 MBA or wait for 2013 model?

joshi3joshi · Feb 19, 2013

I'm thinking about buying the 2012 MBA for school because my mid-2009 15 inch Macbook Pro is just too heavy and big to fit on college desks since I need it for almost every class. Maybe I'm trying to justify myself, but do any of you suggest I pick up a 2012 MBA 13 inch now and use it for my purposes? Especially after the recent price drop a couple of days ago, it seems very enticing, but the only thing holding me back is that I am hearing news of 2013 MBA coming out soon.

Of course I am wary of the "you will be waiting forever if you just wait for the next model all the time," but if I am planning to use this MBA for the next 4 years or so, I don't want to regret it if the 2013 is appreciably better.

I don't really care for retina, but any idea of the Haswell processors will make that much of a difference, or any other functions which are worth waiting for? I suppose I could wait another 6 months or so for the 2013 MBA to come out, but just wondering if I should buy now since the 2012 is pretty cheap.

crawfish963 · Feb 20, 2013

Ultimately, do what you feel. I just bought a 2012 MBA last week and I love it. The 2013s are rumored to be coming in Q3 which would be the fall. So if you feel like you can wait 6-8 months then wait. I still think you can't go wrong with the current model. The new MBA will probably just feature internal upgrades and possibly a "Retina" display.

ilifecomputer · Feb 20, 2013

crawfish963 said:
Ultimately, do what you feel. I just bought a 2012 MBA last week and I love it. The 2013s are rumored to be coming in Q3 which would be the fall. So if you feel like you can wait 6-8 months then wait. I still think you can't go wrong with the current model. The new MBA will probably just feature internal upgrades and possibly a "Retina" display.

1) me too (its a long wait if you can use your system now)
2) agreed, tho im assuming no retina

pyounderfire · Feb 20, 2013

just buy it now

I know this isn't answering your question but to be honest I bought a late 2011 MacBook Pro when it came out. It has a 17 inch display and 8 gb of RAM and 750 Hard drive. Although it has no retina display, this doesn't bother me because I heard that the retina display MacBook Pro's are bad.

Mrbobb · Feb 20, 2013

pyounderfire said:
I know this isn't answering your question but to be honest I bought a late 2011 MacBook Pro when it came out. It has a 17 inch display and 8 gb of RAM and 750 Hard drive. Although it has no retina display, this doesn't bother me because I heard that the retina display MacBook Pro's are bad.

If OP finds the 15" too big and heavy, why even mention a 17" with a HARD drive(?).

SlickShoes · Feb 20, 2013

If you need it now then buy it, I am going to buy one next week.

I am thinking of getting the upgraded processor just to get that extra performance boost, it costs £100 now for me, rather than waiting 6 months and the only performance I am likely to be worried about is a slightly faster processor maybe better battery life.

Anyway, 6-8 months is a long time to wait, unless you REALLY REALLY need a better integrated GPU or slightly better battery life I would say there is really no harm in buying now even though it is mid cycle. There is always something better around the corner, if you think about what's next all the time you will never be happy with what you have.

Violet1337 · Feb 20, 2013

joshi3joshi said:
I'm thinking about buying the 2012 MBA for school because my mid-2009 15 inch Macbook Pro is just too heavy and big to fit on college desks since I need it for almost every class. Maybe I'm trying to justify myself, but do any of you suggest I pick up a 2012 MBA 13 inch now and use it for my purposes? Especially after the recent price drop a couple of days ago, it seems very enticing, but the only thing holding me back is that I am hearing news of 2013 MBA coming out soon.

Of course I am wary of the "you will be waiting forever if you just wait for the next model all the time," but if I am planning to use this MBA for the next 4 years or so, I don't want to regret it if the 2013 is appreciably better.

I don't really care for retina, but any idea of the Haswell processors will make that much of a difference, or any other functions which are worth waiting for? I suppose I could wait another 6 months or so for the 2013 MBA to come out, but just wondering if I should buy now since the 2012 is pretty cheap.

