Sounds like a silly question, I know. I'm going to be a freshman in college beginning in August, majoring in Biochemistry, going for my PharmD., so I'm going to be using my laptop quite a bit. I currently have a massive 15.6 in Lenovo that I plan to use mainly for entertainment. I definitely want a 13 in. As it is more portable for classes and a huge change from the 15.6 in laptop.
I was reading about some of the differences between the retina display & regular Macbook. One thing that could sway my decision is the disc drive-- I'm still 'old fashioned' I guess and I like to collect CDs, and I plan on using the Macbook for iTunes as well for obvious reasons, however this isn't a huge factor. Also please don't give me the generic "macbooks suck" discussion. I'm still considering getting a new, smaller Lenovo. Lol
I would love to hear some of your opinions, as I don't mind paying the extra $100 if it is really worth it.
Is the 13 in. Macbook Pro with Retina Display worth the extra $100 over the regular Macbook Pro?
The retina screen is worth the extra $100 if you are going to work with video, graphics or even watch a lot of movies. Otherwise your fine with the non-retina screen. Personally I would spend the extra money for the retina screen, there's a significant difference. Go to the Apple store and compare the two.
I'd go compare them in the Apple store because to me it's not really worth it. When you're spending that much on a laptop $100 is a small difference but I've just never been a fan and if you look at programs that can actually use that resolution I think there's only a few. Netflix sure won't look any better nor will any of your dvds.
It really depends on exactly what programs will be running on it. The native screen resolution is 720p, which is fine for most things, but while writing C++ code it becomes a pain because of how little text fits on-screen. I have a Lenovo Ideapad Y400, which has a terrible screen, but works fine at school, and at home i plug it into a larger TV.
In your situation i would get a cheaper notebook/ netbook, or just get a backpack that has a dedicated laptop pocket to carry your current 15.6". $1300 seems like a lot simply for in-class use.
First of all, bear in mind that Retina display is a proprietary marketing term coined by Apple, rather than an scientific term. It refers to a screen whose pixels are so closely packed that, when held at what Apple considers to be the 'normal' distance from the user's face, you won't be able to make out individual pixels. (Apple expects users to hold an iPad further from the face than an iPhone, so iPhones are expected to achieve a higher pixel density to qualify for Retina status.)
Read this:
http://www.theverge.com/...eview-2013