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Worth it to wait for Haswell rMBP
- Thread starter applepie555
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The N-Standard is not sufficient for HD movie streams at the normal ranges you have within a house. 802.11ac promises both substantially improved bandwith and range. In my house, I cannot watch 1080p movies upstairs. A 12 hour battery life would be sufficient to use the system the entire working day without recharging, which seems to me like a very nice feature.
A feature not yet mentioned is the high performance PCIe SSD. For some applications this will result in very noticable improvements in performance.
I am waiting aswell for the haswell revision, been wanting to replace my 2009 MBP for a while, the problem is the machine still works nicely on mountain lion. So waiting is not an issue for me, id say wait but if you can save go for what you can get now.
If you've got a comp that's currently serving your needs adequately, wait. I always buy macs or tech in general within, at most, a couple of months of launch and subsequently feel satisfied and don't care a fig when the next version comes along. Buying one now, and seeing significantly better hardware at the same price appear within 3/4 months would really rankle.
None of this applies to "normal" people, but if you've a frequent forum goer, or have took the time to even ask the question....well, I think that means you're not in the "normal' category. Nor am I, in no sense do I mean to sound insulting
Myself, I've a 2012 maxed mac mini doing my donkey work, a gaming pc for,err, games, and a still excellent 2011 mba for mobile duties. However, when the right rMBP comes along that combines retina, battery life and a gpu that is, without reservation, more than up to the task, I'm all in. Looking forward to it immensely.
None of this applies to "normal" people, but if you've a frequent forum goer, or have took the time to even ask the question....well, I think that means you're not in the "normal' category. Nor am I, in no sense do I mean to sound insulting
Myself, I've a 2012 maxed mac mini doing my donkey work, a gaming pc for,err, games, and a still excellent 2011 mba for mobile duties. However, when the right rMBP comes along that combines retina, battery life and a gpu that is, without reservation, more than up to the task, I'm all in. Looking forward to it immensely.
I checked the david jones website but it seems that they don't have retina on sale? i could only get the 10% from the promo code
Decided to buy a 13" Retina, 2.5GHz i5, 512GB brand new for $1419 from Apple (friend is corp. employee at Apple and they have quarterly deals). This is a 30% discount. Returning my maxed-out Haswell Air for it; honestly, it's $450 cheaper, and it's so much faster. This is one instance where it doesn't bother me to buy a year-old system.
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I checked the david jones website but it seems that they don't have retina on sale? i could only get the 10% from the promo code
They sold out in 24hours, and won't restock until the sale ends.
I personally think that the only real benefit that will come to 15" Retina users will be marginally better battery life and perhaps a less issue prone machine, otherwise, I think the current 15" isn't a bad option.
If you were going to get a 13" Retina, things are a little more in favor of waiting, but if you have the luxury of waiting, why not?
If you were going to get a 13" Retina, things are a little more in favor of waiting, but if you have the luxury of waiting, why not?
Actually there is a major improvement that both rMBPs are likely to see, and the is the faster PCIe SSD that the new MBA has. If we're only a month (give or take) away from the rMBP being updated, unless your current system becomes unusable, it could be worth waiting.
On the rMBP, I think we'll see:
- A slight improvement in processing power.
- The faster PCIe SSD
- 802.11ac wireless
- Improved battery life. It won't be as dramatic as the MBA due to the power draw of the retina display, but every bit helps.
- Improved graphics.
You're right about the PCIe SSD, I totally forgot about that. That being said...
-Unless you're pushing your machine to its limits, the improvement in power will be immaterial. Even then...I'm not so sure it's worth it honestly.
-The PCIe SSD could be useful to certain professionals, yes, I agree.
-IMO, the real benefit of 802.11ac is if you do a lot of file sharing/manipulation on a wireless network at home, although even if you're doing nothing but 1080p streaming, you'll see some improvement.
-Yea, the battery life I agree on.
-The integrated graphics will be better, yea, but not really significant if you're on the 15" models to begin with, as your dedicated gpu will be doing the heavy lifting. The dedicated chipset will be better too (if they don't decide to toss it entirely), but again, unless you're one of those people who are already really pushing the '12 models, this isn't really that big of a deal considering the cost savings.
Ironing out the kinks in the hardware is more important than most of what you listed imo.
That's what I did too. As soon as WWDC was over, I just went right in for the rMBP. Will be here on Monday. Will be a VERY nice substantial speed boost over my 2.0mHz C2D MacBook.
I expect pretty much the same, but am not sure they will upgrade the discrete graphic card. But the integrated one will be an Intel 5000, so better than the previous model.
In terms of what most user will "see" in real life usage, I think the most noticeable improvement should be the battery life and possibly a bit more snappiness when surfing the web or using the OS on the integrated graphic card...
These buy now or should I wait questions are really dependent on the type of buyer you are. If your a type that buys and not always checking to see whats new coming, then buy now. The system youll buy today regardless of what comes out will serve you well for he next few years just fine.The trick is if you can wait since a new release is imminent, you can save decent money on the current model when the new tech info of an update is released. If your always checking and drives you nuts not have the latest and greatest, well that answers your own question of waiting.
One great thing about these computers is that most run and stay relevant for a decent amount of time. Im still using my 2010 mba just fine, but will upgrade to the newest 15 since then I have acquired my Ipad and it fills my portable needs just fine. It really does come down to your own need both tech and financial wise.
One great thing about these computers is that most run and stay relevant for a decent amount of time. Im still using my 2010 mba just fine, but will upgrade to the newest 15 since then I have acquired my Ipad and it fills my portable needs just fine. It really does come down to your own need both tech and financial wise.