Best Macbook for a new computer science student on a moderate budget
May 15, 2015 11:50 AM Subscribe
What it says on the tin: I'm starting a professional Master's program in computer science this summer. I've decided to get a new laptop, since right now I have a 5-year-old Macbook that I do no serious work on, due to the oldness and slowness (and small screen).
My first thought was the Macbook Air. I know it's loved by many, and I am much more likely to use it productively if it's wafer-thin (light enough to carry around). However, with the new Macbook coming out, I'm not sure if I should opt in that direction-- or even wait until the next generation of Macbooks come out. I would prefer to get something now, but if it's a better investment, I can handle waiting a bit and spending most of my time in the lab for now.
I am "on a budget," but I will probably end up putting this laptop on a payment plan, so I don't need to be a total penny pincher. But I also don't want to pay extra for things that won't make much of a difference in the long run. I don't need sprinkles and whipped cream and a cherry on top, but if I really should have sprinkles, I will pay for sprinkles. (I get the impression that paying the extra $100 for 8G of RAM is a sprinkle situation.)
This is a complete field switch for me (out of humanities and into CS) so I don't really know what's going to be the best environment for me as a programmer-- if there's a non-Mac that is perfect for my purposes, that's fine too. (My boyfriend is into Lenovo laptops, and I'll admit I like the little red knobby mouse thing. Reminds me of using work laptops in the 90s.)
I could also use some help choosing a size, especially for the Macbook-- I want it to be portable (I am weak) but I also think my 13-inch Macbook is kind of small? Maybe I'm not optimizing my screen space... I'll definitely stop into an Apple store to do a little ergonomics testing before committing.
There is another thread about the 13" Macbook Air, but it's more focused on doing general business productivity stuff than programming, and I thought it might be out of date now.
Thanks!
My first thought was the Macbook Air. I know it's loved by many, and I am much more likely to use it productively if it's wafer-thin (light enough to carry around). However, with the new Macbook coming out, I'm not sure if I should opt in that direction-- or even wait until the next generation of Macbooks come out. I would prefer to get something now, but if it's a better investment, I can handle waiting a bit and spending most of my time in the lab for now.
I am "on a budget," but I will probably end up putting this laptop on a payment plan, so I don't need to be a total penny pincher. But I also don't want to pay extra for things that won't make much of a difference in the long run. I don't need sprinkles and whipped cream and a cherry on top, but if I really should have sprinkles, I will pay for sprinkles. (I get the impression that paying the extra $100 for 8G of RAM is a sprinkle situation.)
This is a complete field switch for me (out of humanities and into CS) so I don't really know what's going to be the best environment for me as a programmer-- if there's a non-Mac that is perfect for my purposes, that's fine too. (My boyfriend is into Lenovo laptops, and I'll admit I like the little red knobby mouse thing. Reminds me of using work laptops in the 90s.)
I could also use some help choosing a size, especially for the Macbook-- I want it to be portable (I am weak) but I also think my 13-inch Macbook is kind of small? Maybe I'm not optimizing my screen space... I'll definitely stop into an Apple store to do a little ergonomics testing before committing.
There is another thread about the 13" Macbook Air, but it's more focused on doing general business productivity stuff than programming, and I thought it might be out of date now.
Thanks!
Best answer: No developer will be a using a one-port-to-rule-them-all laptop like the new macbook for quite some time yet. Most developers at my office who use macs use either 15 or 13 inch retina macbook pros, which are still very lightweight, but have the guts to run virtualized development environments, many different programs at once, etc. The overriding thread seems to me MOAR RAM PLS- whatever you do, totally max out the RAM on your new mac.
posted by rockindata at 12:01 PM on May 15, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by rockindata at 12:01 PM on May 15, 2015 [3 favorites]
Using screen space:
In OSX 10 (Yosemite) start using the green button to use the full screen view. And learn how to use the various gestures on the trackpad. Check them out under System Preferences > Trackpad.
posted by Mac-Expert at 12:02 PM on May 15, 2015
In OSX 10 (Yosemite) start using the green button to use the full screen view. And learn how to use the various gestures on the trackpad. Check them out under System Preferences > Trackpad.
posted by Mac-Expert at 12:02 PM on May 15, 2015
Have you ever worked with the 12" MB ?
