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Do you take your 15" MacBook Air on the go?

H

helloapple1

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 20, 2020
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Hey everyone! I recently got a 15-inch MacBook Air, and I’m loving it so far. I was wondering how many of you take yours out of the house—like to cafes, libraries, or even for travel. How’s the experience for you in terms of portability and battery life? Does the larger screen size feel manageable on the go, or do you find it a bit too big? Would love to hear your thoughts!

The question is not if your 13” MacBook Air is more portable LOL. Obviously it is. The question is if you travel with your 15” and how you find that.

This question is for people who own and use a 15” daily. I would not be asking this question if you owned a 13” since it is well known that it is more portable.
 
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I find it too big and that's why I went with 13. It's much more portable. But yes the form factor on the 13 is so good that I take it just about everywhere. I use mine in the car lot, and the 15 is too big for that.
 
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I had a M2 Air, 13” and took it on several trips. One of those trips was a nine hour flight to Europe, and return, another 9 hours. I also used the device on the train in Germany. Fortunately the trains were 1st class but not the planes. I struggled a little with the 13” in coach. The 15” would have been much more difficult to manage.
 
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DeepSix said:
I find it too big and that's why I went with 13. It's much more portable. But yes the form factor on the 13 is so good that I take it just about everywhere. I use mine in the car lot, and the 15 is too big for that.
Click to expand...
Do you hook up your 13” to a monitor at home? Or is it your only screen?
 
helloapple1 said:
Do you hook up your 13” to a monitor at home? Or is it your only screen?
Click to expand...

When at home I did connect it to a 16" portably monitor with a mechanical keyboard. But I just bought the M4 Mac Mini last week and I use that now with the portable monitor. So the Air now is for around the house and out of the house use.
 
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I have a 16" MBP (had a 15" MBP before that) and always take it with me when I travel, even on planes. (Generally just stow it under my seat and use my iPad during flights though.) I travel with a backpack anyway, so I just slip it into the laptop compartment and it doesn't take up any extra space. Sure, it adds some weight, but it's nothing that bothers me.
 
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helloapple1 said:
It seems the 15” may be better for those who don’t have external monitors they hook up to
Click to expand...

Yes. But if you have a larger laptop, you can't downsize unless you buy a smaller one. If I need to use a larger screen I just bring my 16" portable monitor along and the experience beats the 15" Air experience because I now have 2 screens to use and 16" is larger than 15"
 
helloapple1 said:
Hey everyone! I recently got a 15-inch MacBook Air, and I’m loving it so far. I was wondering how many of you take yours out of the house—like to cafes, libraries, or even for travel. How’s the experience for you in terms of portability and battery life? Does the larger screen size feel manageable on the go, or do you find it a bit too big? Would love to hear your thoughts!
Click to expand...

Other than coach class airline tray table use, it's a great travel machine, but IMO, anything bigger than an iPad is too big to use in an economy airline seat. As my eyes get older, I find that the bigger display is the main consideration for me. I've had a 13" M2 as a well and it is more portable than the 15" but the trade-off isn't worth it to me because I do a lot of side-by-side document work and my eyes get tired doing that on the 13".

You bought a great machine. The 15" Air is my personal favorite of the entire MacBook line-up, although I still really do love my 14" M1Pro MBP. When it comes time to upgrade, I think I'll be going with the 15" Air over another 14" MBP.
 
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Both the 13" and 15" are supremely portable. Pick up a laptop from 10 years ago and you'll realize just how portable these are. We didn't all have gym sessions back then for our laptops either, we just used them and carried them.

All the same, I prefer the 13". I'm getting older and considering the 15" for my next one but more likely I'll stick with 13". I'm out of the home about 5 night every two weeks and typically take my laptop with my in my backpack, and space is a bit of a premium. It's not a huge difference between the two though.

I have a second screen at home but rarely use it. The 13" is just fine for me.

In reality, both are super portable.
 
