For the sake of your sanity, do not specifically check for light bleeds. If it appears under normal use - fair enough, if not - don’t go looking for it.
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MBA 15 inch vs 14 inch MBP vs 13 inch MBA comfort
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For the sake of your sanity, do not specifically check for light bleeds. If it appears under normal use - fair enough, if not - don’t go looking for it.
I believe that a in-person evalution at an Apple Store necessitates a specialized confirmation on what is "heavy" or not.
Individual body strength varies from person to person. So ~100g extra or un-extra will be detrimental or un-detrimental depending on who's carrying it.
I was at the Apple Store yesterday looking at these, and I will say that the 14” Pro felt very dense, heavy, and thick to me compared to the 13” and 15” Airs. I’m honestly a bit jealous without how light and slim the Air models are compared to my big heavy 16” Pro.
It never fails. The moment Apple doesn't put "ProMotion" in a screen the usual "This screen is garbage" comments come flowing out.
The screen on the 15" Air is beautiful.
Switched from Pro 14 to 15 Air.
Screen size is practically like 16 with the weight of 14.Huge difference compared to 14. Similar to 16 without the heft. Very comfortable on the lap, sofa or just to carry around
Speakers are fine, but 14 has the edge, I don't have 16.
Screen for the content that I watch and applications that I use, I see no difference between them
Overall, very happy with 15 air, and recommend it
Screen size is practically like 16 with the weight of 14.Huge difference compared to 14. Similar to 16 without the heft. Very comfortable on the lap, sofa or just to carry around
Speakers are fine, but 14 has the edge, I don't have 16.
Screen for the content that I watch and applications that I use, I see no difference between them
Overall, very happy with 15 air, and recommend it
For me it’s perfect. I’ve tried the air before (multiple times actually) and it always felt too narrow on my lap. I hated having it on my lap for typing as I always felt like it made me sit awkwardly to hold it in place.
The 15” is absolutely perfect for me for lap typing.
I sold my 16 MBP and don't regret it at all! That thing was a best! My new 15" air is amazing.. sure screen may be little worse but still super nice. The quality is great its a perfect compromise to me!
very well said and you are correct I'd say the 15" air is maybe 10% less eye pleasing. I travel a lot on planes this thing will be amazing on flights...
Super helpful - you note it's super comfortable on the lap, sofa and just to carry around. Did you find the 14 inch just as comfortable? Do you notice a big weight difference between 14 and 15?
You make a good point. What's heavy for me (14 inch) may not be heavy for others.
I notice the 15 inch air review by The Verge and by iJustine both point out the weight difference between the 13 inch m2 air and the 15. But the other reviewers don't. Interestingly, both reviewers are women. Maybe that makes a difference too.
Take a look at everyday dad - he put them all on a scale and number wise the difference is huge. 15 air is equal in weight to 14 pro almost.
A dozen years ago I used to buy gear based on how airplane-friendly they are.
So I look at the tech specs of carry on and check in bags, lenses, bodies, laptops, etc to get to near 100% real world weight and dimensions.
But remember all those YouTubers are just salesmen. They encourage you to subscribe as that's how company marketing depts measures whether you're worth collaborating with.
Each one just markets it in their own words that will hopefully connect to the people watching.
I attribute Dave2D to my buying this and that. This is why I unsubscribed from him because I really did not need to replace a 2011 laptop until 2021.
14 inch was comfortable as well for me but I always wanted bigger screen without the weight. For the 15 the large trackpad definitely helps to make it feel more comfortable
15 feels lighter, I guess when you carry it you have a better grip because of slimness and maybe distribute the weight better (on paper 15 is 100 gram lighter which is practically the same).
Personally between those two I don’t notice a significant difference..
Ditto here, returned my M2 Max MBP 16 and no regrets. The immense power was appealing...at first...but I really don't need all that performance on a daily basis and would much rather have a smaller footprint and less weight. Coming from an M1 MBA and a Mac Studio I thought the 16 MBP would be the best of both worlds but realized that isn't the case for me.
