Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

15'' rMBP Owners - wish you had the 13?

J

joejoejoe

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 13, 2006
1,428
110
Pulling the trigger on a MBP this weekend.

Basically set on getting the 15 with nVidia.

Do those that currently own 15'' rMBPs wish they had gone with the 13 because of portability etc?

I work in film and photo, and go between a 27 inch iMac and 11 inch air. I need something powerful and portable that fits nicely between the two. Afraid 13'' will piss me off when it comes to going through my library of photos etc, and i'm worried that 15'' will be bothersome to lug around because of how heavy it is etc.

For those that currently own the 15, what do you use the computer for, do you wish it was smaller? Buyers remorse? Love it all around?

Thank you!

------------

Lots of very helpful experiences and anecdotes here. Thank you all. Confirmed I'll be going with the 15.
 
Last edited:
If there was a quad-core 13" I might go for that - but as dual-core doesn't cut it for me I must go 15" by default.
 
I have the 15 and have kind of regretted it. I use mine for school and it barely fits on the desk, weight isn't too much of an issue-you do feel it but it doesn't bother me. Im thinking Im going to sell my thunderbolt display and buy a 27" iMac and then sell my MBP and get either the 13" version or wait for the new retina MBA.
 
The new 15" are so light and thin! For me it would be more towards wishing I had an 11" MBA for its insane portability, but for my needs that would never cut it, so I'm very happy with the power/size of the 15" rMBP.
 
Barney63 said:
It is only one pound or 500g heavier.


Barney
Click to expand...

Yes but size of formfactor makes a big difference. Going between an 11 inch air and a 13 inch air feels like a giant difference because the 13 is more surface area, even though the difference on paper is minimal.

Going between a 13 inch MBP and 15 inch MBP at the apple store feels like a much larger difference than 1 pound.
 
joejoejoe said:
Yes but size of formfactor makes a big difference. Going between an 11 inch air and a 13 inch air feels like a giant difference because the 13 is more surface area, even though the difference on paper is minimal.

Going between a 13 inch MBP and 15 inch MBP at the apple store feels like a much larger difference than 1 pound.
Click to expand...

My fiancé had a 13" MBP and a 13" MBA. I have the 15" MBP. I've carried all of the above around with me on many occasions. I can honestly say that the difference between carrying them around for me is negligible--especially between the 13" MBP and 15" MBP. The only time I've ever even considered the 13" to have an advantage was when I was on the airplane and the tiny tray table made for a tighter squeeze when the person in front of me had their seat down.

If you want the power and real estate, I say 15" all day long. I wouldn't trade my 15" for a 13" now that I've had it. You're going to have to decide if greater power or slightly better portability is more important to you.

You're carrying a MBP around either way, and if it fits comfortably in your bag then there isn't much difference.
 
Daisytbr said:
My fiancé had a 13" MBP and a 13" MBA. I have the 15" MBP. I've carried all of the above around with me on many occasions. I can honestly say that the difference between carrying them around for me is negligible--especially between the 13" MBP and 15" MBP. The only time I've ever even considered the 13" to have an advantage was when I was on the airplane and the tiny tray table made for a tighter squeeze when the person in front of me had their seat down.

If you want the power and real estate, I say 15" all day long. I wouldn't trade my 15" for a 13" now that I've had it. You're going to have to decide if greater power or slightly better portability is more important to you.

You're carrying a MBP around either way, and if it fits comfortably in your bag then there isn't much difference.
Click to expand...

very helpful -- everyone. thank you!
 
No. If anything, I wish they made a 17" Retina because I would've gone for that! The 15" rMBP is portable enough for me, significant improvement in weight. Of course, I'm coming off of a 17" MBP, so that may bias my opinion a bit...
 
Nope, wouldn't trade it for a 13", love the screen real estate, love being able to game properly, it doesn't feel big and it doesn't feel heavy. Battery life is ridiculous too, I only realised today that its rated for 8 hours - I've made mine reach close to 11. Best single thing I've ever bought, along with my iPhone and watch.
 
I've both Haswell 13" and 15" rMBPs, and have no regrets with either. The 13" is for my college work, along with a VM or two, plus some light 1080p video editing (it's a 2.8 i7/16/512). I also love its light weight and has become my everyday portable machine.

My 15" rMBP is for gaming and for doing heavy 1080p editing or some light 4K video editing. The screen estate over the 13" is very beneficial, enough to offset the extra weight (to me, it's still light because I used to carry a 15" cMBP everywhere I went, until the retina 15" came along).

That said, I still carry my 13" rMBP everywhere I go. The 15" only goes with me if I need to continue heavy work on the go after finishing it halfway on my home iMacs.
 
Went to 15 from 13" and very, very happy, lots of room to work. Getting little used to bigger over but love it.
 
Not at all.

I actually was coming from a 13" MBP Early 2011 and when I got the 15" I was concerned about size.

But its a non issue. The 15" is far more powerful and is only a pound heavier than my old 13". I don't even notice it.

Also, with my 13", when I worked form home, I had to hook a monitor up to it however with my 15" I bought a belkin air stand, magic mouse and Keyboard and now can work with out a monitor and get just as much done.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back