Coming from a person who has owned both. I can say for sure that it just doesn't matter. Some will say that the pro has more ports and is more of a power beast,

Coming from a person who has owned both. I can say for sure that it just doesn't matter. Some will say that the pro has more ports and is more of a power beast, but given all that let me ask you the following. 1. You are starting to program, consider yourself at least a few months out till you get into a world where you will start programming device drivers. 2. When was the last time you actually used a dvd drive? Everything is on the internet or wirelessly available. Most of the work that I have done, ranging from device drivers to now, distributed systems, my macbook air sufficed. Programming has never 'required' me to have a retina display. If you asked the question with the context of media or photo editing, my answer would be different. My setup is as follows: 1. Macbook air 11" (portability is the key) 2. Apple wireless keyboard and mouse 3. Apple 27" display connected via thunderbolt. (wired network). You may substitute with any other good monitor. The desktop setup is just a plain must. Anyone who says 11" or 13" or even 15" is enough for working, has just never worked on a big screen long enough. It just increases your productivity by an order of magnitude. Imagine the time saved by having multiple windows/terminals and documentation right in front of you and not having to switch between the two. So, to end it all. Get a decent compact machine that you can take with you, and use on the go. And get yourself a good desktop setup when you want to get serious stuff done. Also, the desktop setup (personally) focuses you into a simple and distraction free zone, allowing you to be more productive.