Resolved Need some advice with first MacBook purchase.

[stemchimp]

I'm going to start my Bioinformatics program in the fall and with the back-to-school offers from apple starting, I feel like it's time to get a mac laptop for myself. I've used school/work-issued MacBooks before when I was working in the Computational labs for my undergrad and post-bach work and the ease of use and compatibility with my workstation machines was what sold me. I have a desktop that I use for gaming and more graphic intensive activities so that is something I'm not really worried about for this laptop.

What I will be using it for:

• General school work; pulling up notes, homework, and writing papers
• Video calls when I'm not home
• Remote access BASH programming for when I'm not at my workstation
• Light video/photo editing and rendering for figure creation for presentations

QOL specifications:

• Weight: my place will be a 20-minute walk to campus and I do plan to walk/bike the majority of the time so less stress on my back and shoulder is something I'm looking for.
• Battery life: I want to avoid being plugged in too much and I won't be home most of the day so a decent charge time is good.
• Decent memory: I tend to multitask so I tend to have multiple programs open/running in tandem.
• Budget: I guess $900 would be the cheapest but I wouldn't mind maybe a $1,100 ballpark.

With this in mind, which MacBook and add-ons would you recommend I purchase?

 

[KaliYoni]

As well as doing your own research, you should get in touch with your (soon-to-be) academic department and find out if there are any specific requirements at your institution for computers, software, or accessories. This is especially important now that Apple is moving away from Intel.

You don't mention in your post where you are located but in the US, Apple offers excellent discounts to university students and faculty. If you have access to hardware with an academic discount, I would go with a M1 MacBook Pro and add as much RAM as you can afford (I don't feel it's as critical to max out SSDs because it's easy and cost effective to buy external storage capacity). I also would pick up an Ethernet dongle and a security cable with a lock.

 

[stemchimp]

As well as doing your own research, you should get in touch with your (soon-to-be) academic department and find out if there are any specific requirements at your institution for computers, software, or accessories. This is especially important now that Apple is moving away from Intel.

You don't mention in your post where you are located but in the US, Apple offers excellent discounts to university students and faculty. If you have access to hardware with an academic discount, I would go with a M1 MacBook Pro and add as much RAM as you can afford (I don't feel it's as critical to max out SSDs because it's easy and cost effective to buy external storage capacity). I also would pick up an Ethernet dongle and a security cable with a lock.

Thanks! I've already checked in with my PI and they suggested I go for one of the M1 models. Do you have any recommendations for carrying cases? I prefer softer cases and ideally not cost me an extra arm to buy.

Also is there anything other accessories I should look at getting, like the multiport adaptor? I know prime day for amazon is this coming Monday and was wondering if there might be some deals on accessories.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Thanks! I've already checked in with my PI and they suggested I go for one of the M1 models. Do you have any recommendations for carrying cases? I prefer softer cases and ideally not cost me an extra arm to buy.

Also is there anything other accessories I should look at getting, like the multiport adaptor? I know prime day for amazon is this coming Monday and was wondering if there might be some deals on accessories.

If you want a soft carrying case with high quality, take a look at https://www.woolnut.com I have been very happy with their products. I have one for my M1 MBA and my 12" MB.

 

[stemchimp]

If you want a soft carrying case with high quality, take a look at https://www.woolnut.com I have been very happy with their products. I have one for my M1 MBA and my 12" MB.

They look quality and reviews on Amazon look good. Do you have ones with or without the zipper? The sleeve is within my range and wondering how well it fits and how well it stays in the case while carrying it on hand.

 

[Apple_Robert]

They look quality and reviews on Amazon look good. Do you have ones with or without the zipper? The sleeve is within my range and wondering how well it fits and how well it stays in the case while carrying it on hand.

I don' t have any of the sleeves with zippers.

 

[MacCheetah3]

With @KaliYoni ‘s edu pricing mention in mind (assuming the answer is you live in the U.S.) … You can get a MBA M1 with 16GB of RAM for $1,079 + tax

Buy MacBook Air

Trade in your eligible Mac for credit toward a new 13-inch or 15-inch MacBook Air laptop. Select a model or customize your own. Buy now at apple.com.

www.apple.com

Add the case or sleeve and maybe even a 64/126/256GB USB-C flash drive or SSD for backup and/or extra storage. Or… 50GB on iCloud is only $0.99 per month.

As for adapter cables… It will depend on what accessories, if any, you may want to use as well as if you think or know you’ll be doing in classroom presentations (i.e. connecting to a projector)

 

[stemchimp]

With @KaliYoni ‘s edu pricing mention in mind (assuming the answer is you live in the U.S.) … You can get a MBA M1 with 16GB of RAM for $1,079 + tax

Buy MacBook Air

Trade in your eligible Mac for credit toward a new 13-inch or 15-inch MacBook Air laptop. Select a model or customize your own. Buy now at apple.com.

www.apple.com

Add the case or sleeve and maybe even a 64/126/256GB USB-C flash drive or SSD for backup and/or extra storage. Or… 50GB on iCloud is only $0.99 per month.

