Some MacBook questions

[AndrewR23]

I am currently using a 2009 macbook pro.

I am most likely gonna upgrade to the 2012 macbook air.

Basically, Is it worth the upgrade?
Or should I wait another year for the next Air update.

I read the 2011 Air isn't much different from the 2012 and that the 2013 will be a huge one. Any advice?

Using it as my college computer.

 

[gbkrip]

I think "should I wait another year" questions are completely pointless. In one year, there will be another model coming out "in another year". There will always be something better looming around the corner. If you think your current computer is no longer able to fulfill your needs, then upgrade. It's that simple.

Having said that, it would help if you list what types of things you expect to use your computer for. If it's everyday type things (essays, browsing, etc.) then your 2009 macbook should be more than capable.

 

[Panini]

I hate it when people say ^

There IS the question of another year. Some changes are bigger than others. If you really need a laptop now, but it will be severely outdated with next year's quantum leap in technology, wouldn't you wait? It's a more extreme example, but it can, of course, be scaled down to size.

OT: I would say get the Air right now. It is pretty much perfect for almost everything you'll need to do. The iGPU is very good (almost as good as last year's dGPU on the 15" pros) and the 256gb is more than enough.

If you're really worried, you could go for the 2.0Ghz model which can turbo up to 3.2Ghz - those can even run Skyrim on Ultra settings...

IF they happen to make it better next year, you will still not need it - the Air has reached it's plateau where from now on, Apple will be focusing on battery life and the performance per watt of the processor. The Air already has very very good battery life so I wouldn't recommend waiting another year just for that.

 

[gbkrip]

I hate it when people say ^

There IS the question of another year. Some changes are bigger than others.

That doesn't make any sense. There is a "quantum leap" every year. One year it's conventional harddrives to SSDs. Another is standard screen resolutions to retina resolutions. Another year is a significant increase in cpu speeds and efficiencies. Sure, you could argue some upgrades end up being more incremental than others but no matter what, there is always a desirable upgrade coming in just another year.

the Air has reached it's plateau

I'm not sure how you can make such a statement considering what you said earlier in the same post.

 

[Panini]

That doesn't make any sense. There is a "quantum leap" every year. One year it's conventional harddrives to SSDs. Another is standard screen resolutions to retina resolutions. Another year is a significant increase in cpu speeds and efficiencies. Sure, you could argue some upgrades end up being more incremental than others but no matter what, there is always a desirable upgrade coming in just another year.


I'm not sure how you can make such a statement considering what you said earlier in the same post.

Think of it like the iPhone. You don't really need one. The 3GS was released just a while ago but the iPhone 4 is around the corner. I think more people would be willing to wait on that iPhone 4 than people wanting to buy a 3g with 3gs right around the corner. Most people don't care about the processor/gpu bumps as much as they do big updates like this one.

The Macbook Air has reached its plateau means that it isn't likely it will see some significant updates in the near future. Three months ago everybody knew something big was going to happen with the macbook pro, the same can't be said for the air. Think about it - what can they improve? Hardware upgrades are useless for 99% of the air market (casual users) unless they plan to add a retina display, but the hardware isn't nearly good enough for that yet.

 

[gbkrip]

Think of it like the iPhone. You don't really need one. The 3GS was released just a while ago but the iPhone 4 is around the corner. I think more people would be willing to wait on that iPhone 4 than people wanting to buy a 3g with 3gs right around the corner. Most people don't care about the processor/gpu bumps as much as they do big updates like this one.

The Macbook Air has reached its plateau means that it isn't likely it will see some significant updates in the near future. Three months ago everybody knew something big was going to happen with the macbook pro, the same can't be said for the air. Think about it - what can they improve? Hardware upgrades are useless for 99% of the air market (casual users) unless they plan to add a retina display, but the hardware isn't nearly good enough for that yet.

But this is exactly my point. The next round of upgrades isn't going to happen in three months. It's going to happen in just short of a year. It's like your iPhone example, but people waiting on the iPhone 5 a few weeks after the iPhone 4 came out.

 

[Panini]

But this is exactly my point. The next round of upgrades isn't going to happen in three months. It's going to happen in just short of a year. It's like your iPhone example, but people waiting on the iPhone 5 a few weeks after the iPhone 4 came out.

Time only makes the waiting process more difficult, but given enough of a reason, people will wait longer than usual. Suppose the only thing I really look for in a notebook is fast wifi. Next year's model will likely add 802.11ac, and that will be the standard for another five years to come. In that case, it is worth it to wait since the next five years won't have big upgrades as far as I'm concerned.

It's up to the buyer to decide when to buy, and this depends on what features they are looking for. If next year's focus is going to be on discrete graphics, but I'm a logic pro user, then I won't wait. If, however, the speaker industry has had some recent breakthroughs and next year the sound quality is going to improve drastically, I may wait since for me, it is worth it.

Looks like next year's focus will be the CPU. Nvidia already churned out Kepler and probably will only give a minor graphics bump next year. Haswell, on the other hand, may give extended battery life. This is what the posters need to tell the OP, so that he can decide if it's worth waiting or not.