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17" owners/ future owners, question?

yearofthe

yearofthe

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 23, 2010
160
0
Earth
Did you regret buying this huge laptop?

I have an iMac and plan on getting a laptop to carry around. However, even though I'm toned, the weight of the laptop wouldn't bother me, but is the user interface nice? Are viewing webpages an eyesore? I know I can just go to an Apple store and test this myself, but I want to ask people who use it alot frequent. I'm thinking about getting the 15" or the 17" this summer when the refresh comes out. However....I think "get the best you can afford," but I just want one that's right for me.
 
yearofthe said:
Did you regret buying this huge laptop?

I have an iMac and plan on getting a laptop to carry around. However, even though I'm toned, the weight of the laptop wouldn't bother me, but is the user interface nice? Are viewing webpages an eyesore? I know I can just go to an Apple store and test this myself, but I want to ask people who use it alot frequent. I'm thinking about getting the 15" or the 17" this summer when the refresh comes out. However....I think "get the best you can afford," but I just want one that's right for me. Thanks. :)
Click to expand...

Id get the highest end 15" over the 17". I had a 17" PowerBook G4 when they came out and traded down to a 15" as I found it then, and I still find them now to heavy. The only reason Id have one is if I needed a Desktop I could take on a Plane.
 
Just a thought, but since you already have a desktop, why not get one of the smaller laptops, maybe even the 13" Air. The 17 is just too big to carry around if you don't need that much screen space. I don't think that the weight is so much the issue as is the large footprint.
 
alust2013 said:
Just a thought, but since you already have a desktop, why not get one of the smaller laptops, maybe even the 13" Air. The 17 is just too big to carry around if you don't need that much screen space. I don't think that the weight is so much the issue as is the large footprint.
Click to expand...

The iMac is an Intel 2 Core Duo.
I need one with a better processor.
I am going to use different computers for
different things.

iMac: Web-browsing; movies; shows
MBP: Some Web; Gaming (not hard-core ones though); HD video making; Bootcamp (Windows XP, 7); Video making; taking pictures.

So you see where I'm going here.
 
No, I do not regret it now.

My history with Mac's:

1st Powerbook G4 12" (too small)
2nd Macbook Pro Aluminum 15" (awesome laptop)
3rd (just bought) Macbook Pro 17" - AMAZING.

What I like about it - it's size isn't as obtrusive to your space as you'd think... and it fits my Targus messenger bag better than my 15" Macbook Pro ironically enough (it was designed for 15" laptops).

The best part - I can free up my 32" HDTV now because I used to use it along with my 15" but I like how the 17" displays my software.
 
i had a 17" late 09 unibody and wont get a 15 as long as I live. For $100 you are getting screen real estate an a higher resolution too. The 17 is brighter as well. When watching movies and editing photos the 17 is hands down the champ. I took it to work every day and my wife used it on her lap every day and not once did she ever say this is big or heavy. Reality is the 17 is similar to Many 15" notebooks in siZe.

I am waiting for apple to refresh before I buy my 2nd 17".
 
yearofthe said:
Did you regret buying this huge laptop?
Click to expand...
Negative. I bought a brand new one 1st of Jan.

I needed it for college and the specs benefit me even more than needed, so I had no reason to risk going without a computer for 2-3 months (given the numerous speculations). One semester at my college is 2 months (10 weeks), so thats too much to risk and I don't need Sandy Bridge for what I do, the current line-up does more than enough. I have been eying the MacBook Pro 17" for 3 years, and I sold my 2009 Mini & 2006 13" MacBook to help pitch in.

I like a lot of workspace, and that was the only given I got with the Mini when I paired it with a 23" Acer H233H, but the Mini chugged and Photoshop CS5 barely ran and started quitting more frequently (after a new HD replacement as well). I also travel a lot, and run back and forth from dorm to campus, so juggling files between my 2 macs and the campus Mac Pros was a pain, not to mention my frequent traveling to my separated parents homes from NY to GA, if a song came out that I wanted on my iPhone/iPod I would be SOL cause they're both paired with my Mini, which also served as my main computer housing all my music.

The 17" allowed me plenty of workspace (given the size decrease from 23"), and I couldn't manage too well with a 13.3". I don't find it heavy in my opinion, it hasn't been a burden to carry ever since the arrival of my ColcaSac case. It is indeed huge, I try not plop it down when we have group discussions because of it (since most of my friends have the 13" MB/MBPs), but it never has gotten in the way of anything important or even too minor in that case.

Then again, people have different needs and preferences. So just because it works and suites me doesn't go the same for you, but thats my "summarized" back story.
 
