Which MBP?

George Hincapie

George Hincapie

George Hincapie

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I am thinking of spending some of my bonus on a new MBP. I did a little research last night but am struggling to understand which size to go for and which spec within that. It won't be used for gaming, just web use and a little Office action. I travel often so it should be a good choice.

When I am home it will be connected to a TFT.

What's the best bang for buck?
 
13" rMBP I feel is the best bang for bucks, solid battery life (10 hours), gets the new fancy Force Touch trackpad, fastest SSD, solid CPU, retina display. Think its the best all around laptop Apple makes.

13" Air is not bad too, but I personally just feel that display in 2015 is just a crime.
 
I've just had my Early 2015 13" rMBP delivered - I went for the top spec but only really for the SSD size (it's my main machine so I wanted the most storage).

I've bumped the RAM too, but 8GB may be fine for your needs...I've found that 8GB is a little low when using Xcode plus other stuff
 
The reason I had to go for the top spec is because the storage options are model specific - i.e. you can't spec higher storage that the model already has, which is a bit rubbish.

One idea though might be the base spec plus a USB 3.0 Portable HDD? Obviously not quite as fast as the in built SSD, but cheaper :)
 
I have a Synology NAS on our home network so I am fine with storage TBH. Your idea about portable storage works for business trips though. Perhaps a 1TB WD Passport or similar?

In terms of accessories, can I use the wireless mouse and keyboard when I am at home and pop the MBP on a stand? What stand to go for is another question?
 
Base spec rMBP 13" is absolutely more than enough, aside from storage of course.

As for Air vs rMBP, depends what you want from the system. Battery life, a slightly nicer form factor to carry, and a slightly better keyboard? Air. Better I/O, better graphics performance? rMBP. Performance otherwise, not enough to make or break the decision IMO.
 
George Hincapie said:
I have a Synology NAS on our home network so I am fine with storage TBH. Your idea about portable storage works for business trips though. Perhaps a 1TB WD Passport or similar?

In terms of accessories, can I use the wireless mouse and keyboard when I am at home and pop the MBP on a stand? What stand to go for is another question?
Click to expand...

I have a nice stand + keyboard and mouse for home and use a 24" 1080p monitor (Need something better soon looks bad next to a retina display).

Stand wise I've used both of these and can't fault either.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Griffin-Ele...&qid=1426888851&sr=8-1&keywords=macbook+stand

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rain-Design...&qid=1426888851&sr=8-2&keywords=macbook+stand
 
I'd probably wait till next month and check out the new 12" MacBook as well if all you're doing is web browsing and office work. It's considerably lighter than the 13" rMBP or even the 13" Air (900g vs 1.6kg vs 1.3kg) so it will be perfect for travelling.
 
George Hincapie said:
Same performance?
Click to expand...

Until there are some benchmarks out it's hard to tell exactly what the gap will be, but the Core M CPU it uses will almost certainly be less powerful than the i5 in the 13" rMBP or Air.

...However, whether you'd actually notice this day to day unless you're doing CPU intensive tasks is debatable. I'm a web developer and use a 2011 13" MacBook Air which is still plenty of oomph for anything I have to do (including running virtual machines and an external display). I'm mainly considering the new MacBook for the retina screen and the weight saving.

*edit*
The other thing that might put you off is it only has a single port and it's a new type of USB that most (any?) devices won't currently have a cable for. You'll have to factor in the cost of an adapter or cable if you want to use an external drive.
 
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Web&office use.... Apple and bang for buck.

These words don't really compute in my opinion. Seems silly to go and spend £1000~ to browse the web and use office. Surely there are laptops available which are portable for a lot less money.
Each to their own I guess...
 
I currently take my late 15" MacBook Pro Retina to Uni every day. It is absolutely fantastic; Microsoft Office (the office 365 package) is fantastic, Safari is great and the Uni wireless is incredibly fast too, I have all my music on there, a lot of video/film stuff too, I also play games on it from time to time (Football Manager 15 in dull lectures) and it's brilliant!

However, I will be 'upgrading' and 'downgrading' to a new MacBook Retina (probably the grey) with top spec for travelling to Uni with me.

Do not misunderstand, I love the "15 MacBook Pro Retina, however when it's in my GoRuck along with a couple of books, drink, few bits and bobs, it is pretty heavy and it is bigger than you think, so the smaller compact size is welcome as it's mainly going to be used for note taking, essay / article writing and web browsing so that's a better option for travelling with, however I'll keep my other MacBook Pro Retina for music / film 'stuff' :).

I use my 'gaming' PC a lot less tbh, similarly my PS4 has become 'Netflix' machine (ahead of my Smart Samsung 3D TV, as the 'Smart' stuff ... I just do not like tbh).

Yeh.. a MacBook Pro Retina should be seen as a portable desktop, the MacBook retina should be seen more as a lightweight (hardware and size/weight) web/office machine (which it should be fantastic for).
 
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