256 or 512GB Dillema.

[Mirai 11]

So after months of saving and waiting, I have enough for the Ultimate Macbook Air. There was no question of upgrading the RAM to 8GB, but now I'm at a uncertain point.

I can buy the Macbook with 256GB now, or I can wait another long while for the 512GB, but I'm not sure.
The extra space is tempting, but after having a Macbook Pro and iMac before, I'd just use it for Steam, which I'm thinking of just having on a USB 3.0 Memory Stick, which can make it a lot easier for situations, and my iTunes library was around 170GB due to mostly my ripped Simpsons 'good' seasons of 1-9, and nowadays, especially with iTunes Match and having that on an external drive now, I'm not sure whether I even need all of that on the hard drive.

There's also another point of having a backup of my old Macbook Pro from a year ago, which has a 450GB backup, am I able to pull certain files from that into the Macbook, or can I only restore everything if I only have the required space?

Any advice would be great, I'm about to click 'Order' on the Apple site now, so it'd be appreciated!

 

[Lakailb87]

256.. the upgrade price is not worth it. You have so many options for external storage, getting a NAS setup that you can access anywhere, Itunes Match etc. I keep everything on externals at home connected to my iMac which I can access anywhere I want over the internet, either through back to my mac or many of the other options available. I can still carry so much with me and when I go on a trip I just load up a bunch of movies and TV shows.

 

[falconeight]

So after months of saving and waiting, I have enough for the Ultimate Macbook Air. There was no question of upgrading the RAM to 8GB, but now I'm at a uncertain point.

I can buy the Macbook with 256GB now, or I can wait another long while for the 512GB, but I'm not sure.
The extra space is tempting, but after having a Macbook Pro and iMac before, I'd just use it for Steam, which I'm thinking of just having on a USB 3.0 Memory Stick, which can make it a lot easier for situations, and my iTunes library was around 170GB due to mostly my ripped Simpsons 'good' seasons of 1-9, and nowadays, especially with iTunes Match and having that on an external drive now, I'm not sure whether I even need all of that on the hard drive.

There's also another point of having a backup of my old Macbook Pro from a year ago, which has a 450GB backup, am I able to pull certain files from that into the Macbook, or can I only restore everything if I only have the required space?

Any advice would be great, I'm about to click 'Order' on the Apple site now, so it'd be appreciated!

Seems like even 512 wouldn't be enough to store everything you want or have. So its an easy recommendation for me. Get the 256 and a external for the media stuff that isn't always used.

 

[davideotape]

i bought a usb3 very small 1tb drive that i keep in my bag. i think it cost $90. it's a 5400 but its speedier than i expected. and vs the $300 for 256 additional, no thanks.

if it helps, i actually also threw some velcro on my case and on the drive to save some time and keep the drive attached and mobile when its in the case. it's dumb but it saves time ejecting and replugging when you use it again.

 

[B...]

Go for 256.

 

[Mirai 11]

There's always something..
I go to order, and the bank has declined it, fraud prevention are going to be calling me later so it can be allowed, typical!

So the final dilemma, when I hook up the Time Capsule to the Air, will I be able to pick and choose what I can restore?
And can I go into the backup after it's done to transfer some videos to an external drive?

 

[MPL]

So the final dilemma, when I hook up the Time Capsule to the Air, will I be able to pick and choose what I can restore?
And can I go into the backup after it's done to transfer some videos to an external drive?

The first time you boot the MBA it will ask you if you want install your latest Time Machine backup, but you won't be able to choose specific files from that backup.

Why don't you add your video files to your Time Machine backup? Or just keep them in your current computer?

 

[Mirai 11]

I have, my iTunes library contains a lot of video on the backup, but it's an old Time Capsule, 500GB, so once I restore it I want to move it to the external with my other videos, but if I was to restore all of it there wouldn't be enough space on the 256GB Air, which is why I need to find a way of accessing the backup in two ways.

 

[cedwhatev]

256 is perfect. Good choice.

 

[revisionA]

I choose 512 due to dual boot requirements... otherwise, I totally agree. 256 is plenty, my Raptor on my mac pro is only 300 gb.

 

[Tarrou8]

256GB SSD with 8GB RAM is the sweet spot for longevity if you plan to use your machine for 3+ years with good performance. The markup from the base 128GB SSD is still substantial (and should probably be closer to the i7 upgrade price of $150, but Apple is smart and knows that 128GB is inadequate for many, especially if the machine will be their primary or running Windows). External storage is cheap these days and a much better value for any remaining non-essential files.

 

[hockeyfanatic]

I have an 18 TB library and find 256 GB, the sweet spot. You'll never have enough free space on an internal drive to encompass all your future data.
Use a NAS and dropbox.