lol - i can imagine the OP reading the first sentence and smiling all over his face, until he reads the editYou can get a refurbished 2012 13" 2.9 i7 for 1269 on apple.com now, go to the refurbished section...
EDIT: oops looks like I bought the last one,
Since you're asking the question seemingly based on specs, that suggests specs don't actually matter. Let me guess: iTunes, internet, word processing, "occasional video editing and photoshop" ? Either one will be fine.
You need to figure out if the extra spec bump is needed and if it is, is it worth the extra coin. These questions are difficult for others to answer because we all use and need our laptops for different reasons. One persons satisfied base model purchase is another persons buyers remorse.
Yes, but ultimately don't let people bully you on here by making you think you are buying a machine too fast for what you need, there is no compromise for performance!