Who else got an 15" M3 MBA over an 14" M3 MBP?

[thadoggfather]

Until they answer, I’m going to ask myself this question:

What does a 15-inch Air have that a 14-inch MBP doesn’t?

price is thinner, footprint is thinner, more screen real estate?

 

[chouseworth]

It's a little more complicated than that. I had a choice between an M3 MBA 15", 18GB, 1TB at $1899 versus an Apple refurb M2 Pro MBP 14", 16GB, 1TB for $1899. The nicer screen and extra ports along with the M2 Pro versus M3 made all the difference for me as I chose the MBP. The screen size difference between the 14 inch and 15 inch was just not a big deal for me. Bottom line, I think most buyers would be happier with the 14 inch M2 Pro MBP versus the 15 inch M3 MBA if prices are roughly the same.

You have exemplified the point I was making—you're implying most buyers are like you, weighing the same priorities as you do.

Do all buyers dress like you? Live in the same home type as you? Drive the same car type you do? Date the same body type and personalities as you? Go into the same education and career as you? Read the same books as you do? Eat what you eat? Watch what you watch? Hobby what you hobby?—So why do you assume everyone is like you when it comes to laptop preference?

You walked right into the thing I said not to do. You think you're most buyers. Thats not true. Apple has 48 buyer personas they target with the 15 inch Air. You are a mere 2% of that, or 1 of 48, yet here you are thinking you represent near 100%, that we all would just gladly prioritize HDMI ports and HDR over screen size, despite most people looking at a 15-inch not needing HDMI, or not needing SD, or not using their screens for more than productivity and not HDR movie editing; as if these screens don't look nearly identical in SDR mode, which is how most people will use them, and view them at the Apple Store. Yes, its complex, which is why assuming someone should just skip the 15-inch Air and buy the 14-inch MBP is wrong to do.

I did not mean to upset you or aggravate your pet peeve or do what you told me not to do. This is an opinion forum. My emphasis was that in my situation the prices were equal. I offered my opinion that with price, memory, and SSD being equal I thought more people would be happier with the M2 Pro 14” MBP versus the M3 15” MBA if they saw them and evaluated their performance side by side. That opinion stands.

 

[geta]

Why? Genuinely interested.

I value more a smaller, lighter, thinner device with great battery life that has enough power and RAM for my needs compared to a 14" MBP with all the extras it has that aren't important for my usage.

 

[SAdProZ]

I offered my opinion that with price, memory, and SSD being equal I thought more people would be happier with the M2 Pro 14” MBP versus the M3 15” MBA if they saw them and evaluated their performance side by side. That opinion stands.

You stand by the opinion that if a person sees 15-inch Air and a 14-inch MBP, that every buyer would pick the 14-inch MBP.

Is that because you feel you are "the customer," that you represent all target buyers? How you use a laptop is how others use a laptop?

• There aren't 44 year olds with aging eyes that prefer a 15-inch big screen and don't need a 14-inch MacBook Pro for sustained CPU performance?
• There aren't UI or web designers who prefer a big screen and don't need active cooling or HDR to run Figma?
• There aren't accountants that need to see as many Excel cells as possible? Or want to see it as large as possible when sitting down at a conference table? You think they look at a MBP instead and go, "but that has 40% more GPU, and 1600 nit peak brightness, never mind about the bigger screen on the 15-inch MacBook Air!"?

Or are we all making buying decisions in your image? You don't have room for more than one buyer persona in your world view?

 

[i486dx2-66]

What does a 15-inch Air have that a 14-inch MBP doesn’t?

Bigger display, thiner body, lighter weight, lower base price.

//edit: whoops, looks like this was already answered above.

 

[chouseworth]

You stand by the opinion that if a person sees 15-inch Air and a 14-inch MBP, that every buyer would pick the 14-inch MBP.

Is that because you feel you are "the customer," that you represent all target buyers? How you use a laptop is how others use a laptop?

• There aren't 44 year olds with aging eyes that prefer a 15-inch big screen and don't need a 14-inch MacBook Pro for sustained CPU performance?
• There aren't UI or web designers who prefer a big screen and don't need active cooling or HDR to run Figma?
• There aren't accountants that need to see as many Excel cells as possible? Or want to see it as large as possible when sitting down at a conference table? You think they look at a MBP instead and go, "but that has 40% more GPU, and 1600 nit peak brightness, never mind about the bigger screen on the 15-inch MacBook Air!"?

Or are we all making buying decisions in your image? You don't have room for more than one buyer persona in your world view?

You are being disingenuous and misrepresenting what I said. I never said that every buyer would pick the 14 inch. I said that in my opinion the majority of people would if they saw and evaluated them side by side. I have a basis for that opinion as I had a career as an IT professional and have bought and sold computers for over 45 years. It's an opinion forum. Get over it.

 

[SAdProZ]

You are being disingenuous and misrepresenting what I said. I never said that every buyer would pick the 14 inch. I said that in my opinion the majority of people would if they saw and evaluated them side by side. I have a basis for that opinion as I had a career as an IT professional and have bought and sold computers for over 45 years. It's an opinion forum. Get over it.

