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Base 13" MBA enough for heavy Chrome use?

W

Wise Potato

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 20, 2013
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Going to buy myself a new Laptop and wondering If I should get a base Macbook or a mid range Windows laptop.

Cost aside, I would take Mac over PC any day of the week, but I don't think I want to spend more than 1000$ on a PC.

Is the base 13" MBA with 4GB of RAM and 128gb of storage really enough for heavy Chrome use and a bit of Microsoft office/programming for school?

If not, then I might invest in a mid range, 8GB of RAM windows Laptop. Windows 10 isn't a disaster like Win 8 after all.
 
Wise Potato said:
Going to buy myself a new Laptop and wondering If I should get a base Macbook or a mid range Windows laptop.

Cost aside, I would take Mac over PC any day of the week, but I don't think I want to spend more than 1000$ on a PC.

Is the base 13" MBA with 4GB of RAM and 128gb of storage really enough for heavy Chrome use and a bit of Microsoft office/programming for school?

If not, then I might invest in a mid range, 8GB of RAM windows Laptop. Windows 10 isn't a disaster like Win 8 after all.
Click to expand...

No mac laptop works well with chrome the browser is very poorly coded for macs and uses a lot of the computers RAM and CPU and destroys battery life.

Other than that using a browser and some office apps can be done on any laptop hell even an ipad air.

RAM will be your limiting factor for the number of tabs you can have open in a browser so the higher the better. If I was you I'd look at a refurb 2014 rMBP for best current bang for your buck in the apple line up.

http://www.apple.com/shop/product/F...-27ghz-dual-core-intel-i5-with-retina-display
 
Yes, any laptop can handle you using the internet a lot.

Though Chrome is a memory hog on OS X.
 
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No difference on Windows either though. Chrome still sucks there too.

The reality is that any 'mid-range Windows laptop' is likely to use a very similar CPU as the Air, and a much slower hard disk. If the Air is what you want, that's what you should buy. It will be fine.
 
zhenya said:
No difference on Windows either though. Chrome still sucks there too.

The reality is that any 'mid-range Windows laptop' is likely to use a very similar CPU as the Air, and a much slower hard disk. If the Air is what you want, that's what you should buy. It will be fine.
Click to expand...

Indeed; Chrome is a pig on anything I run it on.
 
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I used a base Air over the past two years to do some pretty substantial web development and testing. Running Safari, Chrome and Firefox simultaneously and with maybe a dozen or so tabs open in each. The air handled it brilliantly and would easily have taken much more.

Now running on a 13"rMBP and loving it, but I upgraded for the display and could easily have continued with the power of the air had I wished.
 
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zhenya said:
No difference on Windows either though. Chrome still sucks there too.

The reality is that any 'mid-range Windows laptop' is likely to use a very similar CPU as the Air, and a much slower hard disk. If the Air is what you want, that's what you should buy. It will be fine.
Click to expand...

Let me re-phrase: by mid range windows laptop I mean i5, 8GB of RAM, and SSD/hybrid drive.
I think I can find a laptop like that without paying over 1000 US dollars.

Windows laptops are very cheap in Malaysia, Macs cost the same as in the US I think.
 
Last edited:
Samuelsan2001 said:
No mac laptop works well with chrome the browser is very poorly coded for macs and uses a lot of the computers RAM and CPU and destroys battery life.

Other than that using a browser and some office apps can be done on any laptop hell even an ipad air.

RAM will be your limiting factor for the number of tabs you can have open in a browser so the higher the better. If I was you I'd look at a refurb 2014 rMBP for best current bang for your buck in the apple line up.

http://www.apple.com/shop/product/F...-27ghz-dual-core-intel-i5-with-retina-display
Click to expand...

That's a fantastic bargain, don't think it's available in Asia sadly.

Still, thanks!
 
Martin29 said:
I used a base Air over the past two years to do some pretty substantial web development and testing. Running Safari, Chrome and Firefox simultaneously and with maybe a dozen or so tabs open in each. The air handled it brilliantly and would easily have taken much more.

Now running on a 13"rMBP and loving it, but I upgraded for the display and could easily have continued with the power of the air had I wished.
Click to expand...

I only hear bad things about the 13"rMBP, poor speakers, poor display (when compared to 15" retina MBP), etc

Any truth to it?
 
Wise Potato said:
I only hear bad things about the 13"rMBP, poor speakers, poor display (when compared to 15" retina MBP), etc

Any truth to it?
Click to expand...

No. the 13" retina speakers are way better than the 15" classic Macbook Pro speakers and better than any PC laptop i've ever heard. I haven't heard the 15" retina, but there is obviously more room in that for bigger speakers. the display is great. It's smaller than the 15" but that's obvious...
 
The 13" rMBP is a fabulous machine. This display is the best available. Of course the 15" is bigger, but the 13" is fine for portable use and I spend more time with it than with my 27"iMac. The speakers are good, though if I'm working at home I stream through some excellent TEAC speakers.
 
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Wise Potato said:
I only hear bad things about the 13"rMBP, poor speakers, poor display (when compared to 15" retina MBP), etc

Any truth to it?
Click to expand...

No truth whatsoever, the 13 inch rMBP is just about the best compromise between performance, battery life, screen, connectivity and size and weight available in a laptop today.
 
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Samuelsan2001 said:
No truth whatsoever, the 13 inch rMBP is just about the best compromise between performance, battery life, screen, connectivity and size and weight available in a laptop today.
Click to expand...

I agree; I regret buying my 2013 Air, and can't imagine why people would go for that over the rBP13, when it's only a .5 difference. Great machine.
 
polaris20 said:
I agree; I regret buying my 2013 Air, and can't imagine why people would go for that over the rBP13, when it's only a .5 difference. Great machine.
Click to expand...
The Air is amazing.

And: Every macbook sold right now can handle what the OP wants to do.
 
Wise Potato said:
I only hear bad things about the 13"rMBP, poor speakers, poor display (when compared to 15" retina MBP), etc

Any truth to it?
Click to expand...

Nope. The 13" rMBP is an awesome computer. The speakers and display are great. They're better than the speakers and display in the MBA.
 
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