Thinking of upgrading. Need help.

Hi pcgolfer85, could you first begin by listing your needs/uses for a new computer?

The Air is dated, but I think that it is still a good laptop (updates coming soon, hopefully). Do you need something as portable as the Air or are you okay with another MacBook Pro?

 

If you are ok with 13" then get the 2.4 13" MBP.
Airs might get a refresh soon, but their not that powerful, and the SSD apple throws in there is slow. Go with the low end 13" and get a big SSD. Also grab a wireless NAS drive or a Firewire external.

You could get an optical drive adapter and swap it for a HDD also.

The new 15" MBPs are good, you would also be fine with last months 15". depends on the price.

 

If you're at all interested in gaming then consider a notebook with a better graphics chip. Does it have to be from Apple? Many other manufacturers will sell you a much more powerful system for far less than Apple asks for the 13" MacBook Pro.

 

I just upgraded to the new 15" MBP from the same model you currently have. I am so happy with it. The footprint is actually slightly larger, and I think it's barely thinner. I can't tell the difference in the weights. But it's all about those curved edges. The overall feel is fantastically slim.

Everything is nicely faster. I have a 60GB iPhoto library, with 50k photos. Scrolling through them vertically, or horizontally (in an event) is so smooth. And Faces and Places are several times faster to access. Also much better lighting adjustments with the iSight.

Battery life is pretty impressive. With hefty synching to my Atv and Time Capsule, I'm still getting 4 hours easy.

I play WoW and my early '08 was so hot, I had SMC running full out plus a fan base underneath. This one, I can just keep on my lap. No more scorched thighs, hurray! The whole feel is more lap friendly, including the mag plug.

It's not a MBA, but the difference just got a whole lot less. Adding the spec difference, I wouldn't consider the Air anymore.

Just to seem a bit more fair and balanced, let's look for negatives. I'm not a fan of the glossy screen. In every environment I'm in, the glare or reflection is so noticeable and usually very distracting. I'd have to say it knocks a couple points off the experience. 2 thumbs down on that one. Also pretty neutral on the buttonless trackpad. Still adjusting and not seeing an upside. It's hinged at the top so you're still aiming for clicking towards the bottom. Not what I expected and not 'clickable anywhere'. Softer touch to the keyboard though, which I like. Oh, and the superdrive is as loud as ever.

Overall a solid B+. The glossy screen really hurt.

 

Yeah, but then he is stuck with a windows based POS.

13" pro is a great computer.

 

I don't think the previous 13" MBP had any problems running sims 3 (check youtube?), and the newest one is a definite upgrade in the graphics card department. You'll be fine!

Also, to the guy talking about WoW gameplay, did you ever dust out your fan vents? Not talking from experience or anything, just an educated guess that it might have helped.