Buying advice on Macbook Air

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
I currently have a 13" Aluminium Macbook, late 2008. Unfortunately I dropped it at a tube station a few months back and since then it is always a pain in the arse logging onto wifi networks away from home and the screen will sometimes flicker and only rectify itself with a reboot - I think whenever the system gets hot. This latter seems to be occurring more frequently. I've long hoped to upgrade it with a smaller and lighter machine and was very taken with the new Macbook Air 11". I work as a writer so ideally want something that's comfortable to write on but equally comfortable to take with me anywhere. However, given the arrival of Sandy Bridge I wonder if I shouldn't try and eek out the remaining life on my current Macbook until the Air also has the latest chip. Even then, on reflection I wonder whether the extra weight would be worth it for the 13", the greater screen real estate and resolution.



Finally, I don't have an iPad yet and have been considering purchasing one but can't quite dispel the notion that iPad 2 and an Air 11" are not so different to justify the expense. I've considered trying to simply work on an iPad but would find the separate keyboard and editing large amounts of text with multi-touch too much of a faff. Not to mention the lack of Word.



Any buying suggestions?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 4
    backtomacbacktomac Posts: 4,579member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mpw_amherst View Post


    I currently have a 13" Aluminium Macbook, late 2008. Unfortunately I dropped it at a tube station a few months back and since then it is always a pain in the arse logging onto wifi networks away from home and the screen will sometimes flicker and only rectify itself with a reboot - I think whenever the system gets hot. This latter seems to be occurring more frequently. I've long hoped to upgrade it with a smaller and lighter machine and was very taken with the new Macbook Air 11". I work as a writer so ideally want something that's comfortable to write on but equally comfortable to take with me anywhere. However, given the arrival of Sandy Bridge I wonder if I shouldn't try and eek out the remaining life on my current Macbook until the Air also has the latest chip. Even then, on reflection I wonder whether the extra weight would be worth it for the 13", the greater screen real estate and resolution.



    Finally, I don't have an iPad yet and have been considering purchasing one but can't quite dispel the notion that iPad 2 and an Air 11" are not so different to justify the expense. I've considered trying to simply work on an iPad but would find the separate keyboard and editing large amounts of text with multi-touch too much of a faff. Not to mention the lack of Word.



    Any buying suggestions?



    FWIW. I'm waiting for a SB MBA.



    I've played around with the current MBAs and they are surprising fast for such modestly speced components. A SB MBA should be even better and a bit more future proof.
  • Reply 2 of 4
    sammicksammick Posts: 416member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by backtomac View Post


    FWIW. I'm waiting for a SB MBA.



    I've played around with the current MBAs and they are surprising fast for such modestly speced components. A SB MBA should be even better and a bit more future proof.



    I think the 13 inch would do you quite well---I don't see a need for the faster chip for your needs



    I have a iPad and writing on it is a pain---I use it only as a book reader, and an emailer, my wife uses one in addition to the above as a web surfer---



    If the 256mgs of memory is sufficient ---it should work well for you---but the product is in mid



    cycle and an update should be coming out in the fall---and it might have the faster chip
  • Reply 3 of 4
    backtomacbacktomac Posts: 4,579member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by sammick View Post


    I think the 13 inch would do you quite well---I don't see a need for the faster chip for your needs

    .....



    It's not just speed but better battery life. The SB chips are fabbed at the 32 nm process node and are much more parsimonious with power than the C2D chips in the current MBAs.
  • Reply 4 of 4
    I'm intrigued you suggest the 13". I'd been erring towards the 11" because of it's lighter weight but obviously the extra screen space would be good too. I wonder how much I'd miss it if using Word on full screen mode on the 11"? Ideally I'd love to give each system a trial run.
Sign In or Register to comment.