Mba 64gb

[Hichisky]

A few days ago I ordered a Macbook Air, the base line with a RAM upgrade to 4GB. I was wondering if anyone knew the actual capacity you have after the OS installation and restore partition that is on it?

I bought the baseline as I am primarily going to be using it for college (word processing, data analysis "Excel for example", and of course web surfing along with maybe some youtube browsing.

I however went on the internet a little while ago looking at Microsoft Office as I may want to load that on it, and I saw that it in itself was about a gigabyte. It gave me a limited feeling with the 64GB SSD. I am not saying the 64GB will not do for me, but the slight "restrained" feeling came about. So back to the original question, how much free space is there out of the box?

I have yet to receive the Macbook, should get it by the end of next week, so needless to say it has not been opened or tampered with in any way (by me). Is it possible to do an easy exchange in my local apple store? I know they allow exchanges, but the question lies with the fact that I "personalized" this one in upgrading the RAM.

I still haven't made any decisions as the 64GB SSD may be enough for me, at least I originally thought so. But I DO want to stay away from paying ~$300 down the road for a 180GB SSD. In that context, $150-$200 more for the mid Macbook air is a save.

 

[Xikum]

I cant give you an exact figure sadly, but the OS should take around 5-7 GB.

If you are only going to be storing things such as word/excel files, some music, a few software packages, etc then 64 GB will be enough. If not, you could buy an external hard drive and use that? I have also seen people use 32/64 GB SD cards, but their data transfer speeds are pretty damn slow!

 

[Risasi]

I have about 60GB used on my 120GB SSD in my MBP. It looks like about 10 for OS, another 12 or so for Call of Duty 2 and 4, about 30 for iTunes stuff like movies for my kids, etc. Then another 10GB for misc. stuff for work. I find 120GB to be comfortable if you're only running OSX. Unfortunately I also have windows 7 installed for games. And now I'm finding a need to run virtual machines again.

I'd say you could get by if you don't have a big music/video collection, and would probably be better off for it too because it will force you to keep your drive clean.

 

[robrob74]

Did you buy a new or refurbished? If you paid $999 for base plus extra for 4gb, cancel and return, for $999 you can get a refurb 11" with i5, 4gb and 128gb drive, apple refurbs come like new and carry the same 1 year warranty as new.

Just my .02 I just got my 13" air i5, 4gb 256gb a few weeks ago for 1349, which was 250 off the normal price and it looks like a brand new system, not a single mark on it and it runs perfectly.

 

[Risasi]

That's actually a great idea by robrob74...

 

[henry72]

Did you buy a new or refurbished? If you paid $999 for base plus extra for 4gb, cancel and return, for $999 you can get a refurb 11" with i5, 4gb and 128gb drive, apple refurbs come like new and carry the same 1 year warranty as new.

Just my .02 I just got my 13" air i5, 4gb 256gb a few weeks ago for 1349, which was 250 off the normal price and it looks like a brand new system, not a single mark on it and it runs perfectly.

Awesome idea
Here the link: http://store.apple.com/us/product/FC969LL/A

 

[scarred]

64GB is going to suite your current needs (as you described) just fine.

The problem? These machines are great, and you'll soon start doing different and unplanned things with it. The most obvious are photos, movies, music and apps. As soon as you start doing 'more', 64gb will become limiting real quick. You'll need to use external storage, and you'll regret your earlier choice.

If you can afford it, get the larger SSD. And ya, refurb for the win...

 

[njean777]

I agree with everyone in this thread, try to return it and just order the refurbed 128gb version. 64gb will be limiting in the future and you will need an external drive to fit everything you may use the computer for.

 

[slnko-v-sieti]

Will you be using it as your primary machine? If yes, I always advise considering more storage (unless you don't mind the inconvenience of external drives).

On your primary machine, how much space are you using? About this Mac >>> More Info >>> Storage will tell you, and break it out by some basic file types (in Lion). This will give you a good idea of your storage needs and which configuration of MBA best meets them.

I'd talk to the Apple Store about your customized model. I don't think bumping up the RAM is uncommon enough to complicate a traditional return.

 

[LordVic]

with OS install and what not, with a few extra things downloaded, Nothing really installed but a few IM's and chat programs.

i was sitting at 40gb free on my 64gb SSD.

i've since split the disc and made a 30gb windows 7 partition

Both seem to run pretty good. no real hard drive constraints.

Though, keep in mind, I do not store any media locally, as I have a NAS at home to act as my external storage.