MBP Retina or Powerful Ultrabook?

Hi, I've been a PC user all my life, but after working my way through the first iPod Nano, a couple iPod Touches, and now an iPad 2- I've grown to like the way Apple works. I'm finally at the point where I've decided to upgrade my 4-year old Future Shop sale Toshiba, which surprisingly has lasted me a good deal of time. However, I'm not a fan of the limited capabilities, the weight, and the fact that it very easily overheats (to nearly scalding temperatures), leading me to opt for my iPad most of the time. I'm a sucker for HD and quick boot-ups, so of course I fell in love with the MBP Retina when it was released. The only thing holding me back is the hefty price tag. Because of this, I began to research several ultrabooks and found that I could get the same specs (except for retina, but I'm fine with 1080p) and even a few bonus features (I would love a Blu-Ray drive and some accident-proof features) for half, or slightly-more-than-half of the price of the MBP. My favourite features of the MBP are the "little things"- fast bootup, magsafe, trackpad, and iCloud to work seamlessly with my iPad (which, i guess isn't really a "little thing"). I'm just not sure if these are worth the extra $1000 when I could just get an amazing PC.
I plan to use this computer in the following ways:
- Web browsing/ social networking
- Homework (university... of course)
- Entertainment (play movies, TV shows, etc)
- Some video and picture editing (I have a Sony camera which records AVCHD, which edits best on Sony Vegas)
- Running language software (i.e. Rosetta Stone)
So anyway, I'm not a gamer or a hardcore video editor, but I would like to be able to do some editing and video playback with clarity and without lag. As such, I figure I really only need the i5, so the base model of the Retina is fine for me. But again, I could get a **** good computer with i5 for much less money than the Retina, so I'm looking for reasons to sway either way. Any thoughts?
Thanks,
tj

Hmm...
'll readily admit, I'm a bit of an Apple head, so always say YEAH GO FOR IT.
However,
I'd say be aware, if you aren't going to use the power, you may be better going for alternatives, but I'll give you a rundown of some pro's and cons for your usage.
- Cold boots in 15 seconds flat
- can play 4 1080p streams at once without lag or framerate drop
- Photo editing on Aperture is excellent
- Photostream means your photos are there almost instantly wirelessly (not with the camera of course)
- Photoshop CS6 (when the retina patch is out) will look brilliant
- I had a photo zoomed out to fill half the screen size, of a whole person, yet could still see individual hairs on the head.
- Build, engineering, design and material quality unsurpassed in the industry (you cannot flex anywhere or make anything creak)
- Logevity, just upgraded from a 2008 Air - which was still going strong with no visible wear or damage/scratches
-Power, good graphics chip, switchable for battery life
- Video editing is amazing (on Final Cut Pro - which is Retina ready) you can veiw full 1080p with the interface still visible
Cons:
- Lag - on 'best for retina' its great, on 'More space' scaling, if you allow GFX chip switching, will cause serious lag - forcing the GeForce fixes this
- Other laptops will be great for your needs, and cheaper, but may not last as long
- The next generation in a year will likely iron out the lag issues
- Most programs are not yet retina ready - meaning they look... well... very dodgy indeed
I would say the MacBook is a fantastic machine and you will not regret the purchase, it will last you a good 3-5 years and you will thoughoughly enjoy it.  It's an absolute joy to you and the trackpad and keyboard are brilliant.  The speakers are also great.
However, you will likely get a notebook more than good enough for your needs, as you said, for much less money.  If you can happily afford it - get the Mac, they are some of the finest computers money can buy.  If it's a stretch - get a **** good alternative, you'll enjoy it equally and get great performance and some extra money in the old pocket!
Hope this helped a bit anyway - if you have any questions, ask away, more than happy to help

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  • A vote for the MBP Retina

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  • How long is your shutdowntime from MBP Retina 13" ML? (and more)-Please help!

    Hello everyone,
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    I thank you very much in advance!

    Well to update my own thread just for the people who are reading or for the people who are also searching for an answer:
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    The conclusion I can make based on my experiences with Mountain Lion on different Macs in this house (and my two Retina's I worked on) is the same as what already is mentioned before; it has to do with Mountain Lion.
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  • My MBP display is not working.  Need to move data to new MBP Retina.

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  • How do I create a bootable USB Drive to install Windows 7 on a MBP Retina

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    Disconnect all external drives. Only have the the USB flash drive connected.

  • How to install OS Lion on MBP Retina?

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  • MBP Retina and Loginox1.0.6B6 on Mac OS 10.7.4 cause Icon bug

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    After:

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  • MBP retina + Yosemite + MAGSAFE CONNECTED = freeze and spinning ball!!

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    Force shut down again.
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    He had no explanation, he just told me to use time machine to backup my data and bring the macbook there in case the issue would appear again.
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    I even tried to delete completely iphoto, imovie and caffeine and to reinstall Yosemite.
    I don't want to go to the Apple Store now because it's full of people (iphone 6 just got released here in China).
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