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Does Anyone Regret Getting the 14” MacBook Pro Instead of the 16”?

It’s a tough call. For me I travel, fairly infrequently, but when I do I am editing photos. I wish the 16” was lighter, but I just can’t work with a screen any smaller, even the 16” is what I consider minimum. It’s not so bad. Yes my backpack with photo gear and the 16” is super heavy, but I usually put it on our carry on, and roll it around. When I get to my destination, I’m very glad to have the larger screen. Otherwise at home, it is plugged into a dock with a 32” and 27” monitor hooked up and it works great there as well. I’d say it really comes down to whether or not you can cope with the smaller screen.
 
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I currently use an M4 Pro 14" and returned a 16" because it was too bulky and heavy. I secretly envy my wife's M4 15".

I wouldn't call it regret for the 14 because the 16 isn't perfect either. I look forward to going back to 16" once Apple redesigns it to be more svelte.
 
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Although I had 15 inch Macbooks and Powerbooks in the past, I am really happy with the 14 inch versions. The screen space is sufficient for me. The 16 inch one has more screen space but they are too heavy in my taste for daily transport.
 
No, no regrets here either.

I replaced an ageing 15-inch with the 14" and it's been great, really appreciating the lighter load when carrying it around and never really found myself feeling robbed of screen…

In the home office I've got an old Thunderbolt display, so if I do want more room, for Photoshop for example, I can just plug in – via dongle, of course – and that works fine too; I was concerned there might be incompatibles, with its age, but not found any issues, yet, and I've been running that set-up a couple of years, other than the redundant MagSafe connector, which is no biggy…!
 
throAU said:
If you want more than 48GB of RAM, you need to get a Max.
Running VMs is a use case for that, that is purely memory bound.


My 14" max is fine. a 16" would make no sense as I carry it in a backpack every day, and frequently move from desk to desk/desk to meeting room when in the office.

Fine, you can't see a use case, but that doesn't mean they don't exist. Some people need a lot of RAM and portability.
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You can get 64GB in an M5 Pro. Needing more than 64GB of RAM for virtual machines running on a laptop (let alone a 14-inch laptop) is wildly niche. You're only limited to 48GB if you're opting for the binned M5 Pro. If you need portability and you need to run VMs, a Max chip is still an extremely niche case with extremely limited (though not zero) real-world practicality.

Also, let's be perfectly clear here: I never said that use cases for a Max chip in a 14-inch machine didn't categorically exist.

Just that every possible thing you'd need a Max chip for would benefit tremendously by a larger screen.
 
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The biggest complaint about the pre-Apple Silicon MacBook Pros was that the 13" models used significantly less capable U-series Intel chips with integrated graphics and the 15/16" models used more capable (but hotter and more energy hungry) H series chips with discrete graphics.

Today you don't have that tradeoff, you can get the exact same chip and graphics configuration in either (save for the base M chip exclusive to the lowest end 14"). Yes the thermals on the 16" are better if you push a Max chip to the, well, max, but the difference in performance between the smaller and larger MBPs is much narrower since the M1 than it was during the Intel years.
 
Harddrive said:
If people think a MBP 16 is heavy try having to use a panasonic tough book in the field for 5 years it will make you appreciate almost anything else.
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That's what I used to say until they gave me a 16" at work. It really is heavy. The ToughBook and older laptops are/were just... really heavy lol.
 
In a nutshell its personal preference get what fits for your application there really is no one size fits all while I do enjoy my 16MBP I prefer my 11inch iPad Pro over the 13 and same with my phone I like my 15 Pro iPhone as opposed to the Plus.
 
yummysapple said:
Meanwhile the 16” starts looking more like a traditional workstation laptop:

  • huge palm rests
  • massive keyboard deck
  • wider chassis
  • more “desktop replacement” vibes
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You are correct. It’s a physics problem—since no one wants 25% larger keys, it is hard to make it not look like a surfboard. People who love their 16” ones accept this, or learn to love it.
 
