Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
They seem perfectly solid and future proof, but getting 8.5 years out of a machine when you can't swap out the battery seems unlikely.
I just wanted to know how long a Macbook Pro would last through regular use, such as putting it in and out of bags, having it on most of the day for word processing, Photoshop, video editing and so on,

As well as knowing if anyone who has an old Macbook Pro from 2006/2008, how are your Macbooks running after a few years, are they still as good as when you brought them or has anything changed?

I'm new to Macs, and I'm thinking of buying a Macbook Pro 15" for my media degree in a few weeks, but I want to make sure I'm 100% sure I need a mac and also make full use of it, and if it will last longer than all the laptops I've had in the past.

Thanks for your time,
I have a 2011 MacBook Pro which I have upgraded to 8gb with a 500 gb Samsung evolution SSD battery is on 960 cycles and still gives about 4-5 hours use - really pleased with longevity and performance
 
  • Like
Reactions: gobikerider
My previous MacBook was a great experience, I had a early 2009 MacBook Pro, the machine was the base model i believe and it had lasted me roughly 6 years before upgrading to the 2015 15in Pro. I even briefly used my old MacBook while my current one was undergoing a logic board replacement. I find the new MacBooks a lot more durable than perviously when it comes to denting and such. Would recommend a plastic case and a a sleeve if you are moving the computer around a lot. It adds some bulk and heft but the computer is protected. My only complaint about getting the 15in MacBook Pro over the 13in is the portability. Unless your doing heavy graphics media the 13in is just fine.
 
My late 2008 MBP is still kicking. It's on its second battery, which is displaying the "Battery Service" warning, but the battery still holds a charge. If Apple still sold replacement batteries I'd actually consider getting one.
 
My late 2013 13" rMBP is relatively young compared to some of the Macs posted here - but even then its almost 4 years old now. Just upgraded to High Sierra and it runs like a total champ. SSDs made a huge difference in Mac speed, and CPU upgrades are almost meaningless unless you have heavy workloads.
 
MBP 2010, 15", Core i7 2.66 Ghz, 6 GB RAM, 500 GB SSD (the most important part of any modern computer is an SSD).

CoconutBattery says 1135 discharge/charge-cycles so far, with "80% battery health". My battery is rated for 1000 cycles: http://www.idownloadblog.com/2015/06/18/how-to-macbook-battery-cycle-count/.

I get 2-3 hours of battery life on a charge (high brightness with intensive work; integrated GPU), and I use it every day as my main work computer. There is nothing it cannot do, it's fast, and I love its keyboard.

My computer is really beaten up. It has scratches on the bottom cover, and I've dropped it, bending the underside of the aluminum frame, and I've lost a bunch of screws from the underside, and I've had to glue the black feet back on... and I love it even more for all of that. It has character. My Ol' Betsy Apple.
 
Last edited:
I have a 2006 white MacBook with its original harddrive and battery. It only has OS X 10.5.8 on it, the case is beat to **** (has plastic breaking off, outside case is messed up due to when I tried removing stickers I put on it), and the battery doesn't hold a charge. The screen is still good and the laptop is overall still usable. Almost 11 years old and still boots up when plugged in.

I purchased a 2004/2005 12 inch PowerBook last week for $70. The case is immaculate for its age, has the expected amount of wear and tear on it (which is actually less than I expected). The keyboard is in perfect condition, as is the screen. Best part about it is that the battery still holds a charge. I don't know if it is the original battery, but it is an official Apple battery. It also apparently has its original harddrive too. Still boots up into tiger just fine. The disc drive still works good too, and there is no dust in any of the ports.

I also have a 2013 13 inch macbook pro retina. It has some scuffs and scratches from my use since I bought it. I don't use it as much anymore since I bought my 2017 15 inch MBP. I don't want to get rid of any of my Apple products, they are like my children.
 
