MBA i5 (1.3) 8gb RAM 256 GB: better performance?

[Oivalf]

Dear all,
First of all, sorry if this may seem like a duplicate thread.

Here's what I want to know.

Does any of you bought the new MacBook Air with the Haswell i5 1.3 GHz, but with 8 GB of ram, and 256 gb? Is the performance much better than the standard MBA? Will battery life of a 8GB/256GB last the same, less or longer than the entry model?

Can you please talk about your experience? I really want to know which one should I buy. I'll be using some moderate Photoshop, Illustrator, and Inkscape, putting my Canon pictures in there, and working with Word, EndNote, Powerpoint, and other basic stuff.

Thanks in advance.

Cheers!

 

[jmoore5196]

You don't mention which versions of Photoshop, et al, you're using, so I'm assuming you're using fairly recent software.

I opted for the i7 with my 2012 11" MBA and have always been happy with the processor-vs-battery life trade. If I have to, I can use the 11" as my desktop machine ... I cannot imagine that would be the case with an i5 processor.

I have an i7/8/256 machine and love it. I'm going to upgrade to a 2013 model and will buy an i7/8/512. I'm assuming the tradeoff in battery life and heat will be more than made up by the capabilities of the processor in handling CS6 and presentation software.

 

[curtoise]

You don't mention which versions of Photoshop, et al, you're using, so I'm assuming you're using fairly recent software.

I opted for the i7 with my 2012 11" MBA and have always been happy with the processor-vs-battery life trade. If I have to, I can use the 11" as my desktop machine ... I cannot imagine that would be the case with an i5 processor.

I have an i7/8/256 machine and love it. I'm going to upgrade to a 2013 model and will buy an i7/8/512. I'm assuming the tradeoff in battery life and heat will be more than made up by the capabilities of the processor in handling CS6 and presentation software.

I'm using an 11" i5/4gb/256ssd as a desktop machine with a thunderbolt 27' attached without any issues at all.

Vmware Fusion with Win 7 for financial software, Photoshop cs3, mail, mail plane, iPhoto, MAMP, Coda 2, Safari (10 tabs), Chrome for a couple of flash websites, Tweetbot , etc

No issues at all, extremely fast, no fan, no heat.


Edit:

I was using an earlier 2011 MBP with 16gb for the same tasks too and this little machine with only 4gb will scream at the 2 year old MBP

 

[Oivalf]

I'm using an 11" i5/4gb/256ssd as a desktop machine with a thunderbolt 27' attached without any issues at all.

Vmware Fusion with Win 7 for financial software, Photoshop cs3, mail, mail plane, iPhoto, MAMP, Coda 2, Safari (10 tabs), Chrome for a couple of flash websites, Tweetbot , etc

No issues at all, extremely fast, no fan, no heat.


Edit:

I was using an earlier 2011 MBP with 16gb for the same tasks too and this little machine with only 4gb will scream at the 2 year old MBP

Hi!

Thank you all for your replies. Really helpful.
Yes, recent software: CS6.

But I'm more interested in the battery life of the 2013 model with 8gb and 256gb.

Cheers!