Is the Macbook Pro Retina actually one of the best value laptops available?

pg8899

Estimable
Sep 19, 2014
4
0
4,510
I have been trying to find a new laptop that offers good battery life, good display/resolution, (mainly for photo editing, song recording, and general internet use on the road), comes standard with at least 8gb RAM, an SSD drive and has a nice build quality and the MBP ticks all of those boxes.
You can get a late 2013 MBP Retina w/256gb for 1299, which looks essentially the same as the current 2014 model only with 2.4ghz as opposed to 2.6ghz, which from what I have read, any noticeable difference will be negligible.
When comparing to other PC laptops on the market, I have been unable to find a model with similar specs, that offers the battery life, resolution & portability of the MBP, in the same price range. Models I researched included the Dell XPS, Lenovo Y50, Sager NP series, Samsung ATIV, Toshiba Customizable models and so on... none of which seem to compare spec wise to the MBP for 1300 or under.
I never usually go for Apple products but in this case it seems like the best choice. The only thing that annoys me is the glued in battery, as it gives off the impression that the laptop is somehow 'disposable'.

What are your thoughts?
 

Videographer

Estimable
Sep 9, 2014
33
0
4,590
Apple is rarely "value for money" however if you need that spec and portability you have found a good deal, perhaps you should consider it. However dont forget that macs run OSX, you will need to buy bootcamp and windows if you want to run your normal apps. Also the apple accessories are pricey, you will need a display port adapter if you use a projector too. Personally I like the lenovo W and T series but they are heavy laptops. A secondhand T520 with a i7 QM will cost around £350 and RAM is cheap to add to them. Look at the MSI range of gaming laptops too, they are really good value for money
 

pg8899

Estimable
Sep 19, 2014
4
0
4,510
I know it seems strange to refer to Apple as "value for money" but in this instance that seems to be the case! I was a windows guy up until 8 came out, now I can't stand it. I was considering trying Linux for the first time but I do quite like OSX, and the included software such as garageband would be useful to me.
 

Bolin

Estimable
Sep 8, 2014
312
0
5,010
Agree it's a good deal in case you don't stand windows just as you said but the idea of "I couldn't find a model with better specs for 1300$" is ridiculous, it has an intel iris, 8GB memory and a 2,6Ghz Dual Core CPU. There are laptops with the same price tag, "fancy ports and stuff", 860m/r9 m290x, 2.8Ghz(3.8 w turbo boost) i7 quad-cores, 8GB memory which clearly smash the Macbook in perfomance/$. Just saying. they are heavier and a few milimiters bigger though (Differences vary from 200g to half a kilogram)

About the battery life, powerful laptops usually have ~4h-6h (4h easily with browsing, movies, music and office and the usual stuff but not gaming, 6h struggling with the same activities but at the lowest brightness). The macbook has clearly better battery life, (although apple advertises 9h it's actually ~5,5h and probably struggles to 7)
 

pg8899

Estimable
Sep 19, 2014
4
0
4,510


Any particular models?
 

Bolin

Estimable
Sep 8, 2014
312
0
5,010


There are many, without going too far,
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152570 849$ 8GB RAM, 840m, i5 2,5Ghz 2 cores 4 threads.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152568 same as ^ but 1TB disk

http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/lenovo/y-series/y50/

Examples above are bigger notebooks and 500$ cheaper without an SSD though. Let's get to the 13,3''

http://www.xoticpc.com/sager-np7338-clevo-w230ss-p-6992.html 13,3'' 860m, i7 4710mq (2.5-3.5Ghz) 4 cores 8 threads, 750GB 7200rpm disk (20$ more for 1TB), 200g weight over the macbook pro, 8GB memory (10$ more per each GB), 100$ cheaper after 1TB disk @ 7200rpm, 16GB memory and 128GB SSD upgrades and it obviously outperforms the macbook.

http://www.xoticpc.com/asus-ux303lndh71t-touch-preorder-p-7292.html no need to explain either

You'll find lots of better performers for the same price or cheaper on amazon, newegg, xoticpc, lenovo and acer just to name a few.

You should get a mac as you can't stand windows and you'd like to try OSX. I am just pointing out how ridiculous it's to say that any macbook is the best bang for the buck, you are paying a little more for an easier to manage OS and very good support.
 

pg8899

Estimable
Sep 19, 2014
4
0
4,510
Those are some good value for money laptops you posted I agree, and the zenbook looks like it could be a close contender with MBP's, but please remember my post was not stating that the MBP is the best bang for the buck, it was a question based on my observations, and I also said 'one of the best value laptops' as opposed to 'thee' best value laptop, especially since apple is generally viewed as a luxury, overpriced brand.
Some of those sager reviewers seem to have the same problem I have with my current windows 8 laptop, erratic track pad & cursor movements