Might be switching from 11in to 13in.

[mloffa]

K, so.
Right now, I am using the 11in Macbook Air with 128gb memory and 2gb ram.
I am really happy with it BUT

My sister came home from school yesterday with her 13in Macbook Pro.
Oh man.
The screen felt SO much bigger.
I was coming from the 13inMBP but I guess I never noticed before now.

I still haven't decided for sure yet but I am highly considering switching.


Just a question, would a sleeve type case (the incase neoprene sleeve, for example) for the Macbook Pro 13 fir the Macbook Air 13?
I don't see many sleeves on Apple's website specifically for the 13in Air so I'm wondering if people just use the Pro ones?

 

[HLdan]

The size difference should've been apparent to you upon buying it since you came from a 13". Keep in mind if you upgrade to the 13" you may be facing a restocking fee.

 

[mloffa]

The size difference should've been apparent to you upon buying it since you came from a 13". Keep in mind if you upgrade to the 13" you may be facing a restocking fee.

It really wasn't apparent at all. I really can't tell you why, though.
And yes, I know about the restocking fee and everything.

 

[KnightWRX]

An 11.6" MBA and a 13" MBP have the same screen real-estate. Her "bigger" screen doesn't display more information at all. Don't be fooled by inches, they are not a measure of how "big" a screen is.

Of course, the MBA 13" has even higher resolution than the MBP, so if what you want is more screen real-estate it is the right choice.

 

[mloffa]

An 11.6" MBA and a 13" MBP have the same screen real-estate. Her "bigger" screen doesn't display more information at all. Don't be fooled by inches, they are not a measure of how "big" a screen is.

Of course, the MBA 13" has even higher resolution than the MBP, so if what you want is more screen real-estate it is the right choice.

Wasn't aware of this. Thanks

The only reason I'm even considering switching from the 11 is because I have been watching a lot of movies recently. And it really becomes noticeable.

 

[HLdan]

It really wasn't apparent at all. I really can't tell you why, though.
And yes, I know about the restocking fee and everything.

Okay, but two questions for you, what store did you buy it from? Didn't they have a 11" and a 13" on display? If you need to exchange it, go for it, but I fail to see how it took your sister's notebook to make you realize this since you came from a 13" yourself and the store must've had a 13" on display, no?

 

[mloffa]

Okay, but two questions for you, what store did you buy it from? Didn't they have a 11" and a 13" on display? If you need to exchange it, go for it, but I fail to see how it took your sister's notebook to make you realize this since you came from a 13" yourself and the store must've had a 13" on display, no?

Yeah, I see this doesn't really make sense.
I bought it at the Apple store and YES they had both on display, albeit not next to each other.

I can't tell you why it seems like such a big difference now.
Maybe I was getting used to the smaller screen and now this feels huge?

 

[dmelgar]

I did the same thing. I had a 11" MBA for two weeks. Returned it and ordered a 13" MBA. The 13" isn't here yet, I had to order it online (4GB). But as soon as i don't have the 11" and am stuck with my older 13" MBP, I realize I really miss the extra portability. I was using the 11" everywhere. Almost like a phone. Since i returned it, I haven't moved my 13" MBP. It's attached to my external monitors, hard drives etc. Doesn't feel portable. I'll see how the 13" feels when it finally gets here on its leisurely trip from China, but now I'm wondering if I'll go back to the 11".

 

[TPadden]

..... Doesn't feel portable. I'll see how the 13" feels when it finally gets here on its leisurely trip from China, but now I'm wondering if I'll go back to the 11".

I have access to both MBA's and agree it mostly depends on where you watch your movies (use your MBA). My wife admits she doesn't like to use her 13 on her lap and prefers my 11 when away from a desk/ table.

 

[mloffa]

I have access to both MBA's and agree it mostly depends on where you watch your movies (use your MBA). My wife admits she doesn't like to use her 13 on her lap and prefers my 11 when away from a desk/ table.

Good point!
My 11in MBA has been parked on my desk this whole time.
I think I am going to switch/pay difference for the 13in.

 

[HLdan]

Wasn't aware of this. Thanks

The only reason I'm even considering switching from the 11 is because I have been watching a lot of movies recently. And it really becomes noticeable.

That information you got was about the 13" MBP and is irrelevant to your situation. The new 13" Air does in fact show more information on the screen. The 11.6" Air's screen resolution is 1366x768. The 13" Air has 1440x900. The 13"MBP is 1280x800 resolution. Of course the 13"MBP has no benefit of the larger screen but the 13" MBA has a higher res screen and will definitely give more picture area.

 

[tdfreeman]

I loved the 11", but think the 13" better fits my needs. When taking it to meetings and such, the portability was awesome. Even when at my desk, I always have a monitor and the 11" ran everything like a champ. If I would have kept the 11", I would have delegated the iPad to the wife and kids. I still very well may with the 13" too.

Here are the issues I had with the 11":

1) Disk size - I have to have Visio (Omnigraffle is not a good replacement to me). Due to this, I have to eat up at least 20GB for a Windows partition. I normally partition at least 40GB as I don't want to redo it if I have to install a large program (gaming comes to mind, but don't do much). With that and the OSX install, half of the drive is gone immediately. Carrying a second hard drive defeats the purpose of portability. Add in pictures (see point 3), and I don't have much space to play with.

2) Screen resolution - I didn't have much issue, but the 13" is the same resolution of my old 15" and the extra real estate is great when creating Visio drawings or presentations. With an external monitor, it wasn't a problem. However, out of the office, or sitting on the couch, it was more challenging.

3) SD Card - We vacation regularly and I use the SD slot quite a bit during those times. Yes, I could carry a card reader or another cord to connect the camera directly, but again, it goes against the portability feature.

4) Processor - I know 1.6 to 2.16 isn't a huge jump, but running Win7 in Unity mode for Visio, I wanted the extra power. I must say that the 1.6 handled this admirably, but I wanted to be as "future-proof" as possible.

5) Battery - Using anything out of the ordinary (Bootcamp/Fusion/Visio) hampers the battery life. I don't just surf the web and check email, so I never saw the 5 hour life of the 11". The extra juice will serve my needs well.

Nothing out of the normal topics, but figured I'd give my reasons and possibly help people in similar situations.

 

[double329]

Well, what ever you decide. I hope you are still within the exchange period and you need to make up your mind fast. Just like everyone said, you will get hit with restocking fee.

 

[neteng101]

An 11.6" MBA and a 13" MBP have the same screen real-estate.

1366x768 and 1280x800 is not exactly the same - the 16:9 screen format is pretty useless in some ways, a lot of things we do on a computer is viewing information in a vertical format, such that every pixel of vertical space adds up.

The 11.6" is so much more portable though, compared to the 13.3" MBA.

 

[Truffy]

Nothing out of the normal topics, but figured I'd give my reasons and possibly help people in similar situations.

Actually, this is useful feedback, thank you!

I will be ordering a MBA in the next couple of weeks, and I'm 95% sold on it being the 13". But 5% can't help but envy the extra portability of the 11". You've just reduced that to 3%!

 

[maflynn]

I will be ordering a MBA in the next couple of weeks, and I'm 95% sold on it being the 13". But 5% can't help but envy the extra portability of the 11". You've just reduced that to 3%!

Agreed, the size and portability of the 11" is a strong siren song, The screen real estate of the 13" however makes it a much more useful laptop

 

[mloffa]

Went tonight to the Apple store and exchanged the 11in for the 13in.
The guy who helped me was really nice and waived the restocking fee!
I swear I didn't beg. I just mentioned that I hated the fact I'd have to pay a restocking fee when I'm already giving them more money.
He want on to say stuff about it costing a lot to send them back and have them checked out. I obliged.
5 minutes later, he came back and told me not to worry about it and that it was waived.

I am loving the 13in!
And although I loved the 11in too, 13 is the way to go.

 

[leemkule]

I kinda went through this process without buying the 11. Before I saw them I really thought that I'd prefer the 11' and financially it seemed like a good price. I checked it out twice at the apple store and I just felt underwhelmed with the 11 inch, it felt too cramped and I was actually hunched over using it. I do think that it is an amazing machine and it was really cool but I just felt so much more comfortable with the 13 inch, for me, I know the novelty of the 11 inch would have worn off so I just went for the 13 inch in the end.

 

[dmelgar]

I kinda went through this process without buying the 11. Before I saw them I really thought that I'd prefer the 11' and financially it seemed like a good price. I checked it out twice at the apple store and I just felt underwhelmed with the 11 inch, it felt too cramped and I was actually hunched over using it. I do think that it is an amazing machine and it was really cool but I just felt so much more comfortable with the 13 inch, for me, I know the novelty of the 11 inch would have worn off so I just went for the 13 inch in the end.

My 13 is arriving today. I worry that the 13 doesn't have enough novelty. Not enough to differentiate from my 13" MBP. The 11" is pretty amazing. I'll find out after using the 13 for a few days...

 

[MacModMachine]

My 13 is arriving today. I worry that the 13 doesn't have enough novelty. Not enough to differentiate from my 13" MBP. The 11" is pretty amazing. I'll find out after using the 13 for a few days...

oh trust me...its novelty.....


coming from 13 mbp to the 13" mba i love it...its fun to use and light to carry.

so much better for me then the mbp.

 

[gwsat]

Went tonight to the Apple store and exchanged the 11in for the 13in.
The guy who helped me was really nice and waived the restocking fee!
I swear I didn't beg. I just mentioned that I hated the fact I'd have to pay a restocking fee when I'm already giving them more money.
He want on to say stuff about it costing a lot to send them back and have them checked out. I obliged.
5 minutes later, he came back and told me not to worry about it and that it was waived.

I am loving the 13in!
And although I loved the 11in too, 13 is the way to go.

Congratulations! You are going to love the 13 inch MBA, I promise.

My 13 is arriving today. I worry that the 13 doesn't have enough novelty. Not enough to differentiate from my 13" MBP. The 11" is pretty amazing. I'll find out after using the 13 for a few days...

It's probably true that people aren't going to strike up conversations with you at Starbucks based on your 13 inch MBA, although I am sure that happens a lot to owners of the 11 inch model. Still, the 13 inch MBP is more than twice as thick as the 13 inch MBA and weighs 50% more, but the MBA has ultra fast flash storage, and significantly higher screen resolution. What's not to like?

 

[whateverandever]

Wasn't aware of this. Thanks

The only reason I'm even considering switching from the 11 is because I have been watching a lot of movies recently. And it really becomes noticeable.

Annnnnnd the 11.6" screen is 16x9, so its actually more suited for movies / hd tv than the 13". You'll just get some nice black bars to look at in the bigger screen

 

[foiden]

I've been quite torn between the 11" ultimate and the 13" 4GB 128. The primary reason is actually battery life. Now I am using a 13" MBP, which is actually pretty decent for battery life, but I'd want my ultra portable to exceed that life when performing the same tasks with the same amount of brightness. I did notice one user that seemed to squeeze out a longer *awake time* using something that seemed like my performance, but it seemed like the 13" allows me to not even think about what I'm doing (for productivity and browsing) and still get incredible life off of it.

 

[Dammit Cubs]

1366x768 and 1280x800 is not exactly the same - the 16:9 screen format is pretty useless in some ways, a lot of things we do on a computer is viewing information in a vertical format, such that every pixel of vertical space adds up.

The 11.6" is so much more portable though, compared to the 13.3" MBA.

+1

It is not even funny how ridiculously portable the 11.6 version is. yes, i do miss the screen real estate and the battery life on the 13 is something i will never have but wow...as i keep traveling and traveling with my 11.6 inch, I truly understand why I SWITCHED FROM A 13.3 to this computer.

Just yesterday, i took my computer over to friends house to watch football, i use my MBA to keep track of Fantasy football using yahoo tracker changes life, I had I chat on. I mean sometimes the computer would go to sleep, but it lasted me from 2pm to 10pm (the end of the sunday night game). I keep using my computer to check scores and updates.

It was awesome and because of the smaller size, i can hold the computer it wierd ways.

It was.....awesome.

 

[foiden]

Funny enough. The Screen Real-estate is something I actually wouldn't miss much on the 11 MBA. This is because my MBP 13" only has 32 extra lines of resolution. However, I typically run my MBP 13" with the dock on the bottom. In fact, I've noticed that I've always used my programs that way until very recently, for 1 single program.

So hiding the dock actually gives me the full vertical real-estate that I've been using on my 13" MBP all this time. Of course, the unprecedented notion (for me) of going to 900 lines in a laptop sounds pretty dreamy.