I agree, the Air is to lightweight, and no DVD/cd drive.

I love my MacBook Pro 15", but also have iPads for certain limited uses, and to take in my purse.

Is your screen retina display?

The programs you mentioned are Apple's version of Microsoft Word, Excel, etc.

They are offered as a bundle sometimes under the title iWork Suite. If you are already familiar with Microsoft Office, then you should stick with that.

Are you a student, or do you know somebody who is? Apple offers student/education discounts on the computer and software.

It is worth a trip to an Apple store to try out all versions. Nothing like seeing it in person and getting your hands on it to help you decide.

No, I am not a student, but I have a son starting
college in three weeks. :-)

I am going to the apple store this weekend.

Good luck in Deciding I've been trying to decide on which one for weeks. I made up my mind on getting the MacBook Pro 15inch with retina. Just to let you know The Apple Store will price match and save you some money. B&H Photo has some of the lowest prices and all I did was ask The Apple Store if they would price match and they said they would. I'm just waiting until Aug 10th to get it because MA is a having tax free weekend then.

Our tax free weekend is next weekend. What is B&H? Would I need to take
proof of the price or can they look it up?

I have never heard anyone say they like the Air. I don't get why they even made it. Just to say they have the thinnest and lightest, but other than that.... Just use an ipad!

I am currently on an older Macbook, and it's almost time for an upgrade. We bought this one used, and honestly I didn't even know the dvd drive didn't work until like months later! It's not something that we would use, so for our new one, I guess I wouldn't worry about getting it. This is my 2nd Apple laptop we bought used. I actually prefer it. I get the one that's the last model, and they come with programs already installed on it! I still use my even older laptop bc it has Illustrator and Photoshop on it. It's super old CS2 but it still works! :D

So if you were to say it is for your son for college, they would probably give you the education discount.

I bought one for my goddaughter for a high school graduation present, and mentioned that, and Apple gave me the discount just asking what school she was going to.

No, it's older, and I chose the gloss rather than matte screen.

KANYE WEST! He used to Tweet in all caps and constantly mention his Air. This was before the iPad.

I thought the Air was the one to have, but when I got to the store and saw how flimsy it was, I said no way.

I agree.

Thank you for correcting my earlier misinformation about programs -- I completely forgot about iWork.

I would recommend the Pro. I would recommend an iPad over an Air. I have owned Macs for years and never had anti-virus. It's not really something you have to worry about, one of the many bonuses of owning a Mac. I also wouldn't bother running Boot Camp. You won't want to go back to PCs once you used an Apple.

It is true th Air doesn't even have a USB port? Or was that the original one only? And kanye is not a good indicator of wise choices dontcha think? :D

Hope this helps...
 

I can only tell you this, as overheard from various "geniuses" and customers, after many hours of my Macbook Pro being in what I call the "Apple Hospital." From what I know, when the Air came out (~2009?), the idea was "let's create a working computer that can fit in a manila envelope," in an appeal to people who liked compact computers/small computer developer competitors, and voila! After having saved up a lot of money (and grief from my Dell laptop!), I purchased the Pro, which is already out of its 3 year warranty period, meaning any problems that may arise with the computer, I must pay for, myself. Regardless of which option you choose, I would most definitely recommend purchasing the computer from the Apple Store (online or in store) ONLY, not an "authorized re-seller," as well as the 3 year warranty/AppleCare, which of course, they only allow you to do at the time of purchase. Whatever happens to the computer within those 3 years, you will not be fiscally responsible for (no bills out of pocket? music to my ears!) :)

I learn the most about the world from other people, so when my Macbook Pro's files were all lost on the admin (main) account, where I kept all of my students' records (and of course, with my luck, never thought to back them up), I sat on a stool at the "Apple Hospital Bar," praying they'd be able to recover my "corrupted files." They weren't able to, but I digress.

The gentleman sitting next to me had a much older Mac (and swore by Apple products for twenty years prior!) and was asking and answering questions way over my head, to the store's supervisor. He worked in graphic design, and I learned SO much from their discourse. I gathered that the Air (which probably has a new design since 2009) is simply a typing machine. It will do all the functions you need out of a computer, BUT there is no internal CD drive, and no bells nor whistles. To this really bright gentleman, this was a selling point, as he felt things were less likely to go wrong with the machine, since it was, in fact, so skeletal. He planned on purchasing his own external hard drive, his own external CD drive, a printer, and any other accoutrements he so desired. This way, if something went wrong, he knew it wasn't the computer's "fault" - as Macs (unless you decide to install the software to make them "Windows compatible" as many have alluded to above) are less susceptible to acquiring viruses. As long as the Air you're looking into now has an ample number of USB ports (or can provide the "wattage" to hold a USB hub with several USB ports, all being used simultaneously), he felt the Air was a great base model.

