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Onext1

macrumors newbie
Nov 13, 2015
29
22
Let me be the first one to say this...(little cough) (little cough), (cleans through) - NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooo...OOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (stops to figure out different ways to save to buy the new one) (silently dislikes his fate)
 

GeneralChang

macrumors 68000
Dec 2, 2013
1,671
1,502
Let me be the first one to say this...(little cough) (little cough), (cleans through) - NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooo...OOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (stops to figure out different ways to save to buy the new one) (silently dislikes his fate)
Have you ever seen the movie Airplane? That scene with the woman freaking out and the line of people down the aisle waiting to "help?" I'm channeling the nun here. ;)

But seriously, don't give up on your existing machine if it's still meeting your needs. My 13in 2011 MBP, which is now "obsolete," is still running absolutely fine. I'm planning on probably another two years of full software support, and then revisiting the question of needing a new laptop. These are great little machines, no reason to dump them just because Apple has finally dropped the supply chain support for brand new parts.
 

yvr

macrumors member
Sep 25, 2012
31
35
I don't understand why this is seen as a problem. It means that Apple is not going to continue to stock parts for these old computers. Who is going to pay for a major repair on a computer of this vintage? Is anyone really going to put in a new logic board on a 6 year old computer? The repair will cost more than the computer is worth. And for the small number of users who want to pay to keep an old machine running, there will probably be other shops who will gladly take your money.
 

1applerules1

macrumors regular
Nov 17, 2015
235
1,043
Yet my old one functions marvelously thanks to a new SSD, and I still really like the keyboard, CD drive & all the ports... RIP, that was really a solid generation of MacBooks.

You still use a CD drive?? You cave man. What is this 2001?
 

dogslobber

macrumors 601
Oct 19, 2014
4,670
7,808
Apple Campus, Cupertino CA
my wife is using a mid 2009 - 13" Macbook Pro with core 2 duo 2.53ghz - 8gb ddr 3 - 256gb SSD.

it's still running smoothly and fast... knock on wood never gave any trouble... by the way the SSD it came with was from Apple. Battery never been changed.

It suggests the need for more powerful hardware has plateaued for average people's usage. Then again, hardware in the last eight years hasn't increased in power by the same margin for the preceding eight years to that.
 
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Mac 128

macrumors 603
Apr 16, 2015
5,360
2,930
Well, you cited a difference in processor speed. It could be that that exact interaction of the logic board is being discontinued because of some factor involving that specific processor that doesn't yet apply to the late 2011 models. It really could be something as small as that that would make is very difficult for Apple to continue supporting some of those parts.

But rest assured the refurbished/used market will remain a strong source for anyone who needs components for these laptops for years to come.

Actually the Early 2011 doesn't support USB 3.0 either. Not sure why that would matter particularly, but it might.
 

mw360

macrumors 68020
Aug 15, 2010
2,032
2,395
I don't understand why this is seen as a problem. It means that Apple is not going to continue to stock parts for these old computers. Who is going to pay for a major repair on a computer of this vintage? Is anyone really going to put in a new logic board on a 6 year old computer? The repair will cost more than the computer is worth. And for the small number of users who want to pay to keep an old machine running, there will probably be other shops who will gladly take your money.

You are right in many respects, but not when you look where this is going. I have a 2008 MBP made obsolete last year. 2011 models are obsolete this year. Whether is too early is debatable, but it's certainly earlier, which in days of declining sales, price increases and donglegate, it could be taken as a another sign of Apple getting tougher on its customers to save face on Wall St.

I notice you went to the extreme case of getting the logic board replaced, but these days we need Apple just to get the HD/SSD replaced, or get a new battery. I may get 10 years out of my MBP (replaced the discrete GPU once, HD twice, RAM once, and the battery twice), whereas it looks like new MBPs are designed to be unrepairable after 5, and that 5 years is only by the grace of Apple. They can change that deal at any time (where permitted by law).

What if they go down to 4 years, will cheerleaders (not aimed at you) still support that? Apple were selling 4yr old computers as new just over a month ago. The Mac Pro is over 3 yrs old, with components over 4 years old. 4 yr old technology, as you will read in other pro-Apple posts is not far behind where we are today. Why would it be so strange for people to want to maintain older computers when they run just as well (sometimes better) than the modern models?
 

