Returning my 2013 11" MBA for a 13" rMBP and have a few questions:

[jread]

I ordered the new MBA in the 11" model and upgraded to the i7 processor and 8GB of RAM. I was extremely disappointed that there was no retina display in the new MBAs, but I thought I'd give it a shot anyway as many people say it's not that big of difference. They are wrong.

I absolutely cannot stand the MBA display. I am spoiled to retina screens from my iPhone 5 and iPad 4, and I can't force myself to go backward. I have to have a retina screen... plain and simple.

That said, I'm not sure where to go from here. I definitely want the 13" rMBP as the 15" is just too large (and too expensive) for me. I spent around $1500 for my MBA so I'd like to stay around the same price (I've seen refurbished 13" rMBP's in that price range).

As far as the kinds of things I would do with it... I'm no photo/video editor or anything like that. I mostly surf the web and use office programs, use GoToMyPC to connect to my PC at work when I am teleworking, as well as some gaming here and there. I don't play any of the hardcore FPS games or anything like that, but I would definitely want to be able to play Starcraft 2 on at least medium settings, as well as Minecraft and maybe the new Sim City.

I don't give a twirly **** about battery life as I am not in coffee shops or anything, and I am always near a plug, so the lower battery life is not an issue.

I guess the main question now is that given what I would use the machine for, what processor should I get? I know on the MBA there is negligible performance difference between the i5 and i7, but I am not sure about the 13" rMBP. Also, as hard as it will be, should I suck it up and wait for the Haswell 13" rMBP to come out (whenever that is)? For the MBA, the Haswell really only brought better battery life. The overall performance is not much better than the Ivy Bridge version, and is actually a little worse in some areas. The Intel HD5000 also did not make as huge of a difference as you would expect. So, I'm wondering if it will be a similar change with the rMBP (better battery life and faster SSD, but no much else in the big picture).

I would value and appreciate any input you guys have on this. I definitely want a 13" model, but I am not sure if there is a huge difference in the processor choices, and I am not extremely opposed to waiting for the Haswell refresh, but I'd rather not if I don't have to

 

[bobbydd21]

I ordered the new MBA in the 11" model and upgraded to the i7 processor and 8GB of RAM. I was extremely disappointed that there was no retina display in the new MBAs, but I thought I'd give it a shot anyway as many people say it's not that big of difference. They are wrong.

I absolutely cannot stand the MBA display. I am spoiled to retina screens from my iPhone 5 and iPad 4, and I can't force myself to go backward. I have to have a retina screen... plain and simple.

That said, I'm not sure where to go from here. I definitely want the 13" rMBP as the 15" is just too large (and too expensive) for me. I spent around $1500 for my MBA so I'd like to stay around the same price (I've seen refurbished 13" rMBP's in that price range).

As far as the kinds of things I would do with it... I'm no photo/video editor or anything like that. I mostly surf the web and use office programs, use GoToMyPC to connect to my PC at work when I am teleworking, as well as some gaming here and there. I don't play any of the hardcore FPS games or anything like that, but I would definitely want to be able to play Starcraft 2 on at least medium settings, as well as Minecraft and maybe the new Sim City.

I don't give a twirly **** about battery life as I am not in coffee shops or anything, and I am always near a plug, so the lower battery life is not an issue.

I guess the main question now is that given what I would use the machine for, what processor should I get? I know on the MBA there is negligible performance difference between the i5 and i7, but I am not sure about the 13" rMBP. Also, as hard as it will be, should I suck it up and wait for the Haswell 13" rMBP to come out (whenever that is)? For the MBA, the Haswell really only brought better battery life. The overall performance is not much better than the Ivy Bridge version, and is actually a little worse in some areas. The Intel HD5000 also did not make as huge of a difference as you would expect. So, I'm wondering if it will be a similar change with the rMBP (better battery life and faster SSD, but no much else in the big picture).

I would value and appreciate any input you guys have on this. I definitely want a 13" model, but I am not sure if there is a huge difference in the processor choices, and I am not extremely opposed to waiting for the Haswell refresh, but I'd rather not if I don't have to

Since one if your main concerns is price, and you are not going to be doing anything really CPU intensive on it, I would say go with a refurbished i5 MacBook Pro. If you we're really concerned about battery life, which you already said your not, then I don't think your really going to gain anything out of waiting for haswell MacBook Pro. They are going to cost more and for the things your going to be doing on it you are not going to notice a difference.

 

[jread]

Since one if your main concerns is price, and you are not going to be doing anything really CPU intensive on it, I would say go with a refurbished i5 MacBook Pro. If you we're really concerned about battery life, which you already said your not, then I don't think your really going to gain anything out of waiting for haswell MacBook Pro. They are going to cost more and for the things your going to be doing on it you are not going to notice a difference.

