Buying my first Mac?

[lKeithStone]

I've been looking at buying a Mac for the last couple weeks and have been going back and forth on what I should get.

I've been really drawn towards the new Macbook Air's with the recent processor/graphic updates. My only problem is they don't have the retina screen option. I'm also worried they might not have enough power for whatever I decide using it for in the future.

I'm a Web Developer/Graphic Designer - I will be using the Adobe Creative Suite and possibly parallels, along with other basic surfing.

With my work discount I can get a 13" Macbook Air for $1,456.00, with this setup:
1.7GHz Dual-Core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz
8GB 1600MHz LPDDR3 SDRAM
256GB Flash Storage
HD 5000

Or should I go with a refurbished 2012 model for $1600 with these specs:
Originally released June 2012
15.4-inch Retina display
2.3GHz Quad-core Intel i7
8GB of 1600MHz DDR3L SDRAM
256GB Flash Storage
720p FaceTime HD Camera
NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1GB of GDDR5 memory

I know the new Macbook Pro's are supposed to be coming out this fall and I'm thinking about waiting, but the max I'm willing to spend is $1600 - so I'm not sure what I will be able to get into for that price range.

What would you do in my situation?

Thanks!

 

[TechZeke]

This is easy, it just depends on what you want.

Air:
Battery Life
Newer Tech
Mobility

Retina:
Power
Retina display

What is more important to you? Done.

 

[lKeithStone]

This is easy, it just depends on what you want.

Air:
Battery Life
Newer Tech
Mobility

Retina:
Power
Retina display

What is more important to you? Done.

Well that is easy to answer, all of it is important.

I guess maybe I should have asked -

What would give me the most bang for my buck while also providing me enough power to do Web Dev/Graphic work?

Is there a major difference when working with graphics between the retina and non-retina?

 

[niteflyr]

The retina display will give you more screen real-estate which may be nice for Web Dev/Graphic work.

 

[jonnymo5]

Get the Pro, You get a much better CPU, graphics chip, and screen.

I have that model MBP with 16GB Ram and it is quite a powerful laptop. The Air is a very capable machine as well but if you are working with ACS you are getting outside of the Air's sweet spot. If you get the MBP I think you will be happy with it for years.

 

[8080532]

get the 15" rmbp mid 2012 .... its at a great price vs what i paid for (~2400 w/ AC & tax).

more power & larger screen....

 

[Badrottie]

Go for Haswell based 13" MBA. you will love long battery life when you are doing a lot of web developing at cafe or coffee shop.

 

[snaky69]

If you work with multiple complex filters and a lot of layers, the dual core in the Air will hold you back while rendering, whereas the quad-core in the rMBP will just scream past it.

Screen resolution is nice on the rMBP, it allows you go get more real estate, but if you do any color-critical work, you're going to want to work on a properly calibrated external screen anyway, so that doesn't matter as much in my opinion.