13" Macbook Pro Retina Specs? i5 vs i7? 4gb vs. 8gb vs. 16gb?

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dlee4886

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Oct 30, 2013
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ok heres the thing..

I'm planning to buy a 2013 13" Macbook Pro with Retina Display soon. This will be my 2nd mac laptop after i sold my other one early because my car broke down early this year. Once i buy my mac i'm planning on keeping for well over 6 years and a little over 10 years hopefully.

Please don't tell me that computers will break down eventually because i am also somewhat tech savvy and take good care of my electronics. in fact, I first macbook ran very well that i was planning on keeping for a very long time as usual with apple products. unfortunately i had to sell it because my car broke down and needed the immediate cash at that time. :(

This is very important to me for my future as im also still in school trying to finish up. So I'm asking as many different opinions as possible and please be specific. for ex.: You should get the i7 since it will benefit you for the long term and you will feel the big difference even in small internet tasks and watching HD movies.

don't just say get an i5 for example, tell me your opinion why certain specs will be good enough than the other. Simply, Compare and contrast.

I know this was long but i'll get the point of the question..
My main question #1: Are there big differences between the new Haswell i5 2.4Ghz & an i7 2.8Ghz for what I do on the computer?
My main Question #2: Is it worth getting 4gb ram or 16gb ram?
To Finalize: Are all these worth my money for what I am going to use it for and length of time?

here are the list of models..#1 specs indicates my first choice whether or not it will be worth my money? (If its worth it, I am willing to spend up to almost 2k.)
1) 13" Macbook Pro Retina 2013
Haswell Intel Core i7 2.8 Ghz 16GB DDR3 Ram, & 128 SSD
Price: $1,899 (Configured & Shipped)
2) 13" Macbook Pro Retina 2013
Haswell Intel Core i5 2.4 Ghz 4GB DDR3 Ram, & 128 SSD
Price: $1,299 (In Store)

FYI: I am fully aware that the new retinas are non-configurable in the future which I'm totally fine with it.

Ok heres how i'll be using my macbook..
Internet, movie/tv show streaming, some light media downloads for entertainments for personal pleasure, watching 1080p movies and shows. (I multi task a lot too, but I never game nor i use photoshop and other intensive applications.) i very rarely sometimes use photoshop though but it would be just merely just for fun and messing around.

as for school and other work related usages are...
im a sociology major and plan on teaching elementary level kids in the future and maybe? open a small business with my own specialties but teaching would be my main long term goal.

I look in the long term and i want a quite speedy computer. I fully know the base model is also more than enough i need but once again for the speed. plus, smallest 128 SSD is always enough for me so no worries about storage space.

So would the #1 choice of my macbook pro be totally worth my 2ks? Are there a huge difference between an i5 2.4 & i7 2.8 that i will totally feel while using my mac on a daily basis?

once again i need as many GOOD feedbacks as possible as this is important to me and my budget. and please be specific of what you say. thanks :)
 

lightsong

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Jan 27, 2013
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i5 - 8gb -256gb SSD (only because you stress you want long term, its still overkill for how you use the computer).
This is listed as $1,499 on apples website... not sure where your finding your prices

a simple google search will tell you about i5 vs i7. There is no reason to spend money on i7, you will not see any sort of noticeable difference between the two. The only real world advantage to i7 is multi-threaded applications such as video editing
 
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