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macbook pro or air (again again sorry)

H

hks777

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 19, 2011
19
0
hello

what do you think that i should buy ? macbook pro (base model 15 inch) or macbook air (i5 13 inch 256 gb)

i am going to use it for:
notes/school work
bootcamp
a bit of gaming(rift)
photo edits (raw files)
a bit of programming

i have some pros and cons(that is important for me):
air: pros
weight /thin
ssd drive
a bit less glossy display(?)

air:cons
no dvd drive
no optical out

pro: pros:)p)
powerful
dvd drive
optical out

pro:cons
size/weight ( i think it might be to big? i come from a 10 inch netbook)
more glossy display(?)
old model(?)

i am in bit of hurry because the gift card stops tomorrow and i would like to get that;)

(i am sorry about my english)
 
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You're going to be cramped for space if you're going to use bootcamp in addition to saving raw files on the MBA. I'd say go for MBP if bootcamp is important for you.
 
hks777 said:
what do you think that i should buy ? macbook pro (base model 15 inch) or macbook air (i5 13 inch 256 gb)
Click to expand...

The problem here is that you're comparing a MBA with a MBP 15", which are totally different machines. The MBP 15" is a bulky, heavy, powerful, hardly-portable desktop replacement.

So in order to decide on this, you need to address: "How important is portability for you?" and "What do you favor: portability or raw power?". Based on that, you can make your decision.
 
Invisible Elf said:
You're going to be cramped for space if you're going to use bootcamp in addition to saving raw files on the MBA. I'd say go for MBP if bootcamp is important for you.
Click to expand...


i am going edit the raw files then move them to my extern hdd.
bootcamp is very important
 
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KohPhiPhi said:
The problem here is that you're comparing a MBA with a MBP 15", which are totally different machines. The MBP 15" is a bulky, heavy, powerful, hardly-portable desktop replacement.

So in order to decide on this, you need to address: "How important is portability for you?" and "What do you favor: portability or raw power?". Based on that, you can make your decision.
Click to expand...

i compare mba(256 gb) and mbp 15 inch because they are nearly same price and because the 13 inch is not an option because the res.

i am not sure how important portability is. i would like a light pc but i don't know if can get used to a 15 inch again. (i should never had tried to fell the weight of the air:p)

the only raw power "upgrade" i need is the gpu from a mba to a mbp, but i think everday use is going be faster on the air
 
it depends the macbook air is light and pretty powerful but the HD may be an issue. Do you have a desktop pc you could use that is more powerful?
 
wrinkster22 said:
it depends the macbook air is light and pretty powerful but the HD may be an issue. Do you have a desktop pc you could use that is more powerful?
Click to expand...

yes but only in the weekends, the most important is bootcamp, is 256 gb too small for that?
 
be happy then

kulimer said:
Apple cheated me after I looked at IBM's Lenovo laptop, I am getting less than 4lbs, 8GB ram, 320GB hard drive for $1149.

http://shop.lenovo.com/us/products/Laptops/ThinkPad/t-series/t420s/index.html
Click to expand...

did you ever stop to think why on earth it is discounted by a full 33% ?
and how many $ you will need to spend on software and anti-viral + anti bloatware 'programs'

have fun back in windows land ;)
(that is one ugly fat peecee)

to the OP - it all comes down to weight - both machines you specify are equally snappy and the Air will handle your detailed uses.
personally I'd opt for the standard 13" Air with 128gb flash storage, bootcamp partition it in half, then similarly partition an external HDD for all your projects.

alternatively, give it a couple of months and see what Apple release in the way of MBPros by Christmas time
 
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halledise said:
did you ever stop to think why on earth it is discounted by a full 33% ?
and how many $ you will need to spend on software and anti-viral + anti bloatware 'programs'

have fun back in windows land ;)
(that is one ugly fat peecee)

to the OP - it all comes down to weight - both machines you specify are equally snappy and the Air will handle your detailed uses.
personally I'd opt for the standard 13" Air with 128gb flash storage, bootcamp partition it in half, then similarly partition an external HDD for all your projects.

alternatively, give it a couple of months and see what Apple release in the way of MBPros by Christmas time
Click to expand...

that would be two 50 gb partition right?
and i don't wanna wait anymore, i have had a slow netbook with ubuntu for 2,5 years now(and yeah it sucks:mad:)
 
hks777 said:
that would be two 50 gb partition right?
and i don't wanna wait anymore, i have had a slow netbook with ubuntu for 2,5 years now(and yeah it sucks:mad:)
Click to expand...

It would be about 2 60GB partitions. Actually when running Boot Camp Assistant, you would divide them into 2 "56GB" partitions. The actual SSD is about 121GB, but Boot Camp Assistant uses the Windows base 1024 method (vs OS X's base 1000 method), which makes the drive appear to be just over 112GB.

