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scouser75

macrumors 68030
Oct 7, 2008
2,951
619
I rarely travel with my 16, but when I do I don't notice the weight of the laptop. Nor the size when using it in public. It's the addition of the charger that kills it. Bulky and heavy
 

Jacoblee23

macrumors 65816
Nov 10, 2011
1,482
736
Honestly, the 16" is great once it's in your lap. Overall though I much prefer the 14" and wish the 16" could be more of what the 15" is in terms of portability. The 15" M2 Air is my favorite machine overall. If it had the nicer screen it would be perfect.
 

nquinn

macrumors 6502a
Jun 25, 2020
829
621
Honestly, the 16" is great once it's in your lap. Overall though I much prefer the 14" and wish the 16" could be more of what the 15" is in terms of portability. The 15" M2 Air is my favorite machine overall. If it had the nicer screen it would be perfect.

Agree. I thought the 16 might be too big at home, but it's great in your lap on the couch. I'd say it's a little big though if you want to use it in bed.
 

norwaypianoman

macrumors regular
Dec 16, 2008
246
93
Norway
HELP: I have the choice between a
M1 Pro 16inch 10/16 512ssd / 16 GB NEW - 1750 USD
M1 Max 16inch 10/32 4tb ssd / 64 GB USED - 3500 USD
M3 14 inch 8/10 1tb ssd/ 8 GB New - 2250 USD
today or tomorrow.

I plan either to buy one laptop first, and a well spec desktop later.

I plan to do composing of advanced film music and would love to have 64 GB or 96 GB,
and my minimum disk size for all projects is reall 2 TB.

REPLYING TO MYSELF
I might have 5 use cases. Which Macbook do I need ?

Heavy orchestrator: I will use orchestral samples, maybe from two different producers: Spitfire Audio and East West Soundsonline, 100-130 tracks.

Heavy live digital orchestra: I would also love to play complicated strings live, with Mainstage.

Professional Music Producer: And if I get a small project to compose for film/tv - I hope to do that too.

Part time Music Video Editor: And also, I might edit some 4K video maybe every second month, for my own music videos.

Professional Streamer: Digital Concerts. Being able to hold instrumental concert, or synth + 1 vocal concert with one computer (or maybe an extra mac)


"@geta

M1 Max with 24 GPU, 64GB ram and 2TB or 4TB SSD.
As for the size, if you planning to connect it to external monitor, i would go with the 14” for extra portability."
 
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geta

macrumors 68000
May 18, 2010
1,602
1,394
The Moon
HELP: I have the choice between a
M1 Pro 16inch 10/16 512ssd / 16 GB NEW - 1750 USD
M1 Max 16inch 10/32 4tb ssd / 64 GB USED - 3500 USD
M3 14 inch 8/10 1tb ssd/ 8 GB New - 2250 USD
today or tomorrow.

I plan either to buy one laptop first, and a well spec desktop later.

I plan to do composing of advanced film music and would love to have 64 GB or 96 GB,
and my minimum disk size for all projects is reall 2 TB.

REPLYING TO MYSELF



"@geta

M1 Max with 24 GPU, 64GB ram and 2TB or 4TB SSD.
As for the size, if you planning to connect it to external monitor, i would go with the 14” for extra portability."
If you planing to have only one machine, I would choose the used M1 Max with 64GB RAM from your options.
And if you planing to get desktop later on, you should also consider new MBP 14” (for portability) with M3 Pro, 11/14 CPU/GPU, 36GB RAM and 1 or 2TB storage.
 
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dtakias

macrumors member
Jun 3, 2008
88
61
UK
A computer in bed. That is hilarious.
What the hell is wrong with you? For us who may be working at home and from the comfort of our bed, we love having a computer in our bed. I f*cking love my 16" on my bed. The 14" is completely unstable, gets hot while charging and does not balance at all. You must be joking about using that thing for doing anything serious LMFAO
 
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bradl

macrumors 603
Jun 16, 2008
5,952
17,447
HELP: I have the choice between a
M1 Pro 16inch 10/16 512ssd / 16 GB NEW - 1750 USD
M1 Max 16inch 10/32 4tb ssd / 64 GB USED - 3500 USD
M3 14 inch 8/10 1tb ssd/ 8 GB New - 2250 USD
today or tomorrow.

I plan either to buy one laptop first, and a well spec desktop later.

I plan to do composing of advanced film music and would love to have 64 GB or 96 GB,
and my minimum disk size for all projects is reall 2 TB.

REPLYING TO MYSELF



"@geta

M1 Max with 24 GPU, 64GB ram and 2TB or 4TB SSD.
As for the size, if you planning to connect it to external monitor, i would go with the 14” for extra portability."

If you planing to have only one machine, I would choose the used M1 Max with 64GB RAM from your options.
And if you planing to get desktop later on, you should also consider new MBP 14” (for portability) with M3 Pro, 11/14 CPU/GPU, 36GB RAM and 1 or 2TB storage.

