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2012 Retina 256GB vs 2013 Retina 128GB?

D

Danny51

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 28, 2014
8
0
Hey guys,

I recently made a post regarding purchasing a refurbished laptop, I am now looking into buying them locally and have narrowed it down to two choices.

Choice #1

Late 2013 Macbook Pro Retina 13"
4GB Ram
128GB SSD
Iris

$950

Choice #2

Late 2012 Macbook Pro Retina 13"
8GB Ram
256 GB SSD
Intel 4000

$1000


A $50 difference, and Choice 2 seemed to be the best to me because of the Increased ram and Hard drive space.. but I also know that the late 2013 models went through some slightly significant changes including weight/size reduction as well as a new chipset (Haswell I believe) and Iris video. Which ones best you guys think? Both are nearing the ends of their warranty and I will most likely pickup apple care before they do.

Let me know !
Thanks
 
Choice 2... $50 is worth the extra RAM alone, considering it's not upgradable.

And double the storage.

I gotta ask where are you getting a retina 8gb/256 for $1000?
 
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Well its actually a friend of a friend of mine, he's selling it and didn't really check into common pricing I guess. The corner of the Shell has a small mark, but I dont mind, my last macbook had like 3 dents lol
 
I'm pretty sure that's quite a good price. Last I checked they were at least $1300 where I am.
 
From those two choices, I'd go with the 2012 model. Although, personally, I'd go with the refurb late 2013 2.4GHz/8GB/256GB model straight from Apple.
 
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What do you do with your computer and what's your storage situation currently looking like? The 2013 seems like a better performer but there could be some cases where the 2012 would be better.
 
Just checked the serial number and yea it seems to be out of warranty now ! must've recently happened..

Im going to be using it for Keynote, Pages, Internet Browsing, watching Videos online, I movie, and occasional basic gaming. Is the chipset of the 2013 that much better ??
 
If it carries Intel graphics don't expect the best gaming experience. I might suggest Option 2 regardless of AppleCare. Why? RAM, it can't be upgraded later as its soldered completely.

However, I might advice you to get a refurb from Apple's own store instead if you can manage to wait. You'll get full blown AppleCare [for a year; plus the protection plan option] with it and that for me is worth the extra $200.
 
After tax its a bit over $300, which is significant for me. Finding the right laptop is starting to become a nuisance :rolleyes:

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I Alsooo found a 13 inch retina late 2013 with 256 GB and 8gb ram in pretty much new condition with only 18 battery cycles and 7 months left of warranty. only thing is its $1300, which again is a little pricey for me and 300$ more than the other options
 
Danny51 said:
After tax its a bit over $300, which is significant for me. Finding the right laptop is starting to become a nuisance :rolleyes:

----------

I Alsooo found a 13 inch retina late 2013 with 256 GB and 8gb ram in pretty much new condition with only 18 battery cycles and 7 months left of warranty. only thing is its $1300, which again is a little pricey for me and 300$ more than the other options
Click to expand...

Buying a computer is like buying a car in many ways. You have to protect your investment regardless how solid it is. A Mac is not something that will break or give you problems easily; however, a Mac is also a pretty pricey thing to fix if anything does go wrong. Having AppleCare is better than no AppleCare.

At this point, it is how much worth it is it to you. You have to weigh in your options. One thing is for sure, 4GB RAM in this day and age is not something to settle for; more so if its not user upgradeable.
 
Choice 1 and this is why:

The purpose of a laptop is mainly portability.

The 2013 model is lighter and very slightly thinner.
It has the new Haswell processor, which gives it better cpu performance and much better battery life.
The 2013 model also has pcie-ssd which is faster and more responsive than sata-ssd.
The Intel Iris gpu is the icing on the cake.

----------
jav6454 said:
One thing is for sure, 4GB RAM in this day and age is not something to settle for; ...
Click to expand...
This statement is false.
The OP has not told us his storage needs yet and 90% of all users do and probably will not anytime soon utilize more than 4gb ram.
 
Choice 1 less ram and less storage, or choice 2, more ram and more storage.

I vote choice 2. Why hamstring yourself right out of the gate.
 
maflynn said:
Choice 1 less ram and less storage, or choice 2, more ram and more storage.

I vote choice 2. Why hamstring yourself right out of the gate.
Click to expand...
There is more differences between those two machines than just ram and storage.

It's a hard choice and really depends on what the OP wnats to do with it.
 
I'm with Meister on this. This isn't a straightforward choice at all. The 2013 version is lighter, thinner, has better battery life, much improved graphics performance for driving the Retina Display, AC wifi, Thunderbolt 2, and the PCI-e SSD. Saying "take the one with more RAM and the bigger SSD" is really simplifying things and ignoring a lot of things that should be factors.
 
Intel Iris is quite the upgrade over the 4000 but if you are not doing heavy work or gaming, I can't see you noticing the difference.
 
Will I run into troubles with resale in a couple of years with the 128 GB 4gb Ram choice ?
 
Danny51 said:
Will I run into troubles with resale in a couple of years with the 128 GB 4gb Ram choice ?
Click to expand...
You need to consult a fortune teller on this.

I would never think about "resale value" when choosing a macbook.
 
Danny51 said:
Just checked the serial number and yea it seems to be out of warranty now ! must've recently happened..

Im going to be using it for Keynote, Pages, Internet Browsing, watching Videos online, I movie, and occasional basic gaming. Is the chipset of the 2013 that much better ??
Click to expand...


You would honestly be fine for years on 4gb of RAM.

with that said, it's really a toss up. The RAM and SSD is a big plus for only $50 more. However, the better GPU and form factor really pushes a me toward the 2013.
 
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Danny51 said:
Just checked the serial number and yea it seems to be out of warranty now ! must've recently happened..

Im going to be using it for Keynote, Pages, Internet Browsing, watching Videos online, I movie, and occasional basic gaming. Is the chipset of the 2013 that much better ??
Click to expand...
Ups. i didnt read that.
You certainly do not need 8gb ram for those purposes, but you might need the 256gb storage.
 
jav6454 said:
If it carries Intel graphics don't expect the best gaming experience. I might suggest Option 2 regardless of AppleCare. Why? RAM, it can't be upgraded later as its soldered completely.

However, I might advice you to get a refurb from Apple's own store instead if you can manage to wait. You'll get full blown AppleCare [for a year; plus the protection plan option] with it and that for me is worth the extra $200.
Click to expand...

Oh trust me, the iris is truly way more capable than the HD 4000. Like holy ****. It's a massive change.
 
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