Help: which MB vs MBA

So, I've been waiting for the refreshes and here is what it comes down to:

...I want the lightest easiest notebook to carry around with me. I am doing word processing (perhaps a bit of publishing) and surfing. I do access my office remotely with an rVPN.

Do I want the new aluminum MB which is 0.5lb lighter or is the MBA (which I really like for its portability) adequate? In fact, should I buy a refurb MBA (at $400 to $500 less) since the new one only has a new video card (am I right in thinking that I will see absolutely NO benefit from nVIDIA with my usage?) and a larger HD (which I don't think I need) and a slightly more efficient CPU (likely offset by the power use of the nVIDIA)...is the larger cash likely to be noticeable?

Sorry, lots of info.

In sum:
..an aluminum MB vs refurb MBA vs new MBA?

thanks

 

Do you need more than 1 USB Port while out and about? if yes, then stay away from the Air, if not, go for Air.
For what you need, you should not be bothered about the internals, just the size and external appearance.
The MB looks far cooler (IMO) than the air.

 

Sounds like a refurb MBA is perfect for you. Super light and thin... superb build quality. You can't really go wrong there.

 

Price is going to be a huge factor. I'd personally stay away from the overpriced Air, and pick up a new macbook.

 

Thumbs up.

 

The air is junk. Sorry, it just is. Overpriced POS IMHO.

I confirmed my opinion when I actually played with one at the apple store. Waste of money. And it doesn't even feel that light...

Get the MB.

 

I just cancelled my pre ordered macbook and am going to get the air. I got a coupon for a shop in kuwait that only has the air and itll cost me less than the macbook. I don't need a cd drive so I'm pulling the trigger.

 

a couple of questions MB vs MBA
1. how do the battery lives compare
2. how much slower would the MBA be for uses like Office and surfing?
thanks

 

1. Still waiting for benchmarks to appear, so we don't know yet; probably similar to previous generation, perhaps a touch better with the improved Cpu's.
2. Negligible. You won't notice any difference at all, as activities like those almost never pull the cpu out of it's lowest operating freq since they're so simple.

 

Turned out the coupons I got aren't valid for mac products, so I'm back to square one. I guess I'm now in the same boat as you are op.

 

the Air nothing but asking for trouble imo, it has slow harddrive, slow (heavily underclocked) graphics, slow cpu, limited slots, one speaker, no cd-drive, non-user replaceable battery, non-replaceable RAM. even now, i would not be surprised if there isnt a gpu/cpu overheat in hot ambient temperature. it is simply, style over everything.

get the macbook, the new one is such a beauty, it uses the same CNC cut construction, powerful everything, the only downside that i can see compared to the mabook air, is that the screen is not quite as good as the air.

 

But I wonder whether the new MB and MBA now share the same screen, in which case the distinction of the past is gone? Before this week when the MB still had CCFL lcd's it would have been true, but now it would make more sense from a parts and production perspective for Apple to share LCDs between the two systems since the WxD physical dimensions are now identical.

 

I've owned and used a MBP, MB, and MBA (all what as of a few days ago are now previous generation). At the moment I prefer my MBA as a second computer for travel use.

If you are using it as your sole computer I would go with the latest high end MacBook. Processor speed, memory capacity, and hard drive size and performance on the Macbook can be adjusted to suit the most demanding mainstream user. Obviously less ideal if you really need a graphics workstation or gaming platform, but plenty for mainstream use.

The MBA is still noticeably lighter and easier to travel with. But its processor, memory and hard drive are only suitable for the routine activities that don't push the performance envelope. Boot times are longer, program startup times are longer, screen painting is slower. Not horribly so to make it frustrating, but you can notice it. Once everything is up and running actually using it seems little different from a standard MB. But if you are the type that wants WORD up and running before your hand gets from the trackpad click to the keyboard - not so much.

IF I were buying a new Machine today I would choose as I recommended above. I have an iMac at home so I would still choose a MBA. If I was limited to one machine it would be the current Macbook.