Thank you for your response. This is pretty much what I was thinking, but it helps to have someone else confirm it. Off to the Apple store tomorrow

 

[bobbydd21]

Thank you for your response. This is pretty much what I was thinking, but it helps to have someone else confirm it. Off to the Apple store tomorrow

Haha no problem. Good luck! I'm sure you'll love of!

 

[dragonjinse]

I just got a refurbished rMBP 15" 2 days ago and I LOVE IT!

I thought about waiting the Haswell also, but I didnt want to waste my time anymore.

You will love it!

I ordered the new MBA in the 11" model and upgraded to the i7 processor and 8GB of RAM. I was extremely disappointed that there was no retina display in the new MBAs, but I thought I'd give it a shot anyway as many people say it's not that big of difference. They are wrong.

I absolutely cannot stand the MBA display. I am spoiled to retina screens from my iPhone 5 and iPad 4, and I can't force myself to go backward. I have to have a retina screen... plain and simple.

That said, I'm not sure where to go from here. I definitely want the 13" rMBP as the 15" is just too large (and too expensive) for me. I spent around $1500 for my MBA so I'd like to stay around the same price (I've seen refurbished 13" rMBP's in that price range).

As far as the kinds of things I would do with it... I'm no photo/video editor or anything like that. I mostly surf the web and use office programs, use GoToMyPC to connect to my PC at work when I am teleworking, as well as some gaming here and there. I don't play any of the hardcore FPS games or anything like that, but I would definitely want to be able to play Starcraft 2 on at least medium settings, as well as Minecraft and maybe the new Sim City.

I don't give a twirly **** about battery life as I am not in coffee shops or anything, and I am always near a plug, so the lower battery life is not an issue.

I guess the main question now is that given what I would use the machine for, what processor should I get? I know on the MBA there is negligible performance difference between the i5 and i7, but I am not sure about the 13" rMBP. Also, as hard as it will be, should I suck it up and wait for the Haswell 13" rMBP to come out (whenever that is)? For the MBA, the Haswell really only brought better battery life. The overall performance is not much better than the Ivy Bridge version, and is actually a little worse in some areas. The Intel HD5000 also did not make as huge of a difference as you would expect. So, I'm wondering if it will be a similar change with the rMBP (better battery life and faster SSD, but no much else in the big picture).

I would value and appreciate any input you guys have on this. I definitely want a 13" model, but I am not sure if there is a huge difference in the processor choices, and I am not extremely opposed to waiting for the Haswell refresh, but I'd rather not if I don't have to

 

[jread]

I just got a refurbished rMBP 15" 2 days ago and I LOVE IT!

I thought about waiting the Haswell also, but I didnt want to waste my time anymore.

You will love it!

Glad to hear it. I am honestly a little disenchanted with the Haswell refresh. The better battery life lived up to the hype, but the Intel HD 5000 definitely is not, at least in the MBA it is a very minor increase in performance over the HD 4000: http://www.anandtech.com/show/7085/the-2013-macbook-air-review-13inch/4

Given that, and the fact that I don't care about battery life, I do not see the Haswell refresh as being worth the wait. I mean, if the Haswell MBPs were going to be out next month, then I'd probably hold out until then, but there is no indication of when they'll be available and I'm not sitting around until October or anything like that.

 

[xnview]

There will be a minor performance increase if you upgrade the processor. You'll probably not notice it except when you're gaming. The 2.5 GHz in the rMBP will probably give you about the same performance as the 1.7 GHz CPU in the MBA, so if it was enough go with it, if it was sufficient you might consider getting a upgraded processor in the rMBP.

I also didn't felt like waiting, and 2 days after the wwdc I bought my 13" 2.6 rMBP and I LOVE the screen.

 

[maflynn]

Glad to hear it. I am honestly a little disenchanted with the Haswell refresh.

The GPU performance is a bit a let down, perhaps that's specific the ULV variant of Haswell - either way I like the MBA and think its a solid update.

I think the 13" rMBP is a good choice for gotomypc, its better then the 11" laptop in that need

 

[Petulka]

You are forgetting the HD5xxx that will go into 13 rMBP

 

[mmberry1]

I ordered the new MBA in the 11" model and upgraded to the i7 processor and 8GB of RAM. I was extremely disappointed that there was no retina display in the new MBAs, but I thought I'd give it a shot anyway as many people say it's not that big of difference. They are wrong.

I absolutely cannot stand the MBA display. I am spoiled to retina screens from my iPhone 5 and iPad 4, and I can't force myself to go backward. I have to have a retina screen... plain and simple.

