I went from a 17" 2011 Macbook pro to a 15" 2015 that Apple gave me as a replacement to finally the new 16". I feel like the 16 is the best of both worlds, but I still miss that huge screen, even if it is only an inch larger. Has anyone else moved from a 17" to the 16"?
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What do lovers of the old 17" think of the new 16"?
- Thread starter venom600
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Me- I used the 17” until 2015 and always missed it and kept one around. It wasn’t until I got the 16 inch that I finally parted with a 2010 17 inch…
I have and use a 17" from 2009, and it is true that the difference in screen size is noticeable, but the 17" itself is so much bigger and heavier than the 16" it's crazy. I wouldn't want to use the 17" as any kind of portable, but as a desktop replacement it's pretty nice. In terms of size and weight and general "feel" of the laptop, I think the 16" is a lot closer to the retina MBPs from 2013-2015 than the 17". Coincidentally I have the 16" stacked on top of a 15" from 2014 on my desk, and they are almost identical in size at a glance.
MBP 16 is almost a desktop replacement and nearly match the feel of 17”. But then, bezel less 17 could have been great. It’s still compromise for desktop replacement users and also heavier for true 15” users. Think about how 15” MBP would have been with bezeless 15”.
Idk, their product offerings are little weird. What they lack is a true mobile laptop with similar performance of 13” MBP but lighter. Also 14~15” ultra portable is quiet popular and cheaper in range of 1000’s usd but Apple is not offering those.
I think the only reason Apple went 16” is due to aesthetic. They wanted to keep performance GPU, but to do so while keeping the same or smaller form factor, MBP has to have ugly bottom holes near fans like Thinkpad P1. So instead they made it little bigger and thicker, with marketing justification by introducing a new screen size. I like 16” so I’m not complaining though.
Idk, their product offerings are little weird. What they lack is a true mobile laptop with similar performance of 13” MBP but lighter. Also 14~15” ultra portable is quiet popular and cheaper in range of 1000’s usd but Apple is not offering those.
I think the only reason Apple went 16” is due to aesthetic. They wanted to keep performance GPU, but to do so while keeping the same or smaller form factor, MBP has to have ugly bottom holes near fans like Thinkpad P1. So instead they made it little bigger and thicker, with marketing justification by introducing a new screen size. I like 16” so I’m not complaining though.
I have the 16” but its up for sale now. I liked my 17” a lot better and it was less powerful. I don’t have any issues with the 16” - just too small. I think I will be better served with the new Mac Pro and that very large screen. Already have one on order. If Apple does come out with a 17” I will be first in line.
How big do you want your laptop to be? How big is too big? The old 17" was a bit of a chugger to carry around. Thick, heavy, and the screen wasn't retina. The 16" though is slim, lightweight (relatively speaking) and retina. Far better tech all around.
I've had a few 17" laptops throughout the years and I never stick with them. I also don't stick with 13" laptops either. Too small is hard to read text on and work on, too big is cumbersome for a lot of places where you want a laptop to excel for you. 14" to 16" is pretty much ideal for me, and for most people I think.
Sure, my 16" is usually the largest laptop at Starbucks, but not always. I saw a big HP the other day there, taking up half of a four top table. Most people are using the 13.3" types at places like that though. They fit in. They work best for that kind of thing.
If you're at home you can get as big as you want, so you might as well go for it and get an iMac 27". I did, in 2015, and it's still my main home computer. Still fast. Screen is still as lovely as ever. Nothing about it feels dated. And that screen is HUGE.
I've had a few 17" laptops throughout the years and I never stick with them. I also don't stick with 13" laptops either. Too small is hard to read text on and work on, too big is cumbersome for a lot of places where you want a laptop to excel for you. 14" to 16" is pretty much ideal for me, and for most people I think.
Sure, my 16" is usually the largest laptop at Starbucks, but not always. I saw a big HP the other day there, taking up half of a four top table. Most people are using the 13.3" types at places like that though. They fit in. They work best for that kind of thing.
If you're at home you can get as big as you want, so you might as well go for it and get an iMac 27". I did, in 2015, and it's still my main home computer. Still fast. Screen is still as lovely as ever. Nothing about it feels dated. And that screen is HUGE.
How that? The 17" is a huge laptop by today standards. The 16" is smaller than the unibody 15" models. In fact, it is virtually the same size as the first retina 15" model, but slightly thinner. Another fun fact: the 16" is half the volume of the 17" model
I still used a 2009 17” through 2019 on a daily basis. Over that computers lifespan, I’ve also owned about 3 dozen other computers: Mac Pros, smaller MBPs, MBAs, iMacs, Motion tablets & MS surfaces. But that old, slow, core2duo 17” battleship was still my go-to machine 90% of the time. ...I bought another new loaded iMac just a few months ago to complement it, which has sat sleeping on my desk while I’m in the workshop with the 17”. Or out on the deck, out in the boat, or etc etc etc. So I finally had to realize I just don’t sit in one place long enough to justify a workstation, maxed out a 16”, and will list the iMac for sale on here shortly.
