Apple MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro

Most manufacturers would be happy enough to have the top-selling laptop at retail; to also have the laptop that a whole category of systems is chasing might seem like overkill. But that's the happy situation in which Apple finds itself, with the MacBook Pro 13-inch putting up blockbuster sales figures while the MacBook Air 13-inch is taped to the dartboards of ultrabook vendors from HP to Dell, from Asus to Samsung.

While there's inevitably gossip about a single, slim-but-powerful Apple laptop that would split the difference between the two product lines, for now mobile Mac buyers have to choose sides, ultra-slim Air or powerful Pro. Which is better for you?

Apple's offerings span the spectrum of laptop computing, from the 2.4-pound MacBook Air 11-inch (Best Deal: $999.00 at Woodwind & Brasswind) at $999—really $1,199 since, as efficient as OS X is, we still think you'll be happier if you double the base model's skimpy 2GB of RAM and 64GB of solid-state storage—to the 6.6-pound MacBook Pro 17-inch at $2,499. Processing power ranges from the dual-core Intel Core i5 CPUs of the Airs to the quad-core Core i7s of the desktop replacement Pros.

The two lines overlap at the 13-inch screen size, with the MacBook Air offered in 11- and 13-inch and the MacBook Pro in 13-, 15-, and 17-inch flavors.

Each model features unibody chassis construction, machined out of a single piece of aluminum, and is packed with Apple's trademark technology—from Thunderbolt ports and FaceTime video chat cameras to the MagSafe breakaway power connector that won't yank the laptop off your desk if you trip over the cord.

The MacBook Air, despite its more sophisticated (and expensive) flash storage, is positioned as the company's entry-level or everyday notebook, light enough to go wherever you go and handy enough for any job that crops up, while the Pro is a more performance-oriented platform for power users of specific applications.
At the extremes, the choice is easy. The MacBook Air 11-inch is all about ultraportability, a take-it-anywhere note-taker or light-duty productivity partner, while Apple refers to the luggable MacBook Pro 17-inch as "the ultimate mobile studio" (preferring not to use the word "workstation") for media professionals or enthusiasts in video or music editing or publishing.

The MacBook Pro 15-inch (Best Deal: $1,689.99 at MacConnection) has a fairly well-defined niche, too, as Apple's primary desktop replacement—light enough (5.6 pounds) that someone might at least occasionally take it on a plane or to the conference room to give a presentation, but muscular enough to tackle Final Cut Pro as well as Microsoft Office.
That leaves the tough Air-or-Pro decision to the 13-inch (actually 13.3-inch) segment, where the $1,199 MacBook Pro and $1,299 MacBook Air go toe to toe.

The Pro has more horsepower, with a 2.4GHz versus 1.7GHz Core i5 processor, and much more storage space, with a 500GB hard drive versus a 128GB SSD. While both have Thunderbolt and USB 2.0 ports, the Pro's thicker (1.0 versus 0.7 inch) chassis makes room for an optical drive—a slot-loading DVD±RW burner—and Ethernet port, two features not found in the Air.

But who needs Ethernet in this age of Wi-Fi? Who needs an optical drive in this age of app stores, movie downloads, and iCloud? The Air's snappy SSD gives it a responsiveness edge that almost equals the Pro's extra processing power, and besides, most people aren't going to be running Photoshop on a 13-inch screen (and if they are, the Air's 1,440 by 900 resolution tops the Pro's 1,280 by 800).

Most of all, while the MacBook Pro 13-inch is no bruiser at 4.5 pounds, you'll definitely feel the difference in your briefcase compared to the 3.0-pound Air. Mobile computing is all about, well, mobility, and we vote for the extra portability of the MacBook Air.

Source: PCmag

Tags: Apple, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, Laptop