gdenny

I'm a lowly silver, qualifying yearly strictly on segments as I usually acquire about 32 flights from DSM-ORD and DSM-DEN. As a silver, everyone knows that my upgrade rate is about 1 for every 30 flights I take. Not a huge deal since these are all short flights and as long as I'm not in a CRJ 200, I can make it work.

Needing to fly DSM-SAN in early November and have a choice of 2 of my 4 segments being on a 757 or 737-900. I've flown pretty much nothing but UA for the past several years and haven't been on any flavor of a 737 in a LONG time. If you were a silver and not counting on any kind of an upgrade, which equipment would you choose for comfort?

BTW--I've flown into SAN a couple of times for personal trips and love that airport. Busiest single-runway airport in the country!

Thanks for any information you can provide!

andrewwm

Depends on what you value. The UA planes will have overhead monitors that will show a mix of tv/movies while the 737 will (9/10 chance) have pay DirectTV and power outlets for each seat. Many say that the 757 E+ seats are more comfortable (the 737 seats are known for being very "firm").

In summary:

9/10 chance 737 has DirectTV (pay) and power outlets
1/10 chance no IFE or power
10/10 chance of hard seats

757, overhead IFE, more comfortable seats.

Legend717

The 737 seats in coach most closely resemble park benches.
The 757 in row 7ABC (ex-Continental plane) have no seat in front of you, so you've literally got more legroom than the people in First.
the ex-United 757's, I think the same is true of row 8. Check seatguru on that.

My vote is 757, even though I love the 737 mechanically.

FriendlySkies

Even as a silver, I'd choose the 757. From a performance standpoint, the 757 is a lot more fun to be in on take-off. the 737 feels like it struggles to get airborne..

On the inside, the Y seats are a lot more comfortable. If you can get the exit row, you'll have a great deal of legroom (more than F).

FlyerChrisK

I would optimize for getting E+.

I love the 757 mechanically (compared to the 737) due to its superior thrust-to-weight ratio

cranky1K

8ABC on the pmUA 757 are probably better than 7ABC on the pmCO 757.

Overall I'd vote for E+ on the 757.

gdenny

Thanks for the feedback thus far. Seems like most would prefer the 752. I SINCERELY appreciate the info!

atk5015

It sounds like entertainment is not a factor for you, which my preference would be the 757 - I just enjoy that equipment over a 737 any day.

If you do want the entertainment piece (i.e. DirectTV), then 737 is the way to go.

harryhood

Unless you really want to watch a good selection of TV, go 757. They feel roomier. The seats on 737's just feel awful -- rock hard and possibly narrower.