Hey I'm in the market for a new macbook. I currently use a 2012 macbook pro (the thicc one with i5, 8gb ram, 256gb ssd) and it still works fine but it's starting to feel dated and has crazy thermal problems (fans go crazy and keyboard heats up a lot). I'm torn between the 2020 Macbook Air with the upgraded i5 and 16gb of ram and the 2020 macbook pro with the upgraded 16gb of ram. In my country, the price difference is around 200USD. I really like the form factor of the MBA but am worried about the poor thermals and the loud fan. Being a university student, I would be using the laptop for word processing, web browsing and lots of multi tasking (having word processors open and 10+ tabs at once). I was wondering if the MBA would really have lots of visible fan noise and heating since lots of reviews test it using photo and video editing (which I would be doing none of of). Thanks in advance for the help!
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Best Macbook for University
- Thread starter Irphones
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I should clarify that my current laptop is the mid 2012 model, the one with the cd drive haha. I've already cleaned it out and upgraded all I could. Still over heats so I'd much rather just get a new one haha. Due for an update!
For basic tasks i'd go with the base model Air, or if you really want a little more performance go for the base Macbook Pro 13 / 2 ports. Either is great compared to the 2012. I'd avoid upgrading the ram & cpu on the Air to get the boost, rather you should use that same money to go for the Macbook Pro.
For a college student the more important questions are will you have a full size keyboard (meaning: with numeric keypad), will you be backing up faithfully (with Time Machine or other robust method), and are you willing to consider getting at least a 1080P/4k equivalent monitor?
A good keyboard at a desk was invaluable to me getting my degree, backups are an obviously important, and a decent sized monitor is good for both media consumption and will ease you in your path of research and document creation, especially when you can more easily have things side by side.
A good keyboard at a desk was invaluable to me getting my degree, backups are an obviously important, and a decent sized monitor is good for both media consumption and will ease you in your path of research and document creation, especially when you can more easily have things side by side.