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any 13" owners who regret not getting 15" or vice versa?

my only regret is that i didnt buy two of each!!

now if my 15" gets a crack in the screen ill have to DOWNGRADE which is going to be such a pain in my rear!!

lol

RUMOR has it that theyre going to make a 14" soon to avoid this problem, that way its the best of both worlds!

luv ya

xoxo
mac_fact
 
Current 13 owner and regretting it. Not because of the screen size though. As others have said, the difference between a 15" screen and a 13", while noticeable, isn't a game-breaker. In either case an external monitor is a welcome addition when used at home.

I regret it because of the limited performance when dealing with large excel and powerpoint documents, for audio and video editing, and for gaming.

So I'm thinking of selling it and getting a 15" i7 with SSD instead. My dream computer though would be a 13" with i7 and nvidia 330 but I guess the case is too small to fit all that.
However, Sony managed to put equivalent components -in terms of size at least- in their 13" laptop.

Since you've suggested you're going to use your laptop for more than just basic word processing and internet browsing, I'd recommend going for the 15" instead. You can always buy an SSD later on.
 
robotmonkey said:
13 with ssd>15 i7 with HD

the whole "you need the extra space on a 15 inch monitor" is a load of crap they are both small monitors, but you really don't gain that much with a 15 inch. Unless you have tiny windows, you still will not be able to comfortably have two windows next to eachother on a 15 inch, and expose males switching between many windows on something as small as a 5 inch display quick and easy. The smaller footprint and loss of a hefty pound make it so much better to carry around (especially the footprint), and if you turn down the brightness on your display you can last a good 2 hours longer than an i7 15 inch doing the same tasks. For what you are doing, a c2d is going to be nominally
lesser than an i5 or i7, so don't listen to that tired "don't get a c2d" argument. With an ssd, your 13 will scream!! Go 13
Click to expand...

Well but 15" i7 + SSD > 13" SSD. LOL.
 
picklesmand said:
So there's no difference between 1280x800 and 1680x1050? That's 72% more screen space. It's *very* noticable.

Using the 13" for serious multi-window work is way too cramped. I had a macbook for 4 years, and for long-term work, I always needed to use an external (1900x1080). Now I find the HR 15" is more than enough most of the time and I rarely connect my monitor, which btw is only 16% more space than the built in screen.
Click to expand...

Not really. The 15 really isn't that much bigger, even the 17 is barley suited for "multi window work". However, I really don't understand what the problem with stacking windows on top of eachother is. Workflow is much more streamlined that way. It's like the 3.5 on the iPhone vs. a 4 inch evo... Sure, the bigger screen is "nice", but 3.5 is plenty big and it makes it look so much better and more compact.
 
I first purchased a 13" and found it too small for my comfort. I like my 15" macbook, however the 17" is a bit nicer. It is a matter of personal ergonomics.

It is understandable that so many seem to have some regrets choosing one over another
 
I just went through this as well....

I started out looking at a modest 13.3MBP to replace my old 12"G4 Powerbook. I also have a 15"G4 PB and some various 15" PCs, so the 15" thing isn't new to me, but the 12" was my primary "on the go" laptop. Very reliable, runs like a champ... but quite long in the tooth now on it's 5th year. Incredibly long in the tooth, actually...

I like the 13.3MBP form factor and was excited when it was announced since it was a true replacement for the 12inch PB line. I initially set out with the intention to pick one of these up, but at the end of the day I ended up with the 15" i5 High Res. So far, I couldn't be happier.

The idea that you are <i>sacrificing</i> portability is a little silly... 15inches is bigger than 13inches (and I am the kind of person who likes a tiny portable), but in my bag I can't really tell much of a difference; certainly not enough to say I just sacrificed any degree of portability.

I won't lie, I really like 12"-13" machines but I love this new machine. The major pluses it boiled down to for me...

+ i5/i7 cpus
+ hi-res screen
+ discrete video card

Hard drive can be upped anytime; SSD drives will be reasonably priced some day and I'll debate that upgrade at that time. I always build computers around the parts that can't be upgraded as easily, or in some cases, at all.

To sum all that junk up... I love tiny laptops, but the MBP 13.3 for me personally left something to be desired performance wise (it's a great machine, I'm not saying it's not). Had it had an i5 in it, I would have bit without question. Absolutely no regrets on getting the 15inch and the hi res upgrade (the two popular questions here).
 
jjahshik32 said:
Well but 15" i7 + SSD > 13" SSD. LOL.
Click to expand...

The OP's options were clearly stated. A 13 with a ssd or a 15 with a HD. For someone who will not be dong anything too CPU intensive and may require loading large files (read the op), a 13 with an ssd is the clear winner as far as peformance goes. And the whole 15 is better than 13 is highly debatable.
 
I would've loved to have had an i5 over a core2duo, but I didn't want to spend $1800....that and I'm not editing video or playing videogames on the thing. I'm just typing documents and going on the web. Stayed within my price range and got a Mac. Win-Win.
 
iverson76 said:
I would've loved to have had an i5 over a core2duo, but I didn't want to spend $1800....that and I'm not editing video or playing videogames on the thing. I'm just typing documents and going on the web. Stayed within my price range and got a Mac. Win-Win.
Click to expand...