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I take my MBA15 traveling, but if I'm wanting to watch something on an airplane, I pull out my iPad for that.

For daily carry to work though? I prefer a 13" - using an old 2013 Pro at the moment while I decide how best to replace it.
 
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For maximum portability, the 13” MBA wins. And you can always connect it to a bigger screen if needed.
 
Lol I take my 16" MacBook Pro with me every day. The 15" Air would be a no brainer to take with me.
 
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Lol people saying the 13” is more portable….yes, no kidding haha. The question was if you travel with your 15” or not.
 
Since I have both a 13" and 15" Air the few times I actually bring a laptop with me somewhere I take the 13" and leave the 15" at home it's just easier that way. When assessing any kind of risk I consider the 15" more of a luxury item and want to minimize the chances of something happening to it so it stays home not to mention the 13" is just a bit more portable and takes up less room when setting it up etc.
 
Yeap, 13 inch survives backpack jam better cause it is stout. I am sure i would have cracked the screen on 15 already.
 
The 15" MacBook Air I have was almost too big for the Southwest plane's tray table on a recent flight.

The flight back was on Spirit and I couldn't believe how small the trays were…not even big enough for my old Eee PC!

5847-IMG9727s-1.jpeg
 
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helloapple1 said:
Lol people saying the 13” is more portable….yes, no kidding haha. The question was if you travel with your 15” or not.
Click to expand...

More portable, aka smaller and lighter = easier to travel with.

I used to travel with a 17" PowerBook, so anything is possible... however, these days a 13" MBA would be my only choice.
 
geta said:
More portable, aka smaller and lighter = easier to travel with.

I used to travel with a 17" PowerBook, so anything is possible... however, these days a 13" MBA would be my only choice.
Click to expand...
Lol yes we know a 13” is easier to travel with. The question again was if people who own a 15” MBA find it ok to travel with or not.
 
helloapple1 said:
Hey everyone! I recently got a 15-inch MacBook Air, and I’m loving it so far. I was wondering how many of you take yours out of the house—like to cafes, libraries, or even for travel. How’s the experience for you in terms of portability and battery life? Does the larger screen size feel manageable on the go, or do you find it a bit too big? Would love to hear your thoughts!

The question is not if your 13” MacBook Air is more portable LOL. Obviously it is. The question is if you travel with your 15” and how you find that.

This question is for people who own and use a 15” daily. I would not be asking this question if you owned a 13” since it is well known that it is more portable.
Click to expand...
I love the 15" MBA M3. Battery life is amazing, I've never had to recharge it out of the house. I use it for several hours away from home. If you have a nice comfy backpack then it's not too much trouble to take it everyone. I take mine everywhere except on holidays. I use this bag and it's really comfy, keeps the MBA secure and has plenty of room for other bits and pieces. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005355611375.html
 
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geta said:
More portable, aka smaller and lighter = easier to travel with.

I used to travel with a 17" PowerBook, so anything is possible... however, these days a 13" MBA would be my only choice.
Click to expand...

Agree on 13. I've traveled around the world with just a Surface Pro 6 back in the day and it's perfect everywhere you go, on planes, in hotels, in airports, on buses, on trains etc. The Air 13 is the closest to a surface for form factor.
 
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Yes I travel with my MBA 15 M3. I also own a MBP 16 M3max, but typically leave that in the office because the MBA 15 does everything on the road I need it too and it is lighter. I find a 13 inch screen size to be too restrictive. And 99% of the time when I need a computer I am NOT on a plane, so I rather put up with the rare inconvenience of the 15 so that I have that screen for the majority of the time.
 
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geta said:
More portable, aka smaller and lighter = easier to travel with.

I used to travel with a 17" PowerBook, so anything is possible... however, these days a 13" MBA would be my only choice.
Click to expand...

My iPhone is smaller still and much easier to travel with but the keyboard is lacking. Likewise the screen size of the 13 is too small to be productive (hyperbole), so a 15” would be my only choice.

Sorry could not resist.
 
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