  • Like
Reactions: SteveJobzniak
I have a bronze keyboard Powerbook G3 (1998?) that still works, although you need to use it in a darkened room because the display backlight is dying. I can't pretend I use it much, but it does get powered up every now and then for some oddball reason.
 
I just put a 750gig SSD in my 2012 MBP 13". It is the max spec 13" MBP before they moved to the Retina MBP.

The SSD has made a huge difference in the speed of everything. Even web browsing seems faster. I'm hoping to get another 2-3 years out of this computer, it runs like a champ. My battery still holds a good charge, 5-6 hours with nothing use. My computer spends most of it's time hooked up to my Thunderbolt display in clamshell mode, so I think that helps minimize battery wear.

I usually wait until Apple stops supporting a laptop with updates before I decide to upgrade.
 
My 2011 17" uMBP is on a downward spiral. I have a 1TB Crucial M4 SSD as my primary drive and another one using a data doubler for media. Battery life is at 78% with random shut downs. I purchased a new battery and it comes in today so hopefully that resolves it. If not, it might be my SSD and might have to reformat and do a clean install. Not ready to spend on a new MBP but if I do to, it'll be between a Mid-2015 15" with legacy ports or just go all out on a Mid-2017 but deal with dongles.
 
Great to hear so many happy users using older MacBook Pro models.

I'm typing this on a mid 2009 15 inch MBP which has been running fine for the past 8 years. Having said that, the battery is pretty much dead, and starting a few weeks ago, the screen started to show signs of breaking (magenta lines at bright screen areas), so it is effectively almost at the end of its life. Still, I'm continuing to use it every single day, and it seems like it will get a few more months of use before being retired.
 
  • Like
Reactions: eswank
I just put in a new (used) hard drive in a friend's mint condition 2007 white MacBook. I also upgraded the OS from 10.6.8 to 10.7.5. It's not the fastest thing with a maximum of 2GB RAM (LOL) but it's still going strong!
 
Last edited:
I have a late 2013 MBP and it works well and I would keep on using it but my new job requires me to do a lot of spreadsheets, and having more than four spreadsheets cripples it’s 4gb of ram. If not for the ram I would keep using it.
 
I have a late 2013 MBP and it works well and I would keep on using it but my new job requires me to do a lot of spreadsheets, and having more than four spreadsheets cripples it’s 4gb of ram. If not for the ram I would keep using it.

You can put up to 16gig in your computer. Should be more than enough for that application.
 
You can put up to 16gig in your computer. Should be more than enough for that application.

Incorrect. A Late 2013 MBP has RAM that is soldered to the board, making it impossible (as a practical matter) to upgrade.
 
My 2011 17" uMBP is on a downward spiral. I have a 1TB Crucial M4 SSD as my primary drive and another one using a data doubler for media. Battery life is at 78% with random shut downs. I purchased a new battery and it comes in today so hopefully that resolves it. If not, it might be my SSD and might have to reformat and do a clean install. Not ready to spend on a new MBP but if I do to, it'll be between a Mid-2015 15" with legacy ports or just go all out on a Mid-2017 but deal with dongles.

Have you ruled out the chance that it is the GPU?
 
I plan to keep my 2017 15-inch for at least 2 years as my main laptop. I won’t get rid of it after that
 
My 2009 MacBook Pro can run all these OSes:

Screen Shot 2017-10-02 at 8.16.42 PM.png


It can also run another, which is 10.5.7 Leopard, but I didn't have that one here on this drive. I should put a copy on that backup drive just for fun. ;)
 
  • Like
Reactions: appleish19
Mid 2010 15 inch, still going strong, with upgraded 8 gigs of ram and 1 TB SSD. Good as new, will serve me until 32 GB RAM MBP is out.
 
I had a 2009 13" MacBook Pro for five years. I upgraded the RAM to 8GB and upgraded the hard drive to an SSD. I had to replace the battery, but that was by far my favorite machine.

I replaced it for a 15" Retina MacBook Pro, quad core i7 which I had for a year before replacing it with a 2015 MacBook which I'm still running on now.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.