First time Mac buyer !! Need advice please!!

[Akyrulz]

Hi,

I am currently looking at buying either a MacBook Pro or Air, tbh the only thing I have decided on is that I want an13inch screen. My budget is max £500 so ofcourse I won't be buying a new one, I am currently looking at the MBP 2012 or a 2013/2014 MBA. I am training to become a teacher and will be predominantly using the Mac for Microsoft office and surfing the web.

Firstly are these models suitable for my needs ?

Secondly I have been offered a MBP 2012, which has 8GB Ram and 128GB SSD, for £400. Is this a fair deal and a good performing laptop

P.S I know about the lack of Retina display in the 2012 MBP but I am not really bothered unless I should be bothered in which case HELP!!

 

[keysofanxiety]

Secondly I have been offered a MBP 2012, which has 8GB Ram and 128GB SSD, for £400. Is this a fair deal and a good performing laptop

It's an OK deal, but I'd get a 2013 model or later due to much better battery life and faster Flash storage.

A number of 2013s at your price point are available through eBay: http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&LH_BIN=1&_nkw=macbook air 2013 13"&rt=nc&LH_PrefLoc=1&_trksid=p2045573.m1684

This one's probably the best bet, from what I've seen: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Apple-Mac...212085?hash=item1c84b003b5:g:8WcAAOSwSypY~Pf-

 

[Akyrulz]

It's an OK deal, but I'd get a 2013 model or later due to much better battery life and faster Flash storage.

A number of 2013s at your price point are available through eBay: http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&LH_BIN=1&_nkw=macbook air 2013 13"&rt=nc&LH_PrefLoc=1&_trksid=p2045573.m1684

This one's probably the best bet, from what I've seen: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Apple-Mac...212085?hash=item1c84b003b5:g:8WcAAOSwSypY~Pf-

Thanks a lot for that

On the Mac I've been offered, the battery health is at 92% and had 406 cycles.

does this make a difference ? Or is it just better to go for a newer machine ? That said will a 2013 Air be much different to an upgraded 2012 MBP

 

[keysofanxiety]

Thanks a lot for that

On the Mac I've been offered, the battery health is at 92% and had 406 cycles.

does this make a difference ? Or is it just better to go for a newer machine ? That said will a 2013 Air be much different to an upgraded 2012 MBP

Better to go for a newer one. The difference between the 2012 and 2013 MBA is huge. For a little extra you get much more longevity, unforseen hardware failures aside.

I'd personally go with a 2013 MBA rather than a 2012 MBP. Much thinner and lighter, much better battery life, and the faster CPU in the 13" MBP wouldn't make a noticable difference for your usage.

 

[Akyrulz]

Better to go for a newer one. The difference between the 2012 and 2013 MBA is huge. For a little extra you get much more longevity, unforseen hardware failures aside.

I'd personally go with a 2013 MBA rather than 2012 MBP. Much thinner and lighter, better battery life, and the faster CPU in the 13" MBP wouldn't make a noticable difference for your usage.

Okay that's great, thanks a lot for clearing that up, so an MBA from 2013 onwards would be a good choice ?

 

[Samuelsan2001]

Thanks a lot for that

On the Mac I've been offered, the battery health is at 92% and had 406 cycles.

does this make a difference ? Or is it just better to go for a newer machine ? That said will a 2013 Air be much different to an upgraded 2012 MBP

The main difference will be the screen performance for what you do means very little all apples laptops will breeze through it. The main reason for a 2013 is the retina screen as a teacher with lots of text you will find it is so much easier on the eyes for long periods of text reading. However I much prefer even the 2012 MBP screen to the TN panel in the air but you trade off battery life and portability for it.

 

[Akyrulz]

So do the MacBook Air not have Retina display ?

 

[keysofanxiety]

Okay that's great, thanks a lot for clearing that up, so an MBA from 2013 onwards would be a good choice ?

Oh yeah, definitely. At £410 I'd take a 2013 MacBook Air over any new Windows laptop at that same price point. They're great little machines.

So do the MacBook Air not have Retina display ?

Nope, but honestly the displays aren't that bad. Yeah they look pretty weak when you compare them side-by-side to Retina MBPs, the bezels are quite big, and I wouldn't buy a new MBA for that reason. But honestly it'll be more than good enough for your usage. Especially for £400.

They still have decent colour gamuts and viewing angles, and again much better than you'd find on any new Windows machine at that price; it is an Apple quality display, so for that price I wouldn't hesitate.

 

[EnesM]

Go for a Retina screen by all means, it's 2017 for god's sake!

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote:
"Secondly I have been offered a MBP 2012, which has 8GB Ram and 128GB SSD, for £400. Is this a fair deal and a good performing laptop"

I'm in the USA, so not sure of the exchange rate, but..

... it sounds like a "fair-to-middlin'" deal, if the MBPro is in good shape.
8gb of RAM should serve you well, no need to add more.
The 128gb SSD is limited in terms of size, but you won't complain about the speed. It's easily upgraded if you wish to do so in the future (15 minute job).
You mentioned above that the battery is at 92%, that's still pretty good.

The 2012 (non-retina) MacBook Pro remains a very good laptop.
I have the 2010 version of the same, still runs fine at 7+ years old.

This would be a decent platform with which to "get started" on the Mac OS.

 

[keysofanxiety]

OP wrote:
"Secondly I have been offered a MBP 2012, which has 8GB Ram and 128GB SSD, for £400. Is this a fair deal and a good performing laptop"

I'm in the USA, so not sure of the exchange rate, but..

... it sounds like a "fair-to-middlin'" deal, if the MBPro is in good shape.
8gb of RAM should serve you well, no need to add more.
The 128gb SSD is limited in terms of size, but you won't complain about the speed. It's easily upgraded if you wish to do so in the future (15 minute job).
You mentioned above that the battery is at 92%, that's still pretty good.

The 2012 (non-retina) MacBook Pro remains a very good laptop.
I have the 2010 version of the same, still runs fine at 7+ years old.

This would be a decent platform with which to "get started" on the Mac OS.

True but for literally £10 more he can get a used A grade 2013 MBA. So that would be a better choice.

 

[Akyrulz]

Thanks for your help guys,

The 2012 MBP I've been offered has 2.5 Ghz which is more than the MBA you have shown so does this mean the 2012 MBP will perform better ?

 

[keysofanxiety]

Thanks for your help guys,

The 2012 MBP I've been offered has 2.5 Ghz which is more than the MBA you have shown so does this mean the 2012 MBP will perform better ?

No, not if it's vanilla hardware. You'll need an SSD in the 2012 for real world performance (boot up, application loading times) to be comparative. As soon as you do that, the price goes up. Also the HDD cables in the 13" 2012s are properly flaky so that'll need to be replaced down the line.

There's seriously no need to get the 2012 as the 2013 MBA would be more than adequate for your needs and a much nicer computer to use on a daily basis, in addition to being cheaper. Thinner, lighter, and nearly double the battery life of the 2012 13" MBP.