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MBA or rMBP?

U

Usernameisvalid

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 5, 2011
10
0
Hi,

I'm looking at buying a laptop for taking to school. I would use it for word processing, watching movies, a little x code and the odd game of mw3 on a windows partion. I went to the apple store yesterday and the current rMBP should be portable enough for me. At home it will power an extra 24" 1080 monitor.

I've seen a large difference in clock speeds of the CPU so I was wondering whether the 13" MBA with 8gb ram, 256 SSD and possibly an i7 suits my needs better than a similarly spec'd 13" rMBP when it is announced.

Will I notice the extra power?
Which one will last longer doing what I would do on it? ^
And finally for people who have owned both is the air much more portable?

Thanks!
 
I've owned both. The Air is notably lighter (and smaller) so if I were lugging it around all day, that would beat out specs since you wont notice any difference on movies, word processing, or surfing. On gaming, clearly the rMBP is superior but the 13" still doesn't have discreet graphics so it's not that big of an improvement. Sounds like an Air is right up your alley. Happy shopping!
 
Usernameisvalid said:
I'm looking at buying a laptop for taking to school... whether the 13" MBA with 8gb ram, 256 SSD and possibly an i7 suits my needs better than a similarly spec'd 13" rMBP when it is announced.
Click to expand...

If I were in your shoes, I'd go with the Air with the exact specs you mentioned except I'd give careful consideration to the potential savings of a 2012. The battery life is a bit better and the drive access is faster in the 2013 but would the everyday user really notice?
 
5 hours is more than a bit better. But for me the issue isn't that you can have 12 hours of light tasks. It's that you can do some heavier tasks without draining it quickly, or get a decent charge into your phone.
 
I have a Sandy Bridge iMac and MBP so I'm waiting for Skylake or Canonlake before I upgrade to my next :apple: product and by then who knows how much separation there will be between these current models:eek:
 
Once Haswell drops on the rMBP, is the Air even relevant anymore? Since the back of the machine is the thickest point, it's not really any thinner than the rMBP, the screen is junk by comparison, and it's not like the rMBP weighs a ton. You give up a LOT on the Air just to save a little weight.

I say this as an ex-air owner and 15" cMBP owner.
 
puma1552 said:
Once Haswell drops on the rMBP, is the Air even relevant anymore? Since the back of the machine is the thickest point, it's not really any thinner than the rMBP, the screen is junk by comparison, and it's not like the rMBP weighs a ton. You give up a LOT on the Air just to save a little weight.

I say this as an ex-air owner and 15" cMBP owner.
Click to expand...

100% agree
rMBP is a great choice it's has a power and mobility balance
 
puma1552 said:
Once Haswell drops on the rMBP, is the Air even relevant anymore? Since the back of the machine is the thickest point, it's not really any thinner than the rMBP, the screen is junk by comparison, and it's not like the rMBP weighs a ton. You give up a LOT on the Air just to save a little weight.

I say this as an ex-air owner and 15" cMBP owner.
Click to expand...

It also costs 37% more (base 13 model to base 13 model) and weighs 20% more. For many people these are important considerations.

What I like about the MBA is how easy it is to use casually - it’s a laptop you can use on your lap because it runs cool. You can lie on your back and balance it on your chest, or lie on your side and balance it on its side with one arm and use the other one to scroll. I can also use it standing up, balancing it one hand.
 
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