What to buy, What to buy?

[MarkieMark92]

I can't decide whether to get the Macbook Air 2013 with a i7 processor or i5 processor, and can't decide if to get the 512GB SSD or 256GB SSD? I have already decided about getting 8GB of RAM over 4GB of RAM. I will mostly be doing writing on it but I also want it to be slightly 'future proof ish' and also as I will be using it for accountancy in the future I want it for that too. I also want it for travelling so it would need a good battery life. Also what case does everyone recommend to protect it? Many Thanks in advance

 

[Boyd01]

I had a 2011 13" i5/4gb/256gb MBA and upgraded to a 2013 11" i7/8gb/512gb MBA. Very happy with the new machine. I was running out of space with the 256gb SSD, but I sometimes edit video and those files are huge. But I like to keep as much as possible on the internal disk and only use external drives for backup and archives.

However, what you describe doesn't sound like you really need a fast CPU, a lot of RAM or a big SSD. If budget is important, I'll bet the i5/4gb/256gb model would be more than adequate (personally I am running powerful software like final cut pro, logic pro, filemaker pro, vectorworks, etc). Future proofing always seemed like a questionable concept to me. A few years from now, you are just going to have an old computer that is slower and has less memory/disk than the new models anyway. I would only buy what you need now, or what you will need during the next year or two if you plan to expand into more powerful software.

Of course, if you can afford it, the i7/8gb/512gb is very nice and the extra speed, RAM and storage is certainly not a bad thing.

 

[borostef]

It doesn't sound like you need a lot of computing power, but still, if you can afford it I would go for the higher spec machine... You never know when you might need a bit more power and space...

 

[Dweez]

When I (recently) bought my 2013 MBA I opted for the loaded up i7 model, simply because I run a VM or 2 from time to time & wanted as much internal storage as possible. That and I figured that if I was making the investment I may as well max it out.

A simple rule on storage: the more you have, the more data you'll store.

 

[MacAndMic]

Your needs say base model so no matter what machine you get, I think you'll be happy. Let your budget decide how much "future-proofing" you want. I personally would lean towards HD space over processor speed but if you can afford both, enjoy!

 

[Mrbobb]

What's there to decide. You got the dough, DO IT.

 

[plasticparadox]

If you go with the i7 processor, you will take a hit in battery life.

 

[Jefe's MacAir]

If you go with the i7 processor, you will take a hit in battery life.

True. But not too drastically. I'm getting 12+ hours every day.

If speed is a higher priority than battery go i7.
If battery is a huge concern than go i5.
Definitely go 8GB and at least 256. 512 will only hurt the wallet.