What's your experience traveling with 15"/ 16" Laptops?

[MacAttackKev]

I recently went to the Apple store and the weight difference between the 16" and 14" doesn't seem that drastic in my opinion, and with a bigger screen real estate and better battery life, I'm beginning to question if I should just spend a bit more for 16" rather than my intended 14".

The one big issue I have with the 16" is more so the amount of space it takes up. I travel pretty frequently and I also like getting work done in coffee shops/ other sitting areas and I don't know how much of a pain it would be working on smaller tables like those pullout tables on an airplane/train as well as the space it takes up in my bag along with its larger charger.

Personally, I like traveling light with my carry-on and keeping most of my things in a suitcase so it's easier to explore around the airport/station/etc.

What's your experience traveling with larger laptops?

 

[CalMin]

The 15” was great and I loved my 2019 16” for everything… except travel. Somehow that extra bit of bulk over the 15“ crossed an invisible threshold for me. It sucked on a plane in coach class generally felt unwieldy getting in and out of bags. Having the big screen was wonderful on the road, but it was an awkward trade off. I nearly bought a used Air as travel laptop.

Still, I would have stuck with 16” until I found out that the new generation was slight thicker and half a pound heavier. That was a step too far and I bought a 14” M1 Pro.

Happy so far. I know I’ll miss the screen at times, but 4.7lbs is just too much as a travel laptop.

 

[leechers]

I frequently travel. If you travel via air it depends on a few factors. For long haul flights, 15/16 will only fit on business class and is impossible to manoeuvre on economy flights, but the 13/14 inch should be very comfortable on business and manageable, albeit a struggle, on economy if you’re medium build or slimmer. For short haul flights, the Planes are too small for any laptop.

When it comes to airports, you do get fatigued very easily with the 15/16 if you don’t have a table. Most European standard size coffee tables are cramped with the 15/16 though spacious with the 13/14. If you have access to an airport lounge any size is fine.

The extra weight of the 15/16 can be cumbersome if you’re walking long distances, but I don’t think that will be the case.

With regards to trains, European ones are tiny and you can’t fit the 15/16 without it poking at your diaphragm unless you have a table. 13/14 is fine though.

Hope that helps.

 

[jjhoekstra]

I travel a lot, mainly Europe, USA and Japan. I own a 15" pro, an Air and two of the old 12" macbooks. The goal of a trip dictates which computer I take with me: for heavy duty work, in my case running large multi-agent simulations, it have to take the pro. But if at all possible I take the 12". I like that silly little computer so much that I bought a second one after they stopped producing them. With the 12" I can easily manage my trips with only hand-luggage. My 15" will soon be exchanged for a well decked out 14" pro, not for a 16". Just my two cents.

 

[MacAttackKev]

Thank you both for the reply!
I'm usually either on long international flights or short in-state flights, and I typically fly Economy just to put my money into other things (ie restaurants/living accommodations).

I was definitely worried it would be too awkward to deal with during travel so I appreciate the insight!

 

[bill-p]

What's your experience traveling with larger laptops?

If I was in economy, I'd pretty much forget anything larger than 13" - 14". In fact, I'd just use an iPad Pro or a Nintendo Switch. Both of which are far better as entertainment devices during long flights.

Also since I have to pretty much lug all of my electronic devices with batteries in my carry-on, I'd far prefer the 14" in that case. I usually travel together with my camera gears, and so... any 0.1lbs shaved is a significant amount for me.

 

[streetsandtheatres]

I've had a 15" MBP for years and never had a problem traveling with it. So many people here are saying its not possible on economy flights, but that isn't my experience. It fits perfectly well on the standard economy table. I've never found it too heavy or bulky. If you do think 16" will be too big, then probably 14" will also be too big, in which case get in Air or, if you can, take an iPad.

 

[TSE]

Last time I had a 15" was a 2012 MacBook Pro (non retina) model. It was just too big.

This time around, I got the 14" and have zero regrets. Love this size. It's perfect. 13" is a little small. 16" was much too big.

 

[sarakn]

I've had a 15" MBP since late 2013 and have always travelled with it. I rarely use my laptop in coach, and have no issues using it in business or first class. I prefer the 15" and just ordered the 16". As far as air travel, I make an effort to not work too much on the plane - maybe read, sleep, relax, etc.

 

[HardBall]

My 2018 15" is barely doable in terms of traveling. It kind of fits onto an airliner tray, and I can do some work on it, but the posture is pretty tiring.

The new 16" is completely unworkable in terms of doing work while traveling.

 

[Lobwedgephil]

I'm a 16 guy, but for a lot of domestic flights, I would go 14 for sure. I just need the bigger screen real estate.

 

[UBS28]

For travelling on a plane, I use an iPad or just my iPhone 11 Pro Max.

Without an external mouse, 12.9 iPad Pro > MBP, as touch screen is better than the trackpad by miles.

 

[anthony13]

I do a lot of drafting on the plane and the 16 is unfortunately just not practical for it. The 13" wasn't either though, as the 13" just wasn't enough real estate for pallets. The 14", for me, was just right.

 

[haruhiko]

I thought everybody would say, hey, the 15/16 is fine, go ahead. Fortunately we have a lot of good people here. The 15/16 is just a bit too big for me. The 14 hits a sweet spot, not too big for its footprint, but due to the larger and better screen it's much better than the 13".

 

[terryw1]

I recently went to the Apple store and the weight difference between the 16" and 14" doesn't seem that drastic in my opinion, and with a bigger screen real estate and better battery life, I'm beginning to question if I should just spend a bit more for 16" rather than my intended 14".

