MacBook Pro with Retina Display (Photo: Apple, Inc)
I have to admit I was tempted by the 15-inch Macbook Pro with retina display. Not only is it thinner and lighter than previous MacBook Pros, its screen is nothing less than stunning if you're looking at apps designed for its 5.1 million pixel screen. Some reviewers have said that after looking at this screen, their other laptops -- including other Macs -- looked downright fuzzy. I wouldn't go that far, but I was impressed. It's a very nice screen.
I also like that Apple has packed quite a bit of power into a laptop that weighs 4.46 pounds and is only .71 inches thick. The solid state drive (starting at 256 GB) not only makes the Pro lighter but also faster because programs and data load more quickly from drives with no moving parts. And with a 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor and 8 GB of RAM even the "entry level" model is fast and powerful.
Still too heavy
But it's also expensive and, compared to the two new MacBook Air models, it's too heavy for carrying around all day. At $2,199 for the starting model, it could put a strain on my pocketbook, but the strain that I was more worried about is on my back. I admit that a 4.5-pound laptop as powerful as this is nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, it's a pretty impressive feat. But as someone who often carries around a laptop for hours at a time at trade shows, weight matters a great deal to me, which is why I wound up buying a MacBook Air instead. Compared to the Pro with Retina display, I saved 1.5 pounds and $1,000 (actually more when you count sales tax).
This is actually my second MacBook Air. Last year I bought the second generation 11-inch Air, which I grew to love although I found myself squinting at the small screen. I learned to live with the small screen and become very familiar with the Command + key combination that lets you increase the size of text and graphics at the expense of how much you can see at any one time.
Eyes vs. Back
I skipped the third generation that was introduced last June but when it came time to decide on a new Mac notebook, I decided to give my eyes a break at the expense of a small extra strain on my back. The 11-inch Air weighs 2.38 pounds and the 13-inch 2.96. While that extra 9.28 ounces are noticeable, they're acceptable relative to the extra screen real estate. Still, I have to admit that there is something even more personal about a personal computer that's really small, so I wouldn't blame anyone for going with the 11-inch. I got the low-end model with 4 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage because that suited me well enough on the 11-inch I had, especially now that I can store data in the cloud.
My other machines run Windows
Lest you think I'm a Mac bigot , please know that my desktop computer -- the one that I use most of the time -- runs Windows 7. I also have a Lenovo ultrabook that I like, though I must say I prefer the MacBook mostly because of its superior track pad that is smoother than any Windows trackpad I've tried. And I'm now testing out machines that run the preview version of Windows 8 and, so far, I'm pretty impressed.
Still, when it came time to plop down money for a machine to carry on business trips, I went with one that is light, thin, attractive yet still pretty fast and powerful. If only someone could say that about me.
This article first appeared on Forbes.com
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Who knows -- maybe someday all our signs, magazines and billboards will be 5.1 million pixel retina displays? :)
Given all the criticism, I think I will go to the Apple store and mark this thing for next Christmas. You know... that's when I tend to give myself a treat.
:-)
But in the end, tt all depends on your need I guess. Larry seems to be much more concerned about the weight of his laptop - no surprises he went for the Air.
What I'll retain from this post is: MacBook AIR for portability, MacBook PRO for performances. I mean, no big surprises! ;)
If for no other reason, I cloud's virtual magic of transferring any data from the MacBook to the IMAC wirelessly with no wires, flash drives, CDs or DVDs is a miracle to behold.
The first time I just walked into my home, did not take my IPAD computer tablet out of my pocketbook, and simply opened my IMAC after having been out all day taking pictures, updating my calendar, making reminder notes and lists, e-mail, and text, and everything was on my IMAC in the proper places, and at that moment, I knew I made the right decision to make a total change over to apple.
An OS, after all, is nothing but a controller of resources. OS X does it very well and the better virtualization products preserve that advantage. And now Windows only has to deal with the plain vanilla interfaces that it gets presented by its virtual environment and that takes much of the MS pain away... almost magically.
I considered running windows on the IMAC, and your comment moves me closer to actually doing it.
The IMAC with OS X works so well, I am reluctant to mess with it by partitioning and adding windows, but I do keep a windows notebook to transfer WMA books from the library to my MP3 player. I get a wider choice of listening books by transferring WMA books which must be transferred using windows and by transferring MP3 type listening books which can be transferred directly to IPAD & IPOD from the public library.
Other than that, it is OS X all the way.
Think I will look elsewhere for computer advice.
http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_mac/family/macbook_pro/select
http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_mac/family/macbook_air/select
Still, the fact that such expensive Macs come with such second-rate hardware as dual-core processors and 5400rpm hard drives astounds me. Yes, depending on the model, you can pay more and get more, but we are talking about hard drives, for example, that you would expect on a $500 PC.
And, of course, you can't pop open your new Mac and install a faster hard drive; that voids your warranty.
I was thinking of adding a Mac to my stable of computers, but they just keep getting more and more ridiculous.
I got the 13 inch screen and I love, love, LOVE it!!
:-)