As for adapter cables… It will depend on what accessories, if any, you may want to use as well as if you think or know you’ll be doing in classroom presentations (i.e. connecting to a projector)

Yeah, I'm a US resident. After talking with my research advisor again, they talked me into the MBA with 16bg RAM as I will only be doing the remote-access programming not as frequent as one would imagine so the $300 more for the MBP won't really be needed.

I already plan on have an external SSD for storage if I need it. Probably the ethernet and a usb3 adaptor because I'll be working between a Windows personal desktop, a Linux Desktop workstation, and the MPA. The thing I'm most stressed out about is the case/sleeve haha. I tend to get anxious when I notice scratches/abrasions on my stuff so something that would protect my device would give me some peace of mind.

 

[MacCheetah3]

The thing I'm most stressed out about is the case/sleeve haha. I tend to get anxious when I notice scratches/abrasions on my stuff so something that would protect my device would give me some peace of mind.

Oh, I get it — and I believe many here are the same. Additionally, I’ve biked and walked with a laptop and textbooks in a backpack many times to and from campus. Here’s the reality… You’ll do a lot of research for a nice sleeve, carefully pack your backpack or whatnot, gingerly remove and place the MBA before and after each use (avoiding the any zippers and such), and take other “babying” steps — which there’s nothing wrong with. However, what typically causes those “I don’t want to look” cringe moments are the situations you never considered to be careful (e.g. your attention is caught, you turn around in a doorway or while walking through the desk/table aisles and *whack!*, your backpack smacks something hard). My tip is… Beyond accepting that no matter how careful you are accidents happen, don’t just focus on the obvious ‘dangerous’ actions. Lastly, not quite a silver lining, although, after the first scratch or dent, the others don’t hurt as bad. (Best I can do to comfort.)

After talking with my research advisor again, they talked me into the MBA with 16bg RAM as I will only be doing the remote-access programming not as frequent as one would imagine so the $300 more for the MBP won't really be needed.

I haven’t stepped back into Xcode yet — long, irrelevant story — nor otherwise pushed the M1 mini yet, nonetheless, the mini has yet to exhaust even Lukewarm air. Seriously, it’s always cool air coming out. Even at idle, my 2012 mini was expelling warm air and quickly hit the peak thermal limit when under load.

Programming in itself normally doesn’t overly stress hardware; it’s the emulators, virtual machines, things of that nature which feed significantly on resources. And you mention only light video editing, so you should be totally fine with a MBA.

 

[stemchimp]

Oh, I get it — and I believe many here are the same. Additionally, I’ve biked and walked with a laptop and textbooks in a backpack many times to and from campus. Here’s the reality… You’ll do a lot of research for a nice sleeve, carefully pack your backpack or whatnot, gingerly remove and place the MBA before and after each use (avoiding the any zippers and such), and take other “babying” steps — which there’s nothing wrong with. However, what typically causes those “I don’t want to look” cringe moments are the situations you never considered to be careful (e.g. your attention is caught, you turn around in a doorway or while walking through the desk/table aisles and *whack!*, your backpack smacks something hard). My tip is… Beyond accepting that no matter how careful you are accidents happen, don’t just focus on the obvious ‘dangerous’ actions. Lastly, not quite a silver lining, although, after the first scratch or dent, the others don’t hurt as bad. (Best I can do to comfort.)




I haven’t stepped back into Xcode yet — long, irrelevant story — nor otherwise pushed the M1 mini yet, nonetheless, the mini has yet to exhaust even Lukewarm air. Seriously, it’s always cool air coming out. Even at idle, my 2012 mini was expelling warm air and quickly hit the peak thermal limit when under load.

Programming in itself normally doesn’t overly stress hardware; it’s the emulators, virtual machines, things of that nature which feed significantly on resources. And you mention only light video editing, so you should be totally fine with a MBA.

Haha thanks for all the advice and reassurance! I'll just roll with it for a few months and see how it goes, I do really like how the MPA looks and feel without a case so I'll just settle with a sleeve and hope I don't notice too much. 😅

 

[James_C]

Yeah, I'm a US resident. After talking with my research advisor again, they talked me into the MBA with 16bg RAM as I will only be doing the remote-access programming not as frequent as one would imagine so the $300 more for the MBP won't really be needed.

That is a great machine, it’s the same spec as mine, which I bought on release day last year. I have been buying Mac laptops since 2002, and this M1 16GB MBA is the best one I have ever bought. Light and day improvement on the 2016 15” MacBook Pro it replaced. You are going to love it.

 

[satcomer]

That is a great machine, it’s the same spec as mine, which I bought on release day last year. I have been buying Mac laptops since 2002, and this M1 16GB MBA is the best one I have ever bought. Light and day improvement on the 2016 15” MacBook Pro it replaced. You are going to love it.

Especially the all day battery life!