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Macbook Air When To Buy? I pick MacBook Air over RMBP

sysProgrammer

sysProgrammer

macrumors member
Original poster
Jan 29, 2012
41
2
behind iMac 27 5k or 13' retina
I was waiting for MacBook Pro retina display and I must say I am disappointed. After seeing it in person, feeling it, pricing it, MacBook Air wins hands down.

Since I have 15MBP last years, I do not feel the need to update the 15" to retina display which is worth the upgrade, but the 13"!!!!

It is not that much thinner, it is not that much lighter, the retina display requires more processing power, which is then equivalent to MacBook Air processing power, you can only get 8GB of RAM, to spec out 15" equivalent rMBP you are going to spend 200 - 300 USD more. It is still heavy for the laptop that has limited upgrade options.


MacBook Air - still very light, still very portable, cheaper.....


Here is the question. When to buy one.... Black Friday? Next time they get the face lift?
Does anyone know if the Apple is planning to upgrade graphical card or the chip specs and when that update might be coming (I doubt it since they would then step on their toes regarding 13 retina display)...


Poor Marketing, Poor Pricing on rMBP vs MBA.. Tim what are you doing??????
 
I think the next refresh will be in Jan. But if I were you I'd get it now. Maybe wait for the Black Friday at max.
 
surfer17 said:
I think the next refresh will be in Jan. But if I were you I'd get it now. Maybe wait for the Black Friday at max.
Click to expand...

No new technology will be available by Jan. Haswell will be ready mid 2013, so a refresh will come in June or some months after (depending on delays)
 
The MBA was last refreshed 142 days ago and, according to the MacRumors Buyer's Guide, the average time for a new refresh is 322 days. It will probably be refreshed again after Haswell comes out, and, according to Intel's schedule, it is supposed to happen in the first half of 2013, sometime between March and June.

Haswell will probably get a much better battery life, as Intel is saying. There are chances the MBA gets a redesign in 2013; but the redesign may well occur in 2014 (the last one was in 2010). How long are you willing to wait to buy one?
 
skaertus said:
The MBA was last refreshed 142 days ago and, according to the MacRumors Buyer's Guide, the average time for a new refresh is 322 days. It will probably be refreshed again after Haswell comes out, and, according to Intel's schedule, it is supposed to happen in the first half of 2013, sometime between March and June.

Haswell will probably get a much better battery life, as Intel is saying. There are chances the MBA gets a redesign in 2013; but the redesign may well occur in 2014 (the last one was in 2010). How long are you willing to wait to buy one?
Click to expand...

Not very long, but I do want a deal on i7 256SSD 8gb RAM.
 
sysProgrammer said:
Not very long, but I do want a deal on i7 256SSD 8gb RAM.
Click to expand...

That would be US$ 1,699. You get the same price of the base 13" rMBP, but you would exchange the retina IPS display for 128 GB more SSD storage. The processor speed, RAM and other factors seem to be about the same (but the 13" MBA is a bit lighter).
 
skaertus said:
That would be US$ 1,699. You get the same price of the base 13" rMBP, but you would exchange the retina IPS display for 128 GB more SSD storage. The processor speed, RAM and other factors seem to be about the same (but the 13" MBA is a bit lighter).
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"A bit lighter" being a half pound :)
 
Lukewarmwinner said:
Then what's the reason for this thread?
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Well if something new is coming this way, I might wait longer. If not, holidays are close, so it would seem a good time to buy (pending discounts).

----------
Lukewarmwinner said:
"A bit lighter" being a half pound :)
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It feels much lighter when you hold it, due to the weight distribution.
 
I never even saw much reason to go from 2011 MBA to 2012.

8GB RAM and USB 3.0 are nice, but that's pretty much it. I have one external that would take advantage of USB 3.0 speeds but Sandy Bridge to Ivy Bridge is pretty incremental imo. And MagSafe 2.0, but wasn't in the mood to play that "switching over" game which will be inevitable anyways.

I think as most people are saying Haswell+Retina will be a very very tempting combo.

But I might just use my 13" Air until it becomes extinct for my uses.

Plus I use it as a faux desktop, so retina or not, I'm looking at a 1920x1200 matte 24" display most of the time.
 
Lukewarmwinner said:
Ah, you misunderstood - I was merely referring to weight being more than just "a bit". In real life it feels a lot heavier, and the difference is half a pound.
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Does it really? They both felt very light to me, but I actually didn't hold them both at the same time to compare them. I'll try that.

