It takes a little getting used to, like a month or so, but ultimately it's a much better design. Best keyboard I've ever used. My Surface Book has the old style of keyboards the current MacBook Pros have, and it's a serious downgrade IMO.
Questions for MacBook owners - Should I get an Air or Pro?
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The Albatross
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...? It's like 12 real hours. The MacBook Air routinely has the best or near the best performing battery of any major laptop. Actually this rates it at 14 hours, with only 2 laptops doing better (not counting the tablet or Chromebook on this list)
Even my 2012 MBA which was projected at 9 hours still holds onto a solid 6 using Chrome. It annoys me that OS X warns me about Chrome's battery sipping, but I'd imagine if I switched to Safari I'd get back up near 7 or 8 hours on a 3+ year old laptop.
LordOfChaos
Member
Terrible in that they still have key travel?
They're more wobbly than the new Macbook, but I personally find my rMBP to have the absolute minimum amount of key travel I want. A bit of wobble is worth that. If you type all day the nanometers of 2015 Macbook key travel may be a bother.
That's exactly that I thought until I spent a month with the rMacbook. And I've heard that from a lot of owners. You get used to it and it really grows on you.. in a YMMV way of course.
Yeah, mine's a 2012, too, and it still gets about 7 hours -- after God knows how many cycles over the years.
neurosyphilis
Definitely not an STD, as I'm a pure.
The Air is outdated. The screen is horrible. Get the MBP with that retina display. If the Air had a Retina display it would be perfect. I think Apple is most likely discontinuing the Air lineup anyways.
Edit- Also the new MacBook Pro 13" are really thin and light. And aren't much heavier than the Air.
Edit- Also the new MacBook Pro 13" are really thin and light. And aren't much heavier than the Air.
Resident_UA
Member
Air is good, bit that display is just horrendous... I would never get pro though. At that point I would be looking at Windows laptops so I can do light gaming.
neurosyphilis
Definitely not an STD, as I'm a pure.
I got my 2015 MacBook Pro 13-inch Retina back in August. It's a great machine and I love it. It's a beast. However I will probably be selling it at the end of the year and getting the new 2016 MacBook Pro 15" redesign. Or maybe a 5K 27" iMac, I saw that thing in the Apple store and holy shit is that screen beautiful and huge. But I'm a student so I will most likely just get the MacBook so I can haul it from school and back. We'll see though. I'm excited to see what Apple has in store, I hope it comes in Space Gray.
ghostofsparta
Member
I'll never understand people spending 1000+ on a Facebook/Neogaf machine.
With that said, I have an Air mostly use it for web development and it works well for me. I have a MBPR for work and I honestly can't tell the difference between the screens unless I stand them side by side or really concentrate of finding a difference. Completely not a deal for me.
With that said, I have an Air mostly use it for web development and it works well for me. I have a MBPR for work and I honestly can't tell the difference between the screens unless I stand them side by side or really concentrate of finding a difference. Completely not a deal for me.
The Artisan
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The Real Abed
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More likely the Air will be phased out as the MacBook gets more powerful. It's superior in many ways, but as soon as the inferior parts are up to speed, the Air's days are numbered.
If you ask me at least.
In the long-run, I think you're absolutely right. But this year? Probably not yet. The Air is still the best-selling model.
The Real Abed
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And it will be until the MacBook hits that sweet spot. I'm predicting it'll happen with the third revision. So basically mid-2017.
yeah, just because it's the best selling doesn't mean it's the best value.
it's simply the cheapest 13" macbook.
Bruce Springsteen
Member
I'd get a MacBook Pro if you could afford it, I assume you're going to keep it around for 4-5 years before seriously considering getting a new laptop so might as well get the most powerful thing you can afford
Canada Dry
Banned
Shit. I need to buy a new laptop in March, and was planning on getting an Air.
You really can't go wrong either way. I own a Macbook Pro 13" and got my gf the Macbook Air 13".
Here in my region the price difference isn't that high anymore with some deals on the Macbook Pro. The standard 8GB RAM will mean you are better of for future upgrades and the retina screen is nice.
If there is still a bigger price difference, the Macbook Air will be good enough for your profile of web surfing though and the smaller profile is good too.
In any way, the Macrumors guides say to wait with the purchase. But if you can't, don't worry too much. The upgrades won't be as cheap as the devices now because they are at the end of their life cycle.