I’m currently at the ideal size for my needs.

While I personally don’t prefer extremely large laptops, as the 16-inch MacBook Pro is quite bulky, I would only appreciate more screen space. However, the 14-inch MacBook Pro is perfect in my opinion because it’s not too large to carry around for travel.

I used to carry my laptop around frequently when I attended in-person classes at school and go on business trips in some internships , but as I transitioned to online classes and remote work, I still prefer the 16-inch MacBook Pro, especially since my desk doesn’t have enough space for a Studio Display.
 
yummysapple said:
Anyone currently using the 14” and regret not getting the 16”? Or did you eventually realize the portability + proportions of the 14” is the sweet spot?
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I got two M1 Pros at launch. A 14" for me, and a 16" for my wife. Every time I pick up her laptop I'm thankful I'm using the 14"... the 16" just feels so much heavier. She's currently travelling and we picked up a for her Neo before she left.

So, no, I have the opposite of regret.
 
If they still made a 17" Pro, I'd get that. There's no reason for a small screen if a larger one exists in my mind (unless space is a premium).

P.S. - I purchased a 16" in March when they were released.
 
MBP14 is ideal. Ideal weight, sound, screen. 16 is too heavy.
2 years happy with MBP14 M3/8gb/1tb.
Only in local Gemini it's overheated, need new laptop later. Of course need more RAM.
Thinking to buy MBP16 M6Max/128gb/8Tb for home next year and keep MBP14 for travel.
Never had an iPad, for me better to have MBP + iPhone Pro Max.

Before MBP14 M3 I used MacBook Air 13 i5 2012, it still works. I see, screen and sound was really not nice.
 
unless you are doing crazy pro level video editing, I found the 14 inch screen better for the fact you get more focused work done with less distractions on the screen
 
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I think it really depends on your usage profile. If you are using the laptop as your primary device, then probably it would be better to use the 16" model, unless of course you have a big monitor waiting to be connected to the MBP. If you are traveling a lot, then the 14" MBP is probably the best option for most people.
I personally have a Mac Studio connected to a Studio Display XDR, so I am more than fine with my 14" MBP. I wouldn't want to go bigger, mainly because of the added weight of the device.
 
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turbineseaplane said:
14 is a chonky thicc boy for sure.

Also, the air vents where you end up grabbing the machine are sharp as heck. It’s really unappealing to me on a few fronts.
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I usually run my 16” in clamshell in a Brydge vertical dock, but one of the first things I noticed besides it being fatter/heavier (almost 3/4 of a pound heavier than my 15” 2019), were the side vents. The top of the Apple Silicon MBP vents are cut right above the curvature of the case resulting in a sharpness to them. The Intel MBPs have a bit of a chamfered edge above the top of the vents rather than meeting at a sharp angle. I don't recall the wife's MBA having this issue, but she's not home at the moment so I can't confirm (but sounds like this isn't the case with MBAs).

Vents.jpg
 
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Having started with a Powerbook 145, at more than seven pounds for something that really could only deal with MS Office and ClarisWorks, the current 16 inch seems lightweight. Next to the touchbar 15 obviously it's rather substantial, but the overhead that provides on case cooling and battery longevity is worth it.

I'd say, if you're trying to do one-computer-fits-all, get the 16 unless you know you're not going to push a smaller model to throttle performance and you know you don't need a two-page display on the road. If you're split between a desktop and a laptop, get the most powerful desktop and smallest laptop you can afford/obtain/live with.
 
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yummysapple said:
The temptation was too real... I ended up using Apple's 14-day return policy to swap it for the 16-inch!
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If I had known earlier… I’d do the same thing with my m4 14 inch MacBook Pro. But I’ll still enjoy mines anyway even though I don’t take it outside the house as much now.

Enjoy 😉 the added screen space !
 
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