 

The new (high-end) MB has so much more value in it than the MBA IMO. Unless someones need for thin and light significantly supersedes every other requirement then the MB is a no brainer.

 

Personally, I think the performance you give up with the Air just isn't worth it. The lacking features (which you can expect from almost any ultraportable like that) really seals the deal for me.

The MacBook is far faster, has all the ports you'll need and should be more efficient while still being very thin and light. Not to mention it actually has a replaceable battery (a big deal for me, at least). I'd go for it, personally.

 

I read all the comments, realized the Air was over rated and over priced. Then I saw it in a shop and bought it I'm loving it

 

lol... I felt the same... and confirmed my feeling when I used it in person

 

I'm quite amazed actually at how much Apple bumped up the MacBook. Really, the difference between the Air and MacBook isn't as much anymore. I still see where the MBA would be good, but the MacBook definitely covers more of the market's needs now.

 

Agreed 100%. The slow drive is a killer too.

Even if you get an Air without the thermal shutdown problem it is still so much more expensive and so much slower than a MB that you'd seriously have to rationalize to get one.

Even if the MB cost more than the Air, I'd still opt for the former, but that's just me.

 

Yep.

Unlike other ultraportables from other makers, Apple has made the MBA and MB too similar. Take Sony for example. Their TZ model is much slower than the SZ model but costs more. Why? The TZ is much smaller, not just thinner.

 

Ditto to the post quoted below.

I have been a very happy MBP user for about two years. I have an MBA as a secondary machine and I love it to bits too, but only as a secondary machine.

If I could only have one, for sure it would be MB or MBP.

 

Is battery life a factor for you or will finding an outlet be easy?
Of the MBA reviews, it seems like on continuous normal usage, battery life is alittle more than 3 hours, which I think is kind of poor. The new Macbooks are getting alittle over 4 hours on normal usage. Of course not all tests are the same, the battery test for the MBA was written via a script that continually changed websites every 20 seconds until the MBA died.

The new MBA should be better though, with an SATA vs PATA before, faster processor and faster RAM.

Of the choices you listed, I'd go with the MB since you can change the HD, RAM and battery.

 

You'd be best served by picking up either a refurb or the new entry-level (non-aluminum) MacBook. Their footprints are essentially the same and the MB isn't all that much heavier than the MBA.

It isn't necessarily weight that determines easy portability, but it's shape and form factor... So with a similar footprint, it's essentially a wash.

But by sacrificing a little bit of weight, you'd be gaining a faster system that is also much more easily serviceable.

 

if its a 2nd machine that you're going to bring around a lot id choose the air.

 

SATA makes almost no difference in real work usage. The 4200rpm disk is slow anyway you slice it.

 

4200 is slow yes. but the higher density disk helps some, idk if it would be noticeable though

 

While it may vary somewhat with the mode and frequency of travel, I would suggest that weight is the single most important travel factor, followed by thickness, followed by footprint.

When I went from a Macbook to a Macbook Air, I did not just save 2 pounds. I saved more than 10 pounds of travel weight. Smaller power supply, accessories, case etc all multiplies. This is even more important for those that may have to travel with a corporate laptop and need a second something for personal use.

Food for thought

 

I'm sorry I like the MB over the MBA. I think the MBA is great for very specific circumstances but in my world, sooner or later I need the extra power that an MBA could not give me. For the small amount of extra weight involved I think the MB is a worthwhile purchase, and you can save a few bucks for other things by getting the $1299 version.

 

It's both footprint and thickness and weight. For this reason, I cannot really see the Air as a true "ultraportable" when there are other notebooks out there that are lighter, almost as thin, and are much smaller overall.

However, true ultraportables are ultra-expensive and make the Air look low priced by comparison.

 

like the sony tz and tt?

