Anyone else still mourning the loss of upgradable SSD?

That's one of the concerns I have as I'm deciding whether to upgrade or buy new now.

 

You can upgrade the SSDs on the rMBP, it's just that you're stuck buying used ones from suspect sources like ebay and of course, paying through the nose for it. For example, it's going to cost you an average of >$650 to get a used 1TB SSD for a 2014 rMBP...

 

Nope I couldn't care less, if it was an issue for me I'd buy something else.

 

- They can be ordered with 1 TB.

- Not necessarily. Ifixit sells them. But they are ludicrously expensive.

 

Nope, I don't care. I bought my rMBP with the SSD size the I need. The amount of storage I need doesn't grow over time because I don't keep a bunch of junk on my rMBP.

 

After reading a ton of reviews, I'm starting to see why Apple uses proprietary.

All the other laptops I've seen in the PC side that have PCIe storage typically have terrible write speeds(100-300 MB/s) and mediocre read speeds.(1000MB/s) Apple's SSDs can sustain 2GB/s read and 1.3-1.5GB/s write.

Allot of people complain about Apple's BTO SSD prices, but considering the performance I don't think their prices are bad. That said, that doesn't mean I wouldn't mind sacrificing performance for more storage, though.

 

No concerns at all. I keep all of my photo and video projects on a separate HD

 

And also used and unavailable right now...

 

I also think that Apple should move to an industry-standard format. Back when the specialised SSDs for MBP were introduced, there was no suitable connector so Apple had little choice but to roll out their own. But these days we have M.2/U.2 so there are little excuses left for them to use it.

At the same time, I don't see much utility in an upgradeable laptop. Sure, folks on a budget or those who like to tinker can have some more flexibility and/or the illusion of longevity, but for most Apple users, upgradeability is far from being a concern. I used to tinker with my machines a lot and also to build custom PCs/hackintoshes, but these days it is cheaper to buy a preconfigured machine than spend time on upgrades.

 

What??? Have you even looked at how much Apple's SSD upgrades cost and how much SSDs actually sell for?

 

Yeah, I think it's a bit ridiculous to poo poo the idea of user upgradable drives and memory.

Unfortunately, user upgradeable computers allow consumers to keep their computers for far longer, and therefore hurt apple's bottom line.

As much I enjoy Ive's thinness motif from an esthetic standpoint, it has an enormous impact on the user's ability to upgrade computers. Scratch that, it prevents users from upgrading their computers at all.

I'm very sympathetic with the OP. However, after nearly 8 years I was basically forced to "upgrade" to a 2005 rmbp 13, with just a 256 gb ssd. This pales in comparison with the 1 TB drive I had on my macbook.

I'm looking for storage options using the sd card slot, but those are all odd patch fixes with limited storage capability and odd quirks (such as not automatically starting after sleep).

Going from a 1 TB drive to a 256 drive is quite frustrating after an 8 year wait, I must say.

However, there are options to upgrade to 512 gb or even 1 tb but the prices are IMO, exorbitant.

 

With a comment like that I can only assume that you're comparing prices of a SATA3 2.5" SSD to the PCIe based ones in the current MacBook Pros. That's hardly a fair comparison.

 

Yes, I do miss being able to upgrade my Apple Laptops to my liking.

That said I also understand Apple's motivation to shift towards sealed appliance like hardware. It's far more profitable and fits in better with their planned obsolescence business model.

They didn't get to be the behemoth they are by putting customers first.

 

Sure. An SSD with similar performance characteristics (Intel PCI-E 750 series) costs around CHF 1000 for 1TB here in Switzerland. And you can't install it in any laptop (cause its a large desktop expansion card). Apple wants CHF 800 for the 1TB upgrade. As an education customer, I get it for around CHF 650. Sounds like a very good deal to me. Plus, I'm saving up to CHF 100 on labour by not having to install that disk (or better to say, my employer is).

--- Post Merged, Jan 31, 2016 ---

As I always said, just because it does not fit with your personal preference, it is not planned obsolescence or a downgrade or whatever. Maybe you should accept that Apple is now targeting customers like me, who use computers as disposable, low-maintanence tools. A laptop is there to do what I need it to, not more not less. And in that aspect, current MBP line is the best bang for buck EVER. Few years ago you would pay premium for a regular (a very well built but still regular) laptop with an Apple logo on it. However, the current MBP comes packed with highest-end storage available on the market (you can't even buy those things for normal laptops), fastest WiFi, best connectivity, one of the best displays, best keyboard and trackpad, one of the best batteries and excellent performance per weight — and we gladly pay premium for these things that effectively save us working time every single day and make our life easier. If you want a customisable laptop that you can tinker around, Apple is (and has long time been) probably not the correct brand for you.

 

Your assumptions are way off the mark.

 

What assumptions? If you see problems with my argumentation or the facts I mentioned, please be so kind to elaborate. Or do we want to play the 'no, I'm the smart one!' game?

 

You assumed (guessed) that you knew my preferences. Wrong.

It's not about who's smarter.

Don't guess and you can't be wrong. Simple

 

That poster's attitude can be summed up rather simply - Let Them Eat Cake!!

 

good for you

 

Now you are just changing the topic. Of course I don't know your preferences. But you speak of "planned obsolesce", which only makes sense if upgradeability is a big deal for you. Otherwise, I really don't see how one would even arrive at that conclusion. The components used in those laptops are basically as good as it gets (sure, there are newer CPUs, but the Haswells in the 15" still play in the top liga), the storage surpasses what is commonly available on the consumer market and Apple will service, repair and support your laptop within a very reasonable timeframe. You are in no way forced to throw away your computer or to buy a new one every two years. So where is this planned obsolesce? The only thing that is required of you is to estimate your use scenario and buy an appropriate configuration. Less flexible for the few users users who don't know their needs or whose needs are dynamically changing? Sure. A corporate conspiracy? Hardly. BTW, most third-party Apple service providers will upgrade the storage for you, for a appropriate fee of course.

P.S. In my last few years experience managing the IT of a mid-size department where most people use Macs I had only one case of a person who found his initial SSD configuration limiting. That person got involved into a new project where large amounts of video and audio data had to be collected and processed. We gave his laptop to someone else and bought him a new one, with larger storage.

P.P.S. I buy a new laptop for me every 2-3 years, because the CPU improvement after that time has significant effect on my workflow. In that regards you could accuse the entire industry of planned obsolesce.

 

I'm just answering the question asked in the title of the thread. If my answer annoys you, ignore me.

 

This is exactly why i sold the Retina Macbook Apple gave me. It was only 512GB. I need a 1TB SSD so I bought a non retina pro, and put a 1TB SSD in and its great.

 

You weren't forced into anything there are literally thousands of cheaper non Apple computers you could have bought with a multitude of storage options if Apple don't make what you want at the price you want to pay, buy something else.