Common post I know (Buying my first ever MacBook!)

What apps do you use? What is important to you in a mabook? (battery, screen , ...)

 

Based on the info you gave Id recommend the base mba on a deal (~700$)
Its cheap, fast, reliable and you will appreciate the battery life anyway.

(Provided its really light Ps work and no 3d stuff)

 

thats the maxed out mba.
You should be able to get the base for half that price.

 

Get 8 gigs of Ram.

 

Does the size matter? I am typing these words on my new 11" Air and I love it - it is barely bigger and heavier than an iPad but is a proper computer and from one week of usage including photo editing the screen size is sufficient.

 

He's been using an ipad, nothing he stated is close to needing 8GB of ram.

----------

OP I would look at either a base model Macbook Air, or a 2013 base or mid tiered retina MBP. The display is significantly better on the rMBP and if you have been using a retina iPad, switching to a MacBook Air display may be tough for you.

Some people aren't bothered by the difference in screen quality. It's best if you can look at some demo's and compare the two.

 

Ya, I agree that 8GB RAM is overkill. I'm getting one and would need the extra RAM, potentially (that's a big maybe!) for running VMs, but even then, it might be overkill for me. You should focus on the processor and SSD. Get enough space for all your photos, and i7 should give you a little zip if you need it. But even then, you could get away with i5 as the difference is somewhat negligible.

Rule of thumb: Get the best you can afford while saving yourself room for other things. You should totally keep your iPad Air unless you already sold it, though. It'll be awesome for the next OS update.

My suggestion:
MBA 13" i7, 256GB SSD, 4GB RAM

 

No i7 needed for OP.

 

the rmbp 2013 are cheap now. Get one of those.
Either the 2.4/4/128 or 2.4/8/256 will do.
Depending on the price and if 128gb ssd is enough for you.

 

Another vote for the retina MacBook Pro. The screen will look amazing just like the iPads. If say get the base model 2014 rMBP that just got released, or if you can find a refurb one that'd be a good deal aswell.

 

I would pick up a rMBP. One of the following:

Brand new base 2014 rMBP 13" @ £999 from Apple. (Know anyone with student discount? get an extra 10-14% off this as well as a £60 voucher which can be spent on AppleCare for example)

Refurbished base 2013 13" @ £799 from Apple. (Would only get this if budget is a big issue, which working offshore I can't imagine it is )

 

OP you will probably never be able to tell the difference between the 4GB of ram in the 2013 and the 8GB in the 2014.

 

congratulations enjoy!

 

you'll have to buy a usb interface type thingy

 

for example: http://www.audio2usb.com

 

If you want one device its called a Surface Pro 3.
I have a base 4/128 13inch rMBP. Wish I had 8, but this was out at the time and I, like you, dont really need 8gb of RAM. This Retina screen kills everything. I like saving money and hate wasting it, but there are some times in life where you gotta dish out a little extra cash to get something good. You're not getting a spec'd out 15 inch, you're getting a base 13 inch for a few extra bucks compared to everything else out there.