That said, I'm not sure where to go from here. I definitely want the 13" rMBP as the 15" is just too large (and too expensive) for me. I spent around $1500 for my MBA so I'd like to stay around the same price (I've seen refurbished 13" rMBP's in that price range).

As far as the kinds of things I would do with it... I'm no photo/video editor or anything like that. I mostly surf the web and use office programs, use GoToMyPC to connect to my PC at work when I am teleworking, as well as some gaming here and there. I don't play any of the hardcore FPS games or anything like that, but I would definitely want to be able to play Starcraft 2 on at least medium settings, as well as Minecraft and maybe the new Sim City.

I don't give a twirly **** about battery life as I am not in coffee shops or anything, and I am always near a plug, so the lower battery life is not an issue.

I guess the main question now is that given what I would use the machine for, what processor should I get? I know on the MBA there is negligible performance difference between the i5 and i7, but I am not sure about the 13" rMBP. Also, as hard as it will be, should I suck it up and wait for the Haswell 13" rMBP to come out (whenever that is)? For the MBA, the Haswell really only brought better battery life. The overall performance is not much better than the Ivy Bridge version, and is actually a little worse in some areas. The Intel HD5000 also did not make as huge of a difference as you would expect. So, I'm wondering if it will be a similar change with the rMBP (better battery life and faster SSD, but no much else in the big picture).

I would value and appreciate any input you guys have on this. I definitely want a 13" model, but I am not sure if there is a huge difference in the processor choices, and I am not extremely opposed to waiting for the Haswell refresh, but I'd rather not if I don't have to

I was in the same situation as you. Bought a 11" air and despised the screen. So I was going to apple to buy an MacBook Pro retina 13" and decided to swing by best buy first. I ended up getting the higher end 13" that retails for 1699 at a price of 1350! It was an open box but in perfect shape. Plus you can still buy apple care if you don't want best buys warranty. Just set it up yesterday and couldn't be happier. Point is if you want to save money check best buy out.

 

[NewishMacGuy]

...but I would definitely want to be able to play Starcraft 2 on at least medium settings, as well as Minecraft and maybe the new Sim City.

I think you'll need a dGPU (and thus a 15" machine) for that. Can't imagine that you get decent frame rates on SC2 in medium with the HD4000. Maybe a 2011 or 2012 uMBP-15 will be a decent compromise if you don't want to pony up for the rMBP. The screen is WAY better than that of the MBAs, and you can even go hi-res. To my eye, the glossy hi-res version (if you can find it) was pretty good looking and hung in there with the Retina. Of course there will eb the weight penalty, but since you won't be taking it to coffee shops...


___

 

[Aylan]

Thank you for your response. This is pretty much what I was thinking, but it helps to have someone else confirm it. Off to the Apple store tomorrow

Even though Haswell is not that great of a CPU performance increase, I would advise you to wait and see what Apple has up its sleeve for the rMPB. Consensus seems to be that Apple will use a 28W TDP SKU with HD5XXX graphics. That alone will be a marked improvement over HD4000. This is especially important for the rMPB's since they need all the extra GPU power they can get. Also, you mention an interest in gaming and I think you'd be better served by the HD5xxx. I am in the same boat as you and, I'd say it is worth seeing how the retina lineup ends up for 2013.

 

[tgi]

Even though Haswell is not that great of a CPU performance increase, I would advise you to wait and see what Apple has up its sleeve for the rMPB. Consensus seems to be that Apple will use a 28W TDP SKU with HD5XXX graphics. That alone will be a marked improvement over HD4000. This is especially important for the rMPB's since they need all the extra GPU power they can get. Also, you mention an interest in gaming and I think you'd be better served by the HD5xxx. I am in the same boat as you and, I'd say it is worth seeing how the retina lineup ends up for 2013.

Well said. Exactly why I'm waiting for the Haswell rMBP. The GPU update should be worth it alone. I was hoping for Iris Pro 5200, but I remember seeing somewhere that it might not make it into the 13" rMBP. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[falconeight]

The GPU performance is a bit a let down, perhaps that's specific the ULV variant of Haswell - either way I like the MBA and think its a solid update.

I think the 13" rMBP is a good choice for gotomypc, its better then the 11" laptop in that need

Just wondering, but what is a let down to you about the gpu?

 

[zOlid]

Glad to hear it. I am honestly a little disenchanted with the Haswell refresh. The better battery life lived up to the hype, but the Intel HD 5000 definitely is not, at least in the MBA it is a very minor increase in performance over the HD 4000: http://www.anandtech.com/show/7085/the-2013-macbook-air-review-13inch/4

Given that, and the fact that I don't care about battery life, I do not see the Haswell refresh as being worth the wait. I mean, if the Haswell MBPs were going to be out next month, then I'd probably hold out until then, but there is no indication of when they'll be available and I'm not sitting around until October or anything like that.

