Mac For Students
Posted : admin On 9/30/2019Most students looking for a new MacBook should pick up the MacBook Air. It's less expensive than other MacBooks, more powerful, and has a bigger display than the 12-inch MacBook while remaining lightweight. And though it might not be as powerful as the MacBook Pro, it should provide enough power for the average student to get through their day.
Our pick
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MacBook Air (2018)
Hits the sweet spot of power, portability, and price.
More powerful than the 12-inch MacBook and more mobile than the MacBook Pro, the MacBook Air sits in the Goldilocks zone of Apple's portable Mac lineup, offering enough power for most everything you'll want it to do without the bulk of a MacBook Pro. Features Touch ID for easy, yet secure, authentication.
Apple For Students
Who should buy this computer?
College students who want a Mac for writing papers, doing research, surfing the web, light photo editing and just entertaining themselves should get the MacBook Air. It should also be a great computer for you when your academic career is over and you're headed out into the world.
Is it a good time to buy this computer?
The current MacBook Air came out in October 2018, so now is a great time to buy this Mac. Some solid discounts are popping up at retailers like Amazon, and we're likely many months away from a potential refresh. It's been a while since Apple refreshed any of its Macs in less than a year.
Reasons to buy
- Great balance of price and power
- Light and portable
- Retina display
- Touch ID
Reasons not to buy
- Limited customization
- Butterfly keyboard may irk some
The MacBook Air is a great Mac for students, successfully riding the line between power and portability
For students, portability is a chief concern when it comes to buying a computer. Whether you're walking through your high school's hallways to your history class or sprinting across a college campus to make it your next lecture on time, you don't want to be lugging around a heavy computer. You want something fairly light. At the same time, you don't want a computer that's underpowered. The MacBook Air occupies the happy medium of that ideal. It's more powerful than the MacBook and thinner and lighter than the MacBook Pro.
For the longest time, the MacBook Air was Apple's thin-and-light computer. Many credit MacBook Air with paving the way for the 'ultrabook' genre of computers that gained prominence in the early part of this decade. But Apple has since introduced the 12-inch MacBook, which debuted with a Retina display and was even thinner and lighter than the Air. Surely, if portability is your main concern, you should get the MacBook, right?
The MacBook Air sits in the happy medium between the portability of the MacBook and the power of the MacBook Pro.
Well, let's take a look at the modern MacBook Air. It now also (some would say 'finally') has a Retina display, without adding any bulk. And no, it's not as small as the MacBook, but it's almost as light. The MacBook Air comes in at 2.75 lbs, less than a pound heavier than the MacBook's 2.03. You're not making much of a sacrifice on weight. If the footprint of the computer is a concern, check out the MacBook, but you're gaining only about half-an-inch each on width and depth, so maybe the larger Air won't present much of a size problem.
The other consideration the MacBook versus the MacBook Air is power. While the MacBook Air's eighth-generation Intel processor won't really keep up with those found in the current generation of MacBook Pro, it's more than a match for the 7th-generation processors found in the MacBook. For everything from web browsing to photo editing, the MacBook will find itself outmatched by the Air, all while the MacBook Air is priced at least $100 under the current MacBook.
Speaking of power, the MacBook Pro is probably overkill for most students. Sure, some will be able to take advantage of its more powerful processors available to it, but if most of what you're doing is writing papers, putting together presentations, or doing research on the web, you probably don't need the level of power a MacBook Pro offers. And again, you'll be saving a bit of money if you get the MacBook Air, which is always something to consider.
Ultimately, when looking at the current MacBook lineup through the lens of a student, the MacBook Air successfully rides the line between the thin-and-light MacBook and the powerful MacBook Pro. Php for mac. It will meet the needs of most students, and should still be a great Mac to have when you're ready to leave academics behind and head off into the world.
Alternatives to the MacBook Air
The MacBook Air might be the best MacBook for most students, but different people have different needs. If you're looking for more power, then check out the MacBook Pro. It'll be a more capable machine for almost everything you want to do, with more expensive models offering an ever-increasing amount of power for tasks like photo and video editing, app development, scientific programs, illustration, and music production. It will last longer than the MacBook Air and perform at higher levels the entire time.
If you're looking for more of a budget option, unfortunately, you're going to have to settle for something older from Apple. It's still a MacBook Air, but it lacks the Retina display of the newer model, and its processors are older. But, it still has all-solid-state storage, which means a lot when it comes to boot times. If budget is your chief concern and you still want a Mac, the older MacBook Air that Apple still sells should work just fine, if not quite as well as the new model.
More power
Apple Promo Codes Student
MacBook Pro
More power for whatever you need to do.
More powerful and versatile than the MacBook Air, the Pro lineup offers more customization options so you get the exact machine you need for photo and video work, scientific programs, music production, or other intensive tasks.
The MacBook Pro offers a lot of customization options that allow you to create the computer you need. Offers everything from a seventh-generation dual-core Intel processor to an ninth-generation, eight-core i9 beast, configurable up to 32GB of memory with AMD Radeon graphics for the most intensive tasks. If power is what you want, that's what you'll get with the MacBook Pro.
Value pick
MacBook Air (2017)
A capable computer for the money.
While it hasn't seen anything other than a spec bump in the last couple of years, the 2017 revision of the MacBook Air is still a capable machine. It may lack Thunderbolt and a Retina display, but it'll still get you through most of your tasks without hassle.
