OK, so using the education discount (im going to college pretty soon and need a good laptop) I've got 2 configurations of computers to choose from. I can either have a mbp with the 2.3 i5, 4gb ram, 128 ssd; or have a mba with the 1.7 i5, 4gb ram, 128 ssd, and the external superdrive. These are both the 13 inch models, and the only differences between the 2 SPEC WISE are that the air is lighter with a slightly better resolution, and the pro has a slightly faster processor. The price for the pro is $1324 and the air costs $1328 (these are both without tax). so the question is, which should i buy? is the resolution that much of a difference and is the built in superdrive worth it? :/
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i have a buyers decision question........
- Thread starter applefanboy4739
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128gb - I realize the speed is so nice with SSDs, but that small and on a machine lacking a fw800+ terminal I just dont like the idea of keeping it as a main computer even for college
And the pro's processor is more than slightly faster even on the 13"
Go with the pro I say, more HD space more expandability = win
Best of luck to you in your education endeavors
I would be using it pretty much for word documents and web surfing. with some slight video and photo editing. And money is really tight so Im not going to opt for the 15" pro. If money was not object I'd go for that any day.
if it is light video editing, i'd think the base model 11" or 13" would be fine. the 13" mbp is going to be the least expensive route (i've got it), but i don't see any reason to bother with ssd for what you are doing, because it doesn't seem terribly cost effective.
I would recommend the MBA 13" over the Pro 13". The MBA is a fast laptop that is a pure joy to bring around. The MBA 13" screen has the resolution of the MBP 15" standard display.
As a college student, you're going to always be carrying a lot of heavy books and items in your backpack. An MBA is a college students dream.
You can attach an external monitor and drive to the MBA as a desktop replacement too.
As a college student, you're going to always be carrying a lot of heavy books and items in your backpack. An MBA is a college students dream.
You can attach an external monitor and drive to the MBA as a desktop replacement too.
give a think to how you work. most days i only bring my ipad to campus. i've digitized everything, so no need for a backpack or a bunch of heavy books, and most of my work involves reading, notetaking, paper drafts, and revisions. there just isn't much need for power on campus. if you want to give it a try, see the threads i have started in my profile for tips on digitizing things and so forth.
as for memory, totally unnecessary with cloud services. many universities supply web storage space as well, so you get your own cloud. at home, everything i have sits in multiple external drives. i have the mbp 13 and love it, but honestly, it spends most of the time at home. and, even if i had an mba, it would stay there too.
as for memory, totally unnecessary with cloud services. many universities supply web storage space as well, so you get your own cloud. at home, everything i have sits in multiple external drives. i have the mbp 13 and love it, but honestly, it spends most of the time at home. and, even if i had an mba, it would stay there too.
I think the MBA is a better machine then the 13" MBP however the only caveat with the MBA is the fact you're dealing with a small SSD. Well and only a single USB port.
If you can live within the storage constraint I think overall the MBA is a better machine.
I love the 11" MBA as well but if extended use as a main machine, the small screen size may be too limiting, and causing too much eye strain.
If you can live within the storage constraint I think overall the MBA is a better machine.
I love the 11" MBA as well but if extended use as a main machine, the small screen size may be too limiting, and causing too much eye strain.
instead of worrying about the storage constraint, you can now pickup a 3tb external hard drive with your MBA/MBP for 100 bucks, or a 1tb for about 45 dollars
I've got a pro, and i'd go with it
But I'm on the edge, i haven't used a MBA for any prolonged period of time
I've got a pro, and i'd go with it
But I'm on the edge, i haven't used a MBA for any prolonged period of time
I would go with the base 13" pro (that's what my son is taking to college this fall). If for no other reason, you can start with 4GB of RAM and upgrade to 8GB for less than $60 on your own and you can get the base HDD from Apple and upgrade to SSD later (if that's what you want) when the drives become more reasonable. MBA, everything is soldered to the logic board, no opportunity for DIY upgrades.