Which one should I get?

[Splazzatch]

Hey everyone, I have searched and searched and I still can't make a decision.

I am going to buy a new MBP this week. Should I order the retina or not?

My budget does not allow for a 2.6 Retina.

So do I buy the 2.3 Retina or the 2.6 non-retina?

My biggest concern is the hard drive space? the 2.3 only allows for 256gb where I can get the 2.6 up to 1TB? Yet, the 2.3 allows for 16gb of Ram where the 2.6 only has 8gb.

I use my computer for blogging/podcasting and a lot of word processing. Occasionally I design some flyers. I also use it with a digital projector and giving presentations.

Also, I store a lot of movies (currently at 90gb mostly those free digital copies that come from buying dvd/blu-rays) and music (34gb) and a lot of my family pictures (22gb)

I want to future proof as much as possible. I know I can keep some of the movies and music in the cloud I just haven't deleted them from my current hard drive.

thoughts?

----------

Also, I should add that I am updating from my mid-2009 MBP 2.53 Core 2 Duo with 256Gb hard drive and 8gb of ram.

 

[01mggt]

Do you NEED all the music, photos and videos with you at all times? Would you be able to deal with them being on an external drive? If so Retina all the way. You can get a slightly faster CPU with your budget and a classic mbp. But the HDD vs SSD will be a WAY larger difference in speed than 300mhz will ever be

 

[Slivortal]

Hey everyone, I have searched and searched and I still can't make a decision.

I am going to buy a new MBP this week. Should I order the retina or not?

My budget does not allow for a 2.6 Retina.

So do I buy the 2.3 Retina or the 2.6 non-retina?

My biggest concern is the hard drive space? the 2.3 only allows for 256gb where I can get the 2.6 up to 1TB? Yet, the 2.3 allows for 16gb of Ram where the 2.6 only has 8gb.

I use my computer for blogging/podcasting and a lot of word processing. Occasionally I design some flyers. I also use it with a digital projector and giving presentations.

Also, I store a lot of movies (currently at 90gb mostly those free digital copies that come from buying dvd/blu-rays) and music (34gb) and a lot of my family pictures (22gb)

I want to future proof as much as possible. I know I can keep some of the movies and music in the cloud I just haven't deleted them from my current hard drive.

thoughts?

----------

Also, I should add that I am updating from my mid-2009 MBP 2.53 Core 2 Duo with 256Gb hard drive and 8gb of ram.

Do you really need a full terabyte of on-board storage? External hard drives are relatively cheap, and 256GB of onboard storage is quite a bit (in my opinion).

I currently run off a similar machine as you - 13" and half the RAM (same year, same processor, same hard drive). I know that I'm probably going for the MBPR with 16GB of RAM and SSD so I can actually run my virtual machines without slowing down my computer excessively.

2.3 vs 2.6 GHz barely matters even with processor-intense applications, so don't let that slow you down.

I don't expect to need more than a 2.3 i7 QC with 16GB RAM and an SSD anytime soon, but the thing with tech is that you can never truly future-proof. Tech increases at an exponential rate.

 

[fewture]

You can always get an external hard drive as big as you want for your stuff.

The SSD in the Retina is super fast and that alone will make a big difference to your computer experience.

You also get the Retina screen which looks beautiful and its impossible to go back once you start using it.

2.3 Retina is the better choice

 

[Splazzatch]

Both of you, thank you for the input. I am leaning towards the 2.3 retina. I do have a 500gb external that I use as a complete back up of my hard drive and I could continue to use it. Will the SSD really make that much of a difference on speed instead of the faster processor?

Silvortal: I bought mine with half the ram but about a year ago there was an amazing deal on 8gb on Amazon so I doubled it.

 

[TLewis]

BSilvortal: I bought mine with half the ram but about a year ago there was an amazing deal on 8gb on Amazon so I doubled it.

Also note that, unlike the cMBP, the retina MBP is pretty much NOT upgradeable. You cannot upgrade the memory. The SSD is about the only thing that can be upgraded, but it's going to be hideously expensive, having a proprietary form-factor. Even the battery is NOT user-replaceable. In the US, fixing the battery supposedly costs $199, with the unit being returned to Apple for the replacement.

 

[zerotiu]

Hey everyone, I have searched and searched and I still can't make a decision.

I am going to buy a new MBP this week. Should I order the retina or not?

My budget does not allow for a 2.6 Retina.

So do I buy the 2.3 Retina or the 2.6 non-retina?

My biggest concern is the hard drive space? the 2.3 only allows for 256gb where I can get the 2.6 up to 1TB? Yet, the 2.3 allows for 16gb of Ram where the 2.6 only has 8gb.

I use my computer for blogging/podcasting and a lot of word processing. Occasionally I design some flyers. I also use it with a digital projector and giving presentations.

Also, I store a lot of movies (currently at 90gb mostly those free digital copies that come from buying dvd/blu-rays) and music (34gb) and a lot of my family pictures (22gb)

I want to future proof as much as possible. I know I can keep some of the movies and music in the cloud I just haven't deleted them from my current hard drive.

thoughts?

----------

Also, I should add that I am updating from my mid-2009 MBP 2.53 Core 2 Duo with 256Gb hard drive and 8gb of ram.

It seems that you need.. uhm..EVERYTHING but limited budget. It is better for you to choose MBP because according to your description, you don't need any thin form and retina screen . Especially if you need to use projector.

If you get MBP, you can use the spare money to buy ssd and replace the dvd-rom if you don't need that.

 

[sofianito]

I doubt there is just a slight difference between 2.3 and 2.6Ghz. Go to your local Apple store, download geekbench and check it out by yourself. Unfortunately, the free version doesn't allow you to do a 64-bit benchmark.

The cMBP handles perfectly 16gb of RAM. So, if you are tight on budget, you can smoothly upgrade it later whenever your economy allows you. Also, you can get an optibay, which will allow you to replace the superdrive and have a second hdd or ssd. Getting an aftermarket SSD gives you the freedom to choose the right capacity, model, and price.

The rMBP is slightly lighter than cMBP, but if you add an external driver, the overall weight will be almost the same...

Also, be aware that rMBP has no security lock, which is a serious issue for people who use it in public places. You can get easily paranoid because of such important feature missed by Apple. Beauty and security should not be mutually exclusive

Knowing all pros and cons, if you are keen to get an rMBP, do yourself a favor: Patience is wise, so wait until ML is released to be sure that all actual retina issues are fixed. Be nice with yourself: No need to get stressed during those 2 weeks of trial. I see a lot of people posting daily asking deseperately whether they should keep or not their rMBP...