Replacing my MacBook Air 11 Early 2015 for rMBP Late 2013. Worth it?

[dmnc]

I have the chance to replace my MacBook Air 2015 11.6 for a Retina MacBook Pro 13.3 late 2013. Same RAM and storage (4gb and 128ssd)
Do you think is worth it? For what I've seen the hardware in the rMBP is pretty similar because it's using a Haswell processor, so it's not going to be outdated anytime soon. Is a good decision, considering that I plan to keep it for a couple of years? Need advice.

 

[NauCayuti]

[...] using a Haswell processor, so it's not going to be outdated anytime soon. Is a good decision, considering that I plan to keep it for a couple of years? Need advice.

Honestly, if you want to keep it for a few years, I would go for a Macbook with at least 8 GB RAM.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

I have the chance to replace my MacBook Air 2015 11.6 for a Retina MacBook Pro 13.3 late 2013. Same RAM and storage (4gb and 128ssd)
Do you think is worth it? For what I've seen the hardware in the rMBP is pretty similar because it's using a Haswell processor, so it's not going to be outdated anytime soon. Is a good decision, considering that I plan to keep it for a couple of years? Need advice.

Performance wise they are very similar so it's really down to screen size or retina, if you want a bigger retina screen go for it, if portability is the order of the day stick with what you've got.

 

[dmnc]

Honestly, if you want to keep it for a few years, I would go for a Macbook with at least 8 GB RAM.

Sadly, that's not a possibility. But with the light use that I give it, I don't know if that would be a very serious issue. My concert is the support of new features in OSX 10.12.

 

[Steve121178]

Yes, but I personally wouldn't be interested in a machine that only had 4GB RAM and 128GB storage.

It might be acceptable for your needs and I'd definitely take the Pro over the Air.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

Sadly, that's not a possibility. But with the light use that I give it, I don't know if that would be a very serious issue. My concert is the support of new features in OSX 10.12.

Unless they need TB3 ( 5k screen support or eGPU support) then I don't see any reason why a 2013 wouldn't support all new features and eGPU's already work at 80-90% capacity on thunderbolt 2.

 

[MarvinHC]

While 4GB of RAM is enough for the Air, for the Pro I would be more worried since you have the much higher number of pixels for the retina screen to take care of. Wasn't this why they made 8GB RAM standard for the retina later on because it struggled with only 4GB?

I personally would prefer the Air for it's portability and better battery life. Plus it has a much faster SSD.

 

[dmnc]

While 4GB of RAM is enough for the Air, for the Pro I would be more worried since you have the much higher number of pixels for the retina screen to take care of. Wasn't this why they made 8GB RAM standard for the retina later on because it struggled with only 4GB?

I personally would prefer the Air for it's portability and better battery life. Plus it has a much faster SSD.

Well, that's exactly my concern. Because I don't want to get a machine that will be soon obsolete. We don't know what will happen with OS X 10.12 but I feel more comfortable with a 2015 machine in terms of support in the long term. But on the other side, I've never used a MacBook with Retina display and people say it's awesome. The ssd speed it's not a problem for me because the 11 inch doesn't have the faster ssd of the air 13 inch, so I would say that they're going to be pretty similar.

 

[MarvinHC]

Well, that's exactly my concern. Because I don't want to get a machine that will be soon obsolete. We don't know what will happen with OS X 10.12 but I feel more comfortable with a 2015 machine in terms of support in the long term. But on the other side, I've never used a MacBook with Retina display and people say it's awesome. The ssd speed it's not a problem for me because the 11 inch doesn't have the faster ssd of the air 13 inch, so I would say that they're going to be pretty similar.

