Macbook Pro 13 Retina Purchase (ME865X/A) or Samsung Ativ Book 8

ramezemar on 20/01/2014 - 16:48
Last edited 29/01/2014 - 00:45

UPDATE: So after a lot of research and shopping around, I've found this laptop that meets the specs ut is a last year model (out of stock almost everywhere) Check it out and compare the pair!

http://www.samsung.com/au/consumer/pc-peripherals/notebook-p…

Hi guys and girls.

I'm looking to purchase a new laptop for uni, the good ol' XPS is in its last days. I like the ME865X/A model of the 13" MBP, I think 8gb ram and 256gb storage will suffice for my current usage trends.

Specs:

13.3" Retina display LED backlit with IPS technology (native 2560 by 1600 pixels)

2.4GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor (Turbo Boost up to 2.9GHz) with 3MB shared L3 cache

8GB of 1600MHz DDR3L onboard memory

256GB storage

Intel Iris Graphics

802.11ac Wi-Fi & Bluetooth 4.0

I am after battery life, nice screen and portability factor now.
While I initially enjoyed gaming on the XPS, the laptop heated up and battery life was abysmal (not to mention it weighed a fair bit) so I'm going to forgo a dedicated GPU.

I'm probably going to buy from Myer with $100 off promo + 10% staff discount. ($1849—>$1749—>$1574).

The purpose of this post is to elucidate any other promos, gift card deals, or cheaper AU stock to get the best possible price, and/or for suggestions of similarly priced and similarly specced laptops.

Thanks in advance!

Computing

Comments

  • GaelicAU on 20/01/2014 - 17:25

    $1949 - $100 = $1849
    $1849 - 10% = $1664

  • ramezemar on 20/01/2014 - 17:32

    My bad, starting price was $1849.

  • groundum on 20/01/2014 - 17:37

    why not buy it through uni intranet? it is even cheaper and you stil get the 100$ gift card.

    • ramezemar on 20/01/2014 - 17:56

      I am unable to locate unique pricing for my uni, let alone this $100 gift card. Can you please share these details? Which uni, how do I ask for the $100 card and what is the price offered to you (if you don't mind me asking). Thanks Jaslyne!

      • groundum on 20/01/2014 - 20:33

        check this out

        http://store.apple.com/au/browse/home/education_routing/find…

        if your uni is listed, then u should be able to login into your IT intranet to make the purchase..i tried before and it comes with the $100 as well..(the $100 back to school gift card ends on 20th March)

        for 8gb 256ssd 13' macbook pro retina, it is listed $1659 with free 100$ GC for me.

        • ramezemar on 20/01/2014 - 22:08

          Cheers for the link! I guess the discount differs from uni to uni, I'm getting $1729 ($1571+ $147 GST) with the $100 GC. Looks like $1574 from Myer without the GC is still the best price going.

  • botftw on 20/01/2014 - 17:57

    Are you able to get 8GB model upgrades at places like Myers and stuff? I thought stores only sold base models and that for custom models (processor upgrade/ram upgrade) you'd have to order from Apple?

    • ramezemar on 20/01/2014 - 18:15

      So far, it seems that I can order this 8GB model online. My mate says this model is available in store, might have to double check that now just in case!

      • botftw on 20/01/2014 - 18:31

        Yeah I just checked online, looks like its possible for MacBook Pro - which you're after.

        I think that the custom RAM and upgrades are just unavailable for the MacBook Air's of which I was interested in myself… I liked how they're thin and light :).

  • mjerath on 20/01/2014 - 18:50

    How about similarly specced Dell Inspiron 14 for $1199, usual price $1498.
    Only thing or the main thing is the resolution.

    http://www1.ap.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic.aspx/product…

    • ramezemar on 20/01/2014 - 20:35

      Good find mjerath, there is a FHD screen with 2gb 750M graphics card for the same price!

      http://www.dell.com/au/p/inspiron-15-7537/pd?oc=w510953au&id…

      However hard drive is 1TB 5400rpm hard drive. Any idea on how to change one of these for a 256gb ssd? Could be a solid deal!

    • bich.light on 20/01/2014 - 22:25
      +2

      For a few hundred more you could get a Mac.

      I'd stick to the Mac for the reasons:
      a. Service & Warranty - Apple is the King in this department.
      b. Quality - Not sure bout the Dell but Apple's quality is pretty solid and stylish!
      c. Resale value - the resale value for Macs are much higher than some Windows laptop.
      d. The resolution - if you need the extra pixel then the Macbook is a deal breaker.

