Your thoughts? (Yes, another "what should I buy" question.)

[Beachguy]

I have an April 2010 Mackbook Pro. Love it, but at times I do bog the machine down a bit. 8 gigs o'ram, so I can't expand that, and I am not really ripped up with the idea of taking out the ODD and putting in a SSD even though I have not once used the ODD.

So, these are the options I'm considering, was looking for positive feedback on the options (in other words, I'm not looking for a discussion of why this option is lousy and you should only get this other one.) I rarely spend time with my dual core 2.53Ghz I-5 first gen processor doing a lot of heavy lifting other than when I start Chrome and it has a bunch of tabs to grab, or if I have a VM running. My performance issue is pretty much only memory related. Well, also my ego is sensitive being 3 releases back. LOL

Option 1: Top of the line MBA - when in my last job, I had an October 2011 top of the line MBS with 4GB and the 256 SSD and the speed of the SSD often made it feel like it had a lot more memory than it did. I figure 8GB of RAM should be just fine, and I can offload some of the lost storage to one of my networked drives.

Option 2: New base MBP 15, kick the memory up (is it possible to kick the new ones to 16GB with 2 8GB aftermarket parts?) and grab the faster 750GB 7200 rpm drive with the higher resolution screen.

Option 3: Grab a refurb October 2011 MBP 15 with similar specs.

Option 4: Gran a refurb October 2011 MBP 17 with similar specs (yes, I know, discontinued model, etc. Not looking for a rehash of the viability, weight difference, etc.)

This would be a machine I use at home. I don't watch a lot of video on my MBP but the larger screen is good since I am older and diabetic, which means sometimes it isn't easy to read.

I am not a gamer at all. I'll repurpose my older MBP to bring to work (I work as a consultant and carry a personal system with me.) Also, I am not concerned about resale. I have never sold any of my computers, which means I have way too many (don't ask- I'll simply say a friend used to refer to my living room as "the data center.")

No matter which of these I look at, they all come up short in one way or another such that they really all balance out. They're also pretty much the same price when configured, so any thoughts are welcome.

Like I said, I'm looking for positive reasons to buy a device, not a situation of eliminating by negatives overall.

Thanks, gang.

 

[MDFang]

First of all, tell your ego to piss off. If you're getting a new computer because yours is "old" instead of it being "old, and it's slowing down and/or doesn't suit my current/future needs anymore" then you're doing it pretty darn wrong. I'm typing this from my only computer: an early-2006 base-line MacMini. I'll need better than that when college starts (ie it's starting to get hella slow, and also is not a laptop), so I can justify purchasing a really expensive computer.

*ahem* Moving on.

Apologies in advance, but one can not pick a single good one out of your options without comparing them, maybe weighing up their negatives and positives, and getting a good look at what you really need.

What do you think you may be needing it for? Will you be doing any graphical development or video editing? You often-times need at least a bit of a powerhouse for that, so that's where the MBP comes in.
Do you just "don't do anything special" with it, and never plan to? Are you sure? Then a MBA might be enough. The SSD definitely helps with making everything feel a lot snappier, it speeds up quite a lot of processes (due to way faster read/write speeds).

From the sound of it, you're just an average user that doesn't really need much. And especially since it's a "want" instead of a "need" situation, I'd suggest the MBA, really. Don't think you'll need more than the high-end has to offer.

Peace out, and try to refrain from spending money just so you have the latest gear or your ego gains a boost or something. ;D
~ Fang

 

[skywalkerr69]

You are paying A LOT of money for just a screen. Wait till next year when the prices of these things come down. It's not a necessity now. I think a 2011 MBP would be ideal for anyone. IMO of course.

 

[Beachguy]

The "need" is a simple "I want it." Don't do video editing, but I do work remotely sometimes (which is why the VMs come into play so my VPN doesn't lock down the computer completely.) No graphical development; my work is developing on larger systems, not Macs or PCs.

I like to stay current, but last year when my employers changed the IT landscape, the dumped the Lenovo ThinkPads and Windows, and went with Macs. I bought a Mini just to make sure I was prepared when we switched. I bought the Macbook Pro for portability, and was hooked. But... I am also a hardware junkie, to a degree.

Sky- notice I did NOT list the Retina machine. It is SO close, but I can't find the one thing to push me over the top on it. Having the iPad ("3") and seeing how some apps looked that weren't ready for retina has me a little leery of the retina on the MBP at THIS time.

I am leaning toward the MBA, but I expansion concerns me. Or... the MBP except for that HDD versus SSD thing, but I like going to 16GB on it. Between that and a faster HDD I would probably be fine since I'm used to HDD anyway. I don't know that the new MBP will really be noticeably faster than a refurb from October, though. And I like the 17 inch screen, but haven't ever seen one so I'm not sure about the refurb on that one.

It's scratching an itch, mainly, but I want to buy something nice. Not looking to impress others, just me, in the sense that I like having responsive hardware.

 

[Interstella5555]

The "need" is a simple "I want it." Don't do video editing, but I do work remotely sometimes (which is why the VMs come into play so my VPN doesn't lock down the computer completely.) No graphical development; my work is developing on larger systems, not Macs or PCs.

I like to stay current, but last year when my employers changed the IT landscape, the dumped the Lenovo ThinkPads and Windows, and went with Macs. I bought a Mini just to make sure I was prepared when we switched. I bought the Macbook Pro for portability, and was hooked. But... I am also a hardware junkie, to a degree.

Sky- notice I did NOT list the Retina machine. It is SO close, but I can't find the one thing to push me over the top on it. Having the iPad ("3") and seeing how some apps looked that weren't ready for retina has me a little leery of the retina on the MBP at THIS time.

I am leaning toward the MBA, but I expansion concerns me. Or... the MBP except for that HDD versus SSD thing, but I like going to 16GB on it. Between that and a faster HDD I would probably be fine since I'm used to HDD anyway. I don't know that the new MBP will really be noticeably faster than a refurb from October, though. And I like the 17 inch screen, but haven't ever seen one so I'm not sure about the refurb on that one.

It's scratching an itch, mainly, but I want to buy something nice. Not looking to impress others, just me, in the sense that I like having responsive hardware.

Considering my Rev. 1.1 MBP was still "responsive hardware" in 2011, I'm not sure what to tell you.

 

[Beachguy]

Considering my Rev. 1.1 MBP was still "responsive hardware" in 2011, I'm not sure what to tell you.

LOL Yeah, I know what you mean. That's why I finally just posted.

I'll probably just close my eyes and throw a dart. It probably won't hit the wall where I put the target, but what the heck?!