This. You aren't losing much compared to the M3 as far as speed goes, but you definitely would be futureproofing yourself with the memory and 4TB option in the M1 Max. Having the memory and the space in the SSD will help you in the long run compared to the smaller options.

I have the M1 Pro 16" 10/16/16 with 2TB and 16GB memory, and I'm expecting this to last me a good 10 years, especially seeing how long my mid-2011 MBA with 4GB and a 256GB SSD lasted me nearly 11 years. And the 16" is definitely portable, so don't be afraid of the size.

BL.
 
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FrankySavvy

macrumors 68000
Mar 4, 2010
1,616
808
Long Island, NY
I was in the same boat. The 14" is an extremely portable size but the 16" definitely has the better speakers/battery and screen real estate and thats what sold me. The more you use the 16" the smaller it gets. When you put the 14" next to the 16" it looks enormous but in normal use by itself you get used to it very quickly.
 

nquinn

macrumors 6502a
Jun 25, 2020
829
621
I use my computer in bad all the time. Just prop up pillows by the headboard and curl up and watch youtube/play on reddit.

Not good for anything productive though.
 
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Lucas Curious

macrumors 6502a
Nov 30, 2020
627
793
its simple. If you mainly use it around the house and don't have a nice Apple monitor but use creative software like video editors or photo editors, get the 16". The speakers are definitely more oomph for watching movies and the bigger screen makes it easier to use the tools and windows in the editors. Its like choosing an sedan instead of a 2 seat Miata.

If you like to move around in different positions, in bed, on couch, on lap, on planes, and dont mind a slight cramped editor workspace where you may have to re-adjust your windows but also have a nice Apple monitor for desktop docking, get the 14".

I switched from 16" to 14". Youll get used to either one. but once you use 14 for a week, you'll play with the 16 and it will appear gigantic at first use.

What gives the 14" special magic is it's easier to use in random positions such as in bed with the edge against your stomach. The keyboard is lower due to shorter trackpad so easier for hands to reach and with the 16" there as obvious pressure on my stomach but the 14 is fine and light.

I want a grab and go anywhere laptop and when I used the 16" I ended up taking the iPad mini on the go and never really liked it. I paired the 14" with a peak design 15L Zip backpack for a waterproof and airplane personal item bag setup.

So I will say if you have a nice monitor and like to move around, get the 14". if you mainly use photoshop, Davinci Resolve etc and you prefer to keep laptop on a desk, get the 16". If you simply type documents, get the 14" as well because the documents even is side by side are more central located on the 14 as opposed to feel too much to the sides on the 16". The 14 makes me feel like I can stare directly straight and see whats on the screen meanwhile bigger screens make me look around or to the side which causes fatigue when dealign with reading/writing material.
 

hovscorpion12

macrumors 68040
Sep 12, 2011
3,044
3,123
USA
Just got the 14" M3 Pro. Installed all my custom Fan curves through TG Pro. Going to put the 14" through its paces and make my final decision before return policy expires. I've been a 16" user for a while. Fan & throttle has been a major concern in regards to my decision of a 14" or 16".
 

bradl

macrumors 603
Jun 16, 2008
5,952
17,447
Just got the 14" M3 Pro. Installed all my custom Fan curves through TG Pro. Going to put the 14" through its paces and make my final decision before return policy expires. I've been a 16" user for a while. Fan & throttle has been a major concern in regards to my decision of a 14" or 16".

I was about to ask about this and if they fixed those issues, as they existed since the M1 Pro and M1 Max came out. If they haven't, then I would still be sticking with the 16" until they do, should I upgrade again.

BL.
 
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hovscorpion12

macrumors 68040
Sep 12, 2011
3,044
3,123
USA
I was about to ask about this and if they fixed those issues, as they existed since the M1 Pro and M1 Max came out. If they haven't, then I would still be sticking with the 16" until they do, should I upgrade again.

BL.

I can't confirm on those issues. I am using these settings.

img_0917-jpeg.2324594
 
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Flash1420

macrumors regular
Sep 17, 2022
180
378
I have the 14-inch MacBook Pro M3 Pro right now and I am going to exchange it for the 16-inch MacBook Pro. The portability is amazing and the device overall is amazing, but the screen just feels limited especially during multi-tasking. The key rule is that if your device is at home 90% of the time, then go with the 16-inch.
 
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Flash1420

macrumors regular
Sep 17, 2022
180
378
Also, the battery on the 14-inch isn't terrible and is still better than most Windows laptops but it isn't good as the 16-inch MacBook Pro. If I push it hard, the 14-inch would last until noon (I start my work around 7:30AM). I previously had the M1 Pro 16-inch and that would last until 3:00PM. I wanted the unbinned M3 Pro and the only choices at the Apple Store are the 14-inch 1TB ($2399) or the 16-inch 512GB ($2499). The price difference is negligible considering the overall prices of the two machines. You can always put an external SSD or something, but can't upgrade screen size down the road. If 80% of your work is done at home, then I would go with the 16-inch, but if you frequently travel then the 14-inch might be the best
 
Last edited:
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