I find the 15" too small and I would end up squinting at the screen. The 17" offers the best compromise plus the quality is exceptional on my one. The overall build of my one is pretty solid, considering it is thin and light. It gets hot granted, but it's hardly ever on my lap. I use a small table next to the sofa, job done. I always run it in silent mode too, and when I feel it hotting up I give it a quick coolerboost for a few minutes. I like the manual control. It suits me perfectly. Yes its expensive, yes it can get noisy. But it's just sublime.