Switch from Air - is 1280x800 a problem?

[Danindub]

Hi All,

Long story short I was offered a swap: my 2011 MacBook Air for brand new 2012 MacBook Pro 13".

I know Pro's screen is much better in terms of colour gamut (which is one of the reason I am switching) - but is less screen real estate a big issue? has anyone made switch like that?

Thanks in advance,
Dan

 

[Naimfan]

I've had both and prefer the screen on the Pro for the reasons you listed.

It's a tougher call if you need the screen real estate, but for normal everyday use, the resolution is fine. If it were me, I'd swap.

 

[Danindub]

I've had both and prefer the screen on the Pro for the reasons you listed.

It's a tougher call if you need the screen real estate, but for normal everyday use, the resolution is fine. If it were me, I'd swap.

Thanks.

Yeah, I think I'll swap. The way I see it is a free upgrade, and I can bump the specs further down the line. Though it already comes with 10 GB of RAM

Screen on Air is driving me silly, colours are just horrible...

 

[mzjin]

The screen on the 13" Pro is way better and has far more consistent viewing angles, even side to side.

The Air's screen is its weakest aspect, and when the Retina MBP 13 comes out, the distinction will be even more pronounced.

 

[Kafka]

Since you had a 11" MBA, you will actually have a bit more room vertically which is more useful IMHO. Colors will be better, but fonts will be blocky though.

 

[Danindub]

Since you had a 11" MBA, you will actually have a bit more room vertically which is more useful IMHO. Colors will be better, but fonts will be blocky though.

It's 13" Air that I have now.

 

[gbit]

1280x800
my cellphone has more

 

[Dark Void]

1280x800 is fine, really. I personally like it. Perhaps you could go to an Apple Store and look at a 13'' model in person to get a feel for it if that is possible.

 

[0x000000]

I think it's weird switch and a bad decision, but I guess it's a matter of personal taste. The 13" MBP is clunky, significantly heavier, has smaller screen estate and pixel density and the speed gains should be only very minor or even negative, due to the lack of an SSD:

When considering how much of a step forward it was to switch from physical hard drives to an SSD, I cannot imagine to ever go back and I have yet to meet anyone who thinks differently.

I'm not sure about the color gamut. It certainly isn't necessary, unless you work in some kind of weird job that requires it, though I cannot imagine any. It may be your personal kind of thing, but the price paid for a somewhat better, somewhat worse screen is, at least for me, way too high.

 

[afinch1992]

I think it's weird switch and a bad decision, but I guess it's a matter of personal taste. The 13" MBP is clunky, significantly heavier, has smaller screen estate and pixel density and the speed gains should be only very minor or even negative, due to the lack of an SSD:

When considering how much of a step forward it was to switch from physical hard drives to an SSD, I cannot imagine to ever go back and I have yet to meet anyone who thinks differently.

I'm not sure about the color gamut. It certainly isn't necessary, unless you work in some kind of weird job that requires it, though I cannot imagine any. It may be your personal kind of thing, but the price paid for a somewhat better, somewhat worse screen is, at least for me, way too high.

you gain usb 3.0 and the ability to upgrade the ram to your hearts content. sounds pretty fair to me.

dont get me wrong, I would honestly get an upgraded MBA 13" over a MBP 13" if i could, but the price and features of the MBP has more bang for the buck

 

[Naimfan]

I think it's weird switch and a bad decision, but I guess it's a matter of personal taste. The 13" MBP is clunky, significantly heavier, has smaller screen estate and pixel density and the speed gains should be only very minor or even negative, due to the lack of an SSD:

When considering how much of a step forward it was to switch from physical hard drives to an SSD, I cannot imagine to ever go back and I have yet to meet anyone who thinks differently.

I'm not sure about the color gamut. It certainly isn't necessary, unless you work in some kind of weird job that requires it, though I cannot imagine any. It may be your personal kind of thing, but the price paid for a somewhat better, somewhat worse screen is, at least for me, way too high.

On the other hand, the Pro is noticeably faster, RAM and storage can be expanded, comes with built-in Ethernet (mandatory where security is required, as here where I work), optical drive, etc., and doesn't feel like it's going to break when you type on it. If anyone claims the weight difference matters, they need a gym, not a different laptop. Good luck upgrading your Air when OS 10.9 comes out and needs 8 GB to run tolerably.

Color accuracy is far superior on the Pro - and that's a reason the Pro is easier to work on for extended periods. The Air's screen, in comparison, is washed out, making it harder to look at for extended periods.

The Air requires you to pay far more to get . . . less.

Plus, the Pro has the best form factor of any laptop ever - it's simply perfect.

 

[Orlandoech]

Switch and since it has 10gb ram which will be plenty fr awhile, add an SSD. Samsung 830.

 

[skaertus]

The 13" MacBook Air offers 26.5% more screen real estate than the 13" MacBook Pro. I personally have a 13" MacBook with a 1280x800 resolution and I wish every day I had more screen. I just can't use two applications side-by-side because they won't fit the screen. Just one application at a time. And some applications just feel too cramped in such a small resolution.

In addition, I feel very uncomfortable with the blurryness of the text on screen - Quartz text rendering technology would require a much higher resolution to be crisp. And I can actually see the pixels on the screen, and that bothers me a lot.

The MacBook Pro has other disadvantages. It weighs more than the MacBook Air, and that may be an issue if you carry it around. And it comes with a slow 5400-RPM HD, which is its bottleneck. It takes forever to do anything that requires disk reading/writing. The SSD that comes with the Air is definitely much faster.

The current 13" MacBook Pro is definitely not worth the price Apple is charging. Hardware-wise, you could buy the very same laptop, without the Apple logo, for much less.

In addition, you should consider that the current 13" MacBook Pro form factor is in the end of its life. It was last revamped in late 2008, when it was just mind-blowing. Now the design is already feeling a little dated, especially when compared to the MacBook Air and to some offerings by other companies. Everything suggests that Apple will soon release a brand-new thinner and lighter 13" MacBook Pro with a retina display that will replace the current 13" MacBook Pro.