Ask HN: Macbook Air + Remote Server = Macbook Pro?

As a developer I need to test code on multiple versions of Windows and for this I have 4 virtual machines running on a Lenovo W500/8GB/256GB laptop plugged into a 24" monitor. For convenience I often have all four running concurrently. However with 8GB ram I often run out of memory and I'm low on disk space, hence my motivation to upgrade. I'm just about to purchase the new retina Macbook pro/16GB/512GB as it would appear a perfect fit as I could easily run all the VM's concurrently with room to spare and being on an SSD they would also be super-fast.

However I really value mobility especially around the house and the Macbook Air 13"/8GB/256GB comes highly recommended by peers. I had an epiphany thinking that perhaps I could rent a dedicated server to relieve the memory and disk requirements. With an Intel i7-2600 Quad/16GB/6TB-raid1 from Hetzner.de (50 Euro p.m), I could host all my Windows desktop VM's and also a few Ubuntu server VM's and use remote desktop and SSH to access them respectively. I realize there will be some additional latency but that’s fine for what I need to use them for and I have a 60Mb/s fiber connection.

Has anyone else attempted something similar? Am I missing anything? My preliminary research points me to using Linux KVM as the host. Can I really forgo the weight/size of a Retina 15" (+- $3900 here in Europe) for the Macbook air ($2300) + a remote server. Obviously I would be sacrificing the Retina screen and the dedicated GPU but neither is important to me, especially as I spend half my time plugged into a 24" monitor + mechanical keyboard. Additionally I'm not concerned about the cost of a server as I already have many very underutilized servers at my disposal and so it wouldn't cost any extra. Any advice would extremely helpful. Cheers!

Assuming you will use the laptop for two years before selling it for 50% of the original price, the server will cost extra 1200 eur (24x50) during that period, making the Air + server option more expensive. Also, it's much more comfortable to have everything running on localhost. No network lag issues, no dependency on fast internet connection, less hassle, etc. Not to mention very nice 2880*1800 display.

I'd prefer the Air or even the Pro (there's really not much difference in portability terms) and still work remotely. It's liberating to host everything on the cloud. You don't have to worry about your local setup failing, the VMs hogging resources and making your machine unusable (or destroying your battery).

Right now I'm using a Macbook Pro 2012 w/o the Retina. I do all my development on Linode servers, remotely. I get 6 hours of battery life and the machine is a pleasure to work on. I wouldn't go back to my old Windows laptop, where I used PuTTY to work.

I found this article really helpful when I realized all my work really revolved around my servers. I've got an iPad with a really nice Logitech Bluetooth keyboard and I love the fact that I can charge it overnight and use it all day (just like my cell phone). Of course, there are more limitations with my rig than you'd experience with a MacBook Air.

http://www.linuxjournal.com/content/swap-your-laptop-ipad-li...

Re portability with the Retina MacBookPro: I've had mine (15") for about 3 months now, and I have to say it's absolutely great.

The Air is very thin, and weighs in at 1.35Kg, but has a weak CPU and Intel graphics.

The rMBP is not that extremely thin, but it's amazingly thin as well, a lot thinner that the old MBPs and other laptops. It weighs only 2Kg which still makes it very light to carry around. I'd say that for portability, the new 15" rMBP is great. Light and small enough to carry but still powerful enough to work on. Given that it has a i7 CPU, GF 640 graphics card, 16GB RAM, a retina display, and almost the same battery life as the air, which is 6-7 hours.

You can host your VM's on a remote server if you like, but as far as choosing Air vs rMBP, the rMBP is an obvious winner, except if you mind the higher price tag.