Best MacBook for a College Student?

[SpencerC]

Hello all, its been awhile since I've posted here!

I am currently in the market for a MacBook, since the current Windows PC I am using has an abysmal battery life of ~4 hours (which is typically enough to get me through one class, maybe two at most before I have to become a wall huger, which isn't always possible). I was looking at purchasing a refurbished 13in. 2018 MacBook Pro (quad-core i5, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD) or a current 2018 MacBook air (dual-core i5, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD). From my experience with macOS in the past, it seems to get laptops father than most Windows laptops. What would you guys recommend I do?

 

Thanks for all the help!

[SenKa]

Macbook Air gets better battery life, Macbook Pro is higher performance.

 

I personally say MBA, as a college student myself.

 

One other note, please ignore the 2 TB3 port Macbook Pro's. Theyre stupid, and have no reason to exist.

[SpencerC]

20 minutes ago, SenpaiKaplan said:

Macbook Air gets better battery life, Macbook Pro is higher performance.

 

I personally say MBA, as a college student myself.

 

One other note, please ignore the 2 TB3 port Macbook Pro's. Theyre stupid, and have no reason to exist.

You don't find the dual core CPU to be somewhat limiting? I brought up the quad-core Macbook Pro because it has the potential to last longer than the Macbook Air. Also, something I haven't quite decided on is whether the 2 extra USB-C Thunderbolt ports, Touchbar, and screen are worth the $100 or so upcharge from a brand new Air.

[KarathKasun]

16 minutes ago, SpencerC said:

You don't find the dual core CPU to be somewhat limiting? I brought up the quad-core Macbook Pro because it has the potential to last longer than the Macbook Air. Also, something I haven't quite decided on is whether the 2 extra USB-C Thunderbolt ports, Touchbar, and screen are worth the $100 or so upcharge from a brand new Air.

You either get performance or battery life, not both.

You can get good battery life in PCs or MACs, but only on models specifically designed for battery life.

MBA is only really good for ~10 hours unless you go below 50% screen brightness.

 

Check here for some test results...

https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/all-day-strong-longest-lasting-notebooks

 

If battery life is top importance for you, the Lenovo T480 is the only game in town.  17 hours using reasonably real world productivity testing.

[SpencerC]

22 minutes ago, KarathKasun said:

You either get performance or battery life, not both.

You can get good battery life in PCs or MACs, but only on models specifically designed for battery life.

MBA is only really good for ~10 hours unless you go below 50% screen brightness.

 

Check here for some test results...

https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/all-day-strong-longest-lasting-notebooks

 

If battery life is top importance for you, the Lenovo T480 is the only game in town.  17 hours using reasonably real world productivity testing.

Thank you for the recommendation, but I am looking for something running macOS natively.

[KarathKasun]

4 minutes ago, SpencerC said:

Thank you for the recommendation, but I am looking for something running macOS natively.

Then you can only hope for 10-12 hours.

 

MBA and MBP will have similar run-times.  If you really tax the MBP it will perform better, but get much worse battery life.

 

The higher you spec the MBP the worse its battery life will be as well.

[SpencerC]

4 minutes ago, KarathKasun said:

Then you can only hope for 10-12 hours.

 

MBA and MBP will have similar run-times.  If you really tax the MBP it will perform better, but get much worse battery life.

 

The higher you spec the MBP the worse its battery life will be as well.

That’s why I selected a quadcore MacBook Pro instead of one of the six or eight core processors, partially so that I would be on hardware parity with a good chunk of Windows laptops. 

[KarathKasun]

15 minutes ago, SpencerC said:

That’s why I selected a quadcore MacBook Pro instead of one of the six or eight core processors, partially so that I would be on hardware parity with a good chunk of Windows laptops. 

Yeah, either will be good for ~11 hours, just pick how much cash you want to burn and if you want a higher performance ceiling.

 

I use an old 1.9ghz i3 (no turbo) with 16gb of ram for office work + light graphic design work daily and have zero performance problems unless I have 20+ web apps going at the same time. (gdocs X6, gmail x 2, ~10 research tabs, youtube/pandora. using FF for personal apps and Chrome for business apps at the same time)

 

Granted, this is running under Debian and not Windows.

[SpencerC]

10 hours ago, KarathKasun said:

Yeah, either will be good for ~11 hours, just pick how much cash you want to burn and if you want a higher performance ceiling.

