13-Inch vs. 15-Inch MacBook Air Buyer's Guide

[ThomasJL]

MacBook Air is undoubtedly a great computer, however do you remember how proud Steve Jobs was pulling the original one out of that envelope during the presentation? The whole point of Air was to have a very light and portable computer to carry around. So to me it feels kind of sad to see Air getting bigger and heavier.

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I agree. The “Air” in the MacBook Air name was meant by Steve Jobs to be a reference to its light weight and it being the lightest product in a given product line. Tim Cook is a man of mediocrity who doesn’t care about the logic behind naming conventions, which is why he approved the use of the name “MacBook” for a computer that was lighter than the MacBook Air. Clueless Cook also approved of the name “iPad Air” for an iPad that is not the lightest in the iPad line. He also approved the use of the name “MagSafe” for an phone charger which does absolutely nothing to keep the phone safe from a fall.

 

[thehunted]

M1 with 8GB base has been out for almost 3 years. I don't see a lot of blowback from M1 owners w/8GB memory complaining that their MacBooks and Mini's are unusable now. Do you?

depending on who you ask, and where you collecting the sample pool from, 4gb was alright but quickly became obsolete around 2015, same will happen to 8gb if not already, my 8gb mba started memory swapping 4 months into ownership, after 7gb swapped it took a toll on the OS and random apps start freezing/crashing.

 

[LeeW]

It's one of the best devices to come out for a while. Bit big for me though, still love the 13". It's big enough when on the move and when not it gets plugged into a 32" display.

 

[brilliantthings]

These are available for purchase next week. Are they on display in Apple stores yet? Or will they only be on display next week?

Edit: apparently on display from next week

 

[Churchman]

I am the guy who does not replace anything until the self-destruct light starts blinking.

I bought my current 15inch MBP 10 years ago - Dec 2013. It's a near maxed out MBP with the Intel chip that has been AWESOME these last ten years. I maxed out everything (except for my SSD storage) because I did not want to have a thought about replacement for at least 5 years. So at 10 years, I feel really good. It has only been in the last two years that I remembered it has a fan in it. In the last two years it seems that the interwebs and some of my graphics work have begun to tax my MBP fairly regularly. But for years, that fan (and the accompanying heat) was non-existent to me.

OK, I like the new 15inch MBA. I really like it in midnight. The starting price for this 15inch MBA is the deal of the century!

I have decided that I will likely replace my 2013 15inch MBP in Q1 2024. But I want to see what Apple does by Q1 2024.

My feeling is that Apple will:
- Likely install a base M3 chip into the MB Pros by Q3 2023 or Q1 2024
- Likely upgrade MB Airs with M2 Pro / Max / Ultra chip in Q1 2024
- Likely upgrade MB Pros to M3 Pro / Max / Ultra by Q3 2024
- Likely upgrade MB Airs to base M3 by Q4 2024

If Apple does a 16inch MB Pro with a base M3 chip in Q1 2024, which can be nicely ordered for less than $4K - that will be my next notebook.

But if Apple does an upgraded 15inch MB Air with M2 Pro/Max/Ultra in Q1 2024... AND gives the 15-Air a better screen, better battery life, better graphics, and up to 64Gig unified memory... for less than $3K, this will be my next notebook. I need the size and speed. I love the lighter weight. I hate the reduced number of ports but I can find a work around for this.

 

[sideshowuniqueuser]

Most users won't notice the difference between the 8- and 10-core GPUs, but it is nice that Apple is including the higher specs in the base 15" model.

 

[sideshowuniqueuser]

It's not nice at all. If all you want is a bigger screen, then you are forced to pay extra for more GPU's. With the 13", you actually get to choose either 8 or 10 GPU's. With 15" you have no choice, and are simply getting 10, and paying the extra whether you need it or not. It's really really not nice.

Even worse if all you want is the 16" screen in a laptop.

 

[Kawawolf]

I initially thought it was a good price point, but then I hear that the base spec still sits at 256gb and 8gb of RAM. An upgrade in either department and it doesn't sound so great anymore when Mac Pros can be bought at similar price points. Depending on what one does with this computer, those specs might barely be enough.

I personally like mine at 512gb and 16gb of RAM, notably because these web browsers these days are just sucking memory like no tomorrow with only a few things open. Even my old 2015 pro can breathe easily with the 16gb of RAM if I get a little nuts with browser tabs in Brave.

 

[Drewps5co0tt]

I would love a m2 Mac, but spending 2k on a laptop that cannot handle dual 1080p screens is a dealbreaker for me. I’ll wait another year for the 3rd time, and see if maybe windows will entice me to switch.

Why do people need to connect to two external displays from a laptop? That's always intrigued me. Ya'll acting like you Oprah or something. 😂🤣

 

[darngooddesign]

I am the guy who does not replace anything until the self-destruct light starts blinking.

