11" or 13" MBA - Page 2

solo118 · Jan 16, 2013, 04:52 PM

I love the 11", but sometimes I wish I got the 13"

I think its the best choice (unless you can splurge for the retina MBP 13)

Dr Charter · Jan 16, 2013, 05:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by solo118

I love the 11", but sometimes I wish I got the 13"

I think its the best choice (unless you can splurge for the retina MBP 13)

I agree. There is something appealing about that 11" form factor though. For me, I think it is that I always wanted a 12" powerbook in college but never had the money.

Ken S · Jan 16, 2013, 05:48 PM

Had a 2010 11" and just purchased a 13".

The 11" is a simply amazing form factor. Barely bigger than an iPad but it's a full-fledged notebook. I travel extensively for work and it has been a great traveling companion. It's about the only notebook you can use comfortably in an economy class seat with the person in front fully reclined.

However, it's portability is a double edged sword with the screen size. When I travel, I don't use external monitors. The 11" screen, while surprisingly usable for many applications, just became a little too cramped when it was your sole display for 1-2 weeks.

I'm about to go on my first trip with my new 13" so I hope the trade-off in size will be worth it!

xraydoc · Jan 16, 2013, 08:14 PM

I have an 11" MBA. Love it. Super portable... weighs nearly nothing, fits everywhere. But, I have a 27" iMac as a desktop at home and a Mac mini + TB display at work, so I don't require a large screen on a laptop.

My wife has a 13" MBA, but it's basically her main/only machine.

rhinosrcool · Jan 16, 2013, 11:21 PM

In terms of a fun factor, the 11" is really is appealing. But, even though it performs well, it just misses a lot. After awhile, I found that I really craved a bigger screen. That meant my windows desktop got more use. Using my 13", I don't even see a sacrifice. Also, I really use the palmrests on my 13"; on the 11", they're a lot smaller. However, for me, the biggest drawback was the battery's shorter runtime. With the rumors of better battery life (I can't remember the source), the 11" would move up a lot.

If, instead, Apple made a 12" and a 14", I think they would appeal to even more. By reducing the bezel, they could keep the same footprint, but add a solid inch to the screen real estate. For the 11", the difference would be quite noticeable.

Oldgreycat · Jan 17, 2013, 07:04 AM

I picked up a refurbished 11-inch recently. I absolutely love it, but I got it primarily to be a secondary/on-the-go machine - for writing and surfing the web, not much more. The form factor can't be beat. As a primary computer, however, the small screen would drive me bonkers over an extended period of time. (It's not so much real estate that you're giving up -1366 x 768 is similar to many laptops - but that the screen itself is small. So everything is tiny.) I do plug it into my monitor and use it in clamshell mode some nights - makes a major difference.

If this is to be your mother's computer - what are her needs? Does she need ultra-portability? Or will she be using it exclusively at home? If she uses iTunes, is she comfortable using external hard drives? (128 gigs sounds like a lot of space, but a decent-sized music library will consume all of it. And if she downloads movies and TV shows....) If that's the case, you may want to consider the entry-level Macbook Pro or iMac, which come with much larger HDs and don't cost all that much more.

Jan 16, 2013, 04:52 PM	#26
solo118 macrumors 6502a Join Date: May 2011	I love the 11", but sometimes I wish I got the 13" I think its the best choice (unless you can splurge for the retina MBP 13) __________________ iPhone 5 at&t/2011 Macbook Air 11" 128GB/ iPad Mini
	0

Jan 16, 2013, 08:14 PM	#29
xraydoc macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: The first state	I have an 11" MBA. Love it. Super portable... weighs nearly nothing, fits everywhere. But, I have a 27" iMac as a desktop at home and a Mac mini + TB display at work, so I don't require a large screen on a laptop. My wife has a 13" MBA, but it's basically her main/only machine. __________________ 2.93GHz i7 27" iMac • 1.8GHz i7 11" MacBook Air • 2.5GHz i5 Mac mini + 27" Thunderbolt display 2.66GHz quad-core Mac Pro + OS X 10.7 Server + 6TB RAID 5 • AirPort Extreme • iPad 3 & mini • iPhone 5
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Jan 16, 2013, 05:48 PM	#28
Ken S macrumors member Join Date: Feb 2006	Had a 2010 11" and just purchased a 13". The 11" is a simply amazing form factor. Barely bigger than an iPad but it's a full-fledged notebook. I travel extensively for work and it has been a great traveling companion. It's about the only notebook you can use comfortably in an economy class seat with the person in front fully reclined. However, it's portability is a double edged sword with the screen size. When I travel, I don't use external monitors. The 11" screen, while surprisingly usable for many applications, just became a little too cramped when it was your sole display for 1-2 weeks. I'm about to go on my first trip with my new 13" so I hope the trade-off in size will be worth it!
	0

Jan 16, 2013, 11:21 PM	#30
rhinosrcool macrumors 6502a Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: MN	In terms of a fun factor, the 11" is really is appealing. But, even though it performs well, it just misses a lot. After awhile, I found that I really craved a bigger screen. That meant my windows desktop got more use. Using my 13", I don't even see a sacrifice. Also, I really use the palmrests on my 13"; on the 11", they're a lot smaller. However, for me, the biggest drawback was the battery's shorter runtime. With the rumors of better battery life (I can't remember the source), the 11" would move up a lot. If, instead, Apple made a 12" and a 14", I think they would appeal to even more. By reducing the bezel, they could keep the same footprint, but add a solid inch to the screen real estate. For the 11", the difference would be quite noticeable.
	0

Jan 17, 2013, 07:04 AM	#31
Oldgreycat macrumors newbie Join Date: Jan 2013	I picked up a refurbished 11-inch recently. I absolutely love it, but I got it primarily to be a secondary/on-the-go machine - for writing and surfing the web, not much more. The form factor can't be beat. As a primary computer, however, the small screen would drive me bonkers over an extended period of time. (It's not so much real estate that you're giving up -1366 x 768 is similar to many laptops - but that the screen itself is small. So everything is tiny.) I do plug it into my monitor and use it in clamshell mode some nights - makes a major difference. If this is to be your mother's computer - what are her needs? Does she need ultra-portability? Or will she be using it exclusively at home? If she uses iTunes, is she comfortable using external hard drives? (128 gigs sounds like a lot of space, but a decent-sized music library will consume all of it. And if she downloads movies and TV shows....) If that's the case, you may want to consider the entry-level Macbook Pro or iMac, which come with much larger HDs and don't cost all that much more.
	0