I've been using the new Macbook as my main work machine for over two months now. I'm coming from a 2011 13" Macbook Pro, and haven't used anything newer extensively. That may mean I have a lower reference point, but it may also be closer to what a typical user would experience when upgrading. Here are a few quick impressions, and my thoughts on who this machine is best for.

Here are my impressions on the New MacBook vs MacBook Air and MacBook Pro with Retina Display. Apple unveiled a 12" MacBook with Retina Display, simply calling it the 'New MacBook'. This new model is thinner and lighter than the 11.6" MacBook Air, has a new trackpad and keyboard design, is fanless, and comes in three color options (silver, space grey, and gold) with a starting price of $1,300. So how does the New MacBook vs MacBook Air and Pro with Retina shape up?

A discussion of the best internet provider may be a moot point depending on the number of companies delivering broadband internet to your home or place of business. If you are lucky enough to have a choice, you may want to consider data caps in addition to price, speed, and other factors when picking the best internet provider for you.

When looking at the best online backup service for Mac, there are several options with unique characteristics. There are also local backup options and hybrid solutions. All of these range in price, complexity, and will appeal to different breeds of computer users.

I've always been good about using multiple passwords for different sites with varying degrees of complexity.  Recently, it seems like a week doesn't go by without hearing about another hack, so I decided to give Apple's iCloud Keychain password manager a try.  One of the best things you can do to secure your online information is to use very strong unique passwords for every website and app you use.  If we could do this and remember them all there would be no need for password managers, but obviously that's not practical.  Apple's iCloud Keychain tries to make it easier.  It does some things well, but struggles in other areas.  If you're an Apple and Safari user, read on to see if you should use it.

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro?  This was already a tough question, and now that Apple has added a Retina display to the 13" Pro while trimming down the body and lowering the price it's even harder.

The 13" Pro with Retina display is now only $200 more than the 13" Air.  So what does that extra money buy you, and is it worth it?  I'm ignoring the legacy 13" MacBook Pro (without Retina display) in this post because I think one of the other two 13" models is a better deal for most users and the old Pro will probably get discontinued sooner than later anyway.

Check out the new Acer Chromebook if you're in the market for a basic laptop

For a long time I thought my 13” Macbook Pro was the best mix of performance, battery life, weight, and design in a laptop that one could buy. Of course the retina display models are also great machines, but I could never justify the extra cost.  But now the $249 Samsung Chromebook has me rethinking all of that.  So if we pit the Chromebook vs Mac on the things that matter for a normal web-based user (me) let's see how they stack up. Yes, most of the technical specs on the Chromebook come nowhere close to a MacBook, and it is made of plastic instead of aluminum. However, it's lighter than any of the MacBooks (other than the 11” Air, which is only a few grams lighter.) Its 6.5 hours of battery life are right in line with the MacBooks. And at $249 it's just a fraction of the price of the $1,000+ Macbook line.