Companion/replacement for MBP13" – iPad/Air/MBPR?

Soldato
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I've had my mid-2010 13" MBP for a couple of years now and while I still absolutely love it, it's not quite meeting my needs at grad school.

I find myself taking it with me to class most days and it's a bit on the heavy/cumbersome side.

A lot of people seem to be using iPads/MBAs and I'm not sure what meets my needs best in terms of price/portability and feature set.

I like having a full keyboard, but the MBP is a bit clunky (which is why the MBR might be a nice compromise) and I worry the Air is a bit underpowerd (but obviously very portable.

The iPad seems pretty flexible in terms of feature set, with the only real downsides being it's iOS and not OSX and that you can't run a proper version of Word/Excel or do stuff like track changes. The big upside is being able to do stuff like Garageband and iRig, plus do PDF reading etc.

I've heard rumors that a new iPad may drop in Spring 2013 – do you think it's worth holding out? I'm also guessing there may be a new MBA before long too?

Any advice/thoughts are much appreciated. I really didn't think I'd end up considering an iPad!
 
Soldato
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Sounds really to me like you are just wanting something new for the sake of it. If you really need something lighter so that its not so heavy to carry about, then the MacBook Air is probably your best bet, as that fills what sounds like your main concern.

As for the iPad, its only just had a recent new update and the schedule is now skewed, so a new one in Spring can't be expected anymore. Ultimately, a new iPad isn't going to change that its a device that runs iOS so the experience, and whether that works for you in a classroom or not isn't going to differ much to now.
 
Soldato
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I think the MacBook Air sounds right for you. If you are using it for work I wouldn't suggest an iPad, I think you will find it limiting. As for performance, day to day tasks on the Air will be very quick due to the SSD drive.
 
Soldato
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Work wise it'll mainly just be for in lectures, where we do a lot of graph drawing (for econ) which is why I was thinking the iPad might be good vs the Air. Plus having a second whole laptop just to carry about seems a bit decadent...

I think my main concern is in getting documents/work from the iPad to my MBP, which obviously wouldn't be an issue with an Air.

The main reason I'm thinking iPad over Air is the size, in that I really could always have it with me and not feel much difference in my bag. The main reason I would hold off on getting something now is in case there are size/battery improvements in either. the mc Rumors buying guide seems to think the Air is mid-cycle.
 
Soldato
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The main reason I'm thinking iPad over Air is the size, in that I really could always have it with me and not feel much difference in my bag. The main reason I would hold off on getting something now is in case there are size/battery improvements in either. the mc Rumors buying guide seems to think the Air is mid-cycle.

The 11" MacBook Air is hardly much bigger than an iPad anyway. Much more versatile.
 
Soldato
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To be honest, I'd just live with the extra weight. Seems to me that there is little reason to get another machine. What are you using this for?

If you really want a new machine though, I'd focus on form factor rather than anything else. All of the 13" models offer similar performance (the Air will be around 15% slower), but all of the machines will be a fair bit more powerful than your current MBP.
 
Soldato
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I guess this is my quandary – I kind of feel like an Air is a half-way machine between the MBP and iPad. I'm sure there'll still be situations where I won't want to throw it in my bag (I cycle nearly everywhere, hence the weight consideration).

Functionality wise, has the iPad not caught up quite a lot with its OSX brethren in terms of note taking/work apps?

I think my main concern with the Air is battery life. I will quite often be putting in 10hr+ days.
 
Associate
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Where do students get the money from...

I don't spend a fiver a week and I still have to watch the pennies.

On another note, as said above, sounds like you just want to spend on something. The MacBook Pro isn't that heavy compared to other laptops.
 
Soldato
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Really don't see a 13" MBP being very heavy, had a 15" Dell XPS for most of my grad life and it was ok. Still use a 15" sony (comes in under 2kg) and it feels really light actually. In terms of performances I dont see a new air being slower then a 13" pro from 2010 unless it was some amazing specs. I would go for that it sounds best, use a 13" Air at work for web development and it works just fine, SSD is amazing. The Air is very very loud and hot.
 
Soldato
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I think my main concern with the Air is battery life. I will quite often be putting in 10hr+ days.

...and I very much doubt you'll have the laptop open all ten hours. The Air has a reasonable battery.

Get a Surface with a type keyboard. It comes with Office 2013 (the real deal) and has an 8-10 hour battery.

The real deal, eh? Office isn't needed for most people nowadays. A cut down version for RT even less so.

If a 13" MBP is too heavy, may I suggest that a gym membership is likely cheaper?

Ouch, burn. :D
 
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