next »

[dustin]

So I'm buying a new laptop and was wondering how people felt about their laptops sizes.  I've had my current laptop (macbook pro) for 6 years but the backlight on the screen finally gave out   I'm currently leaning towards a thinkpad as it seems durable enough to last me another 6 years.  But no matter what I choose I have to decide on a size.  These are my current thoughts.

My current laptop is 15" and around 5.5 pounds.  I often bring it with me to the library or other places to work but it is kinda heavy in my backpack and the backpacks laptop slot feels pretty full with it in there.

I've always kinda wanted a smaller laptop so it would be easier to bring around but I'm not sure how small to go.  I'm thinking 14" or 12.5", does anyone have any experience working with these or any suggestions?

[Xardov]

I've got a 13" acer laptop and I highly recommend it.  It's lighter than a textbook too.  Also, if you don't want your backpack to feel so heavy, try carrying your laptop in a laptop case instead. 

[Triplefox]

I went 15" on this current one. Want to go back to the 14" I had before, or even a bit smaller. The bigger bulk makes it more vulnerable to damage and a lot more work to carry, even if it's just an adjustment. But I think 12-14" is the sweet spot for a "full-size" that isn't a desktop replacement.

[baconman]

Mine's a 12.5", it's pretty light and comfortable, and I can easily pack it into bags and so forth; although the condensed keyboard took a little getting used to. And then, once you DO get adjusted, you kinda have to readjust back to full-size keyboards again whenever you use those.

About the only downside is how the NumPad layout kinda forces a Fn-lock to use effectively.

[iffi]

I have a Dell Mini 10v (10.1"). It's very portable and convenient to bring around everywhere, though I would say it's probably actually a little too small - the screen resolution of 1024x600 forces a lot of vertical scrolling. Also, its graphics capabilities are quite weak by modern standards, though it's good enough for the stuff netbooks are designed for (i.e. not demanding games).
Picture (not my own):

[dustin]

I've got a 13" acer laptop and I highly recommend it.  It's lighter than a textbook too.  Also, if you don't want your backpack to feel so heavy, try carrying your laptop in a laptop case instead. 

looks cool, i'll check it out.  Yeah it's not that it's to heavy in my backpack its more that I tend to wear my backpack a lot (often while biking to) so it can be strain after a while.  A laptop case wouldn't really help as it would be to hard to bring on a bike unfortunately and I think for walking around a lot I'd almost always rather just have a heavier backpack.

@baconman luckily my thin fingers are pretty good at small keyboards

@iffi  Yeah 10.1 I think sounds to small for me.  It's good to know that it's not to bad though.

@triplefox Huh glad to know about 14 instead of 15

Also just so this is clear.  This is the only computer I will own, it's not like I own a desktop and a laptop (although I do have access to desktops at the library and a shared one with roomates).  I'm thinking if I get a 12.5" though I might just get a monitor if the screen seems to small?  It seems like the general consensus is small is really  nice, but please keep the comments coming

[TeeGee]

My first laptop was 16''. While it offered a comfortable screen estate and a high resolution of 1920x1080, it was a bit too big and too heavy to carry it around casually, becoming more of a movable desktop PC than an actual portable.

My second one is a 13 incher and I like it a lot more. I have to deal with a significantly lower resolution, which is sometimes a problem, but now I can actually fit the computer in my everyday bag and carry it around without much trouble. It's also more convenient for working on a sofa or in bed.

I recommend going as small and light as possible, and just plugging to an external screen if necessary. Ends up cheaper and more flexible than buying something bigger, that's neither a real desktop nor a true portable.

[bart_the_13th]

Using a 14" lappie, but I do feel the urge to buy a smaller netbook or something with 10" display and a SSD storage. Just something than light, shockproof and not eating too much space. Something like ASUS eee PCX101

[increpare]

I do all of my work on a 13" macbook.

[CowBoyDan]

Get a 13 inch macbook air, super light, great keyboard, 5 finger gestures make working without a mouse much easier.  I get 5 hour batery  life using blender and unity.  The ssd in the air is faster than most laptop ssd drives (built into logic board)  

Love it love love it (formerly an apple hater)

[st33d]

I actually didn't hate apple till I got a 13" mac book.

Mind you, I program in Flash. So when the IDE isn't corrupting my work and FlashDevelop isn't running especially buggy on Parallels, it's great.

Which is pretty much why I rebuilt my PC. The mac just plays videos whilst I code now.

[forwardresent]

Mines a 17" Acer Aspire, it's quite heavy and barely fits in any of my bags. Sort of wish I went for a 14" or 15" but after 2 years of working with a 10" netbook I sort of went mental.

[CowBoyDan]

I actually didn't hate apple till I got a 13" mac book.

Mind you, I program in Flash. So when the IDE isn't corrupting my work and FlashDevelop isn't running especially buggy on Parallels, it's great.

Which is pretty much why I rebuilt my PC. The mac just plays videos whilst I code now.

I'm not running windows on my mac.  I still have a nice powerful win7 pc for stuff that needs windows.  My main music software only runs on windows right now, and games I play are there.  Nothing beats sitting in a lazy boy chair while working in unity or blender.  Or even gimp with a wacom tablet.

[Shackhal]

Right now i have a 15" laptop and i don't have a problem with it. But if i have to buy a new one, first i buy a powerful desktop.

After that, i'll buy a 14" laptop with video card included for portability and firepower in case i go to work in other place. For example, a TIGJAM xD

[tesselode]

I have a 13.3 inch Toshiba Portege. It's about 3 pounds, and it's about the size of a binder, so it's perfect for school. (And it plays games (like Portal 2) surprisingly well, too!)