Macbook Air - just some info required
Discussion
Thinking about getting a macbook air, just for surfing the net and checking email.
The 11 inch is going for 649.99 including £100 cash back at the moment. Someone at Currys said the new models are likely to come out early next year.
My questions are...
- Are new models usually released in the new year in January?
- What is the likely starting price of these models?
- Is there any reason to hold off purchasing now, that I should be considering, considering my needs are basic?
I guess Im happy to buy what is available now at the price mentioned above, but wanted to put the question to the helpful and computer savvy folk here anyway.
Besides, its been ages since I have logged onto PH. A big hello to old friends here, with thanks in advance for helpful replies, and seasons greetings to you all
The 11 inch is going for 649.99 including £100 cash back at the moment. Someone at Currys said the new models are likely to come out early next year.
My questions are...
- Are new models usually released in the new year in January?
- What is the likely starting price of these models?
- Is there any reason to hold off purchasing now, that I should be considering, considering my needs are basic?
I guess Im happy to buy what is available now at the price mentioned above, but wanted to put the question to the helpful and computer savvy folk here anyway.
Besides, its been ages since I have logged onto PH. A big hello to old friends here, with thanks in advance for helpful replies, and seasons greetings to you all
Well....for the kind of user you are (surfing, e-mails) I would go for Chromebook.
I have 2X24" iMacs and absolutely love the damn things, however very recently I bought from fleebay Acer C720 Chromebook for just over 100 quid, got new 128GB SSD from Amazon, replaced the 16GB factory with the 128GB, loaded Ubuntu to run parallel with the Chrome OS and now I am using this thing almost 99% of the time.
All together cost me just under 200 quid and it is superb...
If you are just a basic user I would strongly advise you to look into it.
The screen resolution is the same as Macbook Air BTW
I have 2X24" iMacs and absolutely love the damn things, however very recently I bought from fleebay Acer C720 Chromebook for just over 100 quid, got new 128GB SSD from Amazon, replaced the 16GB factory with the 128GB, loaded Ubuntu to run parallel with the Chrome OS and now I am using this thing almost 99% of the time.
All together cost me just under 200 quid and it is superb...
If you are just a basic user I would strongly advise you to look into it.
The screen resolution is the same as Macbook Air BTW
The macrumors buying guides are your most reputable source here http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#MacBook_Air
Mobsta said:
...
My questions are...
- Are new models usually released in the new year in January?
...
As noted above, check out Mac Rumours. Something will be due in the first quarter I would think, but it's never that exact a science.My questions are...
- Are new models usually released in the new year in January?
...
Mobsta said:
...
- What is the likely starting price of these models?
...
Usual form is similar pricing to current models' full retail (ie not the discounted amount you're seeing), but with markedly improved specs.- What is the likely starting price of these models?
...
This may depend on what they end up releasing though. They may, for example, change the screen sizes fully so comparison become difficult. Or may keep providing the low end spec at a knock down price etc.
Mobsta said:
...
- Is there any reason to hold off purchasing now, that I should be considering, considering my needs are basic?
...
It depends what your needs really are. If the 11" fits your needs, and you aren't bothered about having the latest and greatest, then the current discount might be worth having. - Is there any reason to hold off purchasing now, that I should be considering, considering my needs are basic?
...
If you're going to get pissed off if they release a 12" for £749, or keep going with the 11" for £599...etc etc (no inside info btw, just examples), then wait.
I would go for the 11" at £649. I have both the 11" and the 13" (long story) and they really are great machines. As a bit of a Mac geek I follow Apple quite closely and I would be surprised if the rumoured 12" will be released before March (although like everyone else this is just speculation), and even when it is released I think it will be quite a bit more than £649. You could always sell the 11" for decent money next year if you really wanted the new machine.
Just to pick up on this a bit. I am looking to replace a very old windows XP desktop. And was thinking maybe the none retina MBP, could be the thing for me. Like the OP, I will be a basic user, internet, skype, e mails etc. I have a limited budget, but want to get the most bang for it and would like to move away from windows. Any thoughts welcome as we head towards the sales.
DCS01 said:
... Like the OP, I will be a basic user, internet, skype, e mails etc. I have a limited budget, but want to get the most bang for it...
Sorry to say this, but this sounds like the complete antithesis of a MBP.The MBA, maybe. But they are small machines if you're used to a big desktop keyboard/screen/...
pavka007 said:
Well....for the kind of user you are (surfing, e-mails) I would go for Chromebook.
I have 2X24" iMacs and absolutely love the damn things, however very recently I bought from fleebay Acer C720 Chromebook for just over 100 quid, got new 128GB SSD from Amazon, replaced the 16GB factory with the 128GB, loaded Ubuntu to run parallel with the Chrome OS and now I am using this thing almost 99% of the time.
All together cost me just under 200 quid and it is superb...
If you are just a basic user I would strongly advise you to look into it.
The screen resolution is the same as Macbook Air BTW
I've got a Acer C710 and LG Chromebase at home and my Linux laptop hardly gets used now. Going to upgrade the Chromebook to a Acer Chromebook 13 in Jan though for the Tegra K1 and battery life.I have 2X24" iMacs and absolutely love the damn things, however very recently I bought from fleebay Acer C720 Chromebook for just over 100 quid, got new 128GB SSD from Amazon, replaced the 16GB factory with the 128GB, loaded Ubuntu to run parallel with the Chrome OS and now I am using this thing almost 99% of the time.
All together cost me just under 200 quid and it is superb...
If you are just a basic user I would strongly advise you to look into it.