You're right, I'll be more fair in my edit.

You stand by the opinion that if a person sees 15-inch Air and a 14-inch MBP, that most buyers would pick the 14-inch MBP. Does that accurately represent your argument?​

​

Is that because you feel you are "most customers," that you represent most target buyers? How you use a laptop is how most people use a laptop?​

• There aren't 44 year olds with aging eyes that prefer a 15-inch big screen and don't need a 14-inch MacBook Pro for sustained CPU performance?
• There aren't UI or web designers who prefer a big screen and don't need active cooling or HDR to run Figma?
• There aren't accountants that need to see as many Excel cells as possible? Or want to see it as large as possible when sitting down at a conference table? You think they look at a MBP instead and go, "but that has 40% more GPU, and 1600 nit peak brightness in HDR movies, never mind about the bigger screen on the 15-inch MacBook Air to get work done"?

Or are most buyers making buying decisions in your image? You don't have room for multiple buyer personas in your world view?​

 

[chouseworth]

You're right, I'll be more fair in my edit.

You stand by the opinion that if a person sees 15-inch Air and a 14-inch MBP, that most buyers would pick the 14-inch MBP. Does that accurately represent your argument?​

​

Is that because you feel you are "most customers," that you represent most target buyers? How you use a laptop is how most people use a laptop?​

• There aren't 44 year olds with aging eyes that prefer a 15-inch big screen and don't need a 14-inch MacBook Pro for sustained CPU performance?
• There aren't UI or web designers who prefer a big screen and don't need active cooling or HDR to run Figma?
• There aren't accountants that need to see as many Excel cells as possible? Or want to see it as large as possible when sitting down at a conference table? You think they look at a MBP instead and go, "but that has 40% more GPU, and 1600 nit peak brightness, never mind about the bigger screen on the 15-inch MacBook Air!"?

Or are most buyers making buying decisions in your image? You don't have room for multiple buyer personas in your world view?​

If the two were at the same memory and ssd capacities, and most important the same price (the MBP being an M2 Pro and the MBA being an M3), my answer is yes. It's an observation and opinion, but an informed one. Just as I have an opinion that most people today will not buy an EV over an Internal Combustion Engine or Hybrid vehicle at roughly the same specs and price points. Go ahead and respond if you wish, but I do not want to do any more in hijacking this thread and have nothing else to add. Have a great day.

 

[kschendel]

... My emphasis was that in my situation the prices were equal. I offered my opinion that with price, memory, and SSD being equal I thought more people would be happier with the M2 Pro 14” MBP versus the M3 15” MBA if they saw them and evaluated their performance side by side. That opinion stands.

With equal pricing I'd still take the MBA because it's lighter, has a bit larger screen, and no annoying fans. Oh, and was new, not refurbed.

Your pricing situation was very atypical. When I was buying, the equivalently spec'ed MBA was considerably less expensive than the MBP, by a few hundred dollars.

 

[SAdProZ]

If the two were at the same memory and ssd capacities, and most important the same price (the MBP being an M2 Pro and the MBA being an M3), my answer is yes. It's an observation and opinion, but an informed one.

You've given me your opinion, but you haven't informed me in regards to "what you know." Please inform me. What information do I need to know here to view this as you do?

Just as I have an opinion that most people today will not buy an EV over an Internal Combustion Engine or Hybrid vehicle at roughly the same specs and price points.

If a mom walks into a car dealership to buy a Minivan that fits her family of 7, and sees an SUV with more HP and towing capacity that fits 5 people, she's going to abandon the Minivan and buy the SUV? She no longer prioritizes the comfort of her family?

We don't need to bring in analogies, lets talk Macs.

It seems obvious to me that—if you present a 14-inch MBP—to a hundred would-be-buyers of a 15-inch MacBook Air—that not all buyers would be precious about screen real estate; some would choose the 14-inch for various reasons. That I know.

But it also seems obvious to me that many still have little need for the extra features in a MacBook Pro, and so still prioritize the larger display—over features they won't benefit from let alone notice.

Lets keep in mind that people have been begging Apple for a 15-inch MacBook Air since 2008—certainly in the last decade—because 13-inches has always been too small for a significant portion of Mac users, and they've been forced to buy expensive 15-inch MacBook Pros. Now that they get that screen size, in a MacBook Air, I fail to see why screen size would suddenly be negotiable in exchange for ports and things they don't want.

 

[DeepSix]

MBA has a far better keyboard. I wouldn't buy a current MBP just for the absolutely horrendous keyboard, it's a complete deal breaker for me. I wonder if the M3 MBA keyboard is the same or any better than the M2 MBA keyboard. M2 MBA air keyboard is usable. Not the best but not the worst.

For overall form factor, 13" MBA is way more portable than the 14" MBP. They're in completely different classes for different target audiences. The 0.75lb weight difference is very noticeable.

 

[DeepSix]

Not everyone care or need the extra power and features MBP having, many value more fan-less portable light weight machines.

But everyone wants to become a YouTuber these days and have to push out 10 videos a week on the go. Need those "Pro" features because Im a "Pro" Video editor becoming a "Pro" youtuber.

