Hellobee Boards

@shopaholic: Is this the MBA 13" deal that your husband found? It made the front page of Slickdeals so its probably a pretty great deal!
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?sku=983421&Q=&O=cart_accessories&bundleId=983421REG&is=REG&A=details

I'm not sure how good the MBP deal you found was but there is this one on the BestBuy BF ad.
http://bfads.net/Black-Friday/Best-Buy/Ad?page=2#viewer
http://bfads.net/Item/Best-Buy-Black-Friday-Apple-MacBook-Pro-133-Laptop-w-Intel-Core-Processor-4GB-RAM-128GB-Flash-Storage-OS-X-Mavericks-ME864LLA/164534

It has the Retina display but instead of the standard large HD it is an SSD.

FWIW I had both a MacBook Pro and an Air and found that I never used the Pro even though the specs were much better, so I just sold it. The MacBook Air is much more portable and can do everything I need. It was actually my present last year when I was about to do IVF and DH saw that I was straining to grab my Pro off the floor from the sofa. I store everything in Dropbox so I didn't need tons of storage. I'd go for the Air with Retina, so jealous!

Didn't look at the Pro, but the air suits all my needs and I love it!

I just sold my late 2011 13" MacBook Pro back to buy a new 13" Air. Unless you play a lot of games or do video production, it should be enough—my husband is a developer and that's what his entire team has.

The only thing I'd recommend is to get a cheap DVD drive (not the Apple one) if any of your software is on a disc. I had to reinstall Adobe Creative Suite 5 last week and that was the exact moment his Mac Mini's DVD drive gave up the ghost - so no Remote Disc for us.

I love my Air! But, I have to lug it everywhere, so that's why I went with it. Either way, you're going to love it!

The Pro is so much boxier in person. The air is much more sleek. I would also take a look at how much of your current hard drive you are using. Everyone loves a huge hard drive, but most of the time (unless you are making films or animation or professional editing) it is just empty space. I also think flash storage is much more stable. In a few years all displays will be retina, but I don't think that matters so much right now. Mac's glossy display is so good anyway. You can't go wrong with either but I vote go lighter. Air wins in this contest.

DH works for Apple and here's what he says:

Hi! That's awesome you're ready to get a new Mac! Based upon what you stated, here's what I think:

Your last system is from 2007/2008 and you're looking at a 2013/2014 model. That puts you on a 6 year cycle for buying new systems (and that's why you're buying another Apple; because you're getting 6 years of use out of it!!!). So when you're thinking about which model to get, the difference in cost between the lowest level (11 inch MacBook Air) and highest level (13 inch retina MacBook Pro) literally amounts to about $7 per month for the lifetime of the system. So why not get the absolute best system you can get right now?

I strongly believe that when it comes to electronics - unless you're among the absolute lightest of users - if you don't buy the best that's currently available, you're buying something that will imminently be outdated and will regret it.

I think that the 13" retina MacBook Pro is by far your best choice for the following reasons:

• It feels comparable in weight and size to the MacBook air (it is substantially thinner than the non-retina MacBook) but feels a lot more durable/sturdy
• It's insanely fast (because of its solid state drive and stellar processor) and you won't be pulling your hair out waiting for your DSLR pics to load or for your iPhoto to process them once they're there.

Your only major drawback is the size of the solid state drive. Because they're so expensive, they are still pretty small compared with the traditional spinning hard drives, so you're looking at a 256GB drive in the mid-range retina MacBook Pro and a minimum of 500GB in the non-retina. This, admittedly, could be a deal-breaker if you've got tons and tons of pics.

So...in order, I would recommend:

1. 13" Retina MacBook Pro
2. 13" MacBook Pro
3. 13" MacBook Air

Hope this helps!

PS...tell your husband to get your new computer at an Apple Store. It's way more fun

@sunny: Do you still your MBA?

@SugarplumsMom: Yes, but I have several computers at home so I only use the MBA for surfing the net. If I'm doing any "work" (eg. Photo editing, finances, anything where I feel like I would need a bigger screen), I use my Windows desktop. I think if you only have 1 computer at home, you need to consider which platform best serves your needs.

The build quality on the MBA is excellent. I use a Thinkpad for work. I think Thinkpads also have excellent build quality.