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13(14) vs 16

E

eimis993

macrumors member
Original poster
Nov 24, 2013
81
12
Hi Everyone!

Im in need of a new machine, currently have the base 12inch from 2015.
Need a reliable machine for work inside Microsoft Remote Desktop mainly, and working with large documents inside the local system.
My 12inch struggles to open anything with more than 50 pages in word and I need to edit docs with multiple hundreds of pages.
Realistically I think I don't really need much power in the laptop, since I was able to get by with struggles with my current 12inch one. I mean it gets hot and laggy all the time, but its possible to work kinda...
Need 8-9 hour battery life with low usage, I guess all new apple laptops can achieve that.
Now onto the debate - do you think its worth for me wait for this new 13-14inch with the new keyboard (Im not buying anything with a butterfly) or should I just get refurbished base 16inch from apple?

Thanks for help!
 
If you can wait and do not need the screen real estate, the 14 inch should be more than enough to run Word and Remote Desktop.
 
Screen real estate is more than welcome but I'm afraid about the size of the laptop.
I have 28inch 4k monitor laying around and was thinking to connect the 13 or 14inch to it when I need more space and when I need to be moving around the smaller size laptop would much easier to deal with than 16. Do you think 16 is that much bigger and heavier than then current 13? Also I will be coming from 12inch, so I'm afraid its gonna be too big the 16inch.
 
As mentioned, if you can wait, do it. We'll most likely be getting a 13 or a 14 inch model with the newer keyboard sometime this year based on rumors. If there's anything that's almost a definite, its that whatever 13 inch refresh that comes out, its going to have the new keyboard. If you're in a rush and need something soon, the air (with an upgraded 4 core processor and the new keyboard) might be the sweet spot for you.
 
Exact same boat as you, although I think I'm keeping my MacBook 12 and that makes me feel better about getting the 16. The Macbook is still very usable for many things, so I think it and/or iPad pro will keep me mobile enough. But I write a lot (sounds like you do too) and my eyes aren't getting any better these days. I just feel like the 16 will be nice for long periods of reading/writing while sitting on the sofa doing work. I also do photo editing so it'll be nice for that as well.

If I was getting a single laptop as an all arounder, I think I'd wait.
 
Alright, I keep thinking about the 16inch more and more... I like everything about it, im just worried about the size for carrying. The thing is that I find myself mostly working at home on a laptop, weirdly enough since I have desktop with 28inch monitor. For some reason I just prefer working on a laptop. So in that department 16 would be better since it has bigger screen. The other thing is that sometimes I go out to work in the coffee places and bars, so Im worried would the 16 be too big for that? Another thing is that I like to game from time to time and here theres no competition between 16inch with dedicated graphics and the rest of the apple lineup. I am really tempted to just order 16inch and keep it for 5 years or so...
 
i hope your are aware of all the 16“ issues? the dedicated graphics especially are a mess. read this forum.
 
Whats the issues with the GPU? Seems like a very nice upgrade even in comparison to the vega 20.
 
Fans ramp up to full blast when connecting an external monitor and doing any work on the machine. lots of crashes due to buggy gpu switching. there are long threads covering all of this.
 
I'd wait to at least see the rumoured 13"/14" update. Compared to the 12" MacBook, the 16" is a behemoth. I used a 12" MacBook for a week whilst my 13" 2016 MBP was being repaired, and after that even the 13" MBP felt massive when I got it back. The 16" is over twice as heavy as the 12". Although difficult/impossible at the moment, I'd really recommend trying one before buying if you haven't already.

I think the 16" is a fantastic machine, but definitely not for everyone. I personally think the 13" is the perfect balance between portability and power. When I really need more real estate, I plug into a 27" external monitor and have the best of both worlds.

If the rumours are right, the smaller MBP should be updated by mid-June, if not before. If you can hang on until then, I think it's the sensible option.
 
Trouble is you can keep hanging on and never be satisfied or you can make your purchase, be happy with it. Deal with any issues that may arise and get on with life. As limited as it is nowadays...
 
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