Apple MacBook Pro head-on with MacBook Air 2012
By Raaj Datta (NVONews.Com)
The white MacBook is no more, making Apple lighter by one product. That leaves us with the MacBook Pro and the MacBook Air line of laptops from Apple – the choice hasn’t got any easier because they are practically two different yet confusing solutions to the same dilemma. One is thin, the other has more ports. Choosing one over the other is difficult than you assume.
The MacBook Pro 13-inch has hit happy sales figures for Apple while the MacBook Air 13-inch is the happy target for the bunch of Ultrabook sellers – HP, Samsung, Dell, and Asus. There has been rumours and gossip about a single laptop series from Apple that emerges from the two product lines. For now, the conflict of choice for buyers continues.
The choice of laptops starts from the 2.4-pound $999 MacBook Air 11-inch to the 6.6-pound $2,499 MacBook Pro 17-inch. The MacBook Airs feature processing power of the dual-core Intel Core i5 CPUs while the Pro series distract buyers with the quad-core Core i7 processor. The 13-inch screen size is a common factor in both the product lines.
Crafted out of a single piece of aluminium, featuring unibody chassis construction, the powerful new laptops from Apple feature Thunderbolt ports, FaceTime video chat cameras, and MagSafe breakaway power connectors designed to stay on the desk in case you accidentally trip over the power cord.
The more expensive MacBook Air is pretty sophisticated with flash storage, but it’s positioned as Apple’s entry-level model, light and handy for everyday use. The MacBook Pro is a work-horse and performance-oriented and a good choice for power users.
The MacBook Pro is the ultimate mobile studio according to Apple, making it easier for professionals in the video and music editing segment to make a choice. The MacBook Pro 15-inch is Apple’s primary desktop replacement solution powerful enough to smoothly run Final Cut Pro as well. Those who have ultra-portability as the decision-making factor, the MacBook Air 11-inch is the best choice.
The toughest decision is actually in the 13-inch segment, where the MacBook Pro is priced at $1,199 and the MacBook Air at $1,299. The Pro is thicker at 1 inch while the Air is just 0.7 inch. The MacBook Pro is powered by a 2.4 GHz processor whereas the Air has 1.7GHz Core i5 processor. The Pro has a 500GB HDD, and being thicker, there’s room for an optical drive and Ethernet port. The MacBook Air features a 128GB Solid State Drive (SSD) which adds to the speed. Both the product lines have Thunderbolt and USB 2.0 ports.
The MacBook Air really scores with the SSD. The responsiveness rivals the Pro’s processing power and most people now don’t exactly require an optical drive or an Ethernet port. Not many people would run Photoshop on a 13-inch laptop, but when resolution is concerned, the Air is 1,440 by 900 whereas the Pro’s resolution is 1,280 by 900.
Where mobility is a concern, the 13-inch MacBook Air weighs just 3 pounds, lighter by 1.5 pounds than the MacBook Pro. But then, there are speculations that Apple’s updated MacBook Pro might arrive sooner than expected – with Intel’s Ivy Bridge processors and Nvdia graphics, and feature high resolution Retina Displays.
For now, unless small size and mobility matters to you, the 13-inch MacBook Pro offers more features, power and HDD space. The difference is narrow and the choice is rather difficult.
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