 

[ascender]

I'm planning on switching from a 14" MBP to a 15" Air and I've been using it for a couple of days now. One thing that seems to be common in reviews and forums when someone mentions this question is a response of "once you spec it up, you might as well just buy a Pro for the same/little bit more cash."

The thing this misses is that some people prefer the Air. Personally, the screen is larger... I prefer typing on it... it feels a lot lighter (it isn't) and as a result feels more portable.

 

[tamara6]

One thing that I think is overlooked is the comfort of using a MBA vs a MBP. The MBP has vents on the bottom that are fairly sharp, and the MBA does not. Picking up an open computer, it is easy for me to feel the vents, and they hurt my fingers. The MBA is lighter weight and does not have those vents - it is easier for me to pick up. I'm sure that I'm unusual - I use my computer mostly on my lap, and I do pick it up to move it around a lot. So, for me, choosing the computer without the sharp vents made sense. I'm coming from a 2018 MBP that also has the vents. I've been irritated by them for 5 1/2 years. If I mostly used the computer on a desk, I doubt that I'd care about the vents. So it really is all about usage and what is important to a person, and only the person buying the computer can weigh all the factors and make the decision. But it is helpful to get other people's opinions - to find out what other people considered as they made their own decisions.

 

[Torty]

Displays: anyone else noticed the MBPs show shadows were the egdes are especially noticeable in the area of the notch?

 

[KhunJay]

I was in the MBP 16" M3 Pro camp until recently.
But after viewing the MBA M3 15", I am going to get that machine instead.
It will replace a 2018 MBP 13" running Ventura 13.6.5
Im not a designer and my activities are nothing short of boring.
But I like to read text-heavy websites so that was a big vote for the MBA 15 M3
I was dead set on upgrading to 24GB RAM as maxing out specs is an old habit of mine
but this time around, 16GB on the latest RAM chip seems adequate.

 

[Torty]

Did a pixel check everything is fine. Pinch to zoom is acceptable now maybe I learned the needed gesture better.
I will keep the device and I think the 16Gb/2TB will serve me well for many years.

 

[kngelv]

The 15 MBA has good enough specs for like 95-99 % of buyers. However it has an outdated screen no matter how you look at it. I'm tired of the giant reverse heatsink Mid 2014 15" MBP I'm typing this on and heading out today to pick up a new computer. I like everything about the Air except the screen and refresh rate. I'm likely to get the 14" MBP which has much better specs than I need just because of the screen.

James

 

[joloriquelme]

One and only reason:

120 Hz.

I am sorry but my iPhone, my iPad, my Windows Notebook display, my PC monitor, everything runs at 120 Hz...

...including my 2021 14" MBP.

I will never go back to 60 Hz. Ever.

 

[cyberone]

From Apple's tech page:

• XDR brightness: 1000 nits sustained full-screen, 1600 nits peak (HDR content only)
• SDR brightness: 600 nits

So its more like 500 nits vs 600 nits, even in sunlight, unless you're using that app that "hacks" Apple's limit and turns on HDR brightness at all times.

What's that app?

 

[SAdProZ]

What's that app?

I was thinking of an app named Vivid but it costs $10 so I did a google search and found a free one named BrightIntosh. There may be more like it.

BetterDisplay also does it but I don't know if you have to pay for the Pro license to unlock the feature.

 

[Supermallet]

price is thinner, footprint is thinner, more screen real estate?

The 15” MBA is in all but one measurement (height) bigger than the 14” MBP. It’s also only .1 lbs lighter, so imperceptibly lighter.

Of course if you value screen size above all other considerations, the 15” MBA is your only choice short of the 16” MBP and it’s correspondingly high cost.

I certainly get the argument for the 13” Air being smaller and lighter and thus more transportable than any MBP, it is noticeably smaller in every dimension and lighter, but the 15” MBA is MBP sized.

 

[thadoggfather]

The 15” MBA is in all but one measurement (height) bigger than the 14” MBP. It’s also only .1 lbs lighter, so imperceptibly lighter.

Of course if you value screen size above all other considerations, the 15” MBA is your only choice short of the 16” MBP and it’s correspondingly high cost.

I certainly get the argument for the 13” Air being smaller and lighter and thus more transportable than any MBP, it is noticeably smaller in every dimension and lighter, but the 15” MBA is MBP sized.

The weight distribution of 15 air is different than 14 pro

14 mbp feels considerably heftier

Imo

 

[Supermallet]

The weight distribution of 15 air is different than 14 pro

14 mbp feels considerably heftier

Imo

Fair enough!

 

[i486dx2-66]

The 15” MBA is in all but one measurement (height) bigger than the 14” MBP.
...
but the 15” MBA is MBP sized.

The distribution of that height difference is what makes them feel so different.

When you are actually using them open as laptops, it's only the base portion that your hands interact with. And perceptually, that base portion is substantially thicker on the MBP.

That's also why the tapered MBA shape was so popular, even if the M2+ models are thinner overall. The wedge made the machine thinner where it counts... the place where you interact with it the most. 👍