2015 15" 2.8 Ghz/AMD vs iMac

[pshufd]

I received a call from a local shop. They have a 2015 15" 2.8 Ghz 256 GB for $1,100 and a 512 GB for $1,200. There's a Craigslist locally for a 2015 15" 2.8 Ghz for $1,100 but it doesn't specify the amount of storage but I think that it's 1TB given the original price that the owner listed. It some scratches and a small chunk of aluminum missing.

The local shop only sent me an email on Friday while I was looking at an iMac 27 inch with 256 GB or 512 GB of storage. Decisions, decisions. If I got one of the 2015s, I'd either upgrade it to 1 or 2 TBs. I don't think that I could do that with the iMac internally.

I had seen several other 2.8 Ghz/AMD models but they all sold off. Add to that the possibility of a 2019 16.5 or 17 inch MBP at WWDC and there are a lot of choices out there.

 

[frou]

Is that generation of MBP AMD graphics particularly worth having? I remember concluding that it wasn't better enough than the integrated Iris Pro to be worth the extra load it puts on the cooling system.

 

[pshufd]

Is that generation of MBP AMD graphics particularly worth having? I remember concluding that it wasn't better enough than the integrated Iris Pro to be worth the extra load it puts on the cooling system.

I don't generally have problems with the fans coming on but I don't really do anything graphics-intensive on the compute side. I like the discrete graphics as it better supports using dual QHD displays - refresh on the monitors run more smoothly. The benefit of discrete graphics is in offloading bandwidth from system RAM. I do like having the extra 1.5 GB of RAM available for programs without paging or swapping.

One of the systems has a piece of aluminum with a sharp dent and it shows some corrosion. One of the other ones has three roundish dents - it looks like it was dropped on one side and some damage on the other. I haven't seen pictures of the third yet but I will request them. These are considered Grade A systems. I guess that those rated Excellent condition have no dents and minimal scratches.

The iMac is looking like a better option right now.

 

[smbu2000]

Are you even sure that those 2.8 systems include the AMD graphics? The 2.8 CPU upgrade option was available for both the base 2.2 model (w/o AMD dGPU) and the 2.5 model (w/AMD dGPU). The AMD dGPU model was also discontinued after the late 2016 model was released, leaving only the non-dGPU model for sale. I have a 2.8/1TB that was purchased in 2017 that doesn't include the dGPU. My other 2.5/512 model purchased in late 2016 does include the AMD dGPU.

Looking at your sig. you already have the 2.5/512/AMD model. I don't think the extra 300mhz will add much to it.

 

[pshufd]

Are you even sure that those 2.8 systems include the AMD graphics? The 2.8 CPU upgrade option was available for both the base 2.2 model (w/o AMD dGPU) and the 2.5 model (w/AMD dGPU). The AMD dGPU model was also discontinued after the late 2016 model was released, leaving only the non-dGPU model for sale. I have a 2.8/1TB that was purchased in 2017 that doesn't include the dGPU. My other 2.5/512 model purchased in late 2016 does include the AMD dGPU.

Looking at your sig. you already have the 2.5/512/AMD model. I don't think the extra 300mhz will add much to it.

This is a private sale. The other two are with a local shop and I've indicated that I'm interested in the 2.8 Ghz with AMD Discrete Graphics with one of the guys there and he sent me an email last week telling me that they have two of them in stock. One of them is posted on the local Craigslist Computers section. The other isn't and it might have been sold already but I will check in with him on the other one.

The 2.8 Ghz would replace the 2.2 Ghz which I'd put up for sale. I typically use two MBPs at a time - one for work and one for trading. It might be worthwhile using 2 for trading in the future. The benefits would be 2.8 Ghz vs 2.2 Ghz, much faster SSD on the 2015 vs 2014, the better trackpad, and, of course, the dedicated VRAM so that more main system RAM is available for the operating system and applications.

 

[venom600]

Is that generation of MBP AMD graphics particularly worth having? I remember concluding that it wasn't better enough than the integrated Iris Pro to be worth the extra load it puts on the cooling system.

The R9 M370X is much, much better than the Iris Pro if you are using the card for 3D at all. It's also much better at OpenCL. I'm pretty often surprised at the games I can run with it. Is it a Vega 20? No, but it's a lot better than integrated graphics.

 

[pshufd]

The R9 M370X is much, much better than the Iris Pro if you are using the card for 3D at all. It's also much better at OpenCL. I'm pretty often surprised at the games I can run with it. Is it a Vega 20? No, but it's a lot better than integrated graphics.

There are limitations on the overall resolutions supported too. The specs say that my 2014 should be able to support 2xQHD + full resolution on the internal display but it doesn't work on my 2014 without nVidia graphics.

 

[pshufd]

Another of these 2.8 Ghz/AMD/512 GB models just showed up in a shop in Providence for $1,250. That's too far for me to drive when there are a few that are only an hour away but it seems like there is a steady supply of these coming to market. I'm rather amazed that there are people selling these for $1,800 - $2,000 on Amazon. The shops that sell these give you a 90 day warranty too.

 

[pshufd]

The Craigslist pictures were from stock - he's going to send me pictures of the actual models and both are still available. I read the other thread on how easy it is to upgrade the SSD and am looking at the smaller model to upgrade to 2 TB. I wouldn't bother with the iMac if I can put this together.

 

[pshufd]

I just received the pictures of the 256 GB. The laptop is pristine. It looks like my 2014. My 2015 has a few dings in it. The 256 GB is good enough. He's going to send me the pictures of the 512 GB later on. Very good prices on something this clean.