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Cancelled Retina MBP Order - Ordered 13" MBA

nylon

nylon

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Oct 26, 2004
1,417
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So I had ordered the base Retina MBP yesterday. Today I cancelled and ordered the stock top config of the 13" MBA.

The following factors affected my decision:

- Weight. 4.5 lbs for Retina MBP still too heavy for frequent travelers.
- Cost of Entry for latest and greatest.
- 1st Gen Product issues for Retina MBP.
- Software support for Retina Display.
- Reassessed true requirements in terms of power.

I sold my 2010 Ultimate 13" MBA on Sunday for $1000. Cost of Upgrade = $500.

Some times it takes time to rationalise your true requirements and assess pros and cons.

Still wishing for a 15" MBA no heavier than 3.5 lbs.
 
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As impressive as the new MBP with retina display is, I too have decided to upgrade my 2010 MBA Ultimate with the 2012 Ultimate. The 2010 MBA has been my everyday machine since October 2010 and I have loved it. Its only limitations have been its barely adequate 256GB of flash storage and marginally inadequate 4GB of RAM. I just learned that a nearby Apple Store has the 2012 Ultimate in stock and I plan to buy one tomorrow. Its 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage are just what I need. I run Windows and several Windows apps, some of them used heavily, in a VMware Fusion virtual machine, which really runs best with 8GB of RAM.
 
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Great price on that 2010 MacBook Air. I think you will enjoy the 2012. The 2011 was a big step up for me.

The Retina MacBook Pro looks nice, and apparently is selling well, but I will wait until it makes its way down to the MacBook Air line, which I think will happen in a year or 2.
 
Good call, imho.

I believe software support will be very underwhelming for retina.

And I'd like to see that thing's battery tested too. You know you're getting a good 7ish hours out of a 13" MBA. I was surprised Apple made no announcements of improved Air battery life, even though Ivy Bridge is supposed to be more efficient. It wouldn't surprise me if the 2012 MBAs unofficially have better battery life compared to their 2011 counterparts.
 
Belgrano said:
Good call, imho.

I believe software support will be very underwhelming for retina.

And I'd like to see that thing's battery tested too. You know you're getting a good 7ish hours out of a 13" MBA. I was surprised Apple made no announcements of improved Air battery life, even though Ivy Bridge is supposed to be more efficient. It wouldn't surprise me if the 2012 MBAs unofficially have better battery life compared to their 2011 counterparts.
Click to expand...

For sure, two things I'm waiting to find out too, the real world battery life in the RMBP and if Ivy Bridge is more efficient then maybe the 2012's will have better battery life, would be a nice silent upgrade for sure.

I think I've finally decided to go for the 2012 13" MBA, 8gb RAM, 512SSD, make it my main machine and be done with it.

The 15" Retina is tempting, but just a little larger and heavier than what I'd like. I'm a HUGE fan of the 11" Air but admittedly for long hours of work the screen is limiting.
 
entatlrg said:
For sure, two things I'm waiting to find out too, the real world battery life in the RMBP and if Ivy Bridge is more efficient then maybe the 2012's will have better battery life, would be a nice silent upgrade for sure.

I think I've finally decided to go for the 2012 13" MBA, 8gb RAM, 512SSD, make it my main machine and be done with it.

The 15" Retina is tempting, but just a little larger and heavier than what I'd like. I'm a HUGE fan of the 11" Air but admittedly for long hours of work the screen is limiting.
Click to expand...

I'm about to do the same thing. I thought about it some more and even though the mbpr is slick, the new air will more than suit my needs for now. I mean 8gb 256ssd, and ivy 2.0. I'm good. maybe next year I'll go for retina. oh, and I'm also saving 500.
 
Cicatrix said:
I'm about to do the same thing. I thought about it some more and even though the mbpr is slick, the new air will more than suit my needs for now. I mean 8gb 256ssd, and ivy 2.0. I'm good. maybe next year I'll go for retina. oh, and I'm also saving 500.
Click to expand...

Money saved is money earned ;)
 
I did the exact same thing, but am torn between the 11" or 13" , if i want a bigger screen i can always air play to my tv
 
I'm also leaning towards the 13" MacBook Air in stead of the RMBP.
The only thing holding me back is if I update the Air to 512GB SSD and 8GB RAM it's about the same price as the base RMBP.

So for the same price it's deciding between the extra storage in de Air (512GB vs 256GB in the base RMBP) or the screen real estate of the RMBP.

Processor speed wouldn't really matter for the things I do.

Or is there something I'm not seeing that could pull me one way or the other?

Edit: I should add I'm mainly going to use in on my lap, since I have my iMac from last year as main computer. So maybe the air for the weight then?
 
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Bremel said:
I'm also leaning towards the 13" MacBook Air in stead of the RMBP.
The only thing holding me back is if I update the Air to 512GB SSD and 8GB RAM it's about the same price as the base RMBP.

So for the same price it's deciding between the extra storage in de Air (512GB vs 256GB in the base RMBP) or the screen real estate of the RMBP.

Processor speed wouldn't really matter for the things I do.

Or is there something I'm not seeing that could pull me one way or the other?

Edit: I should add I'm mainly going to use in on my lap, since I have my iMac from last year as main computer. So maybe the air for the weight then?
Click to expand...

one thing is that the mbpr does not have the integrity of the MBA since its brand new. at least not yet. I'm sure it's going to be excellent, but there's always a chance of the unexpected with first gen models. the MBA has proved to be an outstanding machine. I sort of don't want to be a guinea pig either.
 
