I'm in the market for a computer right now and I have decided to buy either a Macbook Air or a Macbook Pro. So far, the feedback I have gotten back from my friends has seemed a bit biased. Since many of my friends are gamers, they've said I should go with the Macbook Pro, but I don't want to spend more than I have to.
I'm currently borrowing my sister's Dell laptop until I buy my own this coming semester. I'm leaning more towards a Macbook Air because of the light weight, portability and speed. I am not a very tech-savvy person, I don't game or anything like that. On the computer I am currently using, I have never needed to use the CD-Drive, so I'm really wondering if I'll actually miss not having one if I do decide on a Macbook Air.
This computer is really going to be about getting me through school. I don't need "top of the line" and I am all about practicality right now. If I decide to get a decked out Macbook of any kind, it'll be after I graduate and begin making real money.
I read an earlier post on this topic on this website where more than a few nursing students stated that while they liked their MacBook Pro's, they had more computer than they really needed. I plan on doing my school work, writing papers, research, and surfing the web.
Do you have a Macbook Air? Do you miss the CD-Drive?
Specializes in Pediatrics, High-Risk L&D, Antepartum, L.
I use the macbook pro because I'm old school and have a million CDs. I don't like downloading music so I buy the CDs and have a collection. Also for DVDs :) Like I said I'm "old" school[/quote']
Be aware....no more drives in the new pros! So if you decide at some point to get a new one...you have to buy external if you want a CD drive.
"Hmm out of the dozens of PCs I have owned (I upgrade a lot for gaming) I never had one malfunction expect for a motherboard fail which could happen to any computer. Guess you were unlucky."
Maybe you were the lucky one. The company for whom my wife works replaces one to several PC's per year. The company that I used to work for (prior to switching to nursing), would find the longest a PC might last is two years... and the owner's PC (a Dell XPS -- I forget the model number), had hard drive problems the entire life with frequent onsite (thankfully for him) repairs.
So you save a few $ on a PC or you go with an Apple whose company has yet to lose their #1 stop for least number of repairs and highest consumer satisfaction year after year -- saves headaches, saves lost time dealing with repair scheduling (and rescheduling for times they bring the wrong part or they brought the right parts, but found other problems), etc.
Specializes in Med/surg nurse, 9 years experience, 5 as travel.
Hi, first off..good luck with your school this year! I'm on second to last quarter then I'm graduating! Ok...now on to your question about MacBook Air or the Pro. I personally have owned a gaming laptop when I started school and it was just to bulky and required it's own bag to carry safely. So I decided to buy a MacBook Air (20011 13 inch). It has been the BEST laptop I've ever owned, and I would highly recommend it to you. I've never needed the CD drive but the only true drawback is the size of the SSD is only 128 gigs and is on the small size. Other then that it is just as powerful and fast as my non Apple counterpart but so much more stable when it comes to the operating system, I've yet to get a virus or any slow down. Anyways, good luck and I can honestly say you will be happy with the Air.
Hi, as a student you will get 20% off at Apple. Get the pro, honestly as a student and future nurse you won't have to eggy a new one for years. The air is nice, but you will get the most from the pro. I bought the disk drive, I think it was $75, and have used it maybe 3 times in the last year. This is an investment so just think about getting what is going to be the better quality for you.
It's all about SSD at that level of performance. I know you aren't working for Disney or you wouldn't be asking on here so we can rule out the desktop pro. The mac book pro is a step down from that for the photography world. Personally I don't like the retina at all because I think it makes everything smaller unless you turn down the res. You can hardly see it when it's on your lap. I would go with the Air. I would carefully consider how much space you need and maybe buy an older version with more ram. Lots' of love for picking Mac by the way!
I use a MacBook Air and love it. I don't miss my CD drive one bit. I would recommend getting the 13 over the 11 as it has a longer battery life. Also see if the books your program uses are available on Pageburst, that program has saved me soooo much time creating study guides and taking notes from the book.
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
I use a MacBook Air and love it. I don't miss my CD drive one bit. I would recommend getting the 13 over the 11 as it has a longer battery life. Also see if the books your program uses are available on Pageburst, that program has saved me soooo much time creating study guides and taking notes from the book.
