Hi, i am looking to get a new laptop in the early part fo the year and have settled on two options: the 13-inch Macbook Air with the 128GB SSD or the 13-inch base Macbook Pro.
I will be using the laptop as my primary computer, as well as for some iOS development. I will also be dual booting the laptop with Windows 7 using Bootcamp so that I can use Visual Studio, as I also develop Windows Phone 7 apps.
So the real question is, shoul i opt for the 13 unch Macbook Air witht her 128GB SSD or the 13-inch Macbook Pro. My only concern with the Macbook Air is that 128GB will maybe not be enough space. I will be using teh new laptop to manage my music, though I will be storing my iTunes libarary on a 500GB portable HDD. Can anyone offer any advice?
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Should I Get the 13-inch Macbook Air or the 13-inch Macbook Pro?
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I am also looking at these two computers to replace and aging Macbook. I put an 120 GB SSD in it to squeeze a little more life out of it and it really made a difference in speed. I dual boot OS X and Windows 7 but the 120 GB SSD is constantly low on disk space. I try to keep 10-15% of each OS partition free.
Considering that portability isn't your greatest concern, I'd get the MBP. You can always replace the HD with and SSD and swap out the DVD drive with the hard disk you replaced and then you wouldn't have to have the external HD for your music.
Also, the CPU specs are a little more robust in the MBP vs MBA.
Considering that portability isn't your greatest concern, I'd get the MBP. You can always replace the HD with and SSD and swap out the DVD drive with the hard disk you replaced and then you wouldn't have to have the external HD for your music.
Also, the CPU specs are a little more robust in the MBP vs MBA.
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I first bought a MBA but took it back for the Pro. I liked the option to upgrade the memory and hard drive if I needed it. It is a lot heavier, but compared to most laptops with this power & storage, its right in there.
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How portable do you need the laptop to be? I bought the Air, but I wanted it for its portability. If you don't care about the weight and you think you need the extra horsepower, then the Pro might be a better option.
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For me, portability will not be a deal sealer. The laptop will be staying in my appartment all day, and will be mainly used at my desk, so perhaps then the Pro would be the better option...
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I have this setup. (MBA 13/128gb and 500gb HD) And I'm a Java developer. For developing, SSDs are really fast. Even if youre not concerned by portability. The day you will go somewhere with your MBA, your back will thank you :)
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I agree with chrisbow the Pro is on it's way out. Get the Air, but I'd go whole hog and get 256GB SSD with the i7 Proc. then your future-proof for a long time. Think about the SD slot... it's so easy to add 32 or 64 more GB. If your carrying a 500GB drive anyway your music & more is right there & the Air will greatly lighten your load. I have the i7 Air and you just can't slow this thing down running EVERYTHING! I use a 16GB SD card for a scratchpad memory to minimize needless writes to the SSD. I have 95GB of music on my SSD and lots of docs & apps with plenty of room to spare.
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without question - the 13" Macbook Air, that "Pro" form factor is dead, you're throwing away money, taste an Air and you see how redundant those heavy bricks are, trust me, if you want portability get an Air if you want something at home get an iMac, if you'd like back pain get a 13-17" Macbook Pro Brick. For resale value and common sense get an Air it's the future and it's here man.
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When i was getting my first macbook in mid 2011 these were the two i was looking at id say the macbook pro because the pro outweigh the cons... no pun intended, but storage wise it depends if you just want speed because then the ssd in the MBA is much faster, but if you plan on having lots of stuff on it then the MBP may be good, Good Luck! PS Sorry for bad grammar.
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The Pro is more versatile, just a tiny bit heavier but has Ethernet and a DVD drive
solids performance, bigger HD
if you need it to develop you'd better go with the Pro
Do check PhoneGAP though if you're doing multiple mobile platforms dev work, it's helpfull
solids performance, bigger HD
if you need it to develop you'd better go with the Pro
Do check PhoneGAP though if you're doing multiple mobile platforms dev work, it's helpfull
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