to retina or not to retina

[Forensickle]

So... I am due for an upgrade, and the retina thing has made the choice so much harder

Basicly for me it boils down to.
2.6ghz mbp with upgraded screen
Or
2.3ghz retina

I dont use an odd, i do carry often, but other than minor photoshop for personal use i dont ise any graphic programs beyond some gaming.
I also dislike 13inch screens so an air has never been a option.
I am used to larger hdd size, and hate external drives for laptops... My fater says my soze obsession with hdds is just a pc mentality hangover.

My current macbook is presently non functioning, so looking to buy immediately.

But i dont have an iphone or ipad ao have never seen a retina screen, and tje retina pros wont hit apple stores fir 3 more weeks, so i cant even compare in store.

Halp?
I am almost ready to buy a $200 notebook to avoid making a decision

 

[Panini]

Well, two things.

If you're buying an "old" macbook pro, then don't go for the upgraded screen, the difference is minimal at best.

Second, you have to also realise that the retina MBP uses an SSD instead of a hard disk, which means faster I/O, faster boot-up, and less energy used (though the retina display pretty much sucks up all that's left over).

In my opinion, the main reason the old MBP is still on the market is because a lot of people are not yet ready to move away from optical disks and some people still use them regularly. If you are not planning on upgrading after purchase, the RMBP is actually cheaper than the regular one since the SSD alone costs more than the difference between the two (i.e if you put a 256/512GB SSD into the old MBP it would cost more than the RMBP).

If I were you, I would go with the RMBP since it will remain a high end laptop for another two years and a decent midrange one for five to six years.