The screen resolution is the same as Macbook Air BTW
Now Android app support has been rolled out it means that Skype can finally be used on ChromeOS aswell.
AJB88 said:
I've got a Acer C710 and LG Chromebase at home and my Linux laptop hardly gets used now. Going to upgrade the Chromebook to a Acer Chromebook 13 in Jan though for the Tegra K1 and battery life.
Now Android app support has been rolled out it means that Skype can finally be used on ChromeOS aswell.
As I mentioned above for the money you can't beat Chromebook. With the SSD upgrade mine was just under 200 quid, for this money you can't get good pad lets alone SSD laptop Now Android app support has been rolled out it means that Skype can finally be used on ChromeOS aswell.
With Ubuntu running is as good as any laptop for 99% of the people.pavka007 said:
As I mentioned above for the money you can't beat Chromebook. With the SSD upgrade mine was just under 200 quid, for this money you can't get good pad lets alone SSD laptop With Ubuntu running is as good as any laptop for 99% of the people.
Love the chromebooks, if only microsoft would hurry up with the Skype webclient! With Ubuntu running is as good as any laptop for 99% of the people.Has anyone tried it yet?
http://blogs.skype.com/2014/11/14/please-welcome-s...
I got a Chromebook recently, £150 on an Amazon deal (the Asus one) and it's absolutely brilliant. Can do everything I would use a netbook/iPad for, but with a really good keyboard (I like to type a lot).
No way I could justify an extra £5-600 for a Macbook Air if that's all I would be doing on it.
No way I could justify an extra £5-600 for a Macbook Air if that's all I would be doing on it.
ZesPak said:
Love the chromebooks, if only microsoft would hurry up with the Skype webclient!
Has anyone tried it yet?
http://blogs.skype.com/2014/11/14/please-welcome-s...
Just install the Android Skype app on ChromeOS Has anyone tried it yet?
http://blogs.skype.com/2014/11/14/please-welcome-s...
I went totally Mac nearly a year ago - not had a single issue. The things just work brilliantly.
I have a 13" Air as my laptop and find I no longer use an iPad at all. I seem to be on it 12 hours a day - excellent battery life and it's totally reliable.
My usage is mostly word processing, emails and surfing. Occasional spreadsheet work.
I have a 13" Air as my laptop and find I no longer use an iPad at all. I seem to be on it 12 hours a day - excellent battery life and it's totally reliable.
My usage is mostly word processing, emails and surfing. Occasional spreadsheet work.
I've been completely Mac for about 10 years.
I used my iPad a lot when my laptop was a large MacBook Pro. 2 years ago I bought a MacBook Air 13" as my main laptop, and the iPad gets used much less now.
As NDA said, stuff just works. Only things which I still find aren't quite there are AirPrint and AirPlay (the latter being *far* inferior to Sonos).
I used my iPad a lot when my laptop was a large MacBook Pro. 2 years ago I bought a MacBook Air 13" as my main laptop, and the iPad gets used much less now.
As NDA said, stuff just works. Only things which I still find aren't quite there are AirPrint and AirPlay (the latter being *far* inferior to Sonos).
Well thanks to this thread I'm typing this on an 11" Macbook Air.
In short an incredible machine. I cannot get over the size and speed of the thing. For £650 it's a no-brainer, especially considering the prices of the higher end iPads.
There have been rumours of retina Macbook Airs for a while but I am not sure if the trade off would be worth the hit on battery life. The screen on the 11" is sufficient.
Laptops have certainly come on a long way since my previous one (an ancient PowerBook - still working by the way!)
In short an incredible machine. I cannot get over the size and speed of the thing. For £650 it's a no-brainer, especially considering the prices of the higher end iPads.
There have been rumours of retina Macbook Airs for a while but I am not sure if the trade off would be worth the hit on battery life. The screen on the 11" is sufficient.
Laptops have certainly come on a long way since my previous one (an ancient PowerBook - still working by the way!)
Edited by funinhounslow on Friday 26th December 09:17
I've had a 13" for 3.5 years and it's been flawless - only downside is being slim the thing can get a bit noisy when watching streaming video because Silverlight and Flash on OS X are very CPU heavy.
Yesterday I actually did a total erase and reinstall of Yosemite as I had been having some niggles which I simply couldn't get to the bottom of.
It's quite frustrating that it keep on working so well as it prevents me from buying a new shiny toy
I've been in two minds whether to wait for the Retina Air, if it ever appears, or just get a 13" Retina MBP - portability isn't a huge issue as it seldom leaves the living room.
Yesterday I actually did a total erase and reinstall of Yosemite as I had been having some niggles which I simply couldn't get to the bottom of.
It's quite frustrating that it keep on working so well as it prevents me from buying a new shiny toy
I've been in two minds whether to wait for the Retina Air, if it ever appears, or just get a 13" Retina MBP - portability isn't a huge issue as it seldom leaves the living room.
ZesPak said:
I'm honestly slightly puzzled at the amount of people that find a 3-4 year old laptop that still works some sort of achievement 
Probably because people buy laptops from Currys PC World for £400, loaded with all the lovely pre-installed applications, and it takes an age to start-up, and generally just drags along as the under powered CPU is doing too much.A properly spec would run better.
I've got an i7 quad core laptop, 256GB SSD, separate mobile GPU, 16GB RAM it's a great machine for gaming, as that what it was bought for, but as a laptop it sucks. It's heavy, real heavy, the PSU is the size of a house brick but it is still usable despite being 4 years old (in March). Saying that it's not been on in about a year as I have no use for it. Might just fire it up and stick W8 on it.
Gassing Station | Computers, Gadgets & Stuff | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff