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advice mba or macbook

T

turkey1

macrumors member
Original poster
I'm currently stuck with a huge pc and need something I can take to school that doesn't weigh 10 pounds never had a mac but I hear great things so my questions

how hard is the switch I hate vista but osx looks nice and sleek

second i'm looking at the refurb mba rev a I just need to run office but I do watch a ton of videos and I hear it has issues

third am I better off with the unibody macbook how much bigger is it? is it a good machine

will I like macs I love my iphone 3g best product ever made if that helps
 
the only reason you would want a MBA is to make your friends jealous😀. If thats not important to you there is no doubt that you need a macbook.
 
I had a rev A MBA, piece of junk. Definitely had problems running videos. I hear Apple has tried to fix some of the issues. The problem stems from PATA drive, Intel graphics combined with an inferior and overheated 65 nm CPU. The rev B MBA is a great machine, however, if you want to be at a lower price consider the unibody MB refurbished for $1099. I think that MB is the best buy right now as far as all Macs go. And it only weighs 4.5 lbs. I definitely recommend that you stay away from the original MBA at all costs... even if the price goes lower.

I have the MBA rev B, and I love it but it's definitely a pricey product for those who are ok with spending the extra money for super portability.

Good luck with your decision.
 
thanks for the advice I think leaning towards the macbook don't see my self spending 1700 on the rev b mba question though is there an adapter where I can hook a macbook up to a hdmi port I watch alot of movies from my pc to my tv and second burn a ton of dvds is there a program that well work as well as anydvd and clone cd they are amazing

sorry for all the question never even touched a mac so I know nothing
 
I agree with the other posters that the current MB (or even the refurb one) offer the best value by far in the Mac range. Re the MBA, the received wisdom is that the current, Rev B, model is far superior in every way to Rev A. However, it carries a steep price premium.

For your needs, I'd suggest the MB, the current model if you can afford it, the refurb MB, if money is tight. They are excellent computers, and very portable, and have better power and performance (but not a better screen) than the MBA.

Cheers and good luck
 
If you're really concerned with price and portablility, there's a handful of netbooks that can be converted to functional macs with a little bit of tinkering.

http://gadgets.boingboing.net/2008/12/17/osx-netbook-compatib.html

I'm using a little lenovo s10 ideapad as my throwaround machine, and it's pretty usable. 10" led backlit screen, decent build quality, excellent wifi connectivity (with a frakkin' g card, for cryin' out loud) sd card and mini express ports make it a good alternative. I call it my $400 hackbook air.

If you're a little hesitant about hacking the machine, each machine has it's own dedicated little cadre, website, and step by step instructions and guides to walk you through the process.
 
Go for the refurb MacBook, or possibly look on CraigsList and see if there's any good deals. I've found some bomb deals on CraigsList.
 
Any of our products are great! Though you should make your own decision about which one to buy. http://www.apple.com/getamac/whichmac/

This Link below will benefit you the most. Glad you love the iphone 3G it's a great product.

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/campaigns/new_to_mac?mco=NDAxMDU0OA
:apple:



turkey1 said:
I'm currently stuck with a huge pc and need something I can take to school that doesn't weigh 10 pounds never had a mac but I hear great things so my questions

how hard is the switch I hate vista but osx looks nice and sleek

second i'm looking at the refurb mba rev a I just need to run office but I do watch a ton of videos and I hear it has issues

third am I better off with the unibody macbook how much bigger is it? is it a good machine

will I like macs I love my iphone 3g best product ever made if that helps
Click to expand...
 
Mjmar said:
The refurb MacBook Air's are not too expensive anymore. I'd go for that.
Click to expand...

You would really recommend that someone buy a rev A MBA for $999 to $1299 as a PRIMARY computer? That is just bad advice, sorry, but that is the truth.

OP - You asked about the refurbished. Yes, it will say unibody MB, that is the aluminum one in the refurbished section as a 2.0 for $1099.

Congrats on the MB decision, it's a great Mac.
 
Scottsdale said:
You would really recommend that someone buy a rev A MBA for $999 to $1299 as a PRIMARY computer? That is just bad advice, sorry, but that is the truth.
Click to expand...

I'd have no problem recommending the rev B MBA as a primary computer (if it seemed appropriate and price wasn't a massive issue to that person), but not the rev A.


For the OP, I'd recommend the MacBook.
 
Scottsdale said:
You would really recommend that someone buy a rev A MBA for $999 to $1299 as a PRIMARY computer? That is just bad advice, sorry, but that is the truth.

OP - You asked about the refurbished. Yes, it will say unibody MB, that is the aluminum one in the refurbished section as a 2.0 for $1099.

Congrats on the MB decision, it's a great Mac.
Click to expand...

Having much experience with both the MacBook and MacBook Air I can tell you that there is no comparison when it comes to portability. The poster of this thread had 3 conditions for the product, and the Rev A MacBook Air fits all of those conditions. It is very portable, can run office, and can handle videos. I don't see how that's bad advice.
 
New MBA

I have a friend that has a brand new high end MBA with all the memory you can have, SSHD, Applecare, anything that is available, it has in a never opened box. She won it from her company and wants a 17" MBP. it's about $3 grand plus and for sale.
 
nptski said:
I have a friend that has a brand new high end MBA with all the memory you can have, SSHD, Applecare, anything that is available, it has in a never opened box. She won it from her company and wants a 17" MBP. it's about $3 grand plus and for sale.
Click to expand...

...if its brand new and un-opened, take it to an apple store and get what you/she wants as far as the 17" MBP...
 
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