      Let the hate roll in? #Fanboy

      • ramezemar on 20/01/2014 - 22:48

        $400 is a fair chunk of money for intel GPU but a higher resolution screen. Hence this post, are there any clearly superior products in the market, and how is their price looking? btw which mac do you own and how is it so far?

        • bich.light on 21/01/2014 - 20:47

          You're in luck? One seems to have popped up today?

          You should consider purchasing this laptop:
          https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/131106

          I'd buy it if I had the money, haha

        • ramezemar on 21/01/2014 - 22:42

          There is a heated discussion on that thread, very useful to read through! It does seem that battery will be a problem, the gpu is middle of the pack, no OS, storage is mSATA and half the storage capacity, and finally no backlit keyboard. I do get a gpu, i7 U series and a bigger matte screen though.

          Adding the OS and a 128 SSD, plus shipping brings this unit to $1467, a saving of $107. However there is no option for a backlit, which to me is a vital feature.

        • bich.light on 22/01/2014 - 00:37

          No OS is pretty good for me, gives me savings and the SSD seems to be a dealbreaker for yourself, as well as the backlit.

          Just buy the Mac then (Y)

        • ramezemar on 22/01/2014 - 00:53

          mSATA isn't a deal breaker, sadly the lack of backlit is. However reading some reviews on light gaming performance with the Iris, it's not promising. The problem is that all the comparison laptops are sold online, no physical brick and mortar store to check them out before buying :(

        • bich.light on 22/01/2014 - 17:19

          Yeah, you would like to at least check out the laptops before purchasing.
          Although, if its a popular sony/HP/Dell kind of laptop, you might have some luck at their own stores or the larger retail stores (HN, JBHIFI).

      • Joshman5k on 21/01/2014 - 20:28

        You mean deal maker?

  • Tnetennba on 21/01/2014 - 00:08

    You could get the New XPS 13 as an alternative. For $1330 after education discount (add $15 anti-virus subscription to take it over the $1500 threshold for the 12% student coupon) it has 128gb ssd, 4th gen i5, 8gb ram, etc etc. Mine arrived the other day and it's a really nice unit, very high build quality and such.

    Of course you can go the mac if you want to, I'm just saying the new xps is very sexy and affordable :)

    Edit: you can also put in a 64gb usb for $55 which takes up hardly any room. A nice option if you are worried about space (chuck movies/music on it ;))

    • ramezemar on 21/01/2014 - 01:01

      Haha that's a cute usb! This looks like a solid deal too, good to hear you're happy with your purchase :) Any comment on the battery life or any grievances that you'd care to share? Also, any idea where could I see either your XPS or the Inspiron 7537 (from the link I posted) in store?

      • Tnetennba on 23/01/2014 - 16:59
        +1

        Sorry about the wall of text.

        I wasn't able to locate any resellers of the XPS 13 before I bought it, had to go off reviews (there honestly aren't many as it's new and has been hard to get a hold of at times, they also didn't give it a new model name so that didn't help, just a new number).

        Anyway, I don't think the inspiron would be easy to find in store either :(

        The battery is good as far as I can tell. I haven't actually run it down to 0 yet, but i plan to test that some time soon (it's not my main device, and I don't actually need to take it out until uni starts). It seems to estimate 7-8 hours from the ETA in windows, but I'm not sure how accurate that is. I would say it easily does 7 hours on a bad day. The thread on whirlpool about it has people saying it lasts them all day, they never need to charge, etc.

        I have had one minor issue which I think is related to intel "smart start" technology. Basically when resuming from a long sleep (from which smart start puts it in "deep sleep"), the screen just goes off and on when you hit buttons. It looks like software issues, so I've disabled that and I'm waiting to see if it does it again (has not reoccurred yet). If so, dell has remote diagnosis, on-site service so I'm not really worried about having to ship it off to asia or something.

        Also the way windows 8.1 handles scaling for HDPI displays is poor, so you have to tweak it a little to make everything crisp. Some applications will look blurry without turning display scaling for them off, which in turn can make the text tiny, which in turn you have to adjust fonts inside that app! A bit of a mess but once you set it up (doesn't take long), it looks great. I understand the MBP also has some of these issues but the way apple did their scaling is different, it's not "true" scaling in that developers can just change their static images to high resolutions, and in windows they must use vector images or something.

