New Macbook buyer for school,NEEDS HELP!

[drbowza]

Hello everyone, I'm new to this forum and I am also looking to buy my first Macbook for school use next year. I am thinking of getting a baseline 128GB 13" Pro (?or would you recommend a 256GB 4GB ram 13" Macbook Air?) but apparently the rumor seems to be that there will be a new redesign early next year? Could anyone clarify this all for me and if you were me would you wait? School starts in February and I am prepared to use my current Dell Inspiron 14 7000 series and hold off for a couple of months if there will be a major redesign, not just a small processor upgrade.
P.s I really don't know much about computers so any help would be appreciated and I live in Australia if that changes anything!

 

[Spudlicious]

A couple of months might not take you into new model territory. Buying now would be a nice Christmas present for you and also get you transitioning to OSX before your major usage starts. People used to say that Apple computers just work, but really OSX just works in lots of different ways to Windows, there is a learning curve.

I would, and did, avoid the Air because of its poor display and weedier processor. Get the best spec you can is always sound advice, and in that regard there's no such thing as too much RAM.

 

[drbowza]

And would you recommend purchasing Apple care?

 

[T'hain Esh Kelch]

Is there any reason as to why you want to go for a Pro?

 

[drbowza]

Is there any reason as to why you want to go for a Pro?

I just thought that the screen was a big step up and the faster processor would help for Photoshop and any other tasks and applications I may need to use in the future. I also liked the Force touch trackpad more than the normal one when I tried it in store.

 

[Spudlicious]

And would you recommend purchasing Apple care?

Difficult question because it ain't cheap. I haven't, but I've only had my Pro since May. Also, EU consumer law gives some protection out to six years, but I'm not yet decided. If a few years down the line your run into seriously expensive problems you might wish you had it.

 

[ajay96]

I was in a very similar situation that you are in currently. I looked the air initially, but ended up going with the 128GB Retina Macbook Pro 13". For the extra 300 it's definitely worth it. The CPU in this is a good step up from the one inside the air.

 

[snaky69]

Hello everyone, I'm new to this forum and I am also looking to buy my first Macbook for school use next year. I am thinking of getting a baseline 128GB 13" Pro (?or would you recommend a 256GB 4GB ram 13" Macbook Air?) but apparently the rumor seems to be that there will be a new redesign early next year? Could anyone clarify this all for me and if you were me would you wait? School starts in February and I am prepared to use my current Dell Inspiron 14 7000 series and hold off for a couple of months if there will be a major redesign, not just a small processor upgrade.
P.s I really don't know much about computers so any help would be appreciated and I live in Australia if that changes anything!

What do you use a computer for? Without that information, any recommendation given by any member here is pure speculation and nearly worthless.

 

[drbowza]

What do you use a computer for? Without that information, any recommendation given by any member here is pure speculation and nearly worthless.

Okay snaky, I use my computer for photoshop and adobe creative applications, microsoft office, watching youtube and movies and occasionally some light gaming. It is going to be the computer that I use 99% of the time.

 

[Sumter]

I definitely recommend Apple Care for any Macbook products. Especially if you are planning on keeping it for 3 years or more. I had my Air randomly quit and not turn on right after I sold it to my friend. It was half a year after original 1 year limited warranty expired. It was going to cost over $300 because they replaced the logic board, but they had a mess up and we got lucky, got it for free instead. I have a rMBP 13" now and I'm getting AppleCare on it as soon as I can afford to.

128GB is a bit of a stretch in my opinion. You can get by with it, but 256GB will offer you a better peace of mind. If you wanna wait until the supposed redesign in 2016 you can, but current rMBP is thin and light enough as it is.

 

[drbowza]

I definitely recommend Apple Care for any Macbook products. Especially if you are planning on keeping it for 3 years or more. I had my Air randomly quit and not turn on right after I sold it to my friend. It was half a year after original 1 year limited warranty expired. It was going to cost over $300 because they replaced the logic board, but they had a mess up and we got lucky, got it for free instead. I have a rMBP 13" now and I'm getting AppleCare on it as soon as I can afford to.

128GB is a bit of a stretch in my opinion. You can get by with it, but 256GB will offer you a better peace of mind. If you wanna wait until the supposed redesign in 2016 you can, but current rMBP is thin and light enough as it is.

I've found a 2015 256Gb Refurbished rMBP (refurbished by Apple) for a really good price. Have you had any experience with refurbished Macs? Thanks for the advice on Apple Care too btw and I will be sure to purchase it.

 

[RoboWarriorSr]

I've found a 2015 256Gb Refurbished rMBP (refurbished by Apple) for a really good price. Have you had any experience with refurbished Macs? Thanks for the advice on Apple Care too btw and I will be sure to purchase it.

Bought the refurbished 2015 13" 256 GB and it's been a blast. The packaging is the only thing different (no fancy white box) but those aren't really kept for long anyway (would be nice to look at though). In a brown box and everything available in the brand new version is in the brown box, microcloth fiber, manuals, charger, and two prong adaptor (of course the sticker as well). The inside packing also identical so you have the chance to peel off the paper screen protector as well. So far no problem in the 5~6 months I bought it, wouldn't be surprised if it had less issues since it went through another Q/C. Good way to save money as the school discount for 13" is $100 while the refurbished models are $250 off. Upgraded from a 2009 model and it's a huge jump, made me forget about the upcoming skylake models. Probably the best feature I enjoy is not heating up my legs when I watch videos on my bed.

 

[Sumter]

I've found a 2015 256Gb Refurbished rMBP (refurbished by Apple) for a really good price. Have you had any experience with refurbished Macs? Thanks for the advice on Apple Care too btw and I will be sure to purchase it.

Apple refurbished products are very good imo. Most of the time I can't tell a difference between new and refurbished.

 

[drbowza]

Thanks for the help everyone, I've ordered the 2015 Macbook Pro Retina with 256GB SSD from the refurb store and get it in 2 days! Cannot wait!!!

 

[snaky69]

Okay snaky, I use my computer for photoshop and adobe creative applications, microsoft office, watching youtube and movies and occasionally some light gaming. It is going to be the computer that I use 99% of the time.

With photoshop in mind, the rMBP will be much better. Better (IPS) screen, much better processor. It'll do everything faster than the MBA.

With the rest, you'd be hard pressed to notice a difference.

 

[maflynn]

Thanks for the help everyone, I've ordered the 2015 Macbook Pro Retina with 256GB SSD from the refurb store and get it in 2 days! Cannot wait!!!

Congrats, I think the current generation MBPs are quite capable and fast. Getting a refurb saves a fair amount of money on that as well