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purhasing macbook 2014
- Thread starter sh630
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It depends on what your needs are.
If you are buying a computer in 2014 , I'd recommend you get 8 GB of RAM and at least a 256 GB SSD. Most of the parts on the MBA are soldered so you are pretty stuck with the original parts (e.g. RAM) that you choose.
Of course 4 GB of RAM is enough for basic things but if you intend to keep your computer for as long as possible , more RAM is generally better.
I would recommend getting the 2013 model. The only difference between it and the 2014 model is a 0.1 GHz processor bump, for 100$ more at BestBuy. Right now, if you have a .edu email address, you can get 150$ off the MBA. You can pick up a 2013 4GB/256GB MBA for 950$, which is a great deal.
If you are a consumer, you will not need more than 4GB of RAM for the next 3 years. I currently have 2GB of RAM on my late 2010 model, and I can play videogames, watch movies, browse the web, and write. Maybe in a year or two, 2GB of RAM will not be sufficient. Sure, get 8GB of RAM, it will allow your computer to work well, but it isn't necessary for consumer tasks, especially with the PCIE SSD for paging purposes.
If you are on a budget, you can pick up a new 2013 11" 4GB/128GB for 650$ with the BB student discount. That is a really good deal, and it will run well for at least the next 3 years.
Matt
If you are a consumer, you will not need more than 4GB of RAM for the next 3 years. I currently have 2GB of RAM on my late 2010 model, and I can play videogames, watch movies, browse the web, and write. Maybe in a year or two, 2GB of RAM will not be sufficient. Sure, get 8GB of RAM, it will allow your computer to work well, but it isn't necessary for consumer tasks, especially with the PCIE SSD for paging purposes.
If you are on a budget, you can pick up a new 2013 11" 4GB/128GB for 650$ with the BB student discount. That is a really good deal, and it will run well for at least the next 3 years.
Matt
I went for the 256gb 13" model with 4GB RAM.
Reason being, I had the retina MacBook Pro for the last 18 months with only the 128gb storage - terrible. Was forever running out of space. 256 is about the sweet spot for me. I have Steam and some games installed, all my iTunes library etc and have 60gb spare for later.
I had 8GB RAM before and notice no difference in performance for my usage dropping down to 4. I tend to only keep my Macs for a year or two anyway so shouldn't encounter any problems.
At the end of the day, it's down to what you need or what you think you'll do with it.
Reason being, I had the retina MacBook Pro for the last 18 months with only the 128gb storage - terrible. Was forever running out of space. 256 is about the sweet spot for me. I have Steam and some games installed, all my iTunes library etc and have 60gb spare for later.
I had 8GB RAM before and notice no difference in performance for my usage dropping down to 4. I tend to only keep my Macs for a year or two anyway so shouldn't encounter any problems.
At the end of the day, it's down to what you need or what you think you'll do with it.
Oh ok yeah i just checked the baseline models are sold out. When I posted they were still in stock.
Matt
I just purchased the basic 2014 MBA 13" with 128/4gb, upgraded from my 7 year old white macbook with 4gb ram. I'm just a basic consumer streaming music/ videos, word processing, maybe some light video editing etc and the 4gb of ram is plenty sufficient so far!
