Why Buy $1299 MB vs $1299 MBP?

[coolbreeze2]

I know I'm probably late to the party on this discussion but the $150 gift card Black Friday offer has me thinking about buying the lowest spec Apple notebook. For the price of my iPhone X, I could have a new notebook. The lowest spec MacBook Pro (MBP) is $1299. The lowest spec MacBook (MB) is $1299. With specs on a MBP being far better than MB, why would I buy a MB?

 

[Miltz]

Honestly, portability and size are really the main Benefits. I got one for my sister last year she she loves it and I love using it as well. If you use a lot of accessories then you might want to go with the pro model since it has more than 1 USB port

 

[canuckRus]

I know I'm probably late to the party on this discussion but the $150 gift card Black Friday offer has me thinking about buying the lowest spec Apple notebook. For the price of my iPhone X, I could have a new notebook. The lowest spec MacBook Pro (MBP) is $1299. The lowest spec MacBook (MB) is $1299. With specs on a MBP being far better than MB, why would I buy a MB?

Miltz nailed it. Are weight & size meaningful to you? MB is the sweet spot for me.

 

[lambertjohn]

I know I'm probably late to the party on this discussion but the $150 gift card Black Friday offer has me thinking about buying the lowest spec Apple notebook. For the price of my iPhone X, I could have a new notebook. The lowest spec MacBook Pro (MBP) is $1299. The lowest spec MacBook (MB) is $1299. With specs on a MBP being far better than MB, why would I buy a MB?

Why do that when you can buy the lowest spec MBP from Apple's refurb website for $1099. That's $200 cash in your pocket over walking into an Apple store and buying a brand new one. Sure they'll give you a $150 gift card, but it's an Apple gift card that you can only use in an Apple store. Can't buy beer with it or anything else that's not Apple. Just get a refurb and do whatever you want with the $200 you save!! Refurbs are every bit as "brand new" as a brand new one. And they come with the exact same warranty. As for deciding between the MB or MBP, if it was me, I would stick with the MBP. More ports, bigger screen, better CPU, just as portable...unless of course, you're that guy on the beach who gets sand kicked in his face. Then I'd probably just carry around a calculator.

 

[coolbreeze2]

Why do that when you can buy the lowest spec MBP from Apple's refurb website for $1099. That's $200 cash in your pocket over walking into an Apple store and buying a brand new one. Sure they'll give you a $150 gift card, but it's an Apple gift card that you can only use in an Apple store. Can't buy beer with it or anything else that's not Apple. Just get a refurb and do whatever you want with the $200 you save!! Refurbs are every bit as "brand new" as a brand new one. And they come with the exact same warranty. As for deciding between the MB or MBP, if it was me, I would stick with the MBP. More ports, bigger screen, better CPU, just as portable...unless of course, you're that guy on the beach who gets sand kicked in his face. Then I'd probably just carry around a calculator.

You are too funny!!

Thanks everyone for all the responses. Now I’ve got to hurry and decide what to do.

 

[ZapNZs]

The main appeal of the retina MacBook over the MacBook Pro would be the form factor (plus the larger base SSD as IMO 128 GB on the base MBP is just plain silly). You can also get it in gold, which I like more than the two options for the MBP as it's a little more unusual. I liked the form factor enough to go from a nTB to a rMB, and I do not regret that decision at all for a system that is my main portable. However, I would not personally do this if it were to be my only Mac because A) it lacks a fan & a CPU suited for sustained heavier processing, B) it uses legacy USB, and C) it only has one USB port. As it appears you have a lot of Macs, the rMB may be a nice choice for an ultraportable.