Am I Crazy for Wanting a Macbook

[MRxROBOT]

Perhaps, I think on paper the MB is great computer and one that may fit my needs, but every time I visit the apple store, I'm amazed at how small the display looks - too small for my needs.
I think the MB is a fantastic computer but there's a number of sacrifices it makes in the name of size/thinness and battery life. Those design decisions work against what I'm looking for in a computer.

I am always amazed at just how light the new MacBook is, but my attention soon shifts to just how small a 12" screen is. It may not be too small for everybody but I couldn't imagine using two windows simultaneously at a decent resolution and I always seem to have at least 2 windows open on my rMBP.

 

[maflynn]

ut my attention soon shifts to just how small a 12" screen is.

I think my mistake was the last time I visited the Apple store was that I was playing with the iPad Pro and that thing felt gargantuan, and then I moved on to the MacBook and it felt so diminutive. I'm sure for a lot of people its fine, but I'm looking for something with a bit more screen real estate then my Surface Pro 3

 

[MRxROBOT]

I think my mistake was the last time I visited the Apple store was that I was playing with the iPad Pro and that thing felt gargantuan, and then I moved on to the MacBook and it felt so diminutive. I'm sure for a lot of people its fine, but I'm looking for something with a bit more screen real estate then my Surface Pro 3

The first time I saw the 12" MacBook was next to the 11" Air at Apple and I thought wow what a great new device. The next time I saw it was next to the 15" Pro at an an authorized reseller and it lost it's appeal to me pretty quickly as that's my current daily driver and I cannot see myself scaling down so much.

 

[Betsy30]

It's nice to have decisions like these be our problems, right?

Keep in mind, you could always sell your 13" and put that money towards the 12" which would make the change a lot easier on the wallet.

I sold my 13" and went with the 12" because I was not using my MacBook as much for video edits. I am honestly not suffering from any slower speeds, no lag, beautiful screen, and my bag is now much lighter. I can still do the light editing, and it is working fine.

This is what I am doing. I just bought the rMB, and I have a 2011 MBA and a 2013 rMBP. I thought about waiting until one of them bit the dust before upgrading. But then I figured that at that point, the dead laptop would be worthless. Why not upgrade now while I could still sell the old machines and offset the cost of the new laptop? I am not a heavy user, the rMB is fine for my needs.

 

[TigerMSTR]

This is what I am doing. I just bought the rMB, and I have a 2011 MBA and a 2013 rMBP. I thought about waiting until one of them bit the dust before upgrading. But then I figured that at that point, the dead laptop would be worthless. Why not upgrade now while I could still sell the old machines and offset the cost of the new laptop? I am not a heavy user, the rMB is fine for my needs.

You're smart

Broken laptop is worthless, and the sooner you sell your MBP the more resale you'll get from it. My one regret with my MacBook Pro is not selling it earlier to finance a new laptop. I've been watching the resale value of my MBP over the past few years (on eBay, Craigslist, etc..), and it held its value quite well for the first 3 or 4 years. I paid about $1450 for the laptop, and I could've sold it for about $1100 within the first three years. The resale value dropped dramatically at year 4, and now I'd be lucky to get $800 for it. So I'll be looking to sell within thee years once I get my MacBook.

Plus if you were to wait for your MBP to die you'd probably be waiting until 2023. Laptops nowadays, especially with solid state storage, don't tend to suddenly die for no reason.

 

[mac8867]

Basing your debate on just one aspect is what I'd call short sighted. Gaming credentials is not the only thing that determines power. There are links to the rMP playing games such as GTA 5 and Warcraft. However, there are other real world tasks that the rMP can get through, but not as quickly and seamlessly as its more efficient counterpart, the MBP, such as video/ photo editing.

Ok, just to be clear.... MB: MacBook, thicker "older" style plastic shell latoptop. MBP: MacBook Pro, thicker aluminum case laptops sold through 2012 (or was it '11?")

rMBP: Thinner retina display Pro models, 2013-present

rMB: retina 12" macbook

I have no idea what a rMP is... did you mean rMB?

I agree, the MacBook (non pro) model out today is under-powered for "advanced" use, and by that I mean gaming, editing, software engineering etc. I would not say the same is true of the "Pro" lines.

Although, the OP isn't really talking about running games, editing video/audio or 'run a software, design or publish business'. His/her main concern is that want outweighs necessity in this case. Being a MBP owner already, there's no need to burn an expensive hole in the pocket for day to day tasks that are already being handled by the MBP.

True, but the OP's post wasn't about need, it was about desire. I can tell you from personal experience, a new machine can boost your productivity for no other reason than it's new. My point is, don't measure the costs simply by need. There are other benefits... perhaps you can avoid knee surgery for a few years by carrying a lighter laptop bag on your sholder ;-_

 

[mackie8]

im also crazy like you ....
i had the 2015 rMB before but i returned it because of faulty touchpad..
im planning to get it again.. i miss its portability ... we have iMac 2012 but i find it very slow..
we have 2pcs Alienware 13 2015 .. this is unplanned laptop dell gave us 1 extra set for free... my husband is using
AW 13... the extra AW13 .. im using it for gaming.. but i cant bring it everyday due to its weight...

planning to get 2016 rMB 256gb m7 to compliment my old iMac..

 

[magicschoolbus]

Just an update, I decided against purchasing the Macbook. I did some research and found that the reason I was feeling my computer act slowly and was so lured by these shiny new MacBooks was I had the stock 5200 RPM hard drive in it. I just upgraded to a Samsung SSD 850 Evo and wow - what a difference. I will probably get another 3-5 years out of this laptop. Thanks for all the input, and for anyone that is feeling their old MBP get slow, put a SSD in there.. its honestly completely changed the performance of my laptop!

 

[Cnizzle06]

Im rocking the latest macbook pro, and yet Im still considering replacing it with the macbook. I want something lighter and thinner to take to class and work- something ultra portable, but still very capable.