Trading in 13" MBP for larger (maybe non unibody) MBP?

[wakka092]

I'm selling my cracked-glass MBP on eBay (linky) not only because I cracked the glass in front of the screen, but because I need a larger display. The 1280x900 isn't cutting it for me. I start college in two weeks as a CS major. It's good for light-duty usage, but when programming or even viewing web pages, things are super cramped. It drives me nuts and I can't get things done. I have shot right past power-user and I now need a mobile powerhouse. However, I am a poor college student. The 13" is no option for me. I cannot afford to buy a new 15" or 17" MBP, but my budget is $1400. In all honestly, I would swap to Win7 if I didn't write iOS apps.

So here lies the question: 15" or 17"?

- On eBay older 15" unibody MBPs can be found for around $1100+. I don't think the screens are big enough.

- There are plenty of non-unibody 17" MBP with luscious 1900x1200 resolution, but portability becomes a concern. Battery life concerns me; however, I do like that I can swap batteries. I've never found that the battery life is as outstanding as Apple claims. My old Core Duo 15" MBP had battery life as good as my 13" MPB. Despite age, the majority of them in terms of clock speed are faster than my 13" MBP.

Thanks for your help in advance!

 

[TopHatPlus]

hmm interesting, the 17 inch has the 3 usb ports and the option of esata and is definetely a HUGE screen, but the 15" is the nice 50/50 it has all the same power with more potability

i would say the 15" mbp

 

[Eddyisgreat]

as a cs lightweight I find the 13 , 15 and 17 inchers all too small to do anything serious with, but thats just because of how I operate.

I would have just gotten an external monitor (either a cheapy POS or the cadillac 24" cinema), since that'll allow you to have api docs open for quick reference.

Anyway the 17" is very portable. Unless you use your machine on planes or in cramped bathroom stalls, you should be all right. I had concerns before getting the 17" just because everyone was telling me how unwieldy it was, but I now suspect the people with the most complaints probably just walked into the apple store, looked at it and deemed it "too big" then grabbed the 13".

 

[wakka092]

as a cs lightweight I find the 13 , 15 and 17 inchers all too small to do anything serious with, but thats just because of how I operate.

I would have just gotten an external monitor (either a cheapy POS or the cadillac 24" cinema), since that'll allow you to have api docs open for quick reference.

Anyway the 17" is very portable. Unless you use your machine on planes or in cramped bathroom stalls, you should be all right. I had concerns before getting the 17" just because everyone was telling me how unwieldy it was, but I now suspect the people with the most complaints probably just walked into the apple store, looked at it and deemed it "too big" then grabbed the 13".

I thought about going the external monitor route, and it's a good idea, but I have to have total functionality everywhere. Thanks for your anecdote.. I am leaning 17" but I still want to gauge the response.

 

[wakka092]

hmm interesting, the 17 inch has the 3 usb ports and the option of esata and is definetely a HUGE screen, but the 15" is the nice 50/50 it has all the same power with more potability

i would say the 15" mbp

eSATA? How? I presume on the new ones?

 

[cluthz]

Just a tip, stay away from MBPs with nvidia 8600mGT cards..

 

[wakka092]

Just a tip, stay away from MBPs with nvidia 8600mGT cards..

Yeah, I notice your signature..

 

[AlphaDogg]

eSATA? How? I presume on the new ones?

Using an adapter for the expresscard/34 slot. Also, the 13" is 1280x800, not 1280x900.

 

[wakka092]

Ah, thanks.

 

[cluthz]

Yeah, I notice your signature..

It's a very common problem:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/515067/
2500 posts in that thread.
Apple extended warranty to 3 years on those models.
I had two logicboards and one screen replaced on mine. Finally Apple replaced it with an i5 for free.
I had very good service all the way, and the machine was great, but now when warranty is on the way out on those I wouldn't get one

 

[jbrenn]

It's a very common problem:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/515067/
2500 posts in that thread.
Apple extended warranty to 3 years on those models.
I had two logicboards and one screen replaced on mine. Finally Apple replaced it with an i5 for free.
I had very good service all the way, and the machine was great, but now when warranty is on the way out on those I wouldn't get one

Its 4 years now. but still stay away. My first card lasted about a month from being new. The second one lasted about a year. Third one is failing at 2 weeks.