Any recommendations for where to buy cheap Apple Laptop for iOS development

helpanoobout · Mar 14, 2013, 09:59 AM

Hello,
Looking for the cheapest bare minimum laptop for iOS development. What specs would you say are needed? I'm just learning how to program so I just want to test it out first. Was looking for a 13" screen. Also, someone was telling me you can't replace the battery on some macs as they are soldered in place? That would be my only concern with buying used is that it would have horrible battery life and I would not be able to change it out easily. Budget would be sub $600. Is the latest Mac OS required?

GGJstudios · Mar 14, 2013, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by helpanoobout

Hello,
Looking for the cheapest bare minimum laptop for iOS development. What specs would you say are needed?

iOS Dev Center - iOS Developer Program

Quote:

To develop with the iOS SDK and Xcode, you must have an Intel-based Mac running Mac OS X Snow Leopard or later

justperry · Mar 14, 2013, 10:10 AM

If you do this at home a Mac Mini would be an option and a cheap monitor.

helpanoobout · Mar 14, 2013, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justperry

If you do this at home a Mac Mini would be an option and a cheap monitor.

Yeah, I actually just bought a mac mini at home. I work on the road a lot though so I wanted a very cheap mac laptop for this. Any suggestions on places to buy used or refurb? Little wary of eBay/craigslist. Apple store refurb price is still pretty rediculous.

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I'm thinking about getting the 2008 model MB466LL/A Macbook. Is 2gb enough memory or should I be upgrading to 4gb?

justperry · Mar 14, 2013, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by helpanoobout

Yeah, I actually just bought a mac mini at home. I work on the road a lot though so I wanted a very cheap mac laptop for this. Any suggestions on places to buy used or refurb? Little wary of eBay/craigslist. Apple store refurb price is still pretty rediculous.

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I'm thinking about getting the 2008 model MB466LL/A Macbook. Is 2gb enough memory or should I be upgrading to 4gb?

Think the only option is just that, Ebay and Craigslist.

For a few dollars more I would go to at least 4 GB.

helpanoobout · Mar 14, 2013, 10:57 AM

Yeah, think I will go for ebay. Thanks. How easy is it to change the battery on an older model say 2008? Read somewhere that some mac laptops had batteries glued or soldered or something like that...

notjustjay · Mar 14, 2013, 01:34 PM

If you can scrape together a little more, I'd consider a refurb MacBook Air from the Apple store. I've seen them in the $800-900 range. They'll last longer, have a warranty, and you won't need to worry about upgrading batteries or anything right off the bat.

helpanoobout · Mar 14, 2013, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by notjustjay

If you can scrape together a little more, I'd consider a refurb MacBook Air from the Apple store. I've seen them in the $800-900 range. They'll last longer, have a warranty, and you won't need to worry about upgrading batteries or anything right off the bat.

Yeah, really not looking to spend more than $600. When do the 2013 models come out? Maybe I'll wait till then, prices for the 2009, 2010 models may fall some after that?

notjustjay · Mar 14, 2013, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by helpanoobout

Yeah, really not looking to spend more than $600. When do the 2013 models come out? Maybe I'll wait till then, prices for the 2009, 2010 models may fall some after that?

I think last year (and possibly the year before that, too) the updated MacBook Airs showed up in mid-July.

rusty2192 · Mar 14, 2013, 05:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by helpanoobout

Yeah, think I will go for ebay. Thanks. How easy is it to change the battery on an older model say 2008? Read somewhere that some mac laptops had batteries glued or soldered or something like that...

2008 models are super simple to replace the battery. It wasn't until much later that they started making the batteries non-user-replaceable.

Mar 14, 2013, 09:59 AM	#1
helpanoobout macrumors newbie Join Date: Mar 2013	Any recommendations for where to buy cheap Apple Laptop for iOS development Hello, Looking for the cheapest bare minimum laptop for iOS development. What specs would you say are needed? I'm just learning how to program so I just want to test it out first. Was looking for a 13" screen. Also, someone was telling me you can't replace the battery on some macs as they are soldered in place? That would be my only concern with buying used is that it would have horrible battery life and I would not be able to change it out easily. Budget would be sub $600. Is the latest Mac OS required?
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Mar 14, 2013, 01:34 PM	#7
notjustjay macrumors 603 Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Canada, eh?	If you can scrape together a little more, I'd consider a refurb MacBook Air from the Apple store. I've seen them in the $800-900 range. They'll last longer, have a warranty, and you won't need to worry about upgrading batteries or anything right off the bat. __________________ .
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Mar 14, 2013, 10:10 AM	#3
justperry macrumors 603 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: 7 Km South of an active upside down volcano.	If you do this at home a Mac Mini would be an option and a cheap monitor.
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Mar 14, 2013, 10:57 AM	#6
helpanoobout Thread Starter macrumors newbie Join Date: Mar 2013	Yeah, think I will go for ebay. Thanks. How easy is it to change the battery on an older model say 2008? Read somewhere that some mac laptops had batteries glued or soldered or something like that...
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