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13" Macbook Air or New New MBP?

kp98077

kp98077

macrumors 601
Original poster
Oct 26, 2010
4,475
2,968
Whistler, BC
I currently have a few month old 13" fully loaded MBA with 4gb, 250gb flash storage, 2.13 ghz and NVIDA Geforce 320 grahics. I like this machine a lot! Also have a 11" MBA (more my wife's) :)

I am wondernig if it would be worth getting rid of the 13" MBA for the high end new MBP? (my brother is intersted in my air...)
I know the weight, cd drive differences etc. But wondering if overall the MBP will be a much faster machine? I do internet, email, iphoto, aperature, basic/intermediate phtography processing, some videos (mostly kid tv shows and you tube).

If anyone has input here please do let me know so I can make a deicsion soon as my brother would buy my MBA soon.. I know it's foolish to even think about this, but he's interested and I just dont know what to do.

thanks!!
 
It would actually feel slower due to having a standard hard drive rather than the SSD in the Air. You could order the MBP with a SSD though, not sure if you would notice a difference at all.
 
For what you listed, the MBA is a great computer. It has a better resolution screen, is more portable, ssd responsiveness is fantastic. The MBP will feel slower because of the HDD. If you upgrade it to SSD it will be a beast of a machine, but for just light work like you listed you probably have the preferable machine.
 
I'm in the same boat. I bought a 13 inch mac book pro a couple weeks back, and was able to return it via Amazon. Now I have all my money, and am trying to decide between a Macbook Pro 15 inch (new model) and the 13 inch Mac Book Air.

Here are my concerns with the Air:

*No back-lit Keys
*Colors Are Washed Out supposedly (I read somewhere, that people were complaining about the screens on the Airs, even tho they have the same resolution as the 15 inch models. Something about it having 25% less gamut space than the pro.
*Starting to have an outdated CPU.

Other then that, I see either glowing reviews for the Air, or people being eh about it. Having had a 13 inch Mac Book pro for 3 weeks, I was not too happy with the screen resolution. So I figured the Air would be my next best option (in terms of price). So I would hope the screen would look better on the Air then the Pro model.

So here is what it comes down to for me. I'm a college student that needs a laptop. 13 Inch Pros are out of the question at this point (or are they? Even if I wasn't happy with the screen resolution, the new 13 in Pro Models pack a punch with the new i5 and Sandy Bridge). I don't really do heavy processing. I mostly use my laptop for internet browsing, writing, school work, communication, music, occasional video here and there.

The 15 Inch Specs seem so alluring. But that $1,799 price tag (the $500 jump) is what's holding me back from 100% just going to it, and thinking about the Air. So anyone that has had an Air, or knows anything about them, would you recommend it? Would appreciate any feedback/comments from you guys. I've never been so torn in my life on getting something new.

Oh and please excuse my ignorance (which I admit). If I said anything wrong above, please correct me.
 
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I'm not sure if you're looking at a 13" MBP or a 15" one. In any case, I really like my 13" MBA and would definitely not replace it with a 13" MBP. The 15" MBP may be a different story. But...I will say that I love the portability factor of my MBA, whether I'm on the plane or just using it on the bed or sofa. That machine will probably only get replaced with another MBA.

picard108 said:
I'm a college student that needs a laptop.
Click to expand...

I'm in a grad school and the 13" MBA is my main machine. It does everything I need and you can't beat the portability. Just get it and enjoy.
 
picard108 said:
I don't really do heavy processing. I mostly use my laptop for internet browsing, writing, school work, communication, music, occasional video here and there.
Click to expand...

For what you are discribing here, the Air would be perfect. This is the way i use mine, and I love it. It's really fast and i don't sse any prejudice on that. And i do play StarCraft 2 on it (low/medium specs)


picard108 said:
Here are my concerns with the Air:
*No back-lit Keys
*Colors Are Washed Out supposedly (I read somewhere, that people were complaining about the screens on the Airs, even tho they have the same resolution as the 15 inch models. Something about it having 25% less gamut space than the pro.
*Starting to have an outdated CPU.
Click to expand...

This is something you have to consider. I've always enjoyed telling everyone about my super fast computer, but i left that in the past. Of couse it's great to have a brand new CPU/GPU, but for me it is not necessary anymore. So having an outdate CPU/GPU could not be a great issue if you won't be using demanding applications on it.

The back-lit keys are great, but i've never had one laptop with that, so i don't miss not having it - i normally don't use my laptop in dark places, and if i do, i can type without looking to the keyboard.

About the colors, i dont thin the are washed out. I like it the way it is.


picard108 said:
So anyone that has had an Air, or knows anything about them, would you recommend it? Would appreciate any feedback/comments from you guys. I've never been so torn in my life on getting something new.
Click to expand...

The Air is the best thing i've ever bought. Serve all my computer needs, offers a very very very good portability (when i bot it, i wasn't considering taking it everywhere i got, but now i do WANT to take it with me, it is damn light and thin!)
 
Ok, here's my story so take this how you will. I originally sold my 2010 15" i5 MBP in favor of something a little smaller b/c I didn't think I was using my MBP to its full potential. So I traded it in (I was still in the return window at Best Buy) for a 13" 1.86 MBA and I LOVED it! But I'm someone who always likes the latest and greatest. I even made a list of pros and cons. Here they are. And bear in mind these only relate to me, so it's not like what I’m typing is actual fact (shocking, I know).

