Buying a Macbook Pro

[topcat2006]

Im looking for a second hand Macbook Pro and trying to work out what age is my cutoff.

I want to be able to keep the os as current as possible so looking on the apple website it says the latest os will need a mid 2007 machine or later.

Does this tie in with when the intel chips were used or is there more to it than that?

Thanks

Tom

 

[shay]

I'd go for a 2010 model. I'm using a 2010 13". You can upgrade the memory to 8g and it's very easy to update the hard drive. It has the unibody which is very robust and it doesn't get too hot,still does get warm tho'.

It will run the latest OS, I'm running 10.8 without any issues. I'd like a macbook air but this 13" is still flying along, I run a ton of apps at the same time and it doesn't slow down.

 

[Jason P]

If you can stretch to one with Thunderbolt connection it will be fairly future-proofed...

 

[Wilsdorf]

Ideally, you want an i5 or i7 chip, rather than an earlier chip.

I picked up a retina macbook pro for around 50% of new price, less than a year old - bit of a bargain and it was hardly used - they are out there. There is then the cost of software if you want Windows and a few other things - I run both OS and tend to use the Windows more for business, as I need word/excel, outlook etc.

On the earlier systems you can upgrade the ram - but unless you are handy with a solder and know what you are doing, it's not quite so easy with the new set up.

I'd recommend paying the extra for the more modern MacbookPro - it is almost as thin as an air and not much heavier - but full size screen - if you can afford the retina, the display is much better too - and helps with any photo editing you may want to do. I have a Series 9 Samsung which I'd also recommend if you need something lightweight for travel.

I am not Apple fan, and only bought one as I was disappointed by the screen resolution on portable lap-tops.