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There is no refurb store in Czechia… been thinking about imac - but as i wrote at the beginning, i have to move myself almost daily from bedroom office to other room once/twice a day, so moving with imac would not be really practical
How about compromising a little and get used 15 inch? Would be much cheaper, can run windows, still powerful enough for excel and stuff. You would have about 1 inch less, but still bigger than Air, cheaper than 16 inch
 
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Honestly, I wouldn’t want to do Daily heavy Excell lifting on either a 13.3“ or 16” inch display. A larger display 24-27“ is the bare minimum in order to being able to work with large spreadsheets IMO. However, a Dual display set up or ultrawide is prefered so for your stated options I would find a Way to make the air+external display work. I personally prefer Working on a High standing desk, which could help with the todler issue.
 
Hi guys,

I am trying to solve my Homeoffice situation. Long story short, identified 2 scenarios:

- buying macbook air and external display - seemed as perfect solution to me, unfortunately got no dedicated room for office, so I just made little onwall table in bedroom - and idea of having external display mounted on wall (in bedroom, where we do sleep with little toddler) does not make me too much confident about this option (I do not prefer having electronics in bedroom and place where monitor would be mounted is too low to be safe from toddlers)

- stay on macbook without external display - in that case, would prefer as big screen as possible - so obviously macbook pro 16 (this one has several advantages - portable big screen - when need to leave bedroom, when leaving home for several days - bigger screen would be with me), but of course, it aint 27incher:) but what really bothers me is pwm (in first scenario I would have flicker free dell monitor).

So, if I will go scenario 2, I know then intel is dead and so on, but now I can get new intel i7 16incher for the price of 14incher M1. I dont need any extra power, all i do is:
- ms excel heavy liftung and ordinary outlook/word processing/presentations.. nothing special

Actually, I may use windiows from time to time on intel macbook (and maybe play some games, form time to time)... even pwm freq on intel one is much higher than on m1 one...

so am I crazy leaning towards buying intel macboolk pro now??
Do you not have room for a small desk at a normal height? I'd think a base M1 iMac would be better unless you need the portability. It's still relatively easy to move but of course not to take on a plane. Just moving from one room to another is possible.
 
Sounds like you’ve already made your mind up. How about having the balls to get M1 Max 16” 32 core gpu, 64gb ram?
 
From personal experience I think you'd regret your decision if you don't absolutely need Intel. I got a MBP just before the transition and I really regret it - it's highly spec'd but the M1 MBA runs rings around it. A 16 inch laptop is much more heavy and cumbersome than a 13 inch and really doesn't bring that much advantage. The screens are good enough these days for smaller things to be clear enough. If I were you I'd get the 13 inch MBA and look carefully at people's suggestions about VESA mounts for an external monitor if you find you even really need/want one. I have a floor stand that holds a 27 inch display/mac comfortably in a tiny footprint and it's sturdy and can be put to a good height. Most of all, I think the machine you're looking at is horribly overpriced. If you're willing to spend that much on an intel mac it probably is worth saving a bit more for the new Apple Silicon one.
 
I have 30 years, I believe I got my SE/30 early 1992, and never managed to fully adjust to full screen apps in their own Mission Control space. For years I also ran FVWM in parallel with my Mac (and sometimes on my Mac) with an always visible grid of four or six virtual desktops where I could directly manipulate windows, which has probably added to my aversion to the Mac implementation, which I find extremely cumbersome. I wish Mission Control was more configurable.

The result is that I never use Mac apps in full screen. This is the one aspect where I actual prefer Windows window management.
Heck yeah, SE/30. Not quite as cool, but I do have an eWaste-saved SE FDHD on my shelf in need of a recap!

And yep, you're right that full screen in Lion and up are handled weird by default. I can't remember the last time I deliberately full-screened an app in macOS. I guess I've gotten so automatic at option-clicking the green traffic light button for Snow Leopard-style full-screen behaviour that I forgot how wonky the default is.

EDIT: As for advice for the OP, my *personal* take is that for the price difference between an M1 Air and a 16" Intel MBP, you could get a wall-mounted TV out of the toddler's reach and a cheap (used?) Apple TV to AirPlay to as a second display for more screen space. Since the TV would be larger and wouldn't need to be connected by wire to your MacBook, you could mount it safely out of harm's way while still being clearly visible for you!
 
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Alternative solution: Buy a video projector
You can find good video projector for 500$, it can be mounted on the ceiling and used outside of work (i.e., for entertainment)
this way you can go with a MBA M1, have mobility and a very big screen
Just don’t be cheap on the projector
 
Op is just looking for emotional support. He doesn't want your opinion. He is waiting for someone to advise exactly what he has already decided to validate his desired. So he feels better about the decision he made prior to making this thread.
 
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I bought an Intel 2020 13” MBP last year AFTER the M1s were announced. I have zero regrets. But I have a specific need to be able to run Windows in VM, so the M-chip Macs aren’t an option for me currently.

If I were deciding now and didn’t have an absolute need for Intel, I don’t think I’d go Intel. You’ll definitely get longer upgrades on the M machine, and you’ll likely be able to go more years before you need to replace it. It’ll be a much better buy in the long run.
 
Just to explain - i dont care about xbox/ps, i am not looking for gaming rig, just occassional low demand games..

If I had suitable place, i would go for mac mini and u2720q or macbook air and u2720q or imac - i dont have that place and wont have for 2-3 years… so thats why I have to find different solution.

Regarding 1 big display or two smaller - it is probably matter of personal taste, i do prefer one bigger display over two smaller…

Regarding wintel laptot, dont want one, want all in one - personal/work computer.