Ever heard about a USB HUB?
Developers develop code and don't need to connect to 999 devices. If you do get a desktop.
posted by Mac-Expert at 12:04 PM on May 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Ever heard about a USB HUB?
Developers develop code and don't need to connect to 999 devices. If you do get a desktop.
posted by Mac-Expert at 12:04 PM on May 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: 13" MacBook Pro with retina display. It's about half the weight (and half the thickness) of older models. The only downside is that you'll need adapters for some things (like lan cables) or extra things (like CD drives). I think the newest model might not even have USB ports.
What are you doing that requires so much screen space? My boyfriend is a programmer. He's always worked on a 13" MacBook Pro. His current work computer, the one that everyone in the company is issued, is a 13" MacBook Pro with retina display.
Unless you're editing videos or photography, a 15" screen seems pretty unnecessary. Sublime Text Editor has tabs for a reason!
posted by kinddieserzeit at 12:22 PM on May 15, 2015
What are you doing that requires so much screen space? My boyfriend is a programmer. He's always worked on a 13" MacBook Pro. His current work computer, the one that everyone in the company is issued, is a 13" MacBook Pro with retina display.
Unless you're editing videos or photography, a 15" screen seems pretty unnecessary. Sublime Text Editor has tabs for a reason!
posted by kinddieserzeit at 12:22 PM on May 15, 2015
Response by poster: Clarification: I think I actually have an 11" Macbook. Which would explain why so many people recommend the 13"!
posted by easter queen at 12:25 PM on May 15, 2015
posted by easter queen at 12:25 PM on May 15, 2015
The 13' Air is pretty much the Platonic ideal of a perfect general-use laptop. I can't imagine you'd have any trouble with it. If you need more horsepower, the Pro with Retina is also pretty great, just a tad bulkier (but that screen is gorgeous).
posted by General Malaise at 12:31 PM on May 15, 2015
posted by General Malaise at 12:31 PM on May 15, 2015
Clarification: I think I actually have an 11" Macbook. Which would explain why so many people recommend the 13"!
Ah! That would explain that then.
posted by kinddieserzeit at 12:31 PM on May 15, 2015
Ah! That would explain that then.
posted by kinddieserzeit at 12:31 PM on May 15, 2015
I'd say to wait until your CS program starts. Programming is so broad that it's really hard to guess at your hardware requirements. Plus your school may have a student discount or program (Apple certainly has one).
If you choose a Mac and your school runs on Windows software, you'll need to spend more money on Parallels or other virtualization software. If building your work is a enormous task and is done on a separate cluster, then any speed increases won't be helpful (in fact you'll probably want a wired network connection). I wouldn't be surprised if schools have clusters of Windows / Unix systems / VMs for the sole purpose of being accessible.
Developers develop code and don't need to connect to 999 devices. If you do get a desktop.
What are you doing that requires so much screen space? My boyfriend is a programmer. He's always worked on a 13" MacBook Pro. His current work computer, the one that everyone in the company is issued, is a 13" MacBook Pro.
This sounds like crazy talk to me. All the developers in my company have a minimum of two 20" monitors with separate keyboards and mice. These are connected to 15" laptops. There are big productivity benefits of having more monitors, and big ergonomic benefits of having separate keyboards and mice.
posted by meowzilla at 12:38 PM on May 15, 2015 [6 favorites]
If you choose a Mac and your school runs on Windows software, you'll need to spend more money on Parallels or other virtualization software. If building your work is a enormous task and is done on a separate cluster, then any speed increases won't be helpful (in fact you'll probably want a wired network connection). I wouldn't be surprised if schools have clusters of Windows / Unix systems / VMs for the sole purpose of being accessible.
