15-Inch MacBook Air vs. 13-Inch MacBook Air: Bigger, Yes, But Better?

pcmag.com:

Apple had plenty of Mac news to dish on during opening day of WWDC 2023, with the all-new 15-inch MacBook Air leading out of the gate. This is a head-turner for everyone’s favorite portable MacBook: 15 inches is a larger screen size than on any MacBook to date without the "Pro" moniker.

Naturally, that draws comparisons to the existing, smaller 13-inch MacBook Air: What are the benefits to the bigger size, how do the two compare, and is it still portable? Below, we’ve run the rule over the two systems on the basis of the publicly announced specs for the new 15-inch MacBook Air. Thanks to our colleague Brian Westover, we were also able to go hands-on with the new MacBook Air, so enjoy a closer look at the new machine as I compare it with its 13-inch predecessor below.

Normally, these year-on-year comparisons between Apple products don’t vary much in terms of physical size. This time around, though, the changes are right in the product name. This is a larger MacBook Air, with the 15-inch name denoting the screen size (not the overall laptop size). More on the actual display in a moment, but first let's see what that means for the size of the laptop chassis as a whole.

You wouldn’t be blamed for thinking that going larger with the MacBook Air may seem counterintuitive to the "portability first" design goal of the Air series, but let’s look at the specs before jumping to conclusions. The 2022 13-inch Air measures 0.44 by 11.97 by 8.46 inches (HWD) and 2.7 pounds—about as trim as it gets for the ultraportable class.

The 15-inch Air comes in at 0.45 by 13.4 by 9.35 inches, which is a moderately larger footprint. If you have an especially small bag or trusty case specifically for your 13-inch laptop, you’ll have to think about