<p>I will be using this for internet, word, multitasking, etc. Also maybe playing a few not so intensive games on it (such as Counter Strike Source). The Macbook Air, with 8gb ram, i5 processor, and 128gb SSD, would be $1239, while the MBP Retina with i7, 8gb ram, and 256gb SSD, would be $1999. I'm just trying to decide if it would really be worth it spending almost $800 more for a better processor, bigger screen, and more storage. I like both laptops, though my only gripe with the Air was that it felt a little too fragile, though it does look sharp.</p>
<p>Everything you mentioned can be done with the MacBook Air 13" model.</p>
<p>You didn’t say you needed to run a bunch of VMs , do heavy programming/simulations , do photo editing , etc.</p>
<p>The Retina MacBook Pro seems like it’s overkill for you.</p>
<p>If $800 is not much money for you then I guess it’s worth it but it all depends on your financial situation.</p>
<p>I have a Retina Macbook Pro. It’s AMAZING.
I wasn’t going to get it, because I didn’t want to use my money like that, but I decided it was the best fit. My old 13 incher was starting to approach its fourth bday and I do heavy intensive filmmaking, photography, word processing, and graphics work so I said ‘what the heck’ and got it! My old one took 45 mins to start up, so it was a necessity. I you want an amazing upgrade, get it.
Oh, and BTW I’m 13. LOL</p>
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<p>What color calibrator do you use to calibrate your displays?</p>
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<p>Spyder 4 is an option.</p>
<p>Also interesting point to note, saw your name (del_psi) appear on notebookreview the other day… not sure if it’s a coincidence, but the user was incidentally asking about MBAs. I was going to contribute, but heh, they pretty much answered all the questions the user asked.</p>
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<p>I was going to buy a rMBP or MBA 13" but I ended up buying a Lenovo ThinkPad X230t and a Lenovo ThinkPad W530. I might buy a MBA 13" later (maybe when the “Haswell” CPUs come out) as an extra machine to mess around with.</p>
<p>The X230t is a tablet PC so I use that one the most. My W530 is essentially a desktop replacement so I don’t move it around too much.</p>
<p>It all comes down to personal preference and situation, financially and otherwise. If you have the money, go for it. Its easily the best MacBook pro. But I’m super short and not very strong, and i really didn’t have a problem with a MacBook pro on my back the whole day. 
As i said, personal preference.</p>
<p>Sent from my DROID RAZR using CC</p>
<p>I also got the same problem currently, the MBA 13" is too attractive on it’s weight but the MBP15" will fit me for frequent video streaming as well as the multi-tasking. While finally think I’ll go for the MBA13" coz it can be customized to 2.0Ghz with i7 and it’s more than enough for me as a business student.</p>