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Is this a good situation to buy 2 MacBooks? Air/pro

Airforcekid

Airforcekid

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Sep 29, 2008
1,708
680
United States of America
I will be doing a major in Political Science and mainly typing but another class with intense graphics and video editing and even some game creation. Someone who took it told me there mid range dell XPS couldn't handle some of the software.:confused: Would it be good to have a Air for class and a pro to do the more intense work? I know I will need the 17 inch and I really don't think carrying it all day will work.:apple:
 
Of course, everybody has different needs, but for my money, owning two laptops doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

When you say you'll need the 17 inch, do you mean for screen size? If so, you might consider getting a 15 inch Pro (assuming you need the computing horsepower for your work) and an external monitor to leave on your desk at home.

Like I said, just my two cents - I use a laptop when I travel and have an iMac at home, and I can't imagine having or wanting two portables. YMMV.
 
Tomorrow said:
Of course, everybody has different needs, but for my money, owning two laptops doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

When you say you'll need the 17 inch, do you mean for screen size? If so, you might consider getting a 15 inch Pro (assuming you need the computing horsepower for your work) and an external monitor to leave on your desk at home.

Like I said, just my two cents - I use a laptop when I travel and have an iMac at home, and I can't imagine having or wanting two portables. YMMV.
Click to expand...

The reason I want laptops is I don't want to leave a computer in my dorm room if I have to leave for the weekend or a vacation. 17 inch is strongly recommended by the teacher. :apple:
 
i agree with tomorrow.

buy a 15' top end MBP, and with the money u save get a large external monitor and a few hd's for backups.

lol what would the teacher know?? it wouldnt make much difference.
 
Doesn't make sense to me

Airforcekid said:
I will be doing a major in Political Science and mainly typing but another class with intense graphics and video editing and even some game creation. Someone who took it told me there mid range dell XPS couldn't handle some of the software.:confused: Would it be good to have a Air for class and a pro to do the more intense work? I know I will need the 17 inch and I really don't think carrying it all day will work.:apple:
Click to expand...

I have a MacBook Air v1, and like it fine. I agree with the other posters about laptops (I prefer them). You state that you don't want to leave the book in the room alone- with your plan you will have to carry two laptops to keep an eye on?

The MBA will not handle the heavy lifting, and the 17" is a bit much to lug around. Why not the 15"MBP loaded? The option of a desktop with a MacBook also makes sense.

sek
 
Airforcekid said:
The reason I want laptops is I don't want to leave a computer in my dorm room if I have to leave for the weekend or a vacation. 17 inch is strongly recommended by the teacher. :apple:
Click to expand...

Ah yes, I might have also suggested a MBA/iMac combo, but like you said - if you don't want to leave one in your dorm room, the iMac wouldn't be a good option...maybe a monitor wouldn't, either.

I actually use a wheeled briefcase for lugging my work laptop (a Dell) around, it might make it easier to lug around a big 17 incher.
 
You must be rich if you can buy both.

That being said, I agree with what other people said--I don't know if you can justify having two notebooks. Just get the 15" MBP loaded and an external monitor. I have the 15" MBP and I travel with it all the time. It's light enough that it's not annoying.
 
forafireescape said:
You must be rich if you can buy both.

That being said, I agree with what other people said--I don't know if you can justify having two notebooks. Just get the 15" MBP loaded and an external monitor. I have the 15" MBP and I travel with it all the time. It's light enough that it's not annoying.
Click to expand...

ditto! perfect option. saves so much money too
 
I don't care how many you can afford or not. I have 2 notebooks and they're a pain to keep up with. I have to update both, sync movies and music. manage the same mail on 2 units. When podcasts download (I usually feel like I'm waiting & watching the download to finish) I then have to mark as not new on one unit. Manage 2 batteries. Using one MBP sure sounds like a good idea.
 
graphic design on a laptop won't be ideal no matter whether its a 15" or a 17". but if you really need the portability, just get a 15" MBP and use the money for the air on a kick-ass monitor. you'll get the best of both worlds that way.
 
I have used multiple Notebooks for awhile now, and it is the biggest pain in the @5x$#!

I would strongly urge you do what the others said and get either MacBook or Pro and use a nice new 24-inch LED Apple Cinema Display while at desk.

I am moving to this setup right now. Only, I went from having an Air, a MBP, and a BlackBook. I sold all three, the MBP today. And I got the new aluminum MacBook. I am looking forward to all of my docs and files being in one place available for me no matter where I happen to be.

In addition, I ordered the new 24" Apple Cinema LED Display, today. I cannot wait for it. Should be an amazing setup when finished. I also am buying a wireless keyboard and a wireless mouse. The idea is to have a nice clean desktop that makes working there enjoyable...

Best wishes with whichever way you go. It's your money, and life is too short, so spend it however you think provides most utility to you!

cheers!
 
Airforcekid said:
I will be doing a major in Political Science and mainly typing but another class with intense graphics and video editing and even some game creation. Someone who took it told me there mid range dell XPS couldn't handle some of the software.:confused: Would it be good to have a Air for class and a pro to do the more intense work? I know I will need the 17 inch and I really don't think carrying it all day will work.:apple:
Click to expand...

I agree with what has been said here. It would be most ideal to only have one laptop versus two - especially if you're planning on carrying both of them with you all the time. A single 15" MBP would be a fine option.

On a side note, I'm curious to know what your friend considered a mid-range XPS.

In my eyes, a midrange XPS would be an M1530 with a 8600gt 256mb, which is the same GPU found in the Classic MBP - and it should handle your tasks just fine and can normally be found for alot less than a classic MBP
 
Airforcekid said:
I know I will need the 17 inch and I really don't think carrying it all day will work.:apple:
Click to expand...

Airforcekid said:
The reason I want laptops is I don't want to leave a computer in my dorm room
Click to expand...

These are mutually exclusive ideas. If you don't want to lug the 17" around, it's going to sit in your dorm room. But you also say you don't want to leave a system sitting in your dorm room...

Buy a 15" Pro, the new LCD cinema display, and lock your door. :rolleyes:
 
Geezwillikers-- owning a MBA AND a MBP just seems so unnecessary and excessive. Be practical and save your money as everyone here has recommended and go with the 17" MBP. It's not even that heavy really, just get a sturdy bag to carry it in.
 
Airforcekid said:
The reason I want laptops is I don't want to leave a computer in my dorm room if I have to leave for the weekend or a vacation. 17 inch is strongly recommended by the teacher. :apple:
Click to expand...

Then you take the laptop with you.

I would think that carrying around 1 big laptop is easier than carrying around 2 laptops. I would just get the 17", done.
 
Airforcekid said:
The reason I want laptops is I don't want to leave a computer in my dorm room if I have to leave for the weekend or a vacation. 17 inch is strongly recommended by the teacher. :apple:
Click to expand...

He is fine with leaving his MBP in his dorm for the day so he won't have to lug the notebook around. He isn't fine with leaving it for an extended period of time.
 
Apple MacBook Pro 15" (Unibody) 2.53GHz + Apple 24" LED Cinema Display = Perfect
 
Useless

Hhahahahaha, what a useless thread. None of the people gave you good answers and you didn't even take a thought about them. HAHAHAHAHA. newbs.
 
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