I'm in a similar position and I, too, am just going to wait for the 2013 even though it may seem like a very long time (which it is), 6-8 months of college will go by quickly.

ctdonath · Feb 20, 2013

Having gotten sucked into the "iMac 2012 is just a couple weeks away!" meme, my advice is: get the best form of whatever you can afford right now, then don't look at the market for a year. If you're asking, you need one. If you need one, you need it now and not 6-8-12 months from now. If you get one now, you'll be happy with it. 8-12-16 months from now you can sell your now-new one for darned near what you paid for it and upgrade.

Don't wait.
(Desperately waiting for bank account to reach $999 for a 13" MBA refurb.)

msjones · Feb 20, 2013

I say just by now. There is always a new model just around the corner. Buy it, use it, love it.

MBA's are good for keeping their resale value. If you take good care of the machine, you can always sell on and upgrade to the latest model in the new year if needed. Thats how I do it.

cjgonzales1900 · Feb 20, 2013

If you do buy a MBA just make sure you max out the RAM. You wont be sorry and its only $90 more with a education discount. I love my MBA, I bought it in Oct 2011, and got Apple care. I am planning on selling it when the new MBA's come out and getting the new one. What you could also do is buy the MBA you want and then if the new ones come out and you like them more, just sell the old one and buy the new one, you will take a little lose but hey you will have used the air for about 6 months at least.

designs216 · Feb 20, 2013

Stick with the MBP until the refresh, then buy the current 13" Air from the refurb bin. The existing Air is more than sufficient for your needs but will receive deeper discounts after the new model is released. I would also recommend a minimum config of 8GB RAM and 256GB storage to help this machine last through graduation. If you can't find the 8GB/256GB combo, shoot for a 13 with 8GB RAM and replace the drive yourself with an aftermarket SSD from OWC.

kobyh15 · Feb 20, 2013

I'd wait. I wish Apple would decrease the footprint of the 13" in the next revision.

Amplelink · Feb 20, 2013

joshi3joshi said:
I'm thinking about buying the 2012 MBA for school because my mid-2009 15 inch Macbook Pro is just too heavy and big to fit on college desks since I need it for almost every class. Maybe I'm trying to justify myself, but do any of you suggest I pick up a 2012 MBA 13 inch now and use it for my purposes? Especially after the recent price drop a couple of days ago, it seems very enticing, but the only thing holding me back is that I am hearing news of 2013 MBA coming out soon.

Of course I am wary of the "you will be waiting forever if you just wait for the next model all the time," but if I am planning to use this MBA for the next 4 years or so, I don't want to regret it if the 2013 is appreciably better.

I don't really care for retina, but any idea of the Haswell processors will make that much of a difference, or any other functions which are worth waiting for? I suppose I could wait another 6 months or so for the 2013 MBA to come out, but just wondering if I should buy now since the 2012 is pretty cheap.

Since you can afford to wait, then wait. You may have heard of the "tick-tock" cycles of Intel processors. Ticks are manufacturing improvements that lead to marginal overall performance gains. Tocks are new microprocessor architectures that usually mean substantial performance gains. Haswell this year is supposedly a "tock", so since you're not in a big rush AND you want this next machine to last you 4 years or so, I'd wait.

I've got a 2010 MBA that's still running fine. But I'm going to upgrade once the Haswell MBAs are out.

lcseds · Feb 20, 2013

Wait if you can. The third quarter starts in July. I think the wait will be worth it, especially since you have a working system. If you can hold out, you can also get (I assume this program will continue) a $100 App store gift card, and depending on where you live, maybe a tax free holiday for back to school items. For me, the tax free in August and the App store card add up to about $200 in extra savings above the educational discount. Not bad.
Of course if you have money and don't care, grab one now. Fine systems, even in today's trim.

oneMadRssn · Feb 20, 2013

I have a love/hate relationship with this question.

Buy too soon, and the model you bought might be updated very soon. Buy immediately after an update, and the model you bought might have early-adopter glitches and issues. Worry too much about either possibility, and you might go crazy.

Buy what you need when you need it and can afford it. Don't fret about release schedules too much.