Here in my region the price difference isn't that high anymore with some deals on the Macbook Pro. The standard 8GB RAM will mean you are better of for future upgrades and the retina screen is nice.
If there is still a bigger price difference, the Macbook Air will be good enough for your profile of web surfing though and the smaller profile is good too.
In any way, the Macrumors guides say to wait with the purchase. But if you can't, don't worry too much. The upgrades won't be as cheap as the devices now because they are at the end of their life cycle.
If you're using it for web surfing, a little office, iMessage and iTunes, it's the best value.
I don't think the problem with the MacBook is that it's underpowered or that it lacks ports. It's just too expensive. Get it under $1000 and then yeah, you no longer need the Air.
Dreadnought
Member
Don't get the Air the display is atrocious. Horrible viewing angles and low res. Go with the Pro
If you're gonna do a lot of reading, may as well get a 13" Pro. The Retina screen is perfect for text. The lowest end MacBook Pro is perfect for your needs (unless you plan on running some beastly games or apps on it) and is super portable too. Battery life is god like. I'm on the high end 15" MacBook Pro 2014 and I get around 4-5 hours doing Adobe Suite stuff!
Apple still do 1 computer with a built in disc drive - that's the 13" Macbook Pro (non retina).
It's pretty crazy because that machine is pretty much a 2012 model, I think they stock it still to cater to those that want a laptop, and still want a disc drive and firewire.
Its kinda cool actually, but no doubt it will be gone in the next refresh.
It's pretty crazy because that machine is pretty much a 2012 model, I think they stock it still to cater to those that want a laptop, and still want a disc drive and firewire.
Its kinda cool actually, but no doubt it will be gone in the next refresh.
You people are weird when you say the Air screen is terrible. Not every screen needs to be a Retina display. The Air 13" has a 1600x900 resolution and is more than adequate for the screen size. I have a 2012 MacBook Pro with a shitty 1280x800 screen res and not once do find it hard to look at.
That model is the only laptop now that Apple makes that has a user replaceable hard drive and RAM.
StopMakingSense
Member
It's a TN screen. It's pretty lousy. I ADORE my 11" MBA, and it is the best coding machine I have ever had by far, but anything design or photo-wise, even just proofing images, is pretty impossible on it, just for the problems with TN screens. (also the viewing angle issues with TN is less of an issue on the 11" than the 13" since it's smaller)
Zeyphersan
Banned
Wait for that relaunched MacBook Retina like I am. Skylake is going to be soooooooo good for that thing
The_Inquisitor
Member
Macbook Pro Retina 13". Love my 2014 model.
ShutterMunster
Junior Member
I certainly wouldn't buy an Air. I own a Mac Pro and a Retina MacBook. The retina MacBook is my go to device for 95% of tasks. The screen is lovely and it's stupidly light. I even use it to process images from my A7r II. I imagine it'll get updated with Skylake and TB3 around April/May so idk. But if it's between an Air and a Pro, get the Pro.
TwoDurans
"Never said I wasn't a hypocrite."
I have an Air (2013 version) and I'm lucky if I get 6 hours on a charge. That's with the keyboard lights off, the screen at half brightness, and using Safari instead of Chrome.
If you're gonna be gaming, get a Pro. You won't get anything done on an Air.
If you don't really care about that and gonna be browsing most of the time, get an Air.
The product cycle is around 250 days old or something, which means that a new refresh of the line is coming soon according to the average amount of time spent between refreshes.
The Real Abed
Perma-Junior
Except that with the Intel delays, the schedule has been changed a bit. So it could happen soon, or it might not happen for months. It used to be that the Pro was always November.
Usually you have to wait for rumor sites to start heating up. Has that happened recently? I haven't seen any news lately.
Sorry to bump an old thread but I had a question. Place near me is selling a new 2015 MacBook (8gb ram, 12in Retina display, 512gb HDD which I'm assuming is ssd) for $1100 and you get a free iPad mini with it. You guys think the deal is worth it? I'll be using it for school purposes so mainly Microsoft office stuff. The laptop I have now is an old Dell studio, i3, 4gig ram, 500 gig HDD. Still gets the job done more or less. Thank you! 
Glass Shark
Banned
Unless you absolutely positively care about weight and thinness above all else, get a Pro.
That's what I thought. I thought that maybe the iPad mini included in the deal might have made it worth it. Thank you!
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