What MacBook Computer is Best For Your Needs!

There are many kinds of MacBook computers available in the market right now. And all of them come with different specs, benefits, pros and cons, and specs which made many buyers confused of what MacBook computer is really for them that suits their needs.

So now, if you are one of those who are looking to buy a new MacBook but aren’t sure which one to get, this article is definitely of great help for you. In this article, we’re comparing the full lineup of Apple’s latest laptops so that you will definitely learn what MacBook computer is best for your needs.

There are some variations of these machines as well as some older generation laptops that are still for sale. But in this article, we’ll be focusing on the current lineup in the base configurations. We have the 12-inch retina MacBook, 13-inch MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro without touch bar and a 15 inch MacBook Pro.

Starting off with design, you’ll notice that three of these machines are almost identical including the space great color. This is Apple’s latest design and the look and build quality is very impressive.

The MacBook Air is the only current machine that hasn’t been updated with the design from 2010. That’s not a bad thing but it does have larger bezels and a more dated look. The other Macs have sharper edges, smaller bezels and a metal hinge resulting in a premium feel.

This new design affords a more compact size as well, allowing the 13-inch MacBook Pro to be smaller and thinner overall than the MacBook Air even though they have the same screen size. The retina MacBook is the smallest and lightest of the bunch, and also the only machine that is fanless due to its lower power Core M processor.

Comparison of Ports

what macbook computer is best for your needs - ports

When it comes to ports, the MacBook Air is the only one with standard USB, thunderbolt 2 and SD card reader and Mac safe. This means that all your standard devices will work without adapters and Macs safe will protect your machine if your charging cable is prone to being yanked.

Apple’s latest machines use only USB C ports for both charging and data transfer. The retina MacBook has one USB C port. This means you’ll need an adapter if you want to charge and transfer data at the same time. This has a USB 3.1 five gigabits per second, so won’t support thunderbolt.

The 13-inch MacBook Pro base model has two USB C ports with four being offered on the 13-inch touch bar and 15-inch MacBook Pros. These ports are really powerful featuring 10 gigabit per second USB and 40 gigabit per second Thunderbolt 3.

They could do almost anything, like daisy chaining Thunderbolt devices while charging and sending audio and video signals to a display. USB C is definitely the future but will require you to use some adapters or buy a few new USB A to C cables for your current devices.

Keyboards and Trackpads

MacBook Air - What MacBook Computer is Best For Your Needs

They share the same low profile butterfly keys but the pros are more clicky which improve the typing experience the trackpads use magnets to simulate clicks. This provides a consistent click feel and the ability to use force touch controls.

The MacBook Air uses the older style keyboard that many love and a standard trackpad that requires more pressure at the top and emits force touch controls. All of the keyboards are backlit but the air has quite a bit of backlight bleed compared to the new machines.

The 15-inch MacBook features the touch bar and touch ID which are really useful for logging in and using Apple pay. The touch bar adapts to the program you’re using offering useful shortcuts. The 13-inch MacBook Pro can be upgraded to the touch bar model which will include touch ID and two extra ports.

The Display

MacBook Display and Resolution

Let’s move on to displays. The only screen that isn’t class-leading is the AIRS. It’s one of the few parts that hasn’t been updated throughout the years and has low color accuracy and resolution compared to the others.

If you work with a lot of text, do photo or video editing, or watch movies; the newer displays are much better. The MacBook Pros feature the best displays both offering DCI p3 color accuracy with 500 nits of brightness. The retina MacBook is the only one with a poor webcam due to how thin its display is compared to 720p on the others.

Battery Life

The MacBook Air has the best battery life with 12 hours of rated web usage and video playback compared to 10 hours on the other machines. Some users report even better results with their MacBook Airs, while some MacBook Pro users report lower than rated battery life.

The Performance

When it comes to performance, the retina MacBook is the least powerful because of its fanless Core M processor. The 13-inch MacBook Air and pro are fairly close in performance since they are both I 5 dual cores with the pro taking the lead in graphics because of its iris GPU.

The 15-inch MacBook Pro is the most powerful because of its quad core i7 processor and a dedicated Radeon pro graphics card.

All of these machines are great in their own ways.

  • The MacBook Air is a good choice if you want a machine with legacy ports and fantastic battery life.
  • If you need the thinnest lightest machine and use it mainly for surfing the web and email, the 12-inch MacBook fits that need perfectly.
  • The MacBook Pros are the most powerful and flexible machines. If you need lots of performance and a larger screen size for heavy photo or video editing along with other intensive tasks, the 15-inch MacBook Pro is the right machine for you.

My favorite overall pick is a 13-inch MacBook Pro. It starts at a middle price point and offers flexible ports, great trackpad, amazing display and a good mix of battery life and performance in a surprisingly small footprint.  

I think the 13-inch base MacBook Pro will be the best option for most people. If you want a little bit more performance, I suggest upgrading to the 13-inch MacBook Pro with touch bar, instead of upgrading the base non touch bar model to the i7 processor.

The touch bar i5 processor is about as fast as a non-touch bar i7. And for the same money you’ll also gain faster graphics, 2 more USB C ports and the touch bar with touch ID sensor.

ALSO READ: Super Lightweight Wireless Mouse For Your Hardcore Gaming Experience

So now, have you already learned what MacBook computer is best for your needs? I’m pretty sure you already have one in mind. And if you have any suggestion or if you area already using one of these MacBook computers mentioned above, please leave a comment right down below and tell us about your experience in using your MacBook.

And don’t forget to subscribe to our free newsletter for you to receive updates like this one you are reading directly in your inbox.

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.