You can find 15" i5's in the 1600 price range on Ebay, no tax. I paid 1550 for mine and it has been nearly flawless.
 
picklesmand said:
So there's no difference between 1280x800 and 1680x1050? That's 72% more screen space. It's *very* noticable.

Using the 13" for serious multi-window work is way too cramped. I had a macbook for 4 years, and for long-term work, I always needed to use an external (1900x1080). Now I find the HR 15" is more than enough most of the time and I rarely connect my monitor, which btw is only 16% more space than the built in screen.
Click to expand...

Let's look at all 3 side by side
MacBook_Pros.jpg


Idk what you see, but I see that the middle screen isn't significantly larger than the left screen. In fact, I don't really think you can justify an argument based on workflow until you compare the 13 inch and the 17 inch, especially considering the form factor, aesthetic, and battery advantages of a 13 over a 15.

There have been a few people saying that the C2D isn't a good enough processor. Look at what the op wants... A computer that can comfortably sit in his lap that really doesn't need to do much as far as cpu usage goes. I really don't think he'll be noticing the difference in cpu, but he will be noticing the fact that it can easily fit in his lap and the speed bump from a ssd.
 
Ok, in that comparison picture...

A) is that the standard res 15 inch screen?

B) regardless, you should have opened a web page on each one... staring at the desktop background doesn't give you much of a comparison...
 
Misskitty said:
So youre a fan of the extra res? Worth sacrificing the portability?
Click to expand...

There's not really sacrifice in portability with a 15, it's like saying are you sure you can cope with the drop inn pay if your new job is £10 a year less. Yes its less but not by any significant amount.
 
Batman Sucks said:
Ok, in that comparison picture...

A) is that the standard res 15 inch screen?

B) regardless, you should have opened a web page on each one... staring at the desktop background doesn't give you much of a comparison...
Click to expand...

Not my computers. That would be THE BEST, having all 3
 
Forget about SSD, its worthless for you. You are doing photoshop as a hobby and SSD only helps boot up times and load times of applications. Hardly worth the ridiculous cost of them. Performance is seen from upgrading memory in a laptop or CPU speed, thats it!

I had bought a 13 inch Black Macbook and soon regretted the small screen and low resolution. Bought the 15 inch uMBP C2D 2.66 and was much more comfortable and productive. I sold that and bought the 17 inch i7 and just bought a 7200 rpm HDD afterwards and stuck it in. The machine is plenty fast for CS5 and Lightroom. I really fail to see the appeal of a computer that boots up fast since you can leave your Mac on all day and close the lid and the battery will last forever, and be ready to go as soon as you open the lid. You have no need to shut it down unless its to restart it.

My next 250 dollars is going towards another 4 gigs of ram. Until SSD prices come down to earth for the amount of storage you get its so not even worth it. Screen size and resolution are the most important feature in the computer considering you cannot change it once you buy the computer.
 
Reapur said:
Forget about SSD, its worthless for you. You are doing photoshop as a hobby and SSD only helps boot up times and load times of applications. Hardly worth the ridiculous cost of them. Performance is seen from upgrading memory in a laptop or CPU speed, thats it!

I had bought a 13 inch Black Macbook and soon regretted the small screen and low resolution. Bought the 15 inch uMBP C2D 2.66 and was much more comfortable and productive. I sold that and bought the 17 inch i7 and just bought a 7200 rpm HDD afterwards and stuck it in. The machine is plenty fast for CS5 and Lightroom. I really fail to see the appeal of a computer that boots up fast since you can leave your Mac on all day and close the lid and the battery will last forever, and be ready to go as soon as you open the lid. You have no need to shut it down unless its to restart it.

My next 250 dollars is going towards another 4 gigs of ram. Until SSD prices come down to earth for the amount of storage you get its so not even worth it. Screen size and resolution are the most important feature in the computer considering you cannot change it once you buy the computer.
Click to expand...

It's the loading and copying of huge files and programs I want the most. I just think for the OP a 13 inch most suites his wants/needs

I also think the cost of an ssd can't really be justified, it's just what he said: a 13 inch with ssd or 15 with hd
 
robotmonkey said:
It's the loading and copying of huge files and programs I want the most. I just think for the OP a 13 inch most suites his wants/needs

I also think the cost of an ssd can't really be justified, it's just what he said: a 13 inch with ssd or 15 with hd
Click to expand...

Unless you need the machine to be ultra portable there is no reason to get a 13 inch screen. Go with the 15 inch high rez screen and any work you do in photoshop will be far more enjoyable.
 
thanks all for chiming in. robotmonkey's last photo of the different sized MBPs stacked on top of each other really put the size in perspective for me. i could never really tell at the Apple store b/c there's just too many people playing with the MBPs and i couldn't do a size comparison like the photo.

i'll be going with the 13" as i am a girl of small build and i can't imagine having anything bigger than the 13" sitting on my lap for long periods of time :p
 
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