The one big issue I have with the 16" is more so the amount of space it takes up. I travel pretty frequently and I also like getting work done in coffee shops/ other sitting areas and I don't know how much of a pain it would be working on smaller tables like those pullout tables on an airplane/train as well as the space it takes up in my bag along with its larger charger.

Personally, I like traveling light with my carry-on and keeping most of my things in a suitcase so it's easier to explore around the airport/station/etc.

What's your experience traveling with larger laptops?

I travel quite a bit and when in my hometown , am frequently on the road and at customer sites. When I’m actually home, I am either hooked up to a monitor or on the couch. I had the 15” and it was so cumbersome with the amount of travel and use in tight spaces I bought a 13” to go along with it and use when I didn’t need to do heavy lifting. I got tired of syncing them and ditched the 15”. Now I needed more power than the 13” could handle. Went with the 16 intel” ‘cause I had too. Now there’s a machine to hate! Forget about portability and use it as a heater! In no way is the 15/16 good for lotsa travel or outside the house. Can’t even use it on the couch because of the heat and noise.

I am thrilled with the new 14”. Fits everywhere I need it, on planes, trains and in the car on long trips etc. I have an iPad Pro m1 I pair with it and am able to show off my work very easily without everyone cramping the laptop.

i simply can’t imagine going larger with the ease of use, power and portability of the 14”.

 

[jpm1000]

I have a 16”. When I bought it, I figured I’ll get used to the screen and will take it everywhere with me, etc.

The reality is that that happened just few times. The majority of time it sits at home and never goes anywhere.

Opening it up on the airplane is doable but takes up too much room.

Taking it to a coffee shop makes me thing twice.

And before you to tell me to work out, I’m not a small guy lol.

It’s just a bulky laptop, no matter how you slice it.

I’m getting the 14” soon which I hope will be perfect. Then I’m selling the 16” and probably will never buy such a huge laptop again.

I’m still unsure if I should’ve bought the 13” M1 air for ultimate portability instead. So let’s see.

 

[theMarble]

I used to travel with a 15" MacBook Pro. I loved having a big screen on a plane and I have been using only 15-inch and 17-inch MacBook's for a long time now so I've gotten used it. What I still hate is for me, getting it in and out so many times for security checks, can become very annoying, very quickly.

 

[Hakiroto]

This is subjective, of course, but when I had the 16" i9 I really didn't like travelling with it. I loved the big screen when using it but when I travel I like to have all my tech in one bag — camera and lenses, MacBook, etc. With my setup, the size of the 16" and its weight were just a little too much for my liking. I sold the 16" last year and have ordered an M1 Max 14" that's due to arrive in a couple of weeks.

 

[TarkinDale]

I recently went to the Apple store and the weight difference between the 16" and 14" doesn't seem that drastic in my opinion, and with a bigger screen real estate and better battery life, I'm beginning to question if I should just spend a bit more for 16" rather than my intended 14".

The one big issue I have with the 16" is more so the amount of space it takes up. I travel pretty frequently and I also like getting work done in coffee shops/ other sitting areas and I don't know how much of a pain it would be working on smaller tables like those pullout tables on an airplane/train as well as the space it takes up in my bag along with its larger charger.

Personally, I like traveling light with my carry-on and keeping most of my things in a suitcase so it's easier to explore around the airport/station/etc.

What's your experience traveling with larger laptops?

My 15 inch was non-viable on airplane tables, but fine for coffee shops. I always carry mine in a backpack. Will do the same with my new 16 inch.

 

[antst]

In planes it all depends on your size and class you are traveling with
If you are ob smaller size and travel business, then 16 will work perfectly. Otherwise - not. Rows interval on the planes got quite tighter over the years (and I got bigger!)
Everywhere else 16 tends to be ok.
For flights, iPad Pro with magic keyboard is an option. But you are limited with what can be done. And it depends on your tasks. If you need to write last minute code - iPad (offline) is no go, but if you need draw diagrams or work on presentations - perfectly ok. But…having offline option for Miro would be fantastic.

 

[randolorian]

The screen is too small to me on the 13”/14” MBPs for serious working, so I take both a 16” MBP and an 11” iPad Pro on long flights. I use the iPad on the plane, MBP at the office or hotel room.

 

[trismeplz]

The screen is too small to me on the 13”/14” MBPs for serious working, so I take both a 16” MBP and an 11” iPad Pro on long flights. I use the iPad on the plane, MBP at the office or hotel room.

Have gotten the same setup and had the privilege of trying the 14 & 16 for a couple of days and realise that the extra screen real estate really does help with everyday task especially with multi tasking in my case…. Was contemplating on getting the iPad 12.9 inch but the 11 pro makes a really good easy travel companion…

 

[macintoshmac]

It is about time they brought back the 12" with M1 or M2.

 

[Sanpete]

I used to travel everywhere with my 17" MBP, which is much larger and heavier than the 16". I used it on flights (coach), buses, whatever, never had any trouble. (Kept it in an old crummy-looking backpack to avoid advertising it when not in use.) I can't imagine there are flights on which the seats are narrower than the 16". If there are, I'd be more worried about the plane than the laptop.

I can't tell from what people say above, but some of the issues may be just how it feels to have a larger machine while traveling. In that case, it may be a subjective preference that only you can decide for yourself.

 

[kp98077]

the 14 is better screen wise then the 13 for sure, but still desent feel to me anyway like a "true" 14 (to quiet long enough .....thats why I learn a little more towards the 16, but can't beat the 14 for portability. I do see a a lot of people out tho with 16s so must not be an issue for them!