[thomasliveshere]

Okay so I took the plunge and bought a maxed out retina macbook pro 13 inch. It arrives next week and I'm really excited!

This is my first ever macbook so I would appreciate some advice.

Should I buy a screen protector and keyboard protector for it? If so...which ones? Is there a screen protector specifically for this years model?

I'm quite anal about keeping my devices in great condition.

Also, what is the best case to protect the outside? I'm a fan of darker cases (black etc) but I still want the apple logo glowing lol.
Is there a particular case that is the best for a rmbp 13"? Even a clear one I wouldn't mind so much. Just as long as it doesn't add too much bulk/weight.

Also any other advice or suggestions you feel you would give to me seeing as this is my first ever macbook.

Thanks!!

[anon(9602380)]

Speck Seethru rMBP case. Any silicone keyboard cover will work. Forget the screen protector. These are what my son's use on their MBP's. Case has done a nice job of protecting laptop. Many colours to choose from including black.

My other suggestion would be to devise a good backup system for yourself. I use Carbon Copy Cloner which is a great app for cloning your internal drive. This will give you an exact copy of your internal drive that you can even boot up with should something ever happen to your internal drive.

Learn the keyboard shortcuts. It will save you a lot of time when working on your rMBP. Enjoy the apps that come with your laptop. Not top of the line, but for the average person they are more than enough. Otherwise, enjoy that new toy. Should handle anything you throw at it. I have a 2010 MBP that still does a decent job, so I can only imagine how fast that new toy of yours will be.

[jsntrenkler]

I love my MacBook pros, I don't use screen protectors or keyboard covers and have never had a issue. I use time machine to backup my device and have not had a problem. Congrats on your purchase. Fantastic machines!

[Algus]

13'' rMBP is a thing of beauty. I do not use a case either but find that it does take prints, oils, and other gross from your hands quite easily. New in box rMBPs come with microfiber cloth and it is good to invest in a set of these so you always have one to clean the machine with. A little TLC and polish now and then will keep the laptop looking FANTASTIC.

rMBP has the "worst" battery life of the MacBooks but still rocks 7+ hours, especially if you kill keyboard backlighting and screen brightness.

I use The Unarchiver to handle compressed files and Deluge for torrents.

If gaming is your thing, Steam has a native OS X app and GOG sells many DRM free OS X games, including many old DOS games that have been set up to run natively. The Mac App Store is also a good place to look as the good guys at Aspyr sell their stuff there.

Give all of OS X's native apps a fair shakedown. Safari is a pretty decent web browser and iWorks is a really good office suite. One of the perks of OS X for me is that it really comes with all of the software I need out of the box.