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

Y

yummysapple

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Just saw the MacBook Pro 14” and 16” side by side again at the Apple Store and honestly… the 14” literally looks like an iPad with a keyboard beside the 16” 💀

The 14” looks so much more compact, dense, minimalist and “Apple-like” somehow. The proportions are super clean.

Meanwhile the 16” starts looking more like a traditional workstation laptop:

  • huge palm rests
  • massive keyboard deck
  • wider chassis
  • more “desktop replacement” vibes
Ironically I use a Pro Max iPhone, but for MacBooks I feel the smaller 14” just looks aesthetically nicer.

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?
 
100% no.

I’ve had 15-16 inch laptops before and they are unsuited to portable use in my opinion.

And if you’re just lugging it from desk to desk, hook up to some external displays when you get there.
 
I once bought a 16" MacBook Pro. It was too big for me, as I carry my machine around a lot. I think it would be ok as a desktop with occasional mobile use, but yeah, it's really big. The 14" is much better for me.
 
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Not at all…

I attach mine to a Studio Display at the desk for when I want the larger screen real estate.

The 14-inch size is perfect for me when I am mobile.
 
I've had both but as much as I love the larger screen on the 16" the portability of the 14" can't be beat. I have a dual monitor set up at home when I need more screen real estate. That being said, if and when they come out with an OLED screen on the Pro if they can slim the laptop down enough I'll probably go back to the larger model - large OLED, sign me up!
 
No. I have a desktop machine (Mac Studio) for heavy lifting. My 14" MBP M3 Pro is perfect when I'm around and about the house and on travel. On travel, I just hook up either a 24" desktop monitor or a 15.6" portable monitor as needed
 
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I have both and I don't mind either. I love the space of the 16 inch, whether it's the screen or the space to rest my hands on, but the lightness and portability of 14in cannot be overstated , especially when I am not at the desk, e.g hunched over on the floor while next to a device I am working on or sitting on the balcony at the tiny table I have there.
 
Shopped both sizes, but chose the portability of the 14" M4 MBP. When I'm at my desk it is connected to a nice 34" widescreen monitor. Perfect setup for me.
 
I guess I'm the only one. 99% of the time my Macbook is in clamshell mode but when I'm traveling and doing development work I have found myself wishing I had a bigger screen, especially when comparing things side by side. I'm leaning heavily towards 16" when I eventually replace this Macbook.
 
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I recently bought a 16" MBP M5 Pro 48gb/1tb to use for video editing. It is rather heavy to lug around -- but I bought the 16" over the 14" to get the extra fan and thermal specs of the 16" because of my intended use case.

I mostly work in my house, and have it hooked up to the 65 inch TV via Apple TV 4k running Final Cut Pro 12. I also occasionally run DaVinci Resolve Studio 21 beta. (DVR is a lot more taxing on the system resources in my opinion.)

If I was a coffee shop nomad, I probably would have gotten the 14" version, because I have found that I rarely spin up the fans very much under my normal rendering workflow. (This consists of lots of cuts on 4k footage, some color grading, light effects.)

I also have a MacBook Neo for web-surfing, iMessage, etc. I really like that little thing for actual on-the-lap style work!
 
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FYI the Pro/Max versions of the 14” MBP have 2 fans. Only the base non-Pro CPU version has 1 fan. The 16” still has better cooling due to having more space to dissipate heat.
 
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I ordered the 16 M5Pro this year but returned it after 2 hours of use. Have had the 14" for years and just wanted more screen realestate. But the weight (usually on my lap in evening hours), size and bulk totally thew me off. Back to the 14". Perfect size.
 
Yes. It's one reason I went with a 15" MBA

The 13 & 14" screens feel too cramped to me, especially on Tahoe now with all the corner rounding and padding pushing the content further in on all UI windows.
 
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My 14" MPB is the second laptop I have owned. I have had work ones, but they rarely got transported.

My previous laptop was a Dell Chromebook with an i5. I forget the screen size.

My MPB gets transported. I have a small backpack for it. I use the MBP on my desk, at other locations and on my lap in the living room. So I wanted this size. Anything else loses the ease of portability I need.

It is also my secondary machine, compared to a 3 monitor setup for my Studio.
 
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