Choosing between macbooks for college

[hypeofflyfe]

hi, i am a incoming freshmen in college looking into getting a new macbook. i am currently using a late 2010 macbook air. i am going to be a biology major and not sure which model would work well with whatever i need. i am also looking into possible web design. i am looking at getting the non retina macbook pro 15in but i am not sure how well i would transition from a SSD TO HDD. also i wanted to know is it worth getting the base 15in or the 2.6? is it a good idea that i get a SSD from apple or buy a third party? if so what type of SSD do you guys recommend i just want to make sure that it can last me 3-4 years. i would love to hear all the options because this would be a big investment for me.

uses for my macbook would me

itunes , torrent downloads , photoshop, Lightroom, iMovie, even final cut pro, basic internet browsing , word processing and maybe paralles for windows.

 

[Capt Underpants]

I'd wait a year or two before I got a new computer. You don't seem to be doing anything too crazy, and your computer is only two years old.

Plus the portability of the MBA is nice in college.

 

[beamer8912]

I'd wait a year or two before I got a new computer. You don't seem to be doing anything too crazy, and your computer is only two years old.

Plus the portability of the MBA is nice in college.

I agree. Maybe look into getting a nice external HDD or an external monitor.

If you must get a new computer. The base 15" should be more than enough for all 4 years. As far as SSD, a lot of people like the Samsung 830. I'd definitely go third party for the SSD. Apple's prices are outrageous.

 

[MacJones]

I just switched from a late 2010 MacBook Air to a late 2011 refurbished 15" MacBook Pro. I'm a graphic design student and do similar tasks from your list. My MacBook air was struggling to control my 27" cinema display and run programs from CS6 or even iPhoto so I decided to sell my computer (got $800 for it) and buy the late 2011 15" for $1359. I'll probably do an SSD in the future because I like the faster boot times.

 

[Dangerous Theory]

I just switched from a late 2010 MacBook Air to a late 2011 refurbished 15" MacBook Pro. I'm a graphic design student and do similar tasks from your list. My MacBook air was struggling to control my 27" cinema display and run programs from CS6 or even iPhoto so I decided to sell my computer (got $800 for it) and buy the late 2011 15" for $1359. I'll probably do an SSD in the future because I like the faster boot times.

If faster boot time is your only reason then dont bother - just keep the mac on and put it to sleep when not in use. Theres no need to shut it down.

 

[rockyroad55]

I would either get the 2012 MBA 13 or base 15. Nothing beats the portability of the Air when you're traveling from class to class.

 

[MacJones]

If faster boot time is your only reason then dont bother - just keep the mac on and put it to sleep when not in use. Theres no need to shut it down.

Well booting, opening applications, less moving parts, faster read/write, etc.