<p>I did not like the time machine but if you just want to keep the school work safe and some pictures Dropbox gives you 2GB of cloud space free. It is great because you can access it from anywhere. Great for the time when you forget your paper at the dorm or when you just want to modify something when at the library computer.</p>
<p>Another vote for Dropbox. And, if you can entice friends or family members to install Dropbox in response to your invitation, Dropbox awards you more space. I am at 12 GB now just from sharing photos and iMovie projects. (A student will not need more than 2GB for papers. It’s the movie files that consume my storage.)</p>
<p>Dropbox has enhanced their photo downloading and viewing capacities tremendously. It was less user-friendly when I first used it more than three years ago but now I wonder why I ever paid for Smug Mug.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone. I do use Dropbox. DD used Google Drive. </p>
<p>I thought we’d done our research and decided that weighing all the pros and cons, the Air was the way to go. However, after reading your comments, I’m second guessing that decision. Somehow, I missed that there was a model of the Pro that also has a flash drive and is considerably lighter than the Air. </p>
<p>DD is NOT a gamer. She will only use her computer for surfing, creating documents for class, facebook/email/Skype and streaming an occasional movie. What do you think about that? Is the difference in processing speeds in the Air and Pro noticeable to that type of user?</p>
<p>The grandparents are paying for this, but I’m thinking about getting one of each and letting DD decide. The grandparents want to surprise her on graduation day and I want DD to get a computer she’ll be happy with for 4 years.</p>
<p>The Retina models are all flash but I don’t think that they are lighter than the MacBook Air models. Intel’s Haswell chip was released this past weekend - I don’t know if you would think that it’s worth it to wait until Apple updates their laptops to Haswell. I think that WWDC is next week and they’d probably announce it then if they’re going to do it now.</p>
<p>The notable thing about Haswell is greatly improved battery life and integrated graphics.</p>
<p>the retina Pro models are heavier than the Air: ~4.5 lbs vs. ~3 lbs.</p>
<p>I can only say that I have retina display on my ipad and I love it but I do not have it on my Mac laptop and I do not miss it. Honestly for the huge amount of money that you will be paying you for RD you can buy a mac pro without it and an ipad and have both. Either way I have a Mac for many years (and does my daughter) and we are very happy with them. No matter which model you choose she will be very happy with it. Try to find the one that best fit your budget. They are all top of the line.</p>
<p>Oops…yes, I know the pro is heavier than the Air…writing too late last night. The Pro with the flash drive is lighter than the Pro with the conventional drive. </p>
<p>We are getting a 13" either way–that’s what DD wants. The Pro with Retina display and 256 flash drive is 3.5 lbs, vs 3 lbs for the same size Air.</p>
<p>Just back from TD Curran (Apple Retailer) Here’s what the rep there told me. I’m interested in your opinions about his info: </p>
<p>1) The faster processing speed in the Pro wouldn’t be noticeable unless DD was gaming or editing pictures, or something along those lines. </p>
<p>2) He said the increased Retina Display image quality is not distinguishable when looking at pictures or movies but that it’s really noticeable when you’re reading text.</p>
<p>What do you think? Are those things true?</p>
<p>I agree with both comments. </p>
<p>DD has a Macbook Air, uses it in a manner very similar to your DD’s planned usage and is perfectly happy with it. </p>
<p>For what it is worth, I love Time Machine - and use it for all of the family macs. Works very quietly in the background, you never know it is on - and it is great being able to reach back and grab that older version of a file when you decide to go back. I haven’t done a full restore but have talked to other who have and they say it is a snap.</p>
<p>I work as a software engineer and I have the old 17 inch MacBook Pro. I bought it for the high-resolution screen at 1920x1200. Most high-res notebook screens are HD today (1920x1080). I personally really miss the extra 120 vertical pixels as it means that I can display more lines of code. So yes, if you want to read fine text, higher resolution is better.</p>
<p>I am really looking forward to the next RMBP. I think that I may finally upgrade this year. My MPB is from 2008 and it works just fine - I would like to play around with the AVX and AVX2 instruction sets. AVX2 is only available in Haswell and future architectures.</p>
<p>Look, it boils down to price and preference really. Will she read a lot in it? Yes but not as much as she would as in a tablet. Now if you want it to be a 4 years investment were you get the top of the line, no regrets, then get the retina display with the fast processor. Computers and software in general (not just for gaming) only get faster and require more power with time. You will never go wrong with a more powerful machine with better resolution, if you can afford it.</p>
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<p>Not in our house/on campus. Neither kid had a tablet until they graduated and purchased one with their own money. :)</p>
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<p>Exactly. In 3+ years, the machine will start to be viewed as underpowered.</p>
<p>Bluebayou I hear you loud and clear. That is why both my kids built their own desktops.Now tablets are getting down in price; you can get some the Amazon kindle fire HD for as low as $199. Going back on the Mac story, do not forget the promotion for students!!! You will save $200 on a new Mac!</p>