That said, it really depends on what you need to use Windows for. If you don't use encryption, you can create a third partition for shared data (format that partition in ExFAT, which both OSes can read and write to), and minimize the size of your Windows partition to what is necessary to install Windows and your applications. However, if you can afford the 256GB version (which is really 251GB), then that would make it a lot easier since you can give each OS plenty of room in which to work.
 
KPOM said:
It would be about 2 60GB partitions. Actually when running Boot Camp Assistant, you would divide them into 2 "56GB" partitions. The actual SSD is about 121GB, but Boot Camp Assistant uses the Windows base 1024 method (vs OS X's base 1000 method), which makes the drive appear to be just over 112GB.

That said, it really depends on what you need to use Windows for. If you don't use encryption, you can create a third partition for shared data (format that partition in ExFAT, which both OSes can read and write to), and minimize the size of your Windows partition to what is necessary to install Windows and your applications. However, if you can afford the 256GB version (which is really 251GB), then that would make it a lot easier since you can give each OS plenty of room in which to work.
Click to expand...

the bootcamp is for rift (8 gb) and some other smaller programs. i can afford the 256 gb and i do think it is needed for bootcamp
 
I would save go for the MBP based on your needs as well. If I could only have one I would rather have the more powerful machine.
 
if you are gonna be taking it to the class everyday DON'T get the 15"

i took my 15" to the lecture room one time and People sitting next to me can't see the professor because my MBP screen is too big. And it's super heavy. get 13" MBA. i'm buying it tomorrow to replace my 15" pro.
 
stark4 said:
if you are gonna be taking it to the class everyday DON'T get the 15"

i took my 15" to the lecture room one time and People sitting next to me can't see the professor because my MBP screen is too big. And it's super heavy. get 13" MBA. i'm buying it tomorrow to replace my 15" pro.
Click to expand...

I agree for class you will definitely want the MBA. I have an 11" MBA and 15" MBP and if I had the choice in college would have taken the 13" everyday. the 15" is large and wouldn't be great in class, however, awesome at home. Tough call but I think you would be happy with the 13' MBA
 
stark4 said:
if you are gonna be taking it to the class everyday DON'T get the 15"

i took my 15" to the lecture room one time and People sitting next to me can't see the professor because my MBP screen is too big. And it's super heavy. get 13" MBA. i'm buying it tomorrow to replace my 15" pro.
Click to expand...

i am going to be taking it to class every day
 
KohPhiPhi said:
Then there only ONE sensible option: the MBA. Carrying around a MBP 15" on a daily basis will totally be a painful experience.
Click to expand...

i am not going to carry it so much, a bit(like 5min) to the school and back and then i stay in the same classroom all day,but in the weekends i am going to carry it a lot more
 
hks777 said:
anyone please??
Click to expand...

I'd just get the Air. It sounds like that's the one you really want. Remember that it's about as powerful as the 2010 15" MacBook Pro (apart from the GPU). You still have 14 days to change your mind if you decide it isn't enough. From what people have said here in the past, you wouldn't need to return the gift card if you simply exchange it for a Pro later on.
 
KPOM said:
I'd just get the Air. It sounds like that's the one you really want. Remember that it's about as powerful as the 2010 15" MacBook Pro (apart from the GPU). You still have 14 days to change your mind if you decide it isn't enough. From what people have said here in the past, you wouldn't need to return the gift card if you simply exchange it for a Pro later on.
Click to expand...

ok thank you

yes it is the one i want.
later i am going to a shop to fell the weight off the 15 inch
 
hks777 said:
it was not so bad the weight ok what now??
Click to expand...

Buy one of them. :)

There's a huge difference between the Air and the Pro when you carry it around for a while. I'd go for the Air, but that's likely the advice you'll get in this forum. Everything you plan to run should be fine on the Air.
 
halledise said:
did you ever stop to think why on earth it is discounted by a full 33% ?
and how many $ you will need to spend on software and anti-viral + anti bloatware 'programs'

have fun back in windows land ;)
(that is one ugly fat peecee)
Click to expand...

I realize this is off-topic, and honestly, given the choice, I would use OS X and Macs over Windows 7 (which isn't that bad) and non-Apple manufacturer, but I wanted to point out that you could get by with just 2 anti-virus/malware programs, both of which are free, unless you really like visiting those shady sites out there.

You would have to spend money on the mac too for software, so that's kind of a moot point...

Thinkpads really aren't that bad, it's not going to win a beauty contest anytime soon, but it's a pretty solid productive machine. Now, if you were talking about an Acer...
 
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