Developers develop code and don't need to connect to 999 devices. If you do get a desktop.
What are you doing that requires so much screen space? My boyfriend is a programmer. He's always worked on a 13" MacBook Pro. His current work computer, the one that everyone in the company is issued, is a 13" MacBook Pro.
This sounds like crazy talk to me. All the developers in my company have a minimum of two 20" monitors with separate keyboards and mice. These are connected to 15" laptops. There are big productivity benefits of having more monitors, and big ergonomic benefits of having separate keyboards and mice.
posted by meowzilla at 12:38 PM on May 15, 2015 [6 favorites]
Best answer: The retina 13 isn't brilliant for screen space, imho. But since it has a very high res screen, you can comfortably drive the text size, or apparent resolution to crazy places when the need arises. Thanks to quickens I've spent the occasional day running at 1900x1200 or higher. That stretches my eyes if done for very long, but it does great for the one day where you've got to juggle to keep up.
And you need to get used to using Spaces for your activities. E-mail goes in a space, my remote desk at work is a space, on a bad day my web browser is a space, on a really bad day the terminal is a space.
Also- get iterm2. It's much better than the terminal app if you're spending your days in ssh and vi.
posted by wotsac at 12:49 PM on May 15, 2015
And you need to get used to using Spaces for your activities. E-mail goes in a space, my remote desk at work is a space, on a bad day my web browser is a space, on a really bad day the terminal is a space.
Also- get iterm2. It's much better than the terminal app if you're spending your days in ssh and vi.
posted by wotsac at 12:49 PM on May 15, 2015
This sounds like crazy talk to me. All the developers in my company have a minimum of two 20" monitors with separate keyboards and mice. These are connected to 15" laptops. There are big productivity benefits of having more monitors, and big ergonomic benefits of having separate keyboards and mice.
Yes, that is a good point. Depending on the project, he does work on multiple monitors and with a mouse (usually when pairing with another dev). But we're talking about someone doing a Masters degree, not working in an office for 40-60 hours a week. When my partner is on his computer at home, or is working on his own personal projects, he just uses his MacBook Pro. If he has an external keyboard and some books handy, he might set his laptop up so that it's face height. But he has never complained about the display being too small for whatever he is working on.
posted by kinddieserzeit at 1:02 PM on May 15, 2015
Yes, that is a good point. Depending on the project, he does work on multiple monitors and with a mouse (usually when pairing with another dev). But we're talking about someone doing a Masters degree, not working in an office for 40-60 hours a week. When my partner is on his computer at home, or is working on his own personal projects, he just uses his MacBook Pro. If he has an external keyboard and some books handy, he might set his laptop up so that it's face height. But he has never complained about the display being too small for whatever he is working on.
posted by kinddieserzeit at 1:02 PM on May 15, 2015
Best answer: Computer Science fundamentals do not require multiple 24" HD screens.
Mucking through proprietary API's and multiple sprint requirements plus old spaghetti code in a workaday programming job does.
If this is something you are going to drag to all classes for note taking, as well as collaboration in the library / meeting rooms, I would say go light (13" MB air, perhaps even refurbished, but aim for more than 4GB of ram). If you get into real number crunching, you can always buy CPU/GPU in the cloud, or the school may have resources for you.
I use an 11" air at home for programming on the side, find it perfectly useable.
posted by nickggully at 2:28 PM on May 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
Mucking through proprietary API's and multiple sprint requirements plus old spaghetti code in a workaday programming job does.
If this is something you are going to drag to all classes for note taking, as well as collaboration in the library / meeting rooms, I would say go light (13" MB air, perhaps even refurbished, but aim for more than 4GB of ram). If you get into real number crunching, you can always buy CPU/GPU in the cloud, or the school may have resources for you.