I had no problem carrying around the 17" all day BUT the only annoying thing about it is the dimensions. Let me explain, carrying around a 17" laptop is fine but once you need to use it sometimes and when you try to pull it out the length is so long and wide that it gets kind of annoying after a while. Especially when you want to take the laptop out of the bag/backpack real quick to check the email or view a webpage.

Other than that, when your stationary in one spot for a while, the 17 inch screen is sweet as well as the much louder speaker you get compared to the 15". I really do miss the 17" macbook pro at times.
 
The difference between the 15" and 17" is negligible. If you need light get the 13", else don't worry about the 17" (it even has the weight better balanced out because of the bigger battery). The 15" has a wider bezel around the screen, it's not that much smaller.

You could consider the matte screen because is comes with an aluminum bezel instead of the heavy glass.
 
love mine, wouldn't get anything smaller.
Started out with a 12" ibook g4, then bought a 2.4ghz santa rosa high res 17", fell in love with it, now I have a 2009 2.66 high res... my next will follow suit... 17 is great for all around work and play.:D
 
I was asking myself the question of 15 or 17 inch
I went back to the apple store and looked them over like 3 times
I thought the 15 inch was perfect size for me ,I like the 17 also but just for my taste I chose the 15 i7 core 2.66 I love it
And tomorrow I get my 8 gig memory kit from owc and I think I be loving it just a little more :D
 
I went from a 15 inch mid 2007 MBP to a 17 inch mid 2010.

I have no regrets with the 17 inch.
I love the higher display resolution.

Be warn thou.I notice when ppl purchase a notebook,they stick with the screen size forever or they up it.They never go down.
Meaning if you get a 17 inch notebook,you will never purchase a 13 or 15 inch later in the future.You just cant take that step down.lol
 
I love the high resolution screen and the speed when I am at work but it rarely leaves my desk until I leave for the day. It is just a little cumbersome to bring to everyone's desk (i'm in IT) when I need a computer with me. One of my coworkers just received a 13" MBA and loves it (This is his first Mac) since he is away from his desk for long periods of time and the battery life has been killer. Hilariously enough our IT team is almost 80% Macbooks and 100% iPhones (MBP/MBA) and we support HP products for the company.

Now I need to find a way to justify the MBA to get approval for it while keeping the MBP. :rolleyes:
 
I bought my 17" last June with a 24" Cinema Display with the sole intention of using it as my primary computer. The 17" screen is awesome - it fits so much and I love it. But then I got into uni and realised I'd have to bring it almost every day, and that's where I wish I had gotten a 15", because it's really frigging heavy. My bag already has books and a water bottle and stuff and then I put this massive hunk of metal inside it, and since it's a messenger (one-shoulder) bag, it's really a pain.

So yeah, get a 17" if you're absolutely sure it's going to be glued to a desk, or just within short distances in the home; if you're going to be doing lots of commuting, get the mid- or highest-end 15" if you want good specs.
 
No regrets and I commute daily and fly fairly frequently and I love the screen real estate. Not much heavier then my old 15" hi res.
 
I have no regrets about getting the 17" MBP. I am a university student as well and carry it everywhere with me. I don't feel the same as some others do about it being enormous and/or heavy. It weighs the same as my old 15" Dell and the dimensions are barely larger. The high resolution screen is nothing like the old Dell. It's like having a 22" monitor with you everywhere. So much fits on the screen. It is amazing and I love it.
 
Nope, but it does have its hindrances.

For four years I used different revisions of the 15" MBP. While at BestBuy looking to pick up a new 15" i5 I saw an amazing deal on a floor model 17" and ended up picking it up.

The screen estate is amazing, you can simply fit so much viewing space at the same time it's crazy. I also dabble in photography so the HD screen helps with viewing the pictures.

While I don't believe it's THAT much bigger than a 15", it does have an impact due to it's footprint. It's harder to place the laptop, a notebook and a textbook at the same time (which is the way I study). Also forget taking it into a classroom. I just bought a 12" PowerBook for $120 to compliment the 17" and I'm loving it so far. You may not be a student though so this may be moot.

Aside from the limited desk space/inability to use the laptop in class I wouldn't have any issues with its size.
 
yearofthe said:
Did you regret buying this huge laptop?
Click to expand...

Compare the actual sizes and weights:

15" 36.4 cm width
17" 39.3 cm width

15" 2.54 kg
17" 2.99 kg

Not a lot in it in fact, so its hardly huge!

Having owned just about every Apple laptop ever made I can say that the 17" is no more hassle to carry around and use than any other in my experience. The maxed out G3 Pismo I owned weighed 2.8 kg and it's screen was smaller than the 15"! A 17" Dell etc is heavier etc.

As for the physical size, the additional few cm is a small price to pay for the additional screen real estate and the hi-res in the base version 17". If you don't need that real estate, you don't need the 17".

IMHO ofc and YMMV

Enjoy your choice :cool:
 
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