What should I get?

[Gnarwhal]

So after this semester I'll be transferring to a four-year university to finish my degree in Communication Studies. When I applied, I put down Communication Design because I was thinking of focusing on Media Arts which centers around media production. After some thought I felt my skills in that area are already great and I don't really want to major in it, especially since the 2-3 people I know who have gotten the Media Arts degree claim it's worthless.

Anyway, that's just a little back story.

Right now I have a 2012 11" MacBook Air, I really like it but I've been considering upgrading to something different. Originally I was going to upgrade to a 15" MacBook Pro, when I was planning to major in Media Arts, since a MBP would be a good editing platform (even though I already have a Mac Pro desktop - I won't be taking it with me so the MBP would be a good substitute). However, since I'm doing Comm Studies now, my workload will be like most other majors: papers, research, video streaming, some online productivity, etc.

I'm a diehard Apple fan, I always have been, but I've also taken a shine to the Microsoft Surface lineup. I went to Best Buy yesterday to toy around with the Surface Pro 3, and I really liked what I saw. The only problem is I'm not sure I like the 12" tablet/screen. For portable devices I prefer to keep things as compact as possible, so I like that the Surface Pro 2 has a 10" screen.

Does anybody on here have experience with a Surface Pro 2? How inferior is it to the 3? Would transitioning from an 11" MacBook Air (i5 processor, 128GB SSD, 4GB RAM) be a lateral move?

The obvious benefit of the Surface lineup is that it's essentially a full PC that can function as a tablet - which I like. Given the are of my major I plan to focus in (Organizational Communication) I think having that kind of versatility would be very helpful.

I've been using my Air in school thus far, and it's been handy and extremely useful. I had an iPad 2, but it's usefulness (or lack thereof) didn't merit carrying it around in my backpack along with my MacBook. Once in a great while I encountered situations where a tablet would have been handy, so in those moments I could see how busting out a Surface in tablet form would be advantageous and then using the Type Cover to take notes and do most of my other work more frequently.

So any guidance and input would be helpful, thanks!

 

[dysert]

So after this semester I'll be transferring to a four-year university to finish my degree in Communication Studies. When I applied, I put down Communication Design because I was thinking of focusing on Media Arts which centers around media production. After some thought I felt my skills in that area are already great and I don't really want to major in it, especially since the 2-3 people I know who have gotten the Media Arts degree claim it's worthless.

Anyway, that's just a little back story.

Right now I have a 2012 11" MacBook Air, I really like it but I've been considering upgrading to something different. Originally I was going to upgrade to a 15" MacBook Pro, when I was planning to major in Media Arts, since a MBP would be a good editing platform (even though I already have a Mac Pro desktop - I won't be taking it with me so the MBP would be a good substitute). However, since I'm doing Comm Studies now, my workload will be like most other majors: papers, research, video streaming, some online productivity, etc.

I'm a diehard Apple fan, I always have been, but I've also taken a shine to the Microsoft Surface lineup. I went to Best Buy yesterday to toy around with the Surface Pro 3, and I really liked what I saw. The only problem is I'm not sure I like the 12" tablet/screen. For portable devices I prefer to keep things as compact as possible, so I like that the Surface Pro 2 has a 10" screen.

Does anybody on here have experience with a Surface Pro 2? How inferior is it to the 3? Would transitioning from an 11" MacBook Air (i5 processor, 128GB SSD, 4GB RAM) be a lateral move?

The obvious benefit of the Surface lineup is that it's essentially a full PC that can function as a tablet - which I like. Given the are of my major I plan to focus in (Organizational Communication) I think having that kind of versatility would be very helpful.

I've been using my Air in school thus far, and it's been handy and extremely useful. I had an iPad 2, but it's usefulness (or lack thereof) didn't merit carrying it around in my backpack along with my MacBook. Once in a great while I encountered situations where a tablet would have been handy, so in those moments I could see how busting out a Surface in tablet form would be advantageous and then using the Type Cover to take notes and do most of my other work more frequently.

So any guidance and input would be helpful, thanks!

Fwiw, *everyone* I've ever known who has been into media production has used Apple. Add this to the fact that you're a die-hard Apple fan, and I suspect that if you switch to the dark side you'll be sorry. I'm a Microsoft guy since way back and have avoided Apple forever (except for the iPod and iPad I got on a whim). So I can't offer any technical advice. If Apple has what you want, then get it. I doubt you'll be sorry (as compared to getting a similar Microsoft product).

 

[Gnarwhal]

That's the thing though, I won't be doing media production. If I ever do any video editing as a hobby I'll still have access to my Mac Pro if I absolutely need it. Otherwise, the only stuff I'll be doing is writing papers, internet research and all the usual hallmarks of college studies.

 

[dysert]

That's the thing though, I won't be doing media production. If I ever do any video editing as a hobby I'll still have access to my Mac Pro if I absolutely need it. Otherwise, the only stuff I'll be doing is writing papers, internet research and all the usual hallmarks of college studies.

Personally, I'd get a Dell or HP laptop running Windows 7 and Office, but again that's the kind of stuff I've been used to for the last decade or so. (And it will likely be cheaper than an Apple equivalent.) I've been through three colleges and have taught at a fourth. All of them were big on Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Though I'm sure Apple has its equivalents, you'd probably be in the minority and may even have compatibility issues when dealing with any documents the instructor wants you to use.

 

[Gnarwhal]

Personally, I'd get a Dell or HP laptop running Windows 7 and Office, but again that's the kind of stuff I've been used to for the last decade or so. (And it will likely be cheaper than an Apple equivalent.) I've been through three colleges and have taught at a fourth. All of them were big on Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Though I'm sure Apple has its equivalents, you'd probably be in the minority and may even have compatibility issues when dealing with any documents the instructor wants you to use.

That's a good point. Actually one of my professors has already had to lecture the class on how to submit work online since a lot of people were doing it in formats that were incompatible with Blackboard.

 

[Jacob Jilg]

I've got a late 2009 27" iMac (running Yosemite). She's been my baby and will be till I see Apple making at least one more solid os. So for that I don't have any advice on what kind of computer you should get, but if you are set on an Apple, I'd wait till Apple releases a new solid os comparable to Snow Leopard, maybe a paid upgrade (a real game changer for os x) I wouldn't get anything new as long as they are making free os's as bad as Mavericks and Yosemite. It seems like every upgrade since Mountain Lion has been a downgrade. (take quicklook compatibility for just an example). It seems lately Apple is trying to turn their computers into phones with keyboards, nothing more.