So, it is all about mb pro 16 intel vs m1 - actually I can get m1 for just bit more than intel, unfortunately both of these use pwm, newer one seems to worse implementation… so, guess i will go and check m1 one, if my eyes can survive that…
 
How about compromising a little and get used 15 inch? Would be much cheaper, can run windows, still powerful enough for excel and stuff. You would have about 1 inch less, but still bigger than Air, cheaper than 16 inch
The butterfly keyboard might be an issue though.
 
If I had suitable place, i would go for mac mini and u2720q or macbook air and u2720q or imac - i dont have that place and wont have for 2-3 years… so thats why I have to find different solution.
You said that wall-mounting wasn't an option because it would be too low to be safe from your toddler, but what if you mounted a TV or something a little higher up? A cheap 32" to 40" TV would be big enough to be visible from a distance, so you could be further away while still having a bunch of extra screen real estate. You could even screen-cast to it using an Apple TV (I think even a 3rd-gen should work) so you wouldn't need to deal with any wires to connect it.
 
I didn't read all 4 pages of replies, but didn't see anything about this on pagers 1 or 4, but what about getting a portable external monitor. They are pretty cheap and you could put it away when not using it, so no worries about the child damaging it.

If you do need to use windows, then that makes your decision easier, but if not, I think the M! Air is going to be a better machine long-term. Also, if you do plan to get the 16" Intel, probably worth reading the one huge topic on how it is super noisy. It might not be for your uses, but you can probably find some good info in that thread about how it works with office, etc.
 
Intel Macs are just a really horrible value proposition at this point, unless of course you have a use case that necessitates access to native x86 Mac Applications and/or the ability to Boot Camp x86 Windows.

The 16" Intel MBP was plagued with thermal issues - many people complained that it ran very hot and the fans were constantly whirring loudly. You're also far less likely to get the same level of multi-multi-year macOS support on an Intel machine purchased today vs. an Apple Silicon machine.

M1 MacBook Air + an External Display sounds like an awesome setup. Portability when you want it, big screen when you need it.

Guys, 14incher makes no sense, already got some 14inch ****** win laptop, i can go straight to mb air instead on mb pro 14 inch (for less than half of the price)… 16inch at least gives me more screen space
14" MBP has a larger screen, vastly superior screen quality with the mini-LED and 120Hz, better speakers, better webcam, faster CPU and GPU vs. the MacBook Air. Both the 13" MBA and the 14" ASi MBP would be far better purchase decisions than a 16" Intel MBP.

Or just be patient and save up for a 2021 16" MBP if the screen size is that important to you.
 
Where did you find it? The only second hand Intel 16" MacBook Pros I've found were being sold for ~1700 CAD.
From Craigslist, I did not buy it though.

Here is my concern. 10th gen Intel is in an awkward situation. 11th gen intel is significant better. And we may expect M1 max level performance on 12th gen, which will release early Jan. Intel is still way behind on power efficient. One can not expect much from 10nm, but they will catch up on performance sooner than we think. And the 13th gen releases later 2022 will be intel revolution product. I don't want to buy a 16 inch device, will perform worse than lower end chrome book in a couple of years...
 
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From Craigslist, I did not buy it though.

Here is my concern. 10th gen Intel is in an awkward situation. 11th gen intel is significant better. And we may expect M1 max level performance on 12th gen, which will release early Jan. Intel is still way behind on power efficient. One can not expect much from 10nm, but they will catch up on performance sooner than we think. And the 13th gen releases later 2022 will be intel revolution product. I don't want to buy a 16 inch device, will perform worse than lower end chrome book in a couple of years...
The 2019 16" MacBook Pro doesn't use the 10th gen CPU, it uses a 9th gen one. You can get the Core i7 9750H, Core i9 9880H (which is what mine has), or Core i9 9980HK. the 'H' suffix on Intel CPUs indicate the high-performance models, while 'HK' means high performance AND unlocked for overclocking. Of course, you don't overclock CPUs on a MacBook Pro, as thermal constraints are already tight. FWIW, the last Intel 13" MacBook Pro (2020) DID use a 10th gen. They had options of Core i5 1038NG7, and a Core i7 1068NG7. Note the suffix on those, these were thought to be custom versions made specifically for Apple. Source: https://everymac.com/systems/apple/macbook_pro/index-macbookpro.html

Good luck!

Rumor Source: https://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel...e-Core-i7-1068G7-in-the-process.464836.0.html
 
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Ok guys, will consider air+portable monitor

No experience with this specific one, but the spec says small and low-resolution.

Personally, I see 4K and 24” as some kind of reasonable minimum for a useful work monitor.

You haven’t commented on all the mounting suggestions.

I use one of these to go from sitting to standing:


Another 10 cm in vertical range would have been nice, but it still works reasonably well. It seems to me it would solve your problem too, unless you absolutely do not want electronics in the bedroom when not in use, or absolutely need the monitor to be portable.

Something like this would give you even more range, and also accommodate the laptop.

 
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I guess I meant it to be implied, and didn't think it could be unintentionally misunderstood, but here we are.

I'll rephrase: "I wouldn't buy an Intel MacBook for anything approaching the current market price, or any price I've ever seen one (that wasn't obviously stolen) for sale for".
I'd give away my MacBook Pro (mid 2010) for free. I've offered it to many people but nobody wants that. People can be really picky even when you offer them laptops for free or for cheap price.
 
Other option based on your use case (very similar to mine but I also have home office); get a M1 mbp plus a 12.9in iPad Pro and use sidecar for two screens. You can hit the same price point and have 26 total inches of screen. I use this while working from coffee shops and can handle all the excel/office/sysadmin tasks easily. Having owned many 15in MBP I can tell you two smaller screens will always beat one… medium… screen.
13”+13” = around 18.3” screen area. For reaching the 26” screen area, you need 2 more 13“ screen because it is square inch.
 
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