M3 Pro 16" or M3 Max 14"

[Paul Deemer]

I have the 16" M3 Max 14/30 that I paid $3500 for when it came out. I took it to work for awhile and still do sometimes but it's huge and burdensome to take back and forth every day on my work commute. So now 99% of the time it sits on a stand on my desk at home. Waiting for the new iPad Pro release and am going to purchase one of those with Magic Keyboard and that will be what I take to work and on the road. That way I can have the best of both worlds. Big beautiful screen at home for serious stuff and extremely portable iPad Pro for work. But it does sound like you're trying to decide based on a price of the two with the 14" allowing you to get a Max and the 16" forcing you to step down to a Pro. Some people are fine with a Max in a 14" but I don't recommend it because most of them always come on the forum complaining about the fan noise and the heat which is exactly why I went with the base max in the 16" and not the full max. It was a good compromise and 36gb ram and 1 tb is perfectly fine for my needs. But everyone is different. Just explaining what I am doing to solve the issue of having the big screen plus the portability.

 

[tarsins]

Personally I would always go for the larger screen, I'd get a 17" MBP if I could. I think you're more likely to say "I wish I'd bought a bigger screen" than "I wish I'd bought a smaller screen." If you're still undecided on portability would a 15" Air be acceptable?

 

[MrGimper]

It does make me chuckle when people say the 16” is cumbersome to transport. Same way people say that about the 12.9 iPad Pro. How are you carrying it? Arms length everywhere? Just put the laptop in a decent messenger bag or backpack. I’ve been doing it with “heavy” laptops for decades.

 

[NeonNights]

It does make me chuckle when people say the 16” is cumbersome to transport. Same way people say that about the 12.9 iPad Pro. How are you carrying it? Arms length everywhere? Just put the laptop in a decent messenger bag or backpack. I’ve been doing it with “heavy” laptops for decades.

It is all relative. People complain that a Fold5 is heavier than an iPhone 15 Pro Max when the difference is little more than 1 Oz.

Would you rather carry dollar bills in your pocket or a roll of quarters?

I have the 12.9 iPad Pro. It is heavy for what it is with poor weight distribution. My daughter's M1 iPad Air is noticeably more comfortable to hold and carry.

I used to lug around a 7-lb 12" laptop in college, but back then we didn't have much option. Flat screens didn't exist yet and you couldn't easily connect your laptop to a huge monitor like today. With the ability to dock your MBP and connect to massive external displays, why bother carrying around the extra weight unless a 16" is your sole computer or screen.

To an earlier post, I tried the 15" MBA and it's a great laptop for college use but I found it slow for photo editing and 4K video editing (and I had the 24GB RAM). The 14" has a better display and higher resolution (can display more editing panels and menus) than the 15".

I was initially drawn to the 16" but quickly realized I wasn't willing to compromise portability. Thank goodness for the 14-day return policy. The 14 and 16 are both great laptops, just boils down to your priorities.

 

[Miles Fu]

It is all relative. People complain that a Fold5 is heavier than an iPhone 15 Pro Max when the difference little more an 1 Oz.

Would you rather carry dollar bills in your pocket or a roll of quarters?

I have the 12.9 iPad Pro. It is heavy for what it is with poor weight distribution. My daughter's M1 iPad Air is noticeably more comfortable to hold and carry.

I used to lug around a 7-lb 12" laptop in college, but back then we didn't have much option. Flat screens didn't exist yet and you couldn't easily connect your laptop to a huge monitor like today. With the ability to dock your MBP and connect to massive external displays, why bother carrying around the extra weight unless a 16" is your sole computer or screen.

To an earlier post, I tried the 15" MBA and it's great laptop for college use but I found it slow for photo editing and 4K video editing (and I had the 24GB RAM). The 14" has a better display and higher resolution (can display more editing panels and menus) than the 15".

I was initially drawn to the 16" but quickly realized I wasn't willing to compromise portability. Thank goodness for the 14-day return policy. The 14 and 16 are both great laptops, just boils down to your priorities.

Fully agree. especially when I have 27' 4K monitor, I prefer 14' more than my current 16' MBP.

Another reason is that the speaker of 14' now is also good enough compared with 16'

 

[feelyat]

Personally I would always go for the larger screen, I'd get a 17" MBP if I could. I think you're more likely to say "I wish I'd bought a bigger screen" than "I wish I'd bought a smaller screen." If you're still undecided on portability would a 15" Air be acceptable?

Those kinds of decisions are personal, because everyone's needs are different. For me, with the MBP sitting on a stand to the side of my main 27" screen, using a separate keyboard and mouse most of the time, the size of the screen was less critical than other factors. I have found that I don't long for a larger screen on the occasions when I need to travel or work away from my main desk. The 14" is plenty big enough for my primary needs. On the contrary, I have appreciated the smaller size and lighter weight on those occastions. I can't say for sure if the max vs pro was a good tradeoff. I will say that I've experienced zero issues with overheating or fan noise, even when I'm pushing it.

Overall, I have zero regrets going with the 14" Max for my purposes. 6 months later, and it'd still be my choice.

 

[feelyat]

I was initially drawn to the 16" but quickly realized I wasn't willing to compromise portability. Thank goodness for the 14-day return policy. The 14 and 16 are both great laptops, just boils down to your priorities.

Exactly. I bought and returned two 16" laptops before I settled on the 14" (M2 Max, M3 Pro). Figuring out one's priorities is half the battle.