I bought my current 15inch MBP 10 years ago - Dec 2013. It's a near maxed out MBP with the Intel chip that has been AWESOME these last ten years. I maxed out everything (except for my SSD storage) because I did not want to have a thought about replacement for at least 5 years. So at 10 years, I feel really good. It has only been in the last two years that I remembered it has a fan in it. In the last two years it seems that the interwebs and some of my graphics work have begun to tax my MBP fairly regularly. But for years, that fan (and the accompanying heat) was non-existent to me.

OK, I like the new 15inch MBA. I really like it in midnight. The starting price for this 15inch MBA is the deal of the century!

I have decided that I will likely replace my 2013 15inch MBP in Q1 2024. But I want to see what Apple does by Q1 2024.

My feeling is that Apple will:
- Likely install a base M3 chip into the MB Pros by Q3 2023 or Q1 2024
- Likely upgrade MB Airs with M2 Pro / Max / Ultra chip in Q1 2024
- Likely upgrade MB Pros to M3 Pro / Max / Ultra by Q3 2024
- Likely upgrade MB Airs to base M3 by Q4 2024

If Apple does a 16inch MB Pro with a base M3 chip in Q1 2024, which can be nicely ordered for less than $4K - that will be my next notebook.

But if Apple does an upgraded 15inch MB Air with M2 Pro/Max/Ultra in Q1 2024... AND gives the 15-Air a better screen, better battery life, better graphics, and up to 64Gig unified memory... for less than $3K, this will be my next notebook. I need the size and speed. I love the lighter weight. I hate the reduced number of ports but I can find a work around for this.

That’s the 16” MBP. The 15” Air won’t get those chips because it doesn’t have cooling fans. The MBPs get the better screens.

 

[thehunted]

Likely upgrade MB Airs with M2 Pro / Max / Ultra chip in Q1 2024

i don't think apple will ever shove a pro chip into the air.

 

[KPOM]

It's not nice at all. If all you want is a bigger screen, then you are forced to pay extra for more GPU's. With the 13", you actually get to choose either 8 or 10 GPU's. With 15" you have no choice, and are simply getting 10, and paying the extra whether you need it or not. It's really really not nice.

Even worse if all you want is the 16" screen in a laptop.

It’s $100 more than the 13” with the 8 core GPU was going for last week. You get 2 extra speakers, 2 extra GPU cores, and a bigger display.

Based on the screen size alone plus the base price of the 14” MBP $1499 was a plausible price for the 15.3” Air. That it’s $1299 is a good thing. And it’s already eligible for a “back to school” sale. The 15” will be discounted within a few months. It’s priced to sell and that’s good.

 

[TallManNY]

Insanely good price. Though I still think Apple will reap what they've sowed in a few years shipping this many fantastic computers with only 8gb of non-upgradeable RAM. There will be hundreds of thousands of purchasers of these computers buying them with an expectation of 10 years of useful life. And I think 8gb of RAM is going to be a seriously limiting factor even for casual users well before five years from now. The rest of the hardware will still be fantastic five years from now, the CPU/GPU will be adequate, but the RAM is going to be a bottleneck.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

How do the speaker and display compare to the 16" MBP? I just bought a 16" MBP 6 days ago and I'm considering returning it for this, but won't do it if the speakers and display are far worse. A similar spec'd 15" MBA with 16/1TB is $1,000 less than the pro.

Of course the speakers and display are worse in the 15. Did you even bother to read about the MBP 16 before you shelled out $3000?

MacBook Pro

MacBook Pro laptop with M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max chips. Built for Apple Intelligence. Up to 24 hours of battery life. Liquid Retina XDR display.

www.apple.com

 

[BanjoDudeAhoy]

MacBook Air is undoubtedly a great computer, however do you remember how proud Steve Jobs was pulling the original one out of that envelope during the presentation? The whole point of Air was to have a very light and portable computer to carry around. So to me it feels kind of sad to see Air getting bigger and heavier.

Bigger and heavier? Technically, yes. But I daresay it's just about negligible.
For a 15" laptop, the new MBA is extremely thin and light.

According to Apple's website, the 15" MBA measures:

• Height: 0.45 inch
• Width: 13.40 inches
• Depth: 9.35 inches
• Weight: 3.3 pounds

According to Everymac.com, the original MBA measured:

• Height: 0.16-0.76 inches (because of the taper)
• Width: 12.8 inches
• Depth: 8.94 inches
• Weight: 3.0 pounds

The 15" might even still fit in that envelope.

 

[one more]

Bigger and heavier? Technically, yes. But I daresay it's just about negligible.
For a 15" laptop, the new MBA is extremely thin and light.

According to Apple's website, the 15" MBA measures:

• Height: 0.45 inch
• Width: 13.40 inches
• Depth: 9.35 inches
• Weight: 3.3 pounds

According to Everymac.com, the original MBA measured:

• Height: 0.16-0.76 inches (because of the taper)
• Width: 12.8 inches
• Depth: 8.94 inches
• Weight: 3.0 pounds

The 15" might even still fit in that envelope.