Ubele · Feb 20, 2013

The Haswell MBA will have better battery life, unless the MBA does get a Retina display in which case, I'm guessing that battery life will be about what it is now. The Haswell integrated GPU will provide better graphic performance, but you'll only notice it if you're a heavy gamer, do heavy video editing, or use software with heavy 3D rendering. If any of the above apply to you, I'd wait for the 2013 MBA. If they don't, then you'll almost certainly be happy with the current model. The refurbs are especially good deals. Personally, I'm waiting for Haswell.

buysp · Feb 20, 2013

I'd go for the current Ivy Bridge edition refurb. It's a fantastic computer. As others have stated i'd get one with 8GB RAM as the first priority.

joshi3joshi · Feb 21, 2013

buysp said:
I'd go for the current Ivy Bridge edition refurb. It's a fantastic computer. As others have stated i'd get one with 8GB RAM as the first priority.

is that the 2011 edition? by the way, i know RAM is important for editing movies and such..but i actually don't have great knowledge of what else it is useful for. why is it good for the MBA to max out at 8GB RAM configs?

Violet1337 · Feb 21, 2013

joshi3joshi said:
is that the 2011 edition? by the way, i know RAM is important for editing movies and such..but i actually don't have great knowledge of what else it is useful for. why is it good for the MBA to max out at 8GB RAM configs?

Essentially, the more RAM you have the more programs and applications that you can run on your computer without it being laggy.

xxnoelziexx · Feb 21, 2013

I have had my Air since November maxed 2.0GHz Intel Dual-Core Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 3.2GHz, 8GB Ram and hard drive 256, I was really happy as I got Samsung SSD and Samsung screen. Plan to sell this on and buying the new model later this year but this machine has loads of life in it I may even keep it as this laptop does everything I want from it.

Only you know the answer to the question everyone needs are different.

calvol · Feb 21, 2013

Wait, or you'll be sorry, Haswell GPU is 60% faster.

jimyo · Feb 21, 2013

For what is worth I just bought an 11" Macbook Air 128GB at Best Buy for $1035.99 yesterday and I love it so far...this will compliment my brand new 27" iMac..so for me it was perfect...I just won't look back This computer is all I need for a little laptop....Good Luck

help4desk · Feb 21, 2013

calvol said:
Wait, or you'll be sorry, Haswell GPU is 60% faster.

I never wait for a purpose, because I have no control on:
- the release date
- the price
- the availability (think iMac)
- the performances
- overheating? what about the fans? noise? keyboard? Or, to say in other words, the "real" quality of the product: the 2012 is nearly perfect compared to the previous generations. Who knows how the 2013 model is going to be?

AnorexicPig · Feb 21, 2013

help4desk said:
I never wait for a purpose, because I have no control on:
- the release date
- the price
- the availability (think iMac)
- the performances
- overheating? what about the fans? noise? keyboard? Or, to say in other words, the "real" quality of the product: the 2012 is nearly perfect compared to the previous generations. Who knows how the 2013 model is going to be?

This.Plus how does that 60% exactly benefit me ? For once,I don't ever think personally am gonna need that 60% ever.These % improvements make more marketing sense than real-world difference.

schopaia · Feb 21, 2013

oneMadRssn said:
I have a love/hate relationship with this question.

Buy too soon, and the model you bought might be updated very soon. Buy immediately after an update, and the model you bought might have early-adopter glitches and issues. Worry too much about either possibility, and you might go crazy.

Buy what you need when you need it and can afford it. Don't fret about release schedules too much.

Buying after an update should be a love/love relationship. You either get a substantial upgrade in performance (since they are only updated 1x a year) or you get a nice discount on the just replaced model.

----------

help4desk said:
I never wait for a purpose, because I have no control on:
- the release date
- the price
- the availability (think iMac)
- the performances
- overheating? what about the fans? noise? keyboard? Or, to say in other words, the "real" quality of the product: the 2012 is nearly perfect compared to the previous generations. Who knows how the 2013 model is going to be?

Same can be said (and was said) of the 2011. I'm not sure the Air was ever a really risky proposition.

Buy 2012 MBA or wait for 2013 model?

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