SamVilde
macrumors regular
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.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Average Life Span of a Macbook Pro
- Thread starter Terror-Inferno
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
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.
gobikerider
Suspended
Mines 2012 is 5 years old and battery is fine and if I'm keeping it that long, I wouldn't mind paying Apple $100 to swap out a battery.
Fishrrman
macrumors Nehalem
Sam wrote:
"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."
7+ years isn't quite "8.5", but I and my sister have 2010 MacBooks, both with the original batteries, and both still performing adequately...
"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."
7+ years isn't quite "8.5", but I and my sister have 2010 MacBooks, both with the original batteries, and both still performing adequately...
It's unlikely with very outdated hardware but not with more modern hardware. They are now using lipo battery cells with a microcontroller to manage them. Where it used to be about age it now is about how many times you charged it to 100% (aka wear & tear).
When Apple went with the built-in batteries they also introduced a service where one could replace the battery. There are also people who've done that themselves (which can be quite dangerous