 

Maybe the MBA will be replaced by a new "NetMac" with a 10" screen next year? (with at least 2 USB ports hopefully)

 

i cant belive after 4 pages no one has mentioned the new trackpad on the MB trully making it far supperior to the MBA with 4 finger gestures and everything else making using a computer a real pleasure and the sheer size of the trackpad is also astounding and dont forget that your not getting a DVD drive with the MBA so if at any point you wanted to install from disk or just watch a film you cant unless you carry around an external dvd player which tend to be quite bulky

just my 2pence, IMHO go with the new MB im getting one next week

(cant wait )

 

the last 2 comments:
yes a netbook would be cool but I think the 13.3" screen would make the MBA much more usable.
as for a DVD drive, aside from loading software (and I can use an external for that) I don't have a need for an optical drive.

I do NOT, ever, play games on my computer.
I need only to:
1. surf
2. us Office
3 access my office remotely using an rVPN
It's item #3 that I worry about having enough horsepower to do well.

Otherwise, I need the lightest, easiest to carry OSX machine available.

Any other thoughts ---particularly on the remote access issue?
thanks

 

You are right. Ultra portables are great for traveling and occasional use. The new UMPC's and EEE PC's are small light and cheap. But none of these are suitable for all day use.

I use my MBA at work and hotel about 12 hours a day. At any given time its running a number of apps all at once. Usually MS Office or OpenOffice (sometimes both), MacMail, Safari or Firefox (sometimes both), Adium, iTunes, Calandar, AddressBook. Cisco VPN, and often Parallels with Windows XP and IE6 and Outlook.

Everything but Parallels/SP/IE6/Outlook runs great without taxing any MBA resources and having lots to spare - even with multiple large complex documents open. When I add Parallels/SP/IE6/Outlook to usually chews up most of my free memory (no doubt causing some swapping) but there is no noticeable slowdown or performance hit. So I think the MBA has just enough for my uses with little to spare. It IS slower than a MB or MBP but not annoyingly so.

The only time I notice real performance degradation is when trying to do somethng that maxes the HD or CPU and try and do something else at the same time. So don't go doing an image backup or rip a DVD and expect other apps to stay fast.

For your described use I think the MBA would be more than adequate. If you are talking casual/occasional use you might look at one of the very nice but far cheaper Linux based EEE/UMPC laptops.

 

Consider an MSi Wind, which can easily run OS X. I had one, and it actually runs OS X quite smoothly. You can even watch 720p films on it.

 

Running Mac OS X on non-Apple hardware is a violation of the Mac OS X EULA and discussion on it is not allowed here on NBR. Thanks!

 

Sam, I wasn't exactly providing instructions on how to do the OS install --just passing on common knowledge

 

Discussing it is not allowed. I thought Sam made that clear.

 

Jim: what kind of battery life are you get in normal usage. Some people on this forum have suggested the MBA is worse than the MB for battery life but I've heard differently elsewhere.

As for the trackpad mentioned by someone else, I believe the new MBA has the same trackpad as the MB.

I only wish I could swap out the hard drive and that they had made the 1.8 chip the chip of default in their release last week.

 

buy a MBA then if you dont need any of the benefits that upgrading to an MB would leave you and want a light machine then buy a MBA simple really

 

People who buy the air end up regretting it because they do not have a optical drive, enough usb ports, or any real functionality.

Everyone who has bought an Air that I know has made it redundant by purchasing usb extension ports and external optical drives, I mean, seriously, you should see how clumsy they look putting everything back into the bag. You can also see the level of frustration of their face but they have too much pride to say 'I should have bought a normal laptop'.

Truthfully and factually, the Macbook Air was just an attempt to make a ridiculously thin computer based on current technology. It looked cute and it was a fad, nothing more, nothing less. But right now you'd probably be considered 'cooler' if you just had an Iphone.

 

Apple needs to understand that they don't exactly make the best hardware to do their software justice.

 

the mba isnt meant to be a primary computer. its meant to be a lightweight travel computer that you use if you want to access your files online if you're out and about somewhere. and a thumb drive could suffice instead of an optical drive if you need to transfer data. and if you'r using the air as your main computer than lol@ you.

 

That does not justify breaking the EULA. If you don't approve of what Apple is currently doing, the best means of sending a message to them is to not purchase their products. I hope we're clear that discussing on breaking the OS X EULA is not allowed here on NBR?