I would wait for haswell no doubt about it.
Your forgetting that the rMBP 13" most likely wont have the same haswell gpu as the air.
It will probably have Iris or Iris pro chip and that DOES a huge diffrence in gpu performance.

And we still dont know what upgrades will come with the MBP refresh.
Its verry possible that we could see a IGZO panel or even a higher resolution screen in the new MBP.

Its really up to you ofc and it sounds like you've made up your mind to buy one now and just want confirmation that its the right choice.

But if you really dont need it now i think you are going to regret your decision when the new MBP comes.
Even if you choose the old one they are still going to dropp in price and you can get one with much better speccs, for the same price you would give for one today.

 

[Aylan]

I doubt the 13" rMBP will get Iris Pro. I do not think there is a SKU with the desired TDP range. Apple seems to be on a power efficiency kick and the only 2 options I see Apple using are the i5-4258U and i7-4558U. The more powerful chips are with GT2 graphics and considering the Airs got HD5000 I doubt they would do that.

 

[haaX]

Quick question.

I'm a bit unsure if I'm gonna return my MBA 13" for a 11". One question with regards to the pre-installed software I bought (Keynote, Numbers, Pages) - I need to auth these in the AppStore to update them.

Are the Apps connected to my Apple ID so I could just download them from the AppStore when I get the new machine, and what I paid for it would be subtracted from my refunds? Or should I just stay away from connecting them to my AppleID....

Cheers

 

[falconeight]

Quick question.

I'm a bit unsure if I'm gonna return my MBA 13" for a 11". One question with regards to the pre-installed software I bought (Keynote, Numbers, Pages) - I need to auth these in the AppStore to update them.

Are the Apps connected to my Apple ID so I could just download them from the AppStore when I get the new machine, and what I paid for it would be subtracted from my refunds? Or should I just stay away from connecting them to my AppleID....

Cheers

Back up your apps onto a hard drive then drag them over when you get the new one.

 

[Aylan]

Quick question.

I'm a bit unsure if I'm gonna return my MBA 13" for a 11". One question with regards to the pre-installed software I bought (Keynote, Numbers, Pages) - I need to auth these in the AppStore to update them.

Are the Apps connected to my Apple ID so I could just download them from the AppStore when I get the new machine, and what I paid for it would be subtracted from my refunds? Or should I just stay away from connecting them to my AppleID....

Cheers

These apps are connected to your Apple ID. You'll be able to re-download them once you get your new MBA.

 

[haaX]

Back up your apps onto a hard drive then drag them over when you get the new one.

These apps are connected to your Apple ID. You'll be able to re-download them once you get your new MBA.

Thanks for the replies - but was thinking how will Apple handle that return? Since the apps are bundled with the MBA.

 

[falconeight]

Thanks for the replies - but was thinking how will Apple handle that return? Since the apps are bundled with the MBA.

Oh they will not refund the money you paid for apps.

 

[haaX]

Oh they will not refund the money you paid for apps.

Understood that ;-) But if they would do the return on the MBA only since the MBA and the apps are "debundled". I reckon the answer is the obvious one then (yes they do). Thanks!

After having played with it this evening I´m not sure I´m keen on swapping it for the smaller though, ha ha. 1st world problems isn´t it.

 

[jread]

Even though Haswell is not that great of a CPU performance increase, I would advise you to wait and see what Apple has up its sleeve for the rMPB. Consensus seems to be that Apple will use a 28W TDP SKU with HD5XXX graphics. That alone will be a marked improvement over HD4000. This is especially important for the rMPB's since they need all the extra GPU power they can get. Also, you mention an interest in gaming and I think you'd be better served by the HD5xxx. I am in the same boat as you and, I'd say it is worth seeing how the retina lineup ends up for 2013.

You make a great point, damnit. Now I'm not sure again. I did return the MBA today, so once the money credits back to my card I may just try to wait. I guess I'll probably put it on an Apple gift card just to make sure I don't spend it on something else until I figure out what I want.

I am REALLY impatient and waiting is so hard...

 

[Aylan]

Thanks for the replies - but was thinking how will Apple handle that return? Since the apps are bundled with the MBA.

Correct me if I am wrong but isn't iLife (iPhoto, iMovie, GrarageBand) the only app suite that is bundled with new Mac purchases? You mentioned apps from the iWork suite so if you return your MBA, and get another Mac, I would assume that the Mac app store would recognize that you "own" those apps already. If not I am quite sure that you can call Apple and have them linked to your Apple ID. Another option is to use Time Machine and then use Migration Assistant to transfer data and apps.

 

[maflynn]

Just wondering, but what is a let down to you about the gpu?

Not me, but what I've read in the andandtech review of the MBA.