 

I use an old 1.9ghz i3 (no turbo) with 16gb of ram for office work + light graphic design work daily and have zero performance problems unless I have 20+ web apps going at the same time. (gdocs X6, gmail x 2, ~10 research tabs, youtube/pandora. using FF for personal apps and Chrome for business apps at the same time)

 

Granted, this is running under Debian and not Windows.

One other thing: do you know if Bootcamp works on external drives? Or should I spring for more internal storage?

[SenKa]

1 hour ago, SpencerC said:

One other thing: do you know if Bootcamp works on external drives? Or should I spring for more internal storage?

It does, yes.

12 hours ago, SpencerC said:

You don't find the dual core CPU to be somewhat limiting? I brought up the quad-core Macbook Pro because it has the potential to last longer than the Macbook Air. Also, something I haven't quite decided on is whether the 2 extra USB-C Thunderbolt ports, Touchbar, and screen are worth the $100 or so upcharge from a brand new Air.

Not at all! There are only 2 scenarios where I feel that I'm on a dual core, and neither are school related. (Creating disk images, rendering videos)

 

I have an older Macbook Air myself, a 2014 (identical to the Silver bezel Macbook Air Apple sells for $999) and it feels like a new device to this day.

[SpencerC]

1 hour ago, SenpaiKaplan said:

It does, yes.

Not at all! There are only 2 scenarios where I feel that I'm on a dual core, and neither are school related. (Creating disk images, rendering videos)

 

I have an older Macbook Air myself, a 2014 (identical to the Silver bezel Macbook Air Apple sells for $999) and it feels like a new device to this day.

Alrighty then. Would you happen to have a recommendation for an expansion hub to maximize the utility of only having two ports?

[KarathKasun]

4 hours ago, SpencerC said:

One other thing: do you know if Bootcamp works on external drives? Or should I spring for more internal storage?

Unsure, though it could be down to support in the OS you are booting.

[SenKa]

3 hours ago, SpencerC said:

Alrighty then. Would you happen to have a recommendation for an expansion hub to maximize the utility of only having two ports?

https://www.amazon.com/UtechSmart-Ethernet-Delivery-Compatible-Chromebook/dp/B07H2ZS1B5/ref=pd_lpo_vtph_147_lp_t_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=TGT5MVBYRR7A88RX1BKP

[Darkseth]

MB Air only, if you get it significantly cheaper than the MBP 13".

 

MB Air is ALOT slower than MBP, because it's just slightly faster than the regular small MacBook 12". Even MacBook Pros from 2016 are significantly faster.

The problem is NOT the CPU having only 2 cores, but because it's a 7w limited low end CPU.

Even the Macbook Pro 2017 i5 Dual core is significantly faster.

 

On the other hand, MB Air weights not noticeably less than the MB Pro.

Also, it's not smaller or thinner either.

 

 

Compare prices. If you only pay a few more % more for the Pro, get the Pro.

Battery Life won't be as good, but still very good.

Performance will be faster, Display is better and much brighter.

 

I found myself a Macbook Air 2018 with 8gb Ram and 256gb storage from a well known tech shop, as an Outlet for 925€ - new prices are 1400-1450€. Price on apple.de is 1599€. So i went for it.

I honestly couldn't bring myself to pay almost 1700€ for a MBP 13" with 8gb Ram + 256gb storage (let alone that insulting 240€ more for 16gb Ram...).... Not with that Keyboard.

 

 

For "normal" stuff, like browsing, office, and smaller tasks, you won't feel that much difference.

If you don't need/want MacOS in particular, and you're going to type alot, you should probably consider sticking with windows, and buy a thinkpad or any other.

 

Current MacBooks since 2016 offer the by Far worst Keyboard you can find in ANY Notebook pretty much. Even the Surface Type Cover keys are better.

Even 500€ Windows notebooks have a much better keyboard.

 

Edit: To be fair... some people like the Keyboard so.. try it out.

[DrMacintosh]

On 6/6/2019 at 7:32 PM, SenpaiKaplan said:

ne other note, please ignore the 2 TB3 port Macbook Pro's.

I'd argue they have a place. They have better performance than the MBA in terms of Graphics and CPU power, better and brighter screens, and comparable battery life. 

