external numeric key pad

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Hi. I am almost convinced that I should switch to Mac Book Air. Only thing holding me back is that Mac Book doesn't have a built in numeric key board. Can an external numeric key pad be used? If yes, what is the recommendation
 
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15" MB Pro, 2.66 i7 ; 11” MBA 1.8GZ i7; 13"MBA 2GZ i7 8 GB mem 512GB SSD, 2 iPad3s, 1 iPad Mini
487,000 hits on Google. Starting with Amazon.com.
 
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Truly there are plenty of USB and Bluetooth numeric keyboards available and every one I have bought has worked with the Mac.

One new interesting thing I've found is a sticker/software for the magic trackpad
Mobee Magic Numpad for Apple Magic Trackpad - Apple Store (U.S.)
Now it isn't cheap as it is $30 on top of the $70 for the trackpad. But I already had the trackpad and wanted a numeric keyboard without taking up more space.
 
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MacBook Pro - with retina display or without

Hi. I have made a HUGE decision today to switch to MacBook (having used Toshiba, Dell, Compaq and HP over the last almost 2 decades).
Now that the main decision has been made, next question is which MacBook. Since MacBook air doesn't come in a 15" display, it's going to be MacBook Pro 2.6GHz (which I believe is the best model).
The final point for which I need advice is whether to go for the Retina display or not. I do not watch movies on my laptop but spend at least half a day working on the compurter. Mainly Emails, Word, Excel and a little bit of internet usage.
What is the recommendation?
 
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15" MB Pro, 2.66 i7 ; 11” MBA 1.8GZ i7; 13"MBA 2GZ i7 8 GB mem 512GB SSD, 2 iPad3s, 1 iPad Mini
It's all about the screen, no? Remember, whatever options you select with a Retina are it, there is no later upgrading the SSD, memory, or processor. The 2.7 GHZ is the speediest one, to have that, upgrade the memory to 16 GB and increase the SSD size to 768 GB, all of a sudden you are talking $3749 with no optical drive - add another $79 for that. Pricey.

The MB Pro maxed out with 2.7 GHZ processor, but 8GB of memory and with the standard 750 GB HDD is $1200 less.
 
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I got corrected on this - you can upgrade the SSD - but I don't think it is any cheaper so I don't know what the benefit would be.
OWC offers 480GB SSD upgrade for Retina MacBook Pro, requires screwdriver and careful math -- Engadget
OWC offers upgrades to the SSD of retina Macs.

The retina is nice but you are paying a premium to have it. If you don't need all that resolution then I wouldn't get it. It is nice if you have a lot of windows open, or you like looking at large spreadsheets. With the engineering software I support I would like to have that many pixels as all my programs open a lot of windows - but I do my day to day computing on a MBA 11" or the New iPad. I do miss my 1920x1200 resolution on my 17" MBP - but not enough to carry it around with me anymore.
 

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