Groovey

macrumors member
Jan 21, 2006
86
3
Yet my old one functions marvelously thanks to a new SSD, and I still really like the keyboard, CD drive & all the ports... RIP, that was really a solid generation of MacBooks.

Agreed! And it was nicely affordable one too. Got my Late 2011 for 950€, best bang for a buck ever, whereas now I'd have to pay almost 1800€ for the entry-level Pro... Times they are a changing.
 
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Onext1

macrumors newbie
Nov 13, 2015
29
22
Have you ever seen the movie Airplane? That scene with the woman freaking out and the line of people down the aisle waiting to "help?" I'm channeling the nun here. ;)

But seriously, don't give up on your existing machine if it's still meeting your needs. My 13in 2011 MBP, which is now "obsolete," is still running absolutely fine. I'm planning on probably another two years of full software support, and then revisiting the question of needing a new laptop. These are great little machines, no reason to dump them just because Apple has finally dropped the supply chain support for brand new parts.

You are definitely right. It is still a very reliable and good looking machine!
 

yvr

macrumors member
Sep 25, 2012
31
35
You are right in many respects, but not when you look where this is going. I have a 2008 MBP made obsolete last year. 2011 models are obsolete this year. Whether is too early is debatable, but it's certainly earlier, which in days of declining sales, price increases and donglegate, it could be taken as a another sign of Apple getting tougher on its customers to save face on Wall St.

I notice you went to the extreme case of getting the logic board replaced, but these days we need Apple just to get the HD/SSD replaced, or get a new battery. I may get 10 years out of my MBP (replaced the discrete GPU once, HD twice, RAM once, and the battery twice), whereas it looks like new MBPs are designed to be unrepairable after 5, and that 5 years is only by the grace of Apple. They can change that deal at any time (where permitted by law).

What if they go down to 4 years, will cheerleaders (not aimed at you) still support that? Apple were selling 4yr old computers as new just over a month ago. The Mac Pro is over 3 yrs old, with components over 4 years old. 4 yr old technology, as you will read in other pro-Apple posts is not far behind where we are today. Why would it be so strange for people to want to maintain older computers when they run just as well (sometimes better) than the modern models?
Hi, I agree the logic board replacement is an extreme example, although the new designs are such that the HD/SSD/GPU/RAM are no longer replaceable (and whether that's a good thing or not is not the subject here.) We are lucky to have macs that have the longevity they do. I retired a 2003 15" in 2011 (no repairs except for new batteries), a first gen 2008 air in 2014 (had replaced the battery once, and display once under applecare), and am using a 2011 11" air, hand me down from my wife, which I will probably sell once my new 13" TB arrives next week.

Apple states that products are seen as vintage 5 years after the product is no longer manufactured. So, for the 2013 Mac Pro, which is still being manufactured, that means it will not be considered vintage until it is at least 8-9 years from when it was introduced.

When I get my new laptop, I will also retire an early 2009 iMac that I use at my office, and switch to the laptop. Sure, it's still working fine, but is is not compatible with Sierra, and I think it will be easier to use my laptop. I've bought all the dongles I will need, and think the convenience of four multipurpose ports outweighs the inconvenience and cost of buying the dongles. And I think it's good that when the charging cord frays and stops working, I only need to buy the cord, and not a whole new charger.

I think Apple makes business decisions that benefits its shareholders as well as its customers. It didn't achieve the success it has by treating its customers badly, and I think their policy for vintage/obsolete equipment is reasoned and balanced.
 

alexjholland

macrumors 6502a
I got a MacBook Pro 2011 last week from a kind friend, for free.

Today I installed a 1TB SSD and new trackpad; I'll be adding a 1TB spinner, new battery and 16GB RAM too, then selling my mid-2010 iMac and flying to Australia for a few years.

I anticipate this machine lasting me two-three years, for music production.

Cost = £400-£500

A MBP with a 1TB SSD would be way over £2,000.
 
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Teon

macrumors regular
Feb 14, 2016
228
50
I got a MacBook Pro 2011 last week from a kind friend, for free.