Apple quietly bumped the specs on the MacBook Air in 2017, introducing a couple of new processors to choose from. Despite its lack of Thunderbolt 3 ports or a Retina display, the older MacBook Air should still be able to meet most of your needs. It even still has an SD card reader, something many Mac owners thought was lost to the ages (or at least the Mac).
Bottom line
If you want an excellent 'medium' Mac laptop, get the MacBook Air. Offering enough power to meet most of the needs of student life while being almost as portable as a MacBook, the Air strikes a great balance between the other offerings in Apple's laptop lineup.
It's also among the most affordable of the portable Macs, especially when you start getting into the upper echelons of what that MacBook Pro has to offer and even compared to the 12-inch MacBook.
Our pick
MacBook Air (2018)
Hits the sweet spot of power, portability, and price.
More powerful than the 12-inch MacBook and more mobile than the MacBook Pro, the MacBook Air sits in the Goldilocks zone of Apple's portable Mac lineup, offering enough power for most everything you'll want it to do without the bulk of a MacBook Pro. Features Touch ID for easy, yet secure, authentication.
Credits — The team that worked on this guide
Joseph Keller is a senior writer at iMore. An Apple user for more than a decade and a half, he spends his time learning the ins and outs of iOS and macOS, always finding ways of getting the most out of his iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
Rene Ritchie has been covering the personal technology industry for a decade. An outspoken analyst and critic, he writes at iMore.com/vector, podcasts at applepodcasts.com/vector, and you can find his show at youtube.com/vector. Follow him @reneritchie on Twitter and Instagram
We may earn a commission for purchases using our links. Learn more.
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About the Apple Music student subscription
When you join Apple Music as a student, UNiDAYS, a student validation service, confirms that you're enrolled in a degree-granting university or college. After UNiDAYS verifies that you're a student, then you can get a student subscription to Apple Music. Learn more about Apple Music and Apple Music pricing.
The Apple Music Student subscription is only available in certain countries and regions. Learn more about Apple Music availability.
Here's what you need
- To qualify for an Apple Music student subscription, you must be a student studying a bachelor degree, post-graduate degree, or equivalent Higher Education course at a University, College (U.S. only) or Post-Secondary School (Canada only). Junior, technical colleges, and special courses are also eligible in Japan.
- Update your iPhone or iPod touch to the latest version of iOS, iPad to the latest version of iPadOS, Mac to the latest version of macOS, or Android device to the latest software version. On your PC, make sure that you have the latest version of iTunes for Windows.
Get a student subscription
Already subscribe to Apple Music? Learn how to change to a student subscription. If you're new to Apple Music, follow the steps below.
Open the Music app
On your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, or Android device, open the Music app. On your PC, open iTunes for Windows. Then tap or click For You.
Start a trial, then choose Student
Tap or click the trial offer (one trial per person or family), choose Student, then tap or click Verify Eligibility.
Verify that you're a student
A browser window will open and you'll be taken to the UNiDAYS website. Follow the onscreen prompts to verify your enrollment. After UNiDAYS verifies that you're a student, you'll be redirected back to the Music app or iTunes for Windows.
Sign in with your Apple ID
Sign in with the Apple ID and password that you use to make purchases. If you don’t have an Apple ID, tap Create New Apple ID, then follow the steps to create one.
If you're not sure if you have an Apple ID, we can help you find out.
If you're asked for a verification code, you have two-factor authentication on your Apple ID. Learn about two-factor authentication and what to do if you still can’t sign in.
Confirm your billing information
If asked, confirm your billing information and add a valid payment method. Then tap or click Join.
If prompted, agree to the terms and conditions.
Verify your student status
Near the end of each year that you have an Apple Music student subscription, you'll see a message that asks you to verify your student status in the Music app or iTunes for Windows. You can also verify your student status at any time using your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch.
In the Music app or iTunes for Windows
If you see a message that asks you to verify your student status:
- Tap or click Verify Eligibility.
- Tap or click Go to Website.
- Sign in to your institution's portal.
- After you sign in to your institution's portal, you’ll be directed back to Apple Music and see a confirmation screen.
In Settings on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
- Go to Settings > [your name], then tap Subscriptions.
- Tap Apple Music Membership.
- Tap Verify your student status. You'll be redirected to the UNiDAYS website.
- Follow the prompts to verify your eligibility. If the verification is successful, you'll automatically return to Apple Music and continue your Apple Music student subscription.
No longer a student?
If you're no longer a student or if you complete 48 months of a student subscription, your subscription automatically becomes an Apple Music Individual subscription and you lose free access to Apple TV+. If you're prompted to verify your student status after launching Apple Music, but you're no longer a student or have completed 48 months of a subscription, tap or click 'I'm No Longer A Student.' You won't be asked to verify again.
If you don’t confirm during the verification period, and you still have time left in your 48 months, you'll have to re-enroll as a student.
Get help with your UNiDAYS account
If you need help with your UNiDAYS account, contact UNiDAYS Support.
Start watching Apple TV+
If you have an Apple Music student subscription, enjoy free access to Apple TV+ for a limited time. Just open the Apple TV app and start watching Apple Originals. You can't share your free Apple TV+ access with Family Sharing.
Apple TV+ is not available in all countries and regions. You might be able to use Apple Music but not Apple TV+ in your country or region. See what's available in your country or region.
Learn more
Microsoft Office Mac Student Free
- You can also get an Individual subscription or Family subscription to Apple Music.
- If you're not a student, you can subscribe to Apple TV+.
- View, change, or cancel your subscription.
- Learn more about Apple Music and Apple Music pricing.
- Learn more about the features included with Apple Music.