<p>I'm going to buy a new laptop soon, and I'm deciding between the 13" and 15" Macbook Pro. I went to the store and looked at both of them and talked to someone in there. </p>
<p>I liked the 15" better, but my only concern is that it was rather bulky. Do you think it's too big to be convenient for taking notes in class and carrying around?</p>
<p>No. I have a 15" laptop (actually 15.4 or 15.6 or whatever) and I wouldn’t want it any smaller.</p>
<p>I found it a bit bulky. My old laptop from five years ago was a 15". While it was managable, the weight was definitely there. My new 13" UL30A is much better for mobility, as I can hardly feel it in my bag.</p>
<p>No. It weighs one pound more and about an inch and a half wider (12.78 inches vs 14.35). I don’t think that the threshold of big and bulky is crossed in that narrow range.</p>
<p>I should also add that I don’t carry my laptop in my hands, but keep it in my messenger bag. That probably has something to do with my perceived weight difference between the two laptops.</p>
<p>I’m pretty sure you’re the only one.</p>
<p>I have a 13" and I’m really happy with it. My cousin has the larger one and I didn’t think it was all that much better or different really. I think the smaller one is kind of nice, but really you can’t go wrong either way. One thing is that mine does not have an audio input for like a microphone, while the 15" my cousin has does. I think you can get USB microphones, though.</p>
<p>So basically this post doesn’t help at all haha.</p>
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<p>Seeing as how this is in the computers section and we get these questions all the time, I agree with detailmore. I’m pretty sure you’re the only one :p</p>
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<p>Zalman makes some great clip-on microphones (~$20 each, I think) that have very excellent quality. They surpass onboard mics and even many headset mics.</p>
<p>If this is a laptop you plan on carrying around nearly every single day, then I would stop at the 13.3" mark. There are many people who feel that 13.3" laptops offer the largest weight they would consider lugging around on a daily basis and the smallest screen they would consider doing “real” work on.</p>
<p>^Exactly. I plan to carry a laptop around the campus, use it during classes etc., so I ultimately decided to get a 13" MBP. For a while I was even thinking about getting something around 11", but then I decided that the screen would be too small for my primary computer. 13" is, I believe, a very good compromise if you think about weight, size, screen and power. </p>
<p>Do not get me wrong, it’s not like 15" MBP will break you back. It is perfectly possible to carry it around. For me however having as light backpack as possible is a quite important thing. Frankly, if MBA was recently updated, I would probably buy it instead of MBP.</p>
<p>Thanks for the thoughts. It’s not so much the weight I’m worried about as it is the size. I could see it being cumbersome to take in and out of a bag, too big to use in class for notes, maxing out backpack space. But I’m quite used to a heavy backpack. </p>
<p>Something that I really liked that was only available in the 15" was an antiglare screen. That’s been a big pro to me. </p>
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<p>It crossed my mind while typing it, haha</p>
<p>I carried around a 15" laptop for my first two years and it was fine. I have a netbook now and my laptop is essentially a desktop replacement but anything under 17" is fine IMHO.</p>
<p>If you’re not gonna lug it around to class, 15.4 inch widescreen is great to watch movies, etc. Bigger than that is a beast of a laptop!</p>
<p>D has a 14" and found it to be a good compromise between size and portability.</p>
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<p>Space permitting, I’d actually recommend an external monitor for this. Even the Intel 4500 GMA, the lowest of the low of current graphics solutions, can handle movie playback on a 1920x1080 monitor.</p>
<p>Chances are you’re going to watch movies in your dorm/apartment, not in class or in the cafe, so IMO an external monitor would be the best solution. They also serve very well for long-term projects; I found the extra real estate to be less tiring than even a 15" laptop screen.</p>
<p>I’ve had a 15.6" laptop for two years. And during the school year, I take it to class* at least* every other day. </p>
<p>I haven’t found it to be too big. In my dorm, I love the size. I couldn’t go wrong.</p>
<p>Sometimes it feels a bit heavy, and it seems like if it were 1 pound lighter, it’d be like lifting a boulder off my back, but on those days, I’m usually carrying tons of books anyway. 
Unless you’re extremely week, you should definitely be able to carry it around. Except those few days when my backpack is already heavy, I’ve had no problem. In class, it might seem large (since many other people have 13.3" Macbooks), but it’s not something I’ve paid much attention to. Fits in my backpack just fine, not a problem to take out, etc.</p>
<p>I like having a larger screen. 13.3" is acceptable. I wouldn’t go smaller than 14.1" though, but 13.3" is more than enough to satisfy most people. </p>
<p>So no, I don’t think it’d be inconvenient for you. :]</p>
<p>Thanks for the opinions. I ended up choosing the 15". I liked everything about that better BUT the size. So it’s reassuring to hear that it won’t be a problem.</p>
<p>that’s what she said…</p>
<p>If you’re a movie junkie, you might as well invest in a projector and watch films on a white dorm room wall.</p>
<p>I mean, Avatar is merely tolerable on the bigscreen. Add a 15" screen and what you have is a spectacularly shoddy movie experience.</p>
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I entered this thread for the sole purpose of saying this. Damn you.</p>
<p>^^ No, I’m not a movie junkie. I’m sure a 15" screen will suffice for my purposes.</p>