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11 Inch MBA + Monitor as ONLY machine?

A

Andras5soul

macrumors member
Original poster
Jun 14, 2007
62
0
NY
Please chime in if you have this setup, or if you know of anyone that does, or simply have read enough about it to give an objective opinion.

I'm moving from a 15 inch MBP to an 11 inch MBA. I already know the MBA is enough for exactly everything I need a computer for, except for screen size. Much of the work I do on my computer, while not GPU intensive, needs much screen real estate.

Can the MBA drive a 24 inch screen with zero problems or hick ups?
When without screen, has anyone been able to entirely neglect the dock? While this hasn't been discussed, I reckon that the real reason for Launchpad and the multitouch gestures for switching apps is meant to help exclusively with mobile computing and insufficient screen space. Has this really worked for anyone?
Has anyone used to 11 Inch, without a monitor, for over 6 hours? (yes, plugged in). How are your eyes doing?
Any additional information helps. Thanks
 
That sounds completely feasible. Remember, with the Core i7 processor, there is no difference at all between the 11" and 13" versions, and even with the core i5, the main difference is in turbo boost (2.7GHz vs 2.3GHz). I don't have an external monitor that I use all the time, but I did hook up my MacBook Air to my HDTV as an experiment, and it seemed to handle the extra real estate just fine.
 
I am wondering the exact same thing, more specifically how it will work with the new 27' Thunderbolt display. Will Lightroom 3 and movie streaming work fine without stuttering?
 
I use my 2010 mba (base 11) with a 20" monitor and don't notice any problems running it dual screen. I imagine the updated one would be able to handle a 24" with no problem.

I haven't eliminated my dock yet, just because i'm too used to it, but it sounds perfectly practical using solely launchpad. The only problem I can think of is that some of the strange thumb+3 fingers gestures can be awkward on the smaller trackpad of the 11" air.

In regards to the native screen size, the pixel resolution more than makes up for it. I don't know what your eyesight is like, but I'm able to work on the small screen for long periods of time with no problem.
 
I moved from a MBP to Air also, but went with the 13". My setup is a 27" monitor (Main Screen), the Macbook on a laptop pedestal as the 2nd screen where I put my casual stuff for while im working on editing photos and my keyboard/mouse have me about 24" away from both screens.

With the 15" that 2nd screen was fantastic and aided my workflow but with the 11" I tried then the fonts and lettering were so small from 24" away that I couldnt use it for much at all. Websites were unreadable, 2nd screen editing required me to hunch in to look at the details and even my twitter feed was unreadable. I bought the 13" for me and while its a step down from the 15", its a good size for docking and still being useful.

Obvioiusly this is all personal opinion so no offense to anyone. I know one day I'll buy an 11" but this is my primary system.
 
I'm writing this on a 27" Cinema display, connected to a 2010 11" MBA (1.6 GHz Core2Duo) and I have no problems whatsoever. The little MBA can drive the 27" without any trouble at all. I was just watching a full-screen HD video stream a few minutes ago.

So I imagine the 2011 11" MBA won't have any trouble at all.
 
This is the setup I use; i5 and 256 GB. Mostly with a monitor with the wireless keyboard and trackpad. No issues with speed or screen size. I could have gotten away with 128 GB hard drive but will use this as the main system for a few years. The screen size is fine for me, with my aging eyesight using progressive lenses the sweet spot of vision is small anyway. I use the MBA as the main monitor and a 21.5-inch as a secondary monitor. The sharpness of the MBA screen is great.

I used a Mac SE early in my career for a number of years so the screen size is great compared to that. I have a MBP 13 and the screen is just too fuzzy now when compared to the MBA.
 
I just bought a 2011 11" i7, with 256 SSD, and I use a 24" ACD at the office and a 27" ACD at home, works just perfect. I've watched HD video, DVD's, etc, no problems what soever. I find it runs better than my late 2009 MBP 17" ultimate!
 
If you have external storage for your music and movies, it can't hurt. Depends on your overall usage patterns.
 
My wife is using a 2010 11" MBA connected to a 24" ACD as her main setup. She does quite a bit of her work in Win 7 under VMware. It is surprising how well this setup works, considering that her CPU is a 1.6 GHz C2D. Nevertheless, no issues at all here.
 
I have a 2011 11'' 1.6Ghz/128GB/4GB and I use it as my main and only computer. I have it hooked up to my 46'' Sony 3D TV and have no issues.
 
i have 2 22" externals right now but i was thinking about getting the 27" add but the iMac 21.5" is only $100 more with the best buy gift card.
 
I'm considering making my 11" 256GB SSD i7 my sole home computer. It's faster than my iMac as well as any other computer I've used to date. Geekbench even has it smoking my work PC that's a Dell Core i5 2.6 GHz processor.

The SSD drive + the new iX Sandy Bridge processors makes it insanely quick!
 
I'm planning on using the 11"+monitor as my only machine. Sold my MBP.
I don't understand people saying: "if you want to get anything serious done, get the 13!"
IMHO, if you want to get anything serious done.. you'll use an external monitor. 11" or 13" wouldn't make a significant difference for me.
 
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