I'd recommend getting the 13 over the 11 as well, and not just because of the battery life. There are some programs that don't run as well on an 11 (or so I'm told), and sometimes the 11 is just too small. We have an 11 and a 13 in our household, and I often find the owner of the 11 on my 13!
I would go with the air. Great performance for the non-gamer, excellent battery life over 3 years out, the solid state components are more durable (think malfunctioning hard drive), and you can get a great cd/DVD USB driven player/burner for $50. Mine is Asia and works great with our Mac air and our asus branded windows 7 laptop. Also, don't forget to get a backup hard drive in case the laptop gets stolen and schedule it to run regularly.
Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
It is just paying for a name... hard drives for all the major computer companies in the world come from the same exact place.. as do much of the other parts needed to make a computer. As for not getting viruses, that's not the case any more as Mac is quite popular now and as such, is a great target for all types of malware. It's not a superior product by any means, it's just a different one. Like I said, I love Apple. I use one at home. I'm just pointing out the fact that it's not the only option out there. For the price of a standard mac laptop, you can purchase a mobile workstation (ie. just-under-server grade laptop) that will outperform it due to the graphics card alone. I wish Apple competitors would use something other than a Microsoft OS to be honest. I love the Apple OS and am thankful it is becoming more compatible with all types of software... Also, for the record, of all the computer companies Mac easily has one of the worst customer service ratings. Their warranties are awful and almost anything you do will void them instantly. My mac fell from 6 inches and the laptop screen shattered and we had to void the warranty by having it fixed elsewhere because Apple wanted to charge 800 dollars for a 60 dollar fix. No we didn't buy accidental damage, but the fragility of the glass was a known issue that Apple had been working on and yet somehow it was my fault. So, it's not necessarily superior, it's just different. Again, not trying to step on anyone's toes, but just pointing out that you won't be computing anything differently on an Apple vs. a PC. Ultimately a word doc is a word doc.
I didn't get a Mac for the cachet of the name. I got it because I was sick of Microsoft's inferior operating systems, and the poor quality of the PCs I'd had. I was tired of constantly having to do patches. I took good care of both PCs, but after 2 years the HP Pavilion needed repairs and the Dell Inspiron's power cord frayed out after a year. (A problem Dell knew about but chose not to fix.) I decided to give Macs a try on the advice of someone who works in IT.
My father has my first MacBook, which is now 6 years old and going strong; it's never needed any kind of repairs. I have a newer MacBook, and it has had no problems. I find it easier to work with than laptops that use the Microsoft operating system.
I didn't get a Mac for the cachet of the name. I got it because I was sick of Microsoft's inferior operating systems, and the poor quality of the PCs I'd had. I was tired of constantly having to do patches. I took good care of both PCs, but after 2 years the HP Pavilion needed repairs and the Dell Inspiron's power cord frayed out after a year. (A problem Dell knew about but chose not to fix.) I decided to give Macs a try on the advice of someone who works in IT.
My father has my first MacBook, which is now 6 years old and going strong; it's never needed any kind of repairs. I have a newer MacBook, and it has had no problems. I find it easier to work with than laptops that use the Microsoft operating system.
This is pretty much why I'm getting a MacBook, whether I decide on a Pro or Air. Every Microsoft laptop I've used has lagged and been problematic. I'm really just looking for something that will be very fast and very reliable. I'll worry about all the bells and whistles when I graduate and start making some money, lol.
Thanks everyone, for all of your posts and advice!
Specializes in Pediatrics, High-Risk L&D, Antepartum, L.
This is pretty much why I'm getting a MacBook whether I decide on a Pro or Air. Every Microsoft laptop I've used has lagged and been problematic. I'm really just looking for something that will be very fast and very reliable. I'll worry about all the bells and whistles when I graduate and start making some money, lol. Thanks everyone, for all of your posts and advice![/quote']
Honestly...go for the air unless you are doing photo stuff. The air is all you need to notes and researching and paper writing. The battery life is phenomenal. The weight is wonderful. If you have extra money...skip the pro and add to the air to make it a faster machine.
I just got rid of my pro because I just didn't use it like I use my air...I'm in grad school at this point.
IrishIzCPNP, MSN, RN, APRN, NP
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