Today I installed a 1TB SSD and new trackpad; I'll be adding a 1TB spinner, new battery and 16GB RAM too, then selling my mid-2010 iMac and flying to Australia for a few years.

I anticipate this machine lasting me two-three years, for music production.

Cost = £400-£500

A MBP with a 1TB SSD would be way over £2,000.
good to have such friends)
 

alexjholland

macrumors 6502a
good to have such friends)

Yeah, I'm really grateful.

I need a MacBook with a 1TB SSD and saw it'd be nearly £2k for one, with the old model.

I hoped the new model might improve on this; low and behold the new range are even more expensive.

I can sell my iMac for £700 and probably get to £1,200 before I move to Australia, but I'd then be spending £1,200 on something I'd have to permanently have a hard drive plugged into. And sell my iMac first, which makes data transfer a pain.

I have a 1TB SSD in this one for £200 and am installing a hard-drive too.

I can then wait until I can afford (and require) a top-of-the-line model with a 2TB SSD, in a couple of years.

I must say though, I find it hard to get excited about spending significant cash on anything I can't open up and fix myself. Which is why I drive a 10-year old BMW.
 

Mac 128

macrumors 603
Apr 16, 2015
5,360
2,930
Yeah, I'm really grateful.

I need a MacBook with a 1TB SSD and saw it'd be nearly £2k for one, with the old model.

I hoped the new model might improve on this; low and behold the new range are even more expensive.

I can sell my iMac for £700 and probably get to £1,200 before I move to Australia, but I'd then be spending £1,200 on something I'd have to permanently have a hard drive plugged into. And sell my iMac first, which makes data transfer a pain.

I have a 1TB SSD in this one for £200 and am installing a hard-drive too.

I can then wait until I can afford (and require) a top-of-the-line model with a 2TB SSD, in a couple of years.

I must say though, I find it hard to get excited about spending significant cash on anything I can't open up and fix myself. Which is why I drive a 10-year old BMW.

Maybe it's because my 2011 MBP had gotten so slow, but I put in a 1TB Samsung SSD and it ran like a brand new Mac. I can't imagine it ever not serving my needs, though I'm sure it's obsolete status will prevent me from upgrading at some point and getting a feature I really want.

As for your 10 year old BMW, I have a 20 year old Mercedes, and there's almost nothing major on it I would feel comfortable fixing myself. The last car I felt comfortable working on my self was a 1968 Mustang.
 

oreganoinferno

macrumors regular
Dec 4, 2016
105
677
Everyone who's kind of in love with this machine (as I am), make sure to get yourself one of those hard drive cables soon enough. These tend to break over the time. It costs appr. 15 bucks. Only thing that ever caused me trouble. I'll put one in stock for my wife's 2012 13" cMBP...
 

Zen5656

macrumors member
Oct 23, 2010
51
6
Can somebody please tell me a reliable source for the date of Apple making the MacBook Pro 15" Unibody 2012 obsolete next year 2017? I want to get a new battery and something fixed a few weeks before that date.

Thanks.
 

JTToft

macrumors 68040
Apr 27, 2010
3,447
796
Aarhus, Denmark
My 15" early 2011 GPU just gave up last night and did the pink snow of death. Glad they extended the warranty on these until the end of 2016, and glad mine didn't wait until January to puke. Maybe I can extract some more life from this machine -- it's not like a 2 GHz Core i7 is **slow**. Especially since I swapped the drive out for an SSD

- I've had my logic board replaced twice. It'll be interesting when the next failure happens after the end of the programme and after it's made obsolete. Under local law, they'll still be required to remedy the GPU failure. If they can't repair or replace the logic board, I guess they'll just have to give me a new computer or a refund.
 

jaster2

macrumors member
Jun 21, 2010
98
107

15" MBP replacement for what I have is $2,800 + ($50 HDMI dongle) + ($30 SD card reader) + ($18 2x USB-A dongles) + ($26 Ethernet dongle) + ($19 power cable) + ($20 DVI dongle). Ok. So that's $2,963. Or $3100 if you go with a a dock instead of all the dongles.
 
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No. 44

macrumors member
Oct 29, 2016
97
275
Long gone
Essentially, Apple is forcing users to throw away perfectly functional computers.