The weight between the MBA 15 and MBP 14 in-store is very similar to me, enough to be a non-deciding factor. The 14 Pro does feel denser while the 15 Air spreads the weight out better. Still, it's only noticeable if you have both units in front of you.
I am leaning more towards getting the 15 Air over the 14 Pro. The larger screen feels more comfortable for my everyday use and if the Air begins to feel like it's lacking in power then I'll just pick up an M2 Pro Mini or base Mac Studio later on. My 16/512 M1 MBA served all my needs for almost three years (office productivity, light photo/video editing, some coding, and even a Win11 VM running at times), so I think the M2 15 Air will be more than sufficient.
I still have, and loved, my 2015 MBP 13 before I got the M1 Air and the 14 Pro weighs exactly the same as that old Intel MBP 13. But I think the fanless M1 Air spoiled me by being so quiet and hearing the fans on the MBP 16 was sort of annoying. I am worried the fan on the 14 Pro will be annoying to hear again. But really it's the larger screen of the 15 Air that's the deciding factor for me over the 14 Pro. Despite the slightly higher resolution, the 14 Pro's screen feels more cramped next to the 15 Air's display.
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Loved the photo montage and comparisons.
Curious about the colors. Was the 15” MBA Starlight and the 14” MBP Silver?
Glad it was helpful.
I am pretty sure the MBA 15 is silver and the MBP 14 is space gray.
The MBA 15 in the left corner of the background is Starlight. When we first entered the Apple store we were on the other side of the table and I initially mistook the nearest MBA 15 as silver. Only when next to the silver MBA 15 was I able to tell the first MBA was actually Starlight. In order to put the MBA 15 side-by-side with the MBP 14 I had to turn the silver MBA 15 around to the other side of the table. The Starlight MBA 15 stayed at the corner of the table.
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Ah, of course. Should have recognized that the 14” was space grey, not silver.
Thanks for the clarification and the story about the starlight-silver similarity! And, circling the Starlight model peeking in on the left in the photo — would have missed that, otherwise.
These colors, under certain lighting conditions look quite similar. At first, I thought the one in the back, right, was the Starlight!
What was your reaction to that massively large palm rest on the 15”? It looks out of proportion, even deeper than the keyboard!
Thanks for the clarification and the story about the starlight-silver similarity! And, circling the Starlight model peeking in on the left in the photo — would have missed that, otherwise.
These colors, under certain lighting conditions look quite similar. At first, I thought the one in the back, right, was the Starlight!
What was your reaction to that massively large palm rest on the 15”? It looks out of proportion, even deeper than the keyboard!
The palm rest size actually felt fine. The MBP 16 I just returned definitely felt disproportionate with the ratio of keyboard to palm rest so maybe that's why the 15" feels acceptable/reasonable.
From the angle of the photo the palm rest of the 14" looks large too when I know for a fact it seems small to me in-person.
Someone needs to come with decals (very thin ones like the ones you apply with water) with a grille pattern, that can be added either side of the keyboard to break up that flat surface.
@Saturn007, I'm back at the same Apple Store to pick up the MBA 15. Here are some better photos for palm rest comparison, as well as a side-by-side of silver and starlight.
Palm rest size (silver 15 vs space gray 14):
Silver on the left, Starlight on the right:
Palm rest size (silver 15 vs space gray 14):
Silver on the left, Starlight on the right:
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I’m really digging the old school MacBook look. I just wish they put speaker holes on the sides, even if they would only be cosmetic.
14” looks nicer, so much wasted space around the 15’ keyboard.
Thoughts and prayers for having to type on such a garbage screen. 😉
Neon, much thanks! Much appreciated your response on the palm rest and going the extra mile in providing a new set of comparative photos!
It’s interesting how the difference in some photos is subtle, while it's quite distinct in others…
Which color did you end up getting?
If you get the chance, it'd be great to hear more about your experience with the 15” after you've used it a bit under home conditions!
It’s interesting how the difference in some photos is subtle, while it's quite distinct in others…
Which color did you end up getting?
If you get the chance, it'd be great to hear more about your experience with the 15” after you've used it a bit under home conditions!