OP, you got a great return on your 2010 MBA investment!

I did very much the same thing as you. I had a maxed-out retina MBP ordered. 30 mins later buyer's remorse kicked in and I cancelled. Going for a max-specced Air now -- times two (wife wants one as well). I have last year's 13" Air currently but this year's 8/512 config will be better for my work.
 
f00f said:
OP, you got a great return on your 2010 MBA investment!

I did very much the same thing as you. I had a maxed-out retina MBP ordered. 30 mins later buyer's remorse kicked in and I cancelled. Going for a max-specced Air now -- times two (wife wants one as well). I have last year's 13" Air currently but this year's 8/512 config will be better for my work.
Click to expand...

if they would have shipped day of they would have had my money haha. Seriously though, when i sat back and thought about it...i couldn't justify what the retina would do for me personally. All movies i stream to apple tv and i don't use photoshop or imovie
 
dona83 said:
8MB of RAM, are you planning on running System 7 on it? :D
Click to expand...
I run Windows and several Windows apps, some of them every day, in a VMware Fusion virtual machine. I have learned the hard way that 4GB of RAM are only marginally adequate for my needs. Not infrequently, when I am entering text there will be a several second delay before the text I typed is displayed on the screen. Also, beachballs are a regular phenomenon. When I was running the same setup on my old 17 inch MBA Santa Rosa with 8GB of RAM I never had any delays with typed characters appearing on the screen, or with beachballs. In short, I will be much better off with 8MB of RAM, I promise.
 
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gwsat said:
I run Windows and several Windows apps, some of them every day, in a VMware Fusion virtual machine. I have learned the hard way that 4MB of RAM are only marginally adequate for my needs. Not infrequently, when I am entering text there will be a several second delay before the text I typed is displayed on the screen. Also, beachballs are a regular phenomenon. When I was running the same setup on my old 17 inch MBA Santa Rosa with 8MB of RAM I never had any delays with typed characters appearing on the screen, or with beachballs. In short, I will be much better off with 8MB of RAM, I promise.
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I think he was making fun of the fact that you keep saying 8MB of RAM instead of 8GB :rolleyes:
 
rygamble said:
I think he was making fun of the fact that you keep saying 8MB of RAM instead of 8GB :rolleyes:
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Mea culpa, I have now corrected the error, so could you take the :rolleyes: back so that I don't have to roll my eyes back at you and comment on your social skills?:)

Had been making the MB instead of GB mistake for a couple of days. It was temporary brain flatulence, which I can't explain, but which I cross my heart and hope to die won't happen again. Hope nobody else was offended and decides to react offensively.
 
nylon said:
So I had ordered the base Retina MBP yesterday. Today I cancelled and ordered the stock top config of the 13" MBA.
Click to expand...

I did the exact same thing - ordered the retina within minutes of the store reopening, and the more I thought on it, the less attractive it was.

I've been wanting increased portability from 15" MBP. It's a great machine, but I find I grab my wife's MBA at home to use on the couch, at the kitchen table, etc. - The convenience factor.

There are a few times a month I manage to do something to bog down the processor, but I can live with that when everything else is nearly instantaneous when running on the MBA.

At work, I spend 98% of the time with lid closed and running on external display. Even with Retina, I think I would still gravitate to larger screen size.
 
dona83 said:
Lol making fun might be a bit of a stretch, I'm known to make these mistakes as well.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your graceful explanation. It's nice to know I am not alone. Have no idea what caused me to make my mistake. Do you suppose ECT or a Thorazine prescription might help me?:)

Back on topic briefly, I am still pretty sure I will buy the 13 inch Ultimate. The doubling of both memory and flash storage, combined with an i7 chip and an upgraded GPU make the 2012 model attractive indeed. If I buy one, my grandson will be a lucky young man. He is a junior in college and his 2 year old 13 inch MBP is giving him trouble. My 2010 13 inch Ultimate MBA, which I am considering giving him, is working perfectly and still has 17 months of AppleCare coverage left.
 
I ordered a base retina MBP but now can't justify it anymore compared to the new MBA's. The MBP's benchmarks are only 50% better than the MBA, and the MBP is much more expensive and heavy+bulky. It seems to me that all the extra weight and size mostly go into feeding the higher resolution display.

I just wish Apple gave us an IPS display in the Air. It wouldn't have to be higher resolution (which would entail poorer battery life), but better quality would be great.
 
Much as I would enjoy having the $2799 MBP with the Retina Display, I am finding myself drawn to replacing my 11" MBA with the 13". I've owned one of every iteration of the Air since inception, and the 11" is proving just a little small for my aging eyesight.

If the new MBP weighed something like 3.5 pounds, I'd go for it instead and get down to one machine. But the extra pound and a half over the 13" MBA makes the new MBP impractical for me given that I travel a lot.

I am thinking long and hard about the $500 'bump' to upgrade 256GB to 512GB. I am reasonably certain I can move my iTunes library to an external USB (3!) drive and carry it with me for far less money.

I find it difficult to believe Apple paid much attention to the weight of the new Pro. They minimized the glass, slimmed the entire chassis and integrated the display ... you'd think they would have shaved more than a pound off the weight of the old version.
 
I spent a lot of time today in the apple store staring at the new retina Macbook as I can't decide between it and a new Air. I am leaning towards the air, but that display is just so nice.
 
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