        Overall it's a beautiful machine. I do like the look of the apple, too, but the dell is very nice. It feels very well finished, solid, not made of cheap plastic or anything. The keyboard is amazing, by far the best keyboard on a laptop I've ever used. I'd say it's up there with apple's build quality, really.

        • ramezemar on 24/01/2014 - 13:35

          Nah man, happy to read it all! I'm thinking now of changing the search criteria, HDPI screens on 8.1 has some issues from what I've read. The worst thing is the lack of physical models in local stores :( Dell have been exemplary with their customer support. The XPS 13 is a bit pricey, but the inspiron 15 7000 series seems decent (no SSD and not sure about battery though).

        • Tnetennba on 27/01/2014 - 00:20

          Honestly the HDPI issue is more or less non-existent, seeing as most of the time I'm either web browsing or word processing, in which both of those have perfectly clear displays. It's just a few applications that are not suited to it.

          Comparing the XPS 13 to Inspiron isn't really right IMO. The XPS is an ultrabook - designed to be totally thin/fast/etc, whereas the Inspiron is more of an all-rounder.

  • ethereal88 on 21/01/2014 - 06:43
    +1

    Or just buy a $500 tablet like Asus's Transformer T100. Last time I was at uni the only thing people used laptops for were porn and facebook.

    • ramezemar on 21/01/2014 - 13:26
      +1

      Haha uni hasn't changed much! I'm not a fan of the screen size nor the keyboard, I'l be doing plenty of pdf reading and typing notes.

  • mrmarkau67 on 21/01/2014 - 14:43
    +3

    There isn't anything else quite like the Macbook Pro with Retina Display for the money. You'll compromise on screen quality, engineering/build quality, resale value, weight/size or performance.

    The one thing I'd worry about is repairability; there is more glue than screws in that Mac. So I personally would never buy without extended Applecare. You have a year to buy it, so wait and then watch for the (very) occasional deals.

    • obses2ion on 21/01/2014 - 21:11

      I called up and checked my university's offer and it was the best. They offered me the mac model you wanted for $1655 and I also recieved the 100 dollar gift card! dont think you can get much cheaper then that. was going to do the myer offer but they dont do BTO (build to order) as I wanted to upgrade the processeor (extra 100 something)

      • ramezemar on 21/01/2014 - 22:49

        Nice! What uni is this if you don't mind me asking? Do you reckon a $100 discount is better or a $100 card is better? I wanna find out if this card can be used for a MBP or if it's only good for software.

        • obses2ion on 21/01/2014 - 23:13

          is the price on the myer website already $100 off? cos im a bit confused at the first comment where GaelicAU said the macbook pro 13inch model is $1949? on the site it says 1749 and im not sure if thats already 100 off ? if its not then definitely go for myer pricing as if its 100 off it be 1649 + 10% you get off for staff discount. however you could always try to price match that with apple by calling them up

          i go to Flinders university in SA.

        • ramezemar on 21/01/2014 - 23:21

          Myer website sells em for $1849. Take $100 to take it to $1749. Then 10% brings it to $1574. I had a hunch you were a Flinders Uni student, look at this pricesheet from your uni!
          http://www.flinders.edu.au/isd-files/documents/Computers%20a…
          This model is advertised in that spreadsheet for $1493, but could be an old price promo or something. Definitely better than the measly discount Jame Cook Uni receives!

        • obses2ion on 22/01/2014 - 00:14

          yeah 1493 is NO GST yet! so with gst it becomes around 1642? but i think the price has gone up since then so it was 1655 when i asked for it!

          If i was in your position id try price match that 1574 and get the 100 dollar gift card as well! if not go for your myer price, i think the 100 dollar app card works for programs as well but not 100% sure so yeah!

    • watbe on 22/01/2014 - 16:51

      I wouldn't buy extended warranty because Apple is forced by the ACCC to honour limited warranty for at least 2 years or more.

      EDIT: Source: http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/apple-keeps… Apple doesn't actually display anywhere on the website that limited warranty covers 2 years, sneaky.

  • rc897 on 22/01/2014 - 10:52
    +1

    I'm probably going to buy from Myer with $100 off promo + 10% staff discount. ($1849—>$1749—>$1574).