I am not as tech savvy (if you couldn't already tell from my experiences here on YT!), so in an attempt to simplify things for myself, and have all components in one machine, I chose the Pro. I had to write my dissertation on it, so the 15" was more costly, but easier to type on (for me), having to type 100+ pages in two or three sittings. I will not tell you it's the "best thing out there since sliced bread," but it is a solid machine. It make "force" you to change every other piece of tech equipment (i.e. phone, tablet, etc.) to an Apple product, so your operating systems (OS') are uniform. The Pro "flairs up" just like any other computer, but because everything is internal (battery cannot be removed, CD drive cannot be removed) an Apple store is the only way to get inside the computer. Overall, I'm pleased with my switch from a Dell to a Macbook (and pages = Mac's version of MS Word, numbers = Mac's version of MS Excel, keynote = Mac's version of MS Powerpoint), and I'd recommend it, as I'm sure now, the model I purchased has been improved upon greatly. The only reason I mentioned the bright gentleman and his "Air reasoning" was because I, too, could never see myself carrying around such a thin computer. But, thinking about it in hindsight, his argument was pretty valid, in my opinion. If you don't mind purchasing and attaching things to the Air (provided it has at least 2 USB ports AND has the aforementioned programs pre-installed), it may not be a bad option.

If you have any further questions, I have a dear, dear friend who is a computer extraordinaire, and who used to work for Apple. He is an absolute sweetheart, and if you PM me, I can give you his contact information, and I promise, he won't steer you in the wrong direction :)

Best of luck! I really hope you find the computer that'll make your life easier (for me, that's always a goal!). Apple is always coming up with something new (usually in September or October, I believe), so I am sure you can customize a model (online only) that best fits with your tech-needs :) If you have any more questions, don't be bashful to Message me, ok?

I didn't get far enough to check USB ports. Kanye is definitely not one to follow. :D In fact, his endorsement would turn me away.

Here's the link where you can find the best prices. Both The Apple Store and BestBuy will both price match.
AppleInsider | News and rumors since 1997##

I would take a print out of the price to the store and they are just going to verify it. If you look at Best Buy they have a price match guarantee and B&H Photo is listed as one of the places they price match.
Another thing I found out was the MacBook Laptops are guaranteed for 1 year and also have a 90 day free calling for support. But if you want the extended warranty you can purchase that as well any time during your first year. The extra warranty is for 3 years on both calling and parts and labor. But it will start the day you purchased the laptop. Another words your not getting any extra time by waiting. But usually if something were to happen it would be in the first year. I'm not saying not to get the extra warranty but in my case I'm going to wait get it later. The warranty is not good for accidental like if you spilled something or dropped it and broke the screen. But if the screen began ghosting or something like that it would be covered. BestBuy has a warranty for accidentals if you were to break the screen the cost I believe is $400 but I'm not sure how many years I think 3.

I went to the B&H website and saw the cheaper prices, so i will definitely be mentioning price match when I go and will have the website pulled up. Thanks for the tip!

Heading to the apple store! My dad just told me
his retirement benefits allows him discounts on apple
products. Guess who is using the discount? Me!! Lol

That is wonderful! Happy computer shopping.

Keynote
 

I use Keynote instead of Power Point for presentations. I prefer it and use it all the time. It has more features and makes my presentations look much more professional. I would imagine that page is a word or layout program and numbers is probably some sort of spread sheet program, but I am not 100% sure. Hope this helps. :)

I got the 13 inch mac pro and got a
great discount! Thanks everyone for your
input.

Congratulations! Enjoy.

I have both Pages is the Apple version of Word, Numbers = excel, Keynote = power point.

I have both the Apple versions and MS Office. I was leery at first of going to the apple versions, but after using them both for a few weeks, I have to say that I now love the Apple products, especially when doing a graphic heavy paper or presentation. I find them much easier to use and customize.

The one drawback I have found is that there are not as many templates available for the Apple products as there are for MS Office.