MBA - Pros
==========
Size/Weight/Portability
"Instant On" with Flash memory
Resolution - 1440 x 900 in a 13" screen - very sharp picture

MBA - Cons
-=========
No backlit keyboard
Not future proofed (you can't add larger SSD or RAM)
No optical drive - sorry, I know the wave of the future is to go without them, but I liked it.

So when the new 13"'s came out last week, I figured I'd look at the new baseline models. Long story short, I traded my MBA back in favor of a 13" 2.3 i5. The only real benefit I saw of the MBA was the screen resolution, but now that it's out of sight I don't mind. I think the colors on the MBP are actually better and I love the backlit keyboard.

The MBP is a more powerful machine, but it's yours and your choice. I'm happy with my purchase (finally).
 
foulmouthedleon said:
Ok, here's my story so take this how you will. I originally sold my 2010 15" i5 MBP in favor of something a little smaller b/c I didn't think I was using my MBP to its full potential. So I traded it in (I was still in the return window at Best Buy) for a 13" 1.86 MBA and I LOVED it! But I'm someone who always likes the latest and greatest. I even made a list of pros and cons. Here they are. And bear in mind these only relate to me, so it's not like what I’m typing is actual fact (shocking, I know).

MBA - Pros
==========
Size/Weight/Portability
"Instant On" with Flash memory
Resolution - 1440 x 900 in a 13" screen - very sharp picture

MBA - Cons
-=========
No backlit keyboard
Not future proofed (you can't add larger SSD or RAM)
No optical drive - sorry, I know the wave of the future is to go without them, but I liked it.

So when the new 13"'s came out last week, I figured I'd look at the new baseline models. Long story short, I traded my MBA back in favor of a 13" 2.3 i5. The only real benefit I saw of the MBA was the screen resolution, but now that it's out of sight I don't mind. I think the colors on the MBP are actually better and I love the backlit keyboard.

The MBP is a more powerful machine, but it's yours and your choice. I'm happy with my purchase (finally).
Click to expand...

Don't mean to hijack this topic. But did you notice any thermal issues, hotter computer or noisier fan switching from the Air to the new MBP? This is a hot topic, pun intended.
 
This might be a stupid question. But can I upgrade the 15 inch models graphics card, or the screen resolution later on? So say I buy the base model now, and then when I get more money upgrade some stuff later?

Or does it have to be pre-made when you order.
 
picard108 said:
This might be a stupid question. But can I upgrade the 15 inch models graphics card, or the screen resolution later on? So say I buy the base model now, and then when I get more money upgrade some stuff later?

Or does it have to be pre-made when you order.
Click to expand...

You can't upgrade later on.

You just can upgrade RAM and HDD/SDD?
 
For your needs I will say Air. I'm actually looking to getting that myself during the next refresh. The Pro is a nice computer, but I don't like the screen resolution and 15" is too big for using it on the sofa for internet and email. I just hope the next refresh has backlit keys. That would close the deal for me. :)
 
I'm in the exact same boat.

I just sold my late-2008 15" MBP because it was uncomfortable to use on the couch and had horrible battery life. I got the 13" MBA Ultimate and really like it. Super thin, faster than my old MBP and amazing battery life.

Then the new MBPs came out. I'm a geek who always likes to have the newest things. I have really considered returning the MBA and getting the high-end 15" MBP.

At the end of the day, I have decided to keep the MBA, in part, based upon the responses here. I don't do any computing tasks that would use the processor or graphics in the MBP, so why pay more money for a less-portable computer that is uncomfortable to use?
 
aznguyen316 said:
agreed. The MBA "Feels" faster pretty much b/c of the SSD.

Put in an SSD and bam pretty much solid.

Here's my i7 13" 2011 killin' it w/ SSD. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmxLICfrOc4

i5/i7 will help in your minor video, but that's about it in terms of your uses. Lower resolution though too in the MBP.
Click to expand...

Damn, you have a pretty tricked out 2011 MBP already. The Vertex resides in the optical bay? I wonder what Calvin and Hobbes think?
 
aznguyen316 said:
agreed. The MBA "Feels" faster pretty much b/c of the SSD.

Put in an SSD and bam pretty much solid.

Here's my i7 13" 2011 killin' it w/ SSD. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmxLICfrOc4

i5/i7 will help in your minor video, but that's about it in terms of your uses. Lower resolution though too in the MBP.
Click to expand...

Nice!! Is it easy to install the SSD in the new MBP? I saw that you have to remove the entire back now, not just an access panel. And does it still use regular phillips screws?


EDIT: What size Vertex 2 did you install?
 
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AppleScruff1 said:
Nice!! Is it easy to install the SSD in the new MBP? I saw that you have to remove the entire back now, not just an access panel. And does it still use regular phillips screws?


EDIT: What size Vertex 2 did you install?
Click to expand...

It's still super easy. The actual HDD part is the same as before, with the Torx T6 screws.. the back panel isn't anything hard either, I like it better than the access panel b/c that thing always moved a little bit when I held it and that bothered me. The full back panel makes it feel much more solid. Anyway yeah it's just a small philips screwdriver to take off the back panel screws, nothing more to it. Take off the back panel and you'll see the HDD. Two more philips screws that hold down the HDD, torx, remove connector, swap.

I have a 120GB SSD.
 
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