Can't Decide: MBA or rMBP

[jzj687]

Hey!

Ok, so I'm really having trouble deciding between the 512gb/2.6ghz/8gb rMBP and the 13" 512gb/2.0ghz/6gb MBA.


Considerations:

I've always used a pro model and I really love the 15" for watching movies/TV, which I do a lot (too much, actually)... Like, watching video on my computer is probably what I do most, besides work with office. I watch a lot of HD content.

I do very little photo/music/video editing.

This is essentially a desktop replacement for me... It's the only computer I use.

Price isn't an issue, it's gonna be a gift, just fyi.


... I know the MBA is probably enough for me, but I feel like going with it when I could have gone with the rMBP is a decision I might regret later on... Do you think there's any practical difference in terms of speed that I might actually see?

Any advice/insight would be super appreciated!

 

[boomboom2]

Buy the regular and get an iPad to go with it!

 

[kisbys]

For me I'm coming from a lucky position of owning an iMac, and a 16.4inch dell studio xps. Which when my rMBP comes in will be going out the window and Ill be salvaging the sad and either putting it in an enclosure or putting it in my iMac.

my thoughts were that the current air and the MBP lines are the end of their development (alright the air prob has one more gen in it) but I wanted to get in at the start of something new!!! but I'm an early adopter.

 

[TickleMeElmo]

The new Gen Macbook air will probably be thinner because that is when Haswell comes out and the PCH gets moved from a the motherboard onto the CPU die. Furthermore, Thunderbolt is being moved from being an add-on chip to being on the die as well if I am not mistaken. I think the profile of the Macbook air will change next year.

 

[bleomycin]

You say this is a desktop replacement, price is not a concern, and you use it basically as a TV. With that criteria in mind the 15" seems like a no brainer to me. What additional utility does the MBA offer for your daily use? It doesn't seem like portability is a concern in which case the MBP ticks all the boxes.

 

[zerotiu]

You say this is a desktop replacement, price is not a concern, and you use it basically as a TV. With that criteria in mind the 15" seems like a no brainer to me. What additional utility does the MBA offer for your daily use? It doesn't seem like portability is a concern in which case the MBP ticks all the boxes.

I agree. Try to calculate, if within a week you bring your laptop 1/7, then go MBP. If you always bring it, then go MBA.

 

[DrJohnZoidberg]

I know the MBA is probably enough for me, but I feel like going with it when I could have gone with the rMBP is a decision I might regret later on... Do you think there's any practical difference in terms of speed that I might actually see?

For what you've said you use it for, no difference what so ever. Make your decision on how important portability is to you. If your notebook will rarely leave your house, get the rMBP, if you are taking it with you everywhere, get the MBA.

However, if longevity is important then get the rMBP. The MBA will not become obsolete, but will suffer more as Apple add bloat to OS X over the next few years (as is the general trend with software).

If you can wait, there is some indication that there will be a 13" rMBP announce at some point in late summer or early autumn/fall, but this is a long way from guaranteed.

 

[jzj687]

Thanks for the advice everyone!

Portability is important (I take it to school and work) but after carrying around the MBP 2008 model for nearly 4 years, I know it's not the end of the world lugging a mbp around.

...Ugh, I just with the MBA had a quad core... even if I don't need it, it's hard to justify buying a dual core when I could get a quad at no extra expense (to me)