boltjames

Alternate suggestion:

Lose the Air, forget the concept of carrying two notebooks, and get the 12" MacBook Retina instead.

I run Windows 10 on mine via Boot Camp and it's stellar, you can have both Windows and OSX if that's important. Yes, will take you a week to get used to the smaller screen but the upside is you still get a full-sized keyboard, super light weight, stellar battery life, and of course that retina display. Not to mention the weight and space savings of 3 pounds of notebook, all the cables, the power bricks, etc.

BJ

MaxBuck

If you're going to spend what the MacBook 12" costs and are tied to Windows, you're better off going with a Surface Pro. Lighter, better Windows experience and equally fine display.

boltjames

Regarding the OP, it seems he needs both operating systems so that's why the 12" MacBook would seem to be a good notebook to consider instead of his 'carry two' idea.

Regarding myself, I use Windows 100% of the time on my 12" MacBook and the Surface Pro is a Tablet and I need a real notebook. No dedicated Windows machine has a better form factor than the RMB.

BJ

JClishe

I'd argue that the Surface Book does. Sure it's slightly thicker and heavier, but it has more port options, a touch screen, removeable screen, styuls, docking station with dual displayports, excellent keyboard and trackpad, and most importantly to me: it has a 3:2 aspect ratio display which i LOVE on laptops. It's a 13.5" screen but due to the aspect ratio the screen is just barely shorter than my 15.4" RMBP

boltjames

It's thicker and heavier, I don't need a touchscreen, the removable screen has terrible battery life, in the end it is neither a world-class notebook or a world-class tablet. It's a giant compromise of both.

My current setup carrying both the 12" MacBook and the iPad Air II in my messenger bag weighs less than the Surface Book alone and combined I get over 20 hours of battery life, about 3x more than the Surface Book. And neither is a compromise, the RMB is a world-class notebook and the iPad Air a world-class tablet.

For a Windows user like you (and me) the 12" MacBook + iPad Air combo is killer. Windows 10 runs perfectly on the MacBook via Boot Camp, you can keep iTunes on your tablet, it's fantastic.

BJ

IsleOfMan

I don't think I could see myself ever paying the "Apple Tax" for a 12" Macbook just so I could run Windows on it. An Asus UX305CA or Lenovo Yoga 3 Pro get you in the ballpark of the 12" Macbook in terms of thickness and weight with the same CPU/Graphics/RAM/storage, at less than 1/2 the price BEFORE you consider the cost of a Windows license for the Macbook. i5 and i7 models can too be had for FAR less than the price of a 12" Macbook.

If you want to run OS X then the Macbook is an extremely attractive form factor to do so. If you want to run primarily OS X but still dual-boot Windows for a specific task, it might be worth the cost of a Windows license. If you want to run JUST Windows, though, I just can't see paying more than double PLUS the cost of a Windows license JUST to get that form factor. That said, I'd probably never consider a Surface Book based on the same inflated price for a gimmicky form factor.

Dubai Stu

I have a Surface 3 (not pro) and actually find it a reasonable performer. It won't set the world on fire, but it is a good travel machine which is USB rechargeable fits well in coach, etc. The problem that when someone reclines, you need to lap it and lapping with a magnetically detachable keyboard isn't always perfect. I carry it in a tablet style leather case

nkedel

The person you are replying to makes a habit of recommending that model (and then running Windows on it) in nearly every thread asking about laptops; it's best not to argue with him.

I wouldn't even caveat it that far.

If you want to run the MacOS, get a Mac. If you need a few Windows apps, run virtualization and/or CrossOver.
If you want to run Windows or Linux, get a non-Apple PC.

If you really need to run MacOS X apps AND Windows apps at a reasonably high degree of performance, you need two machines.

BootCamp on a Mac is a terrible way to run Windows; it has driver reliability issues, and at least on the MacBook Pro 15inch (over the last several generations including the most recent) has absolutely terrible battery life compared to the MacOS on the same hardware or Windows on comparable non-Apple hardware.

I can't recommend the surface book; it's not that light as a travel notebook, unwieldy as a tablet, and relatively underpowered (with the GPU models having a GPU that's too small to be really useful but big enough to hurt battery life.)

Also, a lot of apps don't work very well at HiDPI retina-like resolutions on Windows; it's a lot better to stick to 1080p for most people.

Unfortunately, I don't know of a good 2-in-1 that justifies the new price; there are plenty of acceptable ones (mod form factor preference) but when they sell for $1200+ new with a decent (i5 + 8gb or more) configuration it doesn't make any sense.

Ignoring cost, the Surface Pro series seems to be the best option for those who want something that leans towards tablet use more than laptop, and the Lenovo Yoga series seems to be the best option for those who want something that leans more towards laptop use.

I personally really like the form factor of the Lenovo Helix and the Dell Venue Pro 11, with a snap-on laptop style keyboard, but both are orphan platforms.

There may be decent deals on remaining or refurbished ones; the Dell Venue Pro 11 7130 I got for about $500 (including keyboard; i5-4300Y + 8gb) was well worth it if rather heavy, and if one could get a refurb Surface Pro or Yoga in a reasonable configuration that wouldn't be a bad call. Keep in mind that the i5-4xxxY and Core M5 processors are REALLY slow, if not as utterly useless as Atom-based systems are.

If one doesn't need the tablet mode, there are a TON of good ultrabooks and business ultraportables (Lenovo X260, Dell E7270, Dell XPS 13, various Asus Zenbooks, etc) although new ones will be out of his price range.