2012 MBP vs. 2013 models?

[Doc69]

My sister needs a new laptop. She is a regular user, i.e. web browsing, email, watching movies etc. Nothing heavy. But she wants at least 500GB of storage for her iTunes library.

So after looking through all the available models, it looks to me as if the 2012 13" MPB is the best deal for her. It can be had new for $1,100. It has a 500GB hard drive, but as this model has a DVD drive as well, she can later add an SSD and keep the hard drive. Another plus is that she can upgrade the RAM herself should she need more. And she doesn't seem to mind that the old model is heavier than the new ones or the MBA.

What do you guys think? Is there any reason she should not buy this one? I just never like to buy old computer technology.

 

[covertash]

Personally, I don't have a problem with buying old computers if it fits the intended usage exactly as needed. In fact, if this is a used one, you may be able to negotiate the price further down a little bit as well. 😉

 

[Doc69]

I ended up buying the previous 13" MBP retina model instead of the 2011 model. It cost only $70 more and had 8GB of RAM instead of 4GB. She'll just have to keep her iTunes library on an external drive.

I bought it from B&H for $1,170 including 8GB of RAM. That seems like a great deal, because my sister wouldn't notice any difference anyway compared to the new model, except for the better battery life.