Is the MacBook Air good for development?

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Level 1

5 points

Is the MacBook Air good for development?

I'm looking into possibly getting a MacBook.

I know the Air is smaller, lighter, and has an SSD, but the Pro has a better CPU. I don't really know (or care) about Intel HD 5000 vs Intel Iris, as long as they both run Xcode and League of Legends well. I don't care that the Air's SSD is only 128/256GB, I only need Xcode, League of Legends, and a couple Steam games.

My questions are:

Are 13" enough for Xcode and Interface Builder? If so, will the Console and the side-menus obstruct the code too much? I'm used to a 27" iMac.
Will the Air's SSD give me an advantage over the Pro for compile speed, boot time, and file transfer speed?
Does the Pro's better CPU give an advantage over the Air for compiling, booting, and file transfer?
Will I miss Retina if I get an Air?
Is the Pro really that much bulkier?

Thanks in advance,

-Nick

Posted on Jul 13, 2014 9:28 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

JaiJethani

Level 2

190 points

Jul 13, 2014 1:51 PM in response to GoogolPlanck

I will be able to answer some of your questions.

-The Pro's CPU is significantly faster than the Air's and it is somewhat noticeable.

-I love the retina screen, but honestly speaking (as for me) no I don't mind not having the retina at all as I got the older non-retina MacBook Pro 2012 which has a beautiful screen, you just have to bear with the resolution which I got used to within sometime anyways.

-The new retina pro's are made to be so much thinner that no, comparing the retina pros to the air is almost the same. They really trimmed down the new Pro's to almost be as thin as the air.

Also, I don't like the bezels not the MacBook Air anyways.

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Answer 2

GoogolPlanck Author

Level 1

5 points

Jul 13, 2014 2:44 PM in response to JaiJethani

Thanks for the advice!

As it turns out, Apple's added an SSD to the new generation of Pros, so now it's really just a matter of Retina and speed vs cost.

I don't think the Air's screen-size should bug me much, as I'm used to working on my iPod while on the go. Plus, I can just plug my Air/Pro into my 27" iMac when I get home, and get the power of an SSD with the res and size of a 2011 iMac.

My apps are pretty simple as I'm still somewhat new to Xcode, so I might not notice that much of a performance difference in the CPU department. I'm also currently compiling from a 5400RPM HDD with 4GB of RAM, so really anything would probably be an improvement.

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Answer 3

Jul 13, 2014 3:28 PM in response to GoogolPlanck

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that. My bad, the fact the the new Pro's also have SSD's.

As I mentioned for me the Retina wasn't an issue, it was the cost.

But evaluating your response, it seems like you've answered your own question mostly yourself! 🙂

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