Anyone go from 17" MBP to 15.4" Retina?

[Stout Jackson]

Really interested in how you feel about the smaller screen size. I was waiting for a 17" Retina and wonder if I will be dissatisfied with the smaller screen.
I can't get to an Apple store to view it in person.

 

[eron]

Really interested in how you feel about the smaller screen size. I was waiting for a 17" Retina and wonder if I will be dissatisfied with the smaller screen.
I can't get to an Apple store to view it in person.

Call the Apple Store, ask about their return policy. When I returned a magic mouse that I purchased online, there was no fees at all. No shipping charges. A courier came and collected it.

So, you certainly can trial it, and return it if you don't like it.

 

[VacantPsalm]

I say give it a shot. You'll either adapt to smaller screen + freedom from res size limit or move on to something different. Like an old 17", an external display, or a 17" from another company if you're cheesed enough. (Or Apple will be awesome and bring the 17" MBP back some day.)

 

[junebug1]

I've had a 17" since 2006 and was unsure of the switch as well but my new rMBP is everything that I could ever need. Like another poster said the resolution switching can make you feel right at home in an instant if you really need to take advantage of the larger resolutions. I wouldn't even consider giving up this new 15.4" Retina to go back to a 17".

 

[Crooks]

I didn't have the 17" MBP, but my friend told me that they switched to the rMBP and had no trouble adapting to the slightly smaller screen.

 

[Stout Jackson]

Thanks for the answers.

 

[proximo]

Thanks for the answers.

I have a 2011 17" and played with a rMBP in the store the other day. With the retina display set to 1920x1200 it really surprised me with how little I noticed the smaller physical size of the screen. It was very usable. I still prefer a 17" physical screen (I'm 58 and the eyes will only get worse) but I could easily make do with the 15" retina.

 

[Stout Jackson]

I have a 2011 17" and played with a rMBP in the store the other day. With the retina display set to 1920x1200 it really surprised me with how little I noticed the smaller physical size of the screen. It was very usable. I still prefer a 17" physical screen (I'm 58 and the eyes will only get worse) but I could easily make do with the 15" retina.

Thanks Proximo, my peepers are not as good as they used to be too.

 

[Runt888]

I've been using a 17" since the unibody first came out. I just went and played with the retina 15" today at the Apple store for about ten minutes. I was actually shocked at how good it looked at 1920x1200. I didn't have my 17" with me to do a side by side comparison, but I actually think the 15" was easier to read.

Before WWDC I was planning on getting an ivy bridge 17" to replace my core 2 duo, and afterwards I was worried about losing the much needed desktop area when it became obvious that the 17" was MIA. Well, I've put that worry to rest now and am anxiously awaiting the new retina 15. 😀

 

[proximo]

If you want to see something really impressive with the RMBP try zooming the desktop (ctl->two finger swipe up/down). With my 2011 17", text starts getting grainy really quickly as it got larger. With the RMBP you could blow single letters up until they filled the screen and they still looked nearly tack sharp.

 

[VacantPsalm]

Another thing you might want to try is setting the res to true 2880 then increase the font sizes / zoom webpages. The interface elements will be super tiny, but if you can live with that you'll have more screen space. Plus you won't have to deal with the loss of performance from the rendering roundabout of Apple's "most space" setting. (Might not be a problem, but less work for the comp is less work for the comp.)

Have not tried it myself but I've heard it works.

 

[appleguy123]

I went from a 17" to a 13" MBA when I started purchasing for college. It was a bit weird at first, but now I'm totally used to it and don't miss the real estate. I'm considering moving to the retina now, but I'm not completely set on loosing the portability.