My mistake, I thought that the original MBA was 11”, not 13”. 🖐️

 

[BanjoDudeAhoy]

My mistake, I thought that the original MBA was 11”, not 13”. 🖐️

Also my bad - I should have know people had collected the data already. Here I was happy to have something to do with my downtime at work. I didn't mean to dogpile

 

[darngooddesign]

…

 

[Steve121178]

MacBook Air is undoubtedly a great computer, however do you remember how proud Steve Jobs was pulling the original one out of that envelope during the presentation? The whole point of Air was to have a very light and portable computer to carry around. So to me it feels kind of sad to see Air getting bigger and heavier.

The 13" Air hasn't gone away but the 15" Air just makes so much more sense. If I was in the market for a new machine I'd definitely opt for the 15" model. The larger screen really does make it the perfect machine for almost everyone who doesn't need the horsepower of the premium Pro MacBooks.

 

[fourthtunz]

Except that the 16GB/512GB configuration should be thought of as the "default" configuration (especially if comparing with MBP), which at $1700 removes some of the sweetness.
I expect several will jump in and say 8GB is fine. Yeah well, sure, it can be, so good luck with that.

Yeah, I have the basic m1 with the 256 and the eight gigs of ram works for almost everything, I’m sure if I had a huge logic session it might bog down, but it does pretty well with everything I do. I think the strip down configuration is good for people who don’t want to spend more money but the upgrades are crazy expensive! I wish they had offered the M1 in a 15 inch!

 

[msackey]

Eh. I’d still choose the 13”. If I wanted a bigger laptop, I’d get a MacBook Pro.

I think I like the 13" too, in a sense. But, I don't like that the MBA 13" uses the old design language. If they updated the MBA 13" to the current design language, then I think it's a sure hit for me that if I choose Air I'd go for 13".

 

[msackey]

Helpful rundown. Thanks for posting it. My mainstay Mac is a 2015 13” MBA. Turns out it is almost exactly halfway between the current 13” and 15” MBAs!

….. ……….. 13” now …. 13” then…..15” now
Width……..11.97 … vs. … 12.8 ..… vs. .….. 13.4
Depth………8.46 … vs. .…. 8.94 ….. vs. ...… 9.35
Weight….….2.7 .… vs. ….… 3 …..…. vs. ….… 3.3

Leaves me in a quandary. Do I go 15” or 13” for the replacement?

Lots more screen real estate with the 15”, which would be good, but would it be worth the much greater width, depth, and weight? And, $200+ more?

The 2015 13” MBA already teeter-totters a bit on the lap. However, once one's palms are on it, it balances better.

Maybe a 14” MBP is the compromise — only 12.3 across, 8.71 deep, but 3.5 pounds! Ouch! Yet, all those ports! But the expense! Almost $500 more. Double ouch!

The 13.6” M2 MBA looks pretty good in these comparisons!

——————————

Elsewhere, I noted that the average height of the older 13” (~.4”) is significantly less than that of the current 13” MBA with its MBP-design language (.44”)!

If the bigger size of the 15" is not a bother for you, say to carry around, have in your backpack, use under the conditions you would use the laptop for, etc., then I would say it's worth paying the $200 for the 15" in comparison to 13".

As to whether the 15"MBA or 14"MBP, that for me would be a harder choice. I generally prefer my laptops to be smaller, so the MBP is a win. HOWEVER, am I willing to pay $500 for the additional features of the 14" MBP? I don't know as I'd have to really sit down and compare whether those additional features would help further future proof the machine. If yes, then I probably would pay more for the features even if the screen real estate is smaller.

 

[msackey]

I am the guy who does not replace anything until the self-destruct light starts blinking.

I bought my current 15inch MBP 10 years ago - Dec 2013. It's a near maxed out MBP with the Intel chip that has been AWESOME these last ten years. I maxed out everything (except for my SSD storage) because I did not want to have a thought about replacement for at least 5 years. So at 10 years, I feel really good. It has only been in the last two years that I remembered it has a fan in it. In the last two years it seems that the interwebs and some of my graphics work have begun to tax my MBP fairly regularly. But for years, that fan (and the accompanying heat) was non-existent to me.

[...]

I really like hearing how you've had your MBP for 10 years! That is a long time for a laptop. I recall in the earlier days, laptops the way I used them had to be replace earlier than that because they would slow down at some point with the latest System x upgrade or macOS xyz upgrade. But these days, that doesn't seem to be happening.

My laptop is a 2017 13" intel MBP touch bar. It's 6 years old but it does not feel slow at all, unlike back in the earlier days I think a laptop that old would feel very slow and close to being unable to handle the later software revisions.

I'm hoping that my laptop can last me another 3 or 4 years at least! But, I will say the new design language for the laptops are enticing and I do like the nicer screens... ;-)

 

[Gengar]

I think I like the 13" too, in a sense. But, I don't like that the MBA 13" uses the old design language. If they updated the MBA 13" to the current design language, then I think it's a sure hit for me that if I choose Air I'd go for 13".

The latest M2 13” (technically 13.6”) has the same exact design as the new 15” if I’m not mistaken?

 

[darngooddesign]

The latest M2 13” (technically 13.6”) has the same exact design as the new 15” if I’m not mistaken?

You are correct, but I think they were talking about the 13” M1 (old wedge design) not the 13” M2 (new design).