Why? Greed. Apple wants to sell new models, and perhaps they would also like for us to forget just how great our old Macs were. My early 2011 MacBook Pro is still a wonderful device and much more reliable than the 2016 model.

"Think different"? Not any more. As time goes by, Apple is becoming just like all of the other corporations: greedy.
 
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elgrillo

macrumors newbie
Mar 9, 2017
2
0
Well, you cited a difference in processor speed. It could be that that exact interaction of the logic board is being discontinued because of some factor involving that specific processor that doesn't yet apply to the late 2011 models. It really could be something as small as that that would make is very difficult for Apple to continue supporting some of those parts.

But rest assured the refurbished/used market will remain a strong source for anyone who needs components for these laptops for years to come.
I think I know the answer, apple is puting into the vintage/obsolete list 2011 macbook pros , because of their gpu recall program , caused because of design flaws from apple. So what a perfect coincidence that the same date that the recall program its over , they put this machines into the vintage/obsolete list. I´am one of the affected, I got a free repair in the 20 Oct 2016, and after one month of using it , I started to have GPU problesm again, to be more exact It showed a 2cm horizontal line when booting just up the apple logo. I whent back to the store to show them the problem , and they told me that that was a normal behavior from all the laptops coming from the apple recall program. Finally to make the story short , now im still fighting for a fair solution, because apple says that my computer is now obsolete and they dont have more logic boards to replace. So convinient. They offerd me a refund of somthing around Usd 450, but I think its not a fair solution, Now because of their problem , i´m feeling forced to acept this money and spend at least $usd1500 from my pocket to replace the computer.

Gonzalo.
[doublepost=1489052824][/doublepost]
Hi, I agree the logic board replacement is an extreme example, although the new designs are such that the HD/SSD/GPU/RAM are no longer replaceable (and whether that's a good thing or not is not the subject here.) We are lucky to have macs that have the longevity they do. I retired a 2003 15" in 2011 (no repairs except for new batteries), a first gen 2008 air in 2014 (had replaced the battery once, and display once under applecare), and am using a 2011 11" air, hand me down from my wife, which I will probably sell once my new 13" TB arrives next week.

Apple states that products are seen as vintage 5 years after the product is no longer manufactured. So, for the 2013 Mac Pro, which is still being manufactured, that means it will not be considered vintage until it is at least 8-9 years from when it was introduced.

When I get my new laptop, I will also retire an early 2009 iMac that I use at my office, and switch to the laptop. Sure, it's still working fine, but is is not compatible with Sierra, and I think it will be easier to use my laptop. I've bought all the dongles I will need, and think the convenience of four multipurpose ports outweighs the inconvenience and cost of buying the dongles. And I think it's good that when the charging cord frays and stops working, I only need to buy the cord, and not a whole new charger.

I think Apple makes business decisions that benefits its shareholders as well as its customers. It didn't achieve the success it has by treating its customers badly, and I think their policy for vintage/obsolete equipment is reasoned and balanced.
You know where it says or where apple states this? "5 years after the product is no longer manufactured" If thats true, macbook pro early 2011 that was relesed to public the feb 24 of 2011. Dont fits in this least.

Gonzalo
[doublepost=1489053286][/doublepost]
- I've had my logic board replaced twice. It'll be interesting when the next failure happens after the end of the programme and after it's made obsolete. Under local law, they'll still be required to remedy the GPU failure. If they can't repair or replace the logic board, I guess they'll just have to give me a new computer or a refund.
I´m in that position now. My computer(MBP early 2011) , under the 3 month warranty they gave me after a logicboard swap ,coming back from the recall program. Started to fail again , and noe they are telling me that this computer is obsolete for them and that they dont have more logicboards to repair it. They offerd me a refund of $450 for the logic board and told me that the cant give me a laptop replacement. So now if a take this deal , Ihave to pay at loeast USD $1500 out of my pocket. If I dont get a resonable solution , this will be tha last apple product Im buying. Maybe there is more people having the same problem as me and wnat to share comments about this.

Gonzalo
[doublepost=1489054959][/doublepost]Any body knows if ther is public information about the last day a specific apple model is Manufactured?

Thanks in advanced.

Gonzalo.
 
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