Buy a Mac Power Book (not the Air) and get the warranty. More money but you'll never regret it.

Having just come into some unexpected funds at a time when I'm really frustrated by some issues with my quad-core PC running XP, I'm about to pull the trigger on a Mac Book. Normally I get the highest performance computer I can, knowing it won't be long until it is no longer high-performance, and software developers write for what is current, causing older systems to bog down. But I'm thinking of the 13" Air (dual-core 1.8GHz Intel Core i7 with 4MB shared L3 cache), because I like the solid state disk, light weight, etc. and I'll still have the PC if I need to do some heavy lifting.

Is there any specific reason you suggest the Pro over the Air? People I know with Airs really love them.

The critical thing, according to some systems guys at work, is to get the warranty . Pro vs Air ? the Pro may give you some better specs. But I always consider what I will use and need , because computers take funds needed for N+

Long time computer user here (former Bell Labs researcher, I now run a proof-of-concept networking lab in downtown Chicago). My preferences for a personal laptop are small but powerful, and LONG battery life. My current fav is Toshiba Portege. But I also like lots of screen real estate so I create a desktop dock with an external (super large, like 28 inch) screen. This gives me great desktop presence AND excellent portability for travel.

My two sons chose macbooks when they went to college. #1 son is still a fan (does software dev for wall street investment analysis) of macbooks partly because you have to use a mac for iphone/ipad app development. Daughter chose the portege this year when she entered Depaul (because she has a W7 phone and likes how they integrate).

"But we demand the cheapest electronics China can build for us, use it for awhile, then throw it on a toxic slag heap in a third world country, and just buy a new one. The Earth can only handle so much of that, and it is already saying "enough!".

Nicely put, Az. It's one thing to replace an item when it wears out with the newest technology, but I've been thinking lately that there is an ecological mini-disaster brewing from millions of perfectly good TV's ending up in dumps (or by the side of the road) because people think 'flat screen' TV's are 'cooler.' Same goes for millions of strings of Xmas lights replaced before their time by those sombre-looking LED lights. Reminds me of a story my Dad told me of a rule during WW2 that pants must be sold uncuffed to save material - this led to a tailor trimming his already-cuffed pants to comply.

I can't just throw away electronics in my town, they all go to recyclers . A really good idea