So far, the 16” is great, for what there is of it. Coming from the old feature-rich 17”, the 16” comes off as a more bare-bones mac, with slimmer, & higher performance chipset, ram, battery, display, trackpad, and keyboard from a decade of refinements. But thats all it has, whereas I could rewrite a page about why all the extra features of the old 17“, & ability to open it up and configure drives & replace memory, made it an always-useful Swiss-army knife of a machine, and a very personal one. This new 16” is just the essentials, each very well done, but not possessing anything that any other Dell or ASUS or whatever doesn’t also have. ...except for OSX, which unfortunately is Catalina only, so of course there is no going back to a stable OS on it. So far, Catalina has been pretty glitchy, but I’m hoping these issues actually get addressed since this is Apples flagship model in their best selling MBP line. Fingers crossed I guess. The 17” now runs in my workshop, where it will live out its days running a CNC mill and being the home server.
I‘d give the 17” a 97/100.
I’d give the 16” an 80/100, but maybe OS updates will bring that up to a 85.
...still higher than I’d rate any other computer but the 17”.
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I just use my 15" MB Pro with a 27" external monitor (and keyboard/mouse) at home. Laptop on the road, desktop at home. Best of all worlds.
Fully intend to get the 16", but waiting for the point release...had to wait this long, can easily solider on with my early-2013 for another half-year or so! It definitely looks like they got it right on the 16".
Fully intend to get the 16", but waiting for the point release...had to wait this long, can easily solider on with my early-2013 for another half-year or so! It definitely looks like they got it right on the 16".
hm, i hope it's resource intensive or you're basically just blowing money on the Latest Shiny New Technology.
Here is my usage history.
2004-2005: 12" iBook G4
2005-2006: 15" PowerBook G4
2006-2009: 17" MacBook Pro (Classic style)
2009-2015: 17" MacBook Pro (Unibody style)
2015-2019: 15" MacBook Pro (Retina)
2019-Now: 16" MacBook Pro
I loved my 17" MacBook Pro's. I did not intend to keep my 2009 model for 6 years but I did hoping Apple might release another 17". They never did so in 2015 I got a 15" which was perfectly fine in-fact I loved that machine. Still wished it had a larger screen but it wasn't a sore point, that system was basically perfect in my eyes.
But when the 16" was announced.. I did freak out a little bit. I thought to myself finally a larger notebook with a big screen! - And those bezels, so thin they look great.
I've had my 16" now for about a month and a half and I love it. Really is a great machine the screen does feel noticeably larger than my previous 15" especially when I use my wife's 15" MacBook Pro from time to time, her system feels a lot smaller even though it's just an inch difference, the slimmer bezels on the 16" may play into this perception too.
So yeah for me, as a 17" owner I love the 16" I think Apple made the right decision. Now that's not to say if Apple released a 17" tomorrow I wouldn't run out and buy it, I probably would. Totally not going to happen obviously but I'm for sure a screen junkie and bigger is better when it comes to my personal preference.
16" gets a big thumbs up from me.
2004-2005: 12" iBook G4
2005-2006: 15" PowerBook G4
2006-2009: 17" MacBook Pro (Classic style)
2009-2015: 17" MacBook Pro (Unibody style)
2015-2019: 15" MacBook Pro (Retina)
2019-Now: 16" MacBook Pro
I loved my 17" MacBook Pro's. I did not intend to keep my 2009 model for 6 years but I did hoping Apple might release another 17". They never did so in 2015 I got a 15" which was perfectly fine in-fact I loved that machine. Still wished it had a larger screen but it wasn't a sore point, that system was basically perfect in my eyes.
But when the 16" was announced.. I did freak out a little bit. I thought to myself finally a larger notebook with a big screen! - And those bezels, so thin they look great.
I've had my 16" now for about a month and a half and I love it. Really is a great machine the screen does feel noticeably larger than my previous 15" especially when I use my wife's 15" MacBook Pro from time to time, her system feels a lot smaller even though it's just an inch difference, the slimmer bezels on the 16" may play into this perception too.
So yeah for me, as a 17" owner I love the 16" I think Apple made the right decision. Now that's not to say if Apple released a 17" tomorrow I wouldn't run out and buy it, I probably would. Totally not going to happen obviously but I'm for sure a screen junkie and bigger is better when it comes to my personal preference.
16" gets a big thumbs up from me.
I moved from the 17 to the 15 Retina and it was good enough though you need really good eyesight to use WUXGA on 15 inches. So moving to a 16 shouldn't be a problem. I do like the 16 but don't need to upgrade at this time.
No worries. I know what I am doing. And besides, it's my $$$$. So......
When 17” were offered, there was no 15” ultra portable really. And bezel-less also was not available. The direct comparison with previous generation gives you that, but current situation has changed hence meaning feels like. I used to own 17” and I remember how awkward to carry it around or even finding a bag that can carry it.How that? The 17" is a huge laptop by today standards. The 16" is smaller than the unibody 15" models. In fact, it is virtually the same size as the first retina 15" model, but slightly thinner. Another fun fact: the 16" is half the volume of the 17" model
Im so used to 15” from last gen that whenever I take out 16” from my bag, it sometimes surprises me how heavy it is although the difference is not that much.
Swissgear made a custom MacBook Pro 17 inch laptop case and I bought it for my 2018. I can fit three Retina 15s in the backpack.