 

They would be much better if Intel had new Iris graphics for their 9th Gen CPUs tho. 

[DrMacintosh]

If you are just going to be doing student work, aka essays, notes, etc., then you can get the MBA. If you are going to be doing anything more intense, like basic editing in iMovie, or some 3D acceleration, get a 13" MBP. 

[Lord Vile]

People seem to be forgetting that the cheapest MBP with a quad core comes in at over 500 more expensive than the base air and over 300 more than the air with equivalent storage and is still a 13".

 

I have a 2018 MacBook Air with 8GB RAM and a 256GB SSD and It's been perfect for me so far but most of what I do is stuff online, a few bits in pages and then keynotes. Plus some smaller games like Undertale and 60 seconds. 

 

Agree with what some people are saying though. If you do video editing etc the MBP is worth it but I'm unsure if you'd be better off buying the 4 core model for 300+ more or just buying the pack of software for 200 that includes FCPX and logic which might get you some more milage out of the dual core and ultimately it's better software than iMovie for example. 

 

https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/campaigns/education-pricing

[SenKa]

14 hours ago, DrMacintosh said:

I'd argue they have a place. They have better performance than the MBA in terms of Graphics and CPU power, better and brighter screens, and comparable battery life. 

 

They would be much better if Intel had new Iris graphics for their 9th Gen CPUs tho. 

Id argue you'd be better off getting a Macbook Air with more storage for the price of a 2 TB3 Macbook Pro 13", unless you absolutely need the extra CPU power.

 

If you're getting a Macbook Pro, get the 4 port varient imo.

[SenKa]

7 hours ago, Lord Vile said:

People seem to be forgetting that the cheapest MBP with a quad core comes in at over 500 more expensive than the base air and over 300 more than the air with equivalent storage and is still a 13".

 

I have a 2018 MacBook Air with 8GB RAM and a 256GB SSD and It's been perfect for me so far but most of what I do is stuff online, a few bits in pages and then keynotes. Plus some smaller games like Undertale and 60 seconds. 

 

Agree with what some people are saying though. If you do video editing etc the MBP is worth it but I'm unsure if you'd be better off buying the 4 core model for 300+ more or just buying the pack of software for 200 that includes FCPX and logic which might get you some more milage out of the dual core and ultimately it's better software than iMovie for example. 

 

https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/campaigns/education-pricing

As a FCP user, can confirm the dual core is enough for light editing. Have 0 idea what I'm doing with Logic, so cannot speak to that.

[Lord Vile]

1 hour ago, SenpaiKaplan said:

As a FCP user, can confirm the dual core is enough for light editing. Have 0 idea what I'm doing with Logic, so cannot speak to that.

No idea what they're planning on doing so just said you can get a bundle for the price of one piece of software if you go through education. FCPX and Logic are the only 2 piece I remember of about 6

[SpencerC]

18 hours ago, Lord Vile said:

People seem to be forgetting that the cheapest MBP with a quad core comes in at over 500 more expensive than the base air and over 300 more than the air with equivalent storage and is still a 13".

 

I have a 2018 MacBook Air with 8GB RAM and a 256GB SSD and It's been perfect for me so far but most of what I do is stuff online, a few bits in pages and then keynotes. Plus some smaller games like Undertale and 60 seconds. 

 

Agree with what some people are saying though. If you do video editing etc the MBP is worth it but I'm unsure if you'd be better off buying the 4 core model for 300+ more or just buying the pack of software for 200 that includes FCPX and logic which might get you some more milage out of the dual core and ultimately it's better software than iMovie for example. 

  

 https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/campaigns/education-pricing

The only hesitation that I have in buying an Air is that it has a (mostly) garbage tier Y-series processor. Would it have much longevity, or should I spring for the quad-core Pro? I say this, but have also read plenty of reports of people using Macbooks from the early 2010's with the most recent macOS update and they are still able to get usability out of the machine.

[Lord Vile]

14 hours ago, SpencerC said:

The only hesitation that I have in buying an Air is that it has a (mostly) garbage tier Y-series processor. Would it have much longevity, or should I spring for the quad-core Pro? I say this, but have also read plenty of reports of people using Macbooks from the early 2010's with the most recent macOS update and they are still able to get usability out of the machine.

Depends what you want it for. The Y chip in mine with 8GB runs perfectly and haven’t had any slowdowns with it at all.