Hm, I thought in 2015 also the 11" got a faster SSD? I could be wrong there.
For me personally, the whole retina is a hype. I was long uncertain between the retina 13" and the air 13" or 11". I looked at them many times in the shop and frankly for me the difference in screen quality is not a big deal. And as far as I know my eyes are pretty good I ended up with the 11" which is the most perfect laptop I have ever owned. I love its portability (I travel a lot for work, so I end up with two laptops, one for work any my 11" Air in my backpack), the battery, the speed... only one thing annoys me is the lack of SD card slot. Many times I had to search for my external SD card reader to download pics from my camera. But that is really the only complaint I have about it.

 

[Channan]

I'd say it boils down to whether you care about a better display or better portability. Personally, I couldn't own a MacBook Air because of the display.

 

[triple-tap]

I can tell from my (admittedly anecdotal) experience, you will lose significant performance by switching to the 2013 rMBP with only 4gb ram. The SSD can always be supplemented with external drives, but the RAM is effectively impossible to expand on these models.

As mentioned above, the rMBP has to push wayyyyy more pixels for the Retina display.

Think of it like this:

A compact Toyota Corolla is a fine car with its 1.8l 4 cylinder motor.
A full size Toyota Tundra is a fine truck with the 8 cylinder (or even the 6 cylinder) motor.
However, a Tundra would lose its power if you tried to use the 4 cylinder motor as its drivetrain.

The 2013 rMBP with the 4 gb is effectively a Tundra with a the motor of a Corolla. I'd only look to upgrade if you could find a rMBP with at least 8gb ram. There is a reason Apple doesn't sell the rMBP (or even the Retina Macbook) with only 4 gb Ram.

 

[dmnc]

I can tell from my (admittedly anecdotal) experience, you will lose significant performance by switching to the 2013 rMBP with only 4gb ram. The SSD can always be supplemented with external drives, but the RAM is effectively impossible to expand on these models.

As mentioned above, the rMBP has to push wayyyyy more pixels for the Retina display.

Think of it like this:

A compact Toyota Corolla is a fine car with its 1.8l 4 cylinder motor.
A full size Toyota Tundra is a fine truck with the 8 cylinder (or even the 6 cylinder) motor.
However, a Tundra would lose its power if you tried to use the 4 cylinder motor as its drivetrain.

The 2013 rMBP with the 4 gb is effectively a Tundra with a the motor of a Corolla. I'd only look to upgrade if you could find a rMBP with at least 8gb ram. There is a reason Apple doesn't sell the rMBP (or even the Retina Macbook) with only 4 gb Ram.

If I recall correctly the 2015 entry level rMBP is still 4gb of ram.

 

[triple-tap]

you don't recall correctly. http://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-pro?product=MF839LL/A&step=config
[doublepost=1455816944][/doublepost]At the end of the day, it is your computer. You are obviously going to do what you are going to do... but you came to the wrong forum for "yes" men (and women).

There are tons of threads and articles across the internet that will support the position that the 4gb rMBP is underpowered. You asked for advice, so we are just providing the same. Search around before you make any final decisions.

 

[JTToft]

As others have mentioned, it of course comes down to your preferences between the features the two offer.

You haven't mentioned whether any money would be involved in the exchange. Assuming no money, and holding other things equal, I'd take the rMBP in a heartbeat. But that's mostly because I wouldn't be able to tolerate the small and poor screen on the Air. The extra connectivity on the Pro would be a huge plus for me, too.

 

[dmnc]

I decided to stay with the Air, mainly because I had to put extra money (I live in Argentina, so everything Apple sells is really expensive –e.g. the entry level Watch costing 900 US dollars). Also, I don't like the screen on the Air and wanted to try the retina display, but the battery life and performance of this machine is actually really good and suits my needs perfectly. On the other hand, I don't know how the increased needs of memory because of the difference in resolution would affect performance with just 4GB. Extra connectivity of the Pro would've been nice, but I have adaptors so it's not a REAL problem.
I think I would wait and buy a brand new Pro, with 8GB RAM, in some point in the future. (Or maybe a redesigned MacBook Air?)
Thanks everyone for your answers!