    I bought mine from Myer with the same discount. I'm also with RAC and I bought the $100 gift cards for $95 which would bring the price down to around $1495. Potentially added discount if you get a $20 gift card from myer points.

    • ramezemar on 24/01/2014 - 13:36

      Decent! RACV don't do the 5% off sadly :(

  • mrhatken on 22/01/2014 - 14:08

    RAM is not upgradeable so I would go for 16GB if you can afford. I find for longevity, the RAM is the most important. Apps get bigger and bigger, we want to do more and more. You can always offload files and data to the cloud but you need RAM to run stuff fast.

  • obses2ion on 22/01/2014 - 18:08
    +1

    I wanted to go 16gb but the upgrade value to 16gb was heaps so I didnt upgrade. I believed 8gb is enough for what will be used. 16gb is alot.. dont think I would ever need it..

  • fomal on 23/01/2014 - 09:59

    Which macbook are you reffering to?

    this : http://www.myer.com.au/shop/mystore/apple/apple-13-inch-macb… ?

    It seems like $1749 is their normal price without sale though

  • groundum on 23/01/2014 - 10:28
    +1

    16gb ram?? as a student i doubt u will need a 16gb of ram.

    • bich.light on 23/01/2014 - 21:03

      You'd be surpised, when you start rendering objects in Photoshop and have large amounts of applications and web-browsing tabs, 16gb RAM starts to feel a lot less.

      Also, I think 16GB ram is more like 13GB on Mac's as I recall the system used like 3GB of RAM on its own :|

      • obses2ion on 24/01/2014 - 02:45

        hrm everytime I do use intensive apps like photoshop or final cut I just run them itself.

        never really understood people that use alot of Web browsing tabs as well frustrates the hell out of me when I see someone with 10+ tabs open WHY U NEED SO MANY sorry my OCD lol

        • bich.light on 24/01/2014 - 18:27

          Haha I see,
          I have like 20 tabs open… there really is no logic lol…
          Just like having bookmarks that wastes RAM

    • ramezemar on 24/01/2014 - 13:40
      +1

      I think 8 gb is plenty of RAM, I won't be using PS or rendering videos. Although I do tend to cram lots of tabs in my browser! Current XPS with 6gb ram hasn't struggled so I imagine 8gb mac will be fine :D

  • ramezemar on 29/01/2014 - 15:41

    So if anyone is still following this, I found a beastly Samsung laptop that has been included in the original topic up top. Your input is as always appreciated :)

    • Astro551 on 29/01/2014 - 15:55

      haha i thought you were going for discrete? although it is a beast I feel like the GPU and 2.5kg weight might not be as welcomed as longer batt life/portability when carrying around.

      Honestly I still think the MBPr or Dell XPS 13 is your best bet in terms of the needs you have for uni.

      • ramezemar on 29/01/2014 - 16:19

        Battery life is quoted at 8 hours, so at wifi browsing or word processing at 40% brightness (hopefully 6 hours long) for uni is plenty! It's just that it's a last year model and it's very hard to find in stock (once again, haven't physically seen it, just online reviews and forums). It is almost the same price, at $1500.

        • Astro551 on 29/01/2014 - 19:28

          yeh for sure, but I still think for uni wise you're just going to be doing a lot of travelling. And while an extra kg might not seem that much for what you're getting, personally i'd much rather something lighter. also as someone said below the SSD is probably preferable if you don't need the 1tb storage.

    • mrmarkau67 on 29/01/2014 - 17:01

      That's definitely a bigger laptop than the MBPr. An extra kilo in weight. On the other hand it has a bigger screen, which also has touch, which is nice for Windows 8.

      If you decide to go with the Samsung, make sure you go for an SSD.

      • Astro551 on 29/01/2014 - 19:25

        Bigger screen but lower res, so I guess it depends whether you feel you need the extra 2 inches

    • ProspectiveDarkness on 29/01/2014 - 17:28

      Coming from someone who doesn't own any Apple products, the rMBP is still probably your best bet. 4th gen Intel processors (Haswell) give quite a boost in battery life compared to Ivy Bridge. The dedicated GPU and larger display are really the only things the AB8 has going for it.

      The Macbook wins in all three sections for 'battery life, nice screen and portability factor', and general performance should be much faster thanks to the SSD vs the AB8's SATA2 5400RPM HDD. The closest match to the rMBP from Samsung would be the Ativ Book 9+, but unfortunately the price in Australia is hugely inflated.

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