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Advise spending $1000.00 on laptop?

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oldnslow

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 15, 2007
26
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A little info. on what i already have, a 2010 27" imac with 1tb ssd 2.8 mhz. processor 12 gb ram. i use it to edit photos and other daily usage. What i would like is a laptop to take to work and also edit photos, listen to music, etc. therefore the question is what to get for $1000.00.

I know $1000.00 is not much, so get creative for me!! With this price limit i will more than likely have to get an older macbook pro, so i was thinking maybe models from 2010/2011/2012--any of those to stay away from (problems).

So what can you put together for $1000.00

Thanks
David
 
$1000 can get you an early 2013 15" retina MBP if you are patient and wait for the right deal. If you are in the US, there are deals to be had on 2013 and newer MBPs.
 
I would stay away from 2010's (slow) and 2011's (video card issues). But you should be able to get a 2013 cheap. I have seen 2014 13" models for $800
 
oldnslow said:
A little info. on what i already have, a 2010 27" imac with 1tb ssd 2.8 mhz. processor 12 gb ram. i use it to edit photos and other daily usage. What i would like is a laptop to take to work and also edit photos, listen to music, etc. therefore the question is what to get for $1000.00.

I know $1000.00 is not much, so get creative for me!! With this price limit i will more than likely have to get an older macbook pro, so i was thinking maybe models from 2010/2011/2012--any of those to stay away from (problems).

So what can you put together for $1000.00

Thanks
David
Click to expand...
2012 mbp 15...no retina. You can upgrade drive and memory.
 
pat500000 said:
2012 mbp 15...no retina. You can upgrade drive and memory.
Click to expand...
So, upgrade to 16gb ram and 500gb-1tb ssd. Retina MBPs already have those and they give you faster SSD speeds, and a much better display. $1000 for a 2013 retina is a better deal.
 
Apple is still producing the 2012 13" non-Retina MBP. I think Best Buy had a sale on the base model for under $900 recently. They are usually available at the Apple refurb store for $829 - Apple refurbs are typically computers returned by customers that they resell. I bought one last December that was manufactured in November. You can then upgrade to a 8GB RAM, 250GB SSD for under $1000.

If you buy a used computer from 2013 or earlier and if it still has it's original battery, there's a good chance you will need to buy a new battery soon. For Retina models, that's $199. Retina models also have RAM you can't replace and SSD's that have limited (and expensive) replacement options. If you can do without the Retina screen, the 2012 non-Retina models are the "value" option - it has USB 3 (first MBP's that had it), it's the last MBP models you can easily upgrade RAM and disk, the optical port supports SATA3 if you want dual disks (the only MBP model that does reliably).
 
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Fancuku said:
So, upgrade to 16gb ram and 500gb-1tb ssd. Retina MBPs already have those and they give you faster SSD speeds, and a much better display. $1000 for a 2013 retina is a better deal.
Click to expand...
Up to you. If mac fails ... Oh well u got soldered Mac.
 
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