I use an 11" air at home for programming on the side, find it perfectly useable.
posted by nickggully at 2:28 PM on May 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
If you're doing academic work at all, IME, more screen space is an enormous blessing, transformative even. Having a set-up where you can sit down with multiple (2 or 3) 24" screens is huge if you're doing any writing. A decent 24" monitor runs less than a couple hundred bucks now. They're so worth it.
posted by bonehead at 2:43 PM on May 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by bonehead at 2:43 PM on May 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
If your Macbook has an aluminum body, it's almost certainly 13".
First off, I'd suggest ignoring the new-model Macbooks. It's a radical new design (especially the one-port thing) and that's reason to be cautious with Apple stuff.
The "old" Retina MBPs are quite nice and reasonably light. A 15" Retina is actually lighter than the 13" pre-Retina model. 15" is probably the sweet spot for these things, although a 13" Retina would probably do if you don't mind getting a little cozy with your laptop. (I have a 13" non-Retina and it's served me well for years -- mostly coding and terminal stuff. Web dev is a bit painful, but it tends to be that way with only a single screen, no matter the size.)
I don't need sprinkles and whipped cream and a cherry on top, but if I really should have sprinkles, I will pay for sprinkles. (I get the impression that paying the extra $100 for 8G of RAM is a sprinkle situation.)
You'll want at least 8GB (kinda surprised that's not standard issue by this point). 16GB is the sprinkle situation. Do be aware that the RAM is permanently installed on the current-model Macs, so you can't upgrade later.
posted by neckro23 at 3:52 PM on May 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
First off, I'd suggest ignoring the new-model Macbooks. It's a radical new design (especially the one-port thing) and that's reason to be cautious with Apple stuff.
The "old" Retina MBPs are quite nice and reasonably light. A 15" Retina is actually lighter than the 13" pre-Retina model. 15" is probably the sweet spot for these things, although a 13" Retina would probably do if you don't mind getting a little cozy with your laptop. (I have a 13" non-Retina and it's served me well for years -- mostly coding and terminal stuff. Web dev is a bit painful, but it tends to be that way with only a single screen, no matter the size.)
I don't need sprinkles and whipped cream and a cherry on top, but if I really should have sprinkles, I will pay for sprinkles. (I get the impression that paying the extra $100 for 8G of RAM is a sprinkle situation.)
You'll want at least 8GB (kinda surprised that's not standard issue by this point). 16GB is the sprinkle situation. Do be aware that the RAM is permanently installed on the current-model Macs, so you can't upgrade later.
posted by neckro23 at 3:52 PM on May 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Quant dev here. I love my 11" (old) 2012 Air and find it plenty fine for programming. I take it everywhere, which is the difference between doing things or not. I wish it was even smaller. It is beefy enough to compile firefox just fine (the only really heavy task I do on it).
If I were at a desk, I would want a wall of monitors.
posted by gregglind at 6:20 PM on May 15, 2015
If I were at a desk, I would want a wall of monitors.
posted by gregglind at 6:20 PM on May 15, 2015
Response by poster: My Macbook does not have an aluminum body.
posted by easter queen at 9:31 PM on May 15, 2015
posted by easter queen at 9:31 PM on May 15, 2015
Response by poster: I bought the 13" MacBook Pro with Retina display and maxed out RAM. I got the student discount ($100). Thanks, everyone!
posted by easter queen at 8:17 PM on May 22, 2015
posted by easter queen at 8:17 PM on May 22, 2015
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Still the size and battery life make it a perfect machine for when you are on the "go". The screen is bitching sharp and text looks as if its printed. Something you will appreciate when editing code or working with lots of text.
The keyboard is very personal. For me it works great! The larger key's make it easier for me to type. But it is something you have to get used to (very light touch).
Otherwise I recommend the 13" MB Pro Retina with the Mac amount or Memory (ram). Its an amazing powerhouse that is still very portable.
The 15" version is to cumbersome to take along on a daily basis.
posted by Mac-Expert at 11:59 AM on May 15, 2015