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I'm thinking of buying a MacBook Air, and I'm weighing up the merits of the several possible upgrades. I'm thinking I can afford only one option, so have you any advice on which is best?
a) Upgrade RAM from 4gb to 8gb
b) Upgrade processor (I think from 1.3 to 1.7 GHz)
c) Upgrade SSD from 128 to 256gb
I'm probably ruling out c) as I don't mind using an external HD or even a 32gb SDXC card if things get tight.
That leaves me thinking a over b. In my experience I've seen more things that you [i]can't[/i] do because of memory limitations, whereas a slower processor will get there eventually. That may be over simplifying things, but in any case 99% of the time I'll just be internet browsing though I'm keen to bake in a little future proofing if I can.
Go for the processor because you can get the memory from Crucial.com far cheaper than from Apple.
This assumes the RAM can be changed by the owner easily.
Apps are memory-hungry; get the RAM.
what budget?
RAM probably as you say, would need intensive stuff to hit a processor limit realistically.
FWIW I just got a MBA off the ref rub store, not (I think) up to date model, but didn't have to compromise on RAM/CPU and think managed decent SD capacity as well (and with USB3 xHDD I can always go external)..
^^^
pretty sure current MBA memory is sealed-in..
Ram is not user upgradeable.
Maybe you can have your cake, and eat it?
http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/apple-macbook-vs-laptop#post-5689877
I may be wrong, but the RAM is not upgradable in the AIR...
*edit* beaten to it twice!
Yup, you cant change the RAM in the new MacBooks.
Save an extra £150 or so and get both a and b? Personally I got the HDD but thats because I have a lot of media.
4GB of RAM isnt a huge amount these days, but if all you're doing in web and email type stuff it will probably be enough.
RAM. You can't upgrade it yourself and it's the most benefit you'll see. The 1.3 chip is plenty enough for what it's designed for and the SSD space is adequate. Unless of course you want to store a massive amount of data on the machine, in which case SSD would be a better upgrade for you, but then you might argue you're moving away from what the MBA is designed for and the 13" MBP could be a better bet given travelling with a usb drive will add bulk and power drain when plugged in.
I love mine but i'd like the extra RAM, if I replaced it i'd definitely upgrade that. Given the amount I use the iPad these days i'd probably go MBP next time though.
Do all 3 - That's what I did and glad I did.
With music, films and photos I'm well over 200gb currently without trying. I'm by no means a 'power user' and have a separate work laptop. Do have an external drive but when travelling don't want to be carrying that.
It all added up to silly price but pleased I did.
how flush are you feeling?
1349 on the refurb. store will get a whizzo machine, all you could ask for in terms of processor, RAM, SSD.
there are two other MBAs but they are both 4GB RAM.
Find a teacher or a student to get you educational discount and knock 20% off and get all the upgrades.
Personally I am waiting for the next iteration which would presumably have a retnia display.
Definitely the RAM. The CPU upgrades are really incremental improvements, and you probably wouldn't notice the difference unless you were exporting video or something. Which an Air is, eh, suboptimal for 🙂