The MBA weighs 2.96 lbs, and the rMBP weighs 3.57 lbs. While it's not too much in absolute terms, the rMBP is about 20% heavier than the MBA. The weight distribution may also play a part in this too, but I'm not sure.
 
You have to figure even if you get a MBA now you can still sell it for relatively higher resell value in a year or so. Plus the current MBAs are very nice. I hate the waiting game because that just means I'll be without a laptop for the next 6 - 12 months. Coming from a 2008 MBA with battery problems anything and especially the 2012 MBA seems like a far superior and beautiful upgrade. I love the new wedge design over the old design with the flip ports lol
 
I'm looking for a deal for the same config 13 MBA ( i7,256gb,8gb =1699) for my wife as a graduation gift ( Mid-December ) since this config is not found in stock at any non-apple stores ( correct me if i'm wrong) - it's either special order from apple or apple store as they carry this build in stock.


With that being said, I'm hoping for a tiny Blackfriday discount + discover 5% or the student discount ( roughly 70 bucks ).... not gonna get much of a break on theses esp with the "special build"
 
If you have to ask if you should wait for the next version of a device, that means you don't actually need it right now and should just wait. If you needed it, there wouldn't be a decision.
 
CiSach said:
I'm looking for a deal for the same config 13 MBA ( i7,256gb,8gb =1699) for my wife as a graduation gift ( Mid-December ) since this config is not found in stock at any non-apple stores ( correct me if i'm wrong) - it's either special order from apple or apple store as they carry this build in stock.


With that being said, I'm hoping for a tiny Blackfriday discount + discover 5% or the student discount ( roughly 70 bucks ).... not gonna get much of a break on theses esp with the "special build"
Click to expand...

Really - the education discount is only 70 dollars? Here in the UK I managed to get the 'full' education discount - whatever that is - and that was (off a 11" i7 8GB 512GB) £250 - about 14%.

David
 
orangezorki said:
Really - the education discount is only 70 dollars? Here in the UK I managed to get the 'full' education discount - whatever that is - and that was (off a 11" i7 8GB 512GB) £250 - about 14%.

David
Click to expand...

Maybe it varies by the school you select but it was $50 off the "B" MBA and then 10 off each updrade(2)
 
skaertus said:
Does it really? They both felt very light to me, but I actually didn't hold them both at the same time to compare them. I'll try that.

The MBA weighs 2.96 lbs, and the rMBP weighs 3.57 lbs. While it's not too much in absolute terms, the rMBP is about 20% heavier than the MBA. The weight distribution may also play a part in this too, but I'm not sure.
Click to expand...

I think it will be interesting to see if the 2013 MBA will get a smaller footprint similar to the 13" rMBP. It may seem like a little, but the 13" rMBP felt a "lot smaller" than the MBA (not in terms of thickness and weight). I mean, after all the MBA is marketed and advertised towards the portable.

Making the MBA smaller like the rMBP may decrease the space available for internals - battery and the like, but I think they can somehow get it done.
 
Dick Whitman said:
You have to figure even if you get a MBA now you can still sell it for relatively higher resell value in a year or so. Plus the current MBAs are very nice. I hate the waiting game because that just means I'll be without a laptop for the next 6 - 12 months. Coming from a 2008 MBA with battery problems anything and especially the 2012 MBA seems like a far superior and beautiful upgrade. I love the new wedge design over the old design with the flip ports lol
Click to expand...

I'm very new to the Mac/iOS platform but part of the reason why I've migrated my household over is the awesome resale value of these products.

I race motorcycles and mountain bikes and we use the same system. Buy a bike, ride it for a year or two and flip it.

Buy the available model Mac, use it for a year or two, and flip it. You can't do that with a PC. These devices hold their value and have a legit resale market.
 
Same position as you! Im waiting until black friday to see if there are any good deals. There won't be a January update, the update will just be an incremental processor upgrade in June-ish, when Haswell comes out.
 
I understand the OP's point about the weight. Even though it's only half a pound of difference, something about the Retina 13" feels more dense, and thus somehow much more heavier than what the numbers show between it and the Air. Honestly, it feels closer in weight to the 15" Retina. I know that sounds weird.

I'll be keeping my 2011 Air.
 
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