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Should I choose 11" or 13"?
- Thread starter t101
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Definitely. If I think I might need the MBA I just carry it in my handbag (easier for women obviously
I reckon a laptop tote or a backpack will work for guys). Weight is not a consideration anymore, I just have to decide whether I'd need it (for typing or heavier-duty browsing versus the lighter-duty stuff I can do on an iPod touch, such as emails etc.). The 11'', even with an adapter thrown in, is probably lighter than the September issue of Vogue
I got the 11" to take to school everyday, and thought it would be easier to take out and use in the lecture halls where using an iPad 2 and Bluetooth keyboard isn't possible. I just got it 2 days ago, so I haven't taken it to school yet to test it out. It's mostly personal preference, I'm sure the 13" is just as portable as this one. It's only 1" bigger one way and about 1.5" the other way.
I also got the 11" since it was cheaper and wouldn't be used as my main machine when I get an iMac in January or February.
I also got the 11" since it was cheaper and wouldn't be used as my main machine when I get an iMac in January or February.
11"
My Wife,my Daughter, and myself, each have a 2010 1.6/4/480GB OWC SSD 11" MBA.
We are smitten with this little powerhouse, wicked fast.
Install "Click to Flash", keeps flash from eating your battery, and you'll regularly get 6 hours+, we all think the 11" is one of Apples classiest acts, if not their best Laptop , it is simply fantastic.
Either way,11 or 13" is up to you, but I am sure we can all agree, Apple will sell a ton of them to millions of people, because they work as advertised, are a quality made product, running an OS that is perfect for them, and in either size flavor, fit your life.
My Wife,my Daughter, and myself, each have a 2010 1.6/4/480GB OWC SSD 11" MBA.
We are smitten with this little powerhouse, wicked fast.
Install "Click to Flash", keeps flash from eating your battery, and you'll regularly get 6 hours+, we all think the 11" is one of Apples classiest acts, if not their best Laptop , it is simply fantastic.
Either way,11 or 13" is up to you, but I am sure we can all agree, Apple will sell a ton of them to millions of people, because they work as advertised, are a quality made product, running an OS that is perfect for them, and in either size flavor, fit your life.
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I think the 11" is just small enough that it becomes significantly different. You can tell a notable difference just by picking them up and holding them. Although, I have to say, the extra palm rest is actually the best argument for the 13" if you type while resting your palms there (some don't and lift them up). I'm typing on an 11" right now and my fingers have to curl a bit (just a bit but enough to feel slightly cramped)... I LOVE the size.. just love it. But the palm rest/finger curl is definitely on my mind as I use it. Sigh...
Well, no doubt the 11" is smaller But unless you are carrying it naked (the MBA that is) and one-handed around the place, chances are you will carry it in a sleeve, a messenger bag, or a briefcase.
Oh, I forgot, if you plan to carry it in your cargo pants pocket, definitely get the 11".
However, you will most likely spend a lot more time USING it than CARRYING it. And that's when the bigger screen, palm rest, and battery life come into play. But I agree with the other poster that you will likely be happy with either, unless of course you find the 11" screen too small and then you'll regret not getting the 13"...
Definitely. If I think I might need the MBA I just carry it in my handbag (easier for women obviously
The 11'', even with an adapter thrown in, is probably lighter than the September issue of Vogue
You remind me of a friend of my sister's who brings her 13" MBP to lecture every single day here in Sydney and she keeps it in her handbag.
She'd really really love an 11" MBA, but she would need the 256 GB SSD, because it's her only computer and she keeps her entire photo collection in it...
3 of those? With a 480GB OWC SSD? My goodness...lucky you people...
Those who say that share their personal opinion including me. How is that bs?
The 13" isn't much wider and longer as you make it sound.the 13inch is much wider and longer when your talking portability. it added that sense of "should i take it? not sure if i need it." when i switched to the 11inch.
As someone who had both, those pictures aren't misleading at all. This is exactly how they look in store or when I had both the 11" and 13" for two days.
I'm not biased towards either. Both have their pros and cons. But i'm not spreading bs either.
This is how the 11" and 13" look. Not much wider and longer from the 11" and not misleading at all:
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Just got my 11" today!
Funny thing is I went in to purchase the 13" and they were sold out of all versions. I really wanted to take something home so I asked about the 11" and they were sold out as well. All they had was a few 2010 models and I REALLY wanted the backlit keyboard so I declined. It just so happens that someone had JUST returned an 11" and since it was an open-box item they told me I got 10% off! They let me inspect it before to make sure it was in immaculate shape and it was! I just had to wait around while they restored it. While doing so, I was toying with the Airs and I'm glad I was impatient because even though I wanted more screen space, the 11" is beautiful and truly ultra-portable! I'm in love with it. $1100 out the door!
Now I just need to skim the boards for some must-have apps and such!
Funny thing is I went in to purchase the 13" and they were sold out of all versions. I really wanted to take something home so I asked about the 11" and they were sold out as well. All they had was a few 2010 models and I REALLY wanted the backlit keyboard so I declined. It just so happens that someone had JUST returned an 11" and since it was an open-box item they told me I got 10% off! They let me inspect it before to make sure it was in immaculate shape and it was! I just had to wait around while they restored it. While doing so, I was toying with the Airs and I'm glad I was impatient because even though I wanted more screen space, the 11" is beautiful and truly ultra-portable! I'm in love with it. $1100 out the door!
Now I just need to skim the boards for some must-have apps and such!
Enjoy your new Air, you lucky person, you.
I wasn't aware that they did that with the open-box discount...probably just a random thing?
Enjoy your new Air, you lucky person you.
All open-boxed laptops are 10%.
I don't know about desktops.
Even though I loved the 11, these were ultimately the reasons behind my decision.
Near nothing is 2.38 pounds. The 13 inch is 2.96 pounds. So if the 11" is near nothing, the 13" is a little over 9 ounces above that. For 9 ounces you get a lot more screen, bigger trackpad, and better battery life.
Just sayin...
I can't explain how or why but something about the 11" makes it seem so much more portable and fun.
DieterRams, did you end up buying the 11"?
If so, congrats!
Hey man, I did indeed get an 11", just the other day. Decided to just get it and try it myself and see if it's good enough to use primarily. As said, I love the size of it. Being that it's roughly the same physical dimensions as an iPad, it makes it nice to pick up and use. It does seem to run warm though, but nothing out of the ordinary from other laptops I've used. I have the highest-config version, not sure if i5 would run less warm or not (though I had a 17" 2010 i5 and I recall it was similar temperature)
I have not yet done serious work on it though, will be doing that at least within the next few days to test out. And Lion itself takes a bit of getting used to.. I'm surprised but a lot of my workflow and usage has changed around a bit. For one, I am using fullscreen mode for Safari pretty much all of the time. Since it's so easy to switch between fullscreen spaces, I'd likely be doing this on any size screen so it's not just to maximize screen space, though that does help.
My concern about the smaller/shorter keyboard palm rest and trackpad has been realized, but I knew that coming in since using it in the Apple store itself. I thought I'd be more bothered by the smaller palm rest than the trackpad but it seems it's the other way around. I've been more able to adapt to the palm rest by curling fingers in more while typing (not ideal but necessary) but the trackpad does feel a bit cramped, being shorter. I tend to start a little too high when doing the pinching gesture for "show desktop" and "launchpad" so that my fingers are starting right under the space bar.
I'll be using it some more in the coming days to test out. Maybe I'll get more used to it and these palm rest/trackpad issues will go away. Or perhaps not.. I have a few feelings but will hold off until I use it more to confirm.
Very true, it's the overriding reason why I got mine. I must be crazy though because I don't travel much with it at all yet I love the size that much that I'd get it for such reasons
Tell me though, how is your experience as compared to mine as I wrote above? Any issues with the smaller/shorter palm rest area and trackpad? Also, what config did you get?
I bring my MBA 11" with me even when I don't think I will be using a computer. Today, I was surprised to find I had some intermittent dead time, which actually added up to a few hours in total. I was able to use my MBA 11" to do some development instead of just wasting time.
The MBA 11" is truthfully still a bit too big. As a testament to this, the MBA 11" has replaced my 2011 MBP 17" as my main computer.
There's no way that a properly compromised mobile computer should be able to do that. This means that the MBA 11" could have sacrificed more screen size to become more mobile, such that if I were home, the compromises of an even smaller MBA would have me prefer using my MBP 17". I could probably have tolerated an 8" or 9" MBA for the gain of mobility.
Also, although I sometimes hold my MBA 11" in bed with one hand to read (like an iPad) it's still not as easy as an iPhone or iPad for one-handed reading.
The MBA 11" is truthfully still a bit too big. As a testament to this, the MBA 11" has replaced my 2011 MBP 17" as my main computer.
There's no way that a properly compromised mobile computer should be able to do that. This means that the MBA 11" could have sacrificed more screen size to become more mobile, such that if I were home, the compromises of an even smaller MBA would have me prefer using my MBP 17". I could probably have tolerated an 8" or 9" MBA for the gain of mobility.
Also, although I sometimes hold my MBA 11" in bed with one hand to read (like an iPad) it's still not as easy as an iPhone or iPad for one-handed reading.
Do you ever use an external monitor hooked up to the 11"? Or do you use it 100% without an external monitor and using the MBA's own keyboard and trackpad all of the time?
Also, in what position do you usually use it in? On your lap, on a desk, etc?
Very true, it's the overriding reason why I got mine. I must be crazy though because I don't travel much with it at all yet I love the size that much that I'd get it for such reasons
Tell me though, how is your experience as compared to mine as I wrote above? Any issues with the smaller/shorter palm rest area and trackpad? Also, what config did you get?
I got the 128 and it's great. It hasn't ran warm either so I'm very impressed. That said I haven't done any iMovie exporting or anything to that extent.
Also, the trackpad seems fine for me and the palm rest is a tad small but naturally my thumbs have been resting on the front edge of the laptop in front of the trackpad when not typing. This is a great device.
Please keep me posted. Since you and I were in the exact same boat I'm especially interested in hearing about your thoughts and observations. Thanks!
I have 2 friends with the c2d 11" air and they love the size. I had contemplated which I want for awhile. I currently have an 27" i7 iMac upstairs also, so the 11" sounds like the right choice right?
Except I decided since I'm hardly ever upstairs and actually working (kicker) and I love couch surfing all night, I went with the 13". The resolution was the main factor. Aside from that when you look at the actual dimensions, I believe the 13" is roughly 1" wider and 1" longer, which really wasn't enough for me to pick up the 11".
90% of the time, however, the only travel it's doing is from the side-table to my lap, which it's plenty small/light for me to pick up with one hand.
Hope that helps.
Except I decided since I'm hardly ever upstairs and actually working (kicker) and I love couch surfing all night, I went with the 13". The resolution was the main factor. Aside from that when you look at the actual dimensions, I believe the 13" is roughly 1" wider and 1" longer, which really wasn't enough for me to pick up the 11".
90% of the time, however, the only travel it's doing is from the side-table to my lap, which it's plenty small/light for me to pick up with one hand.
Hope that helps.
Mobile user
For what it is worth the term 'mobile', and 'portable' for that matter, is never clearly stated in each persons POV.
In terms of someone like myself who needs to move between clinics and offices fairly regularly an 11" model really fits the job as I want something which really is easy to carry with a bunch of other things quickly and without fuss. The 13" while not much larger just doesn't feel as highly 'portable' to me.
Though I must be clear that I do return to my base office within 3 hours so battery life isn't a major issue once I'm getting at least 4 hours out of it. But if portable and mobile means you are without power then it makes it almost a one horse race.
13" will give you close enough to all-day off/on computing where as the 11" will only give you 2/3rds of that.
I love my Sony TZ which gives me 8 hours and is an 11" model Sydney to Beijing on one charge on numerous occasions! But the MBA is a much sweeter machine.
For what it is worth the term 'mobile', and 'portable' for that matter, is never clearly stated in each persons POV.
In terms of someone like myself who needs to move between clinics and offices fairly regularly an 11" model really fits the job as I want something which really is easy to carry with a bunch of other things quickly and without fuss. The 13" while not much larger just doesn't feel as highly 'portable' to me.
Though I must be clear that I do return to my base office within 3 hours so battery life isn't a major issue once I'm getting at least 4 hours out of it. But if portable and mobile means you are without power then it makes it almost a one horse race.
13" will give you close enough to all-day off/on computing where as the 11" will only give you 2/3rds of that.
I love my Sony TZ which gives me 8 hours and is an 11" model
Sydney to Beijing on one charge on numerous occasions! But the MBA is a much sweeter machine.
While the dimensions and weight are facts, the "feeling" of portability is just that. If you have a tiny briefcase or backpack or cargo pants pocket that ONLY the 11" will fit, well there you have it. But at just over 9 ounces heavier and one inch wider/longer, the 13" fits is just about any "normal" briefcase or backpack. And being just as thin as the 11, you can slip it in there just as easily.
So in terms of portability, I see them very, very close together. A lot closer than some posts here make it seem.
And my advice to people on the fence is that you will be USING it a lot more than you will be CARRYING it....
Choose accordingly.There's nothing wrong with the 11", I have it and it is perfect for college. Get an external monitor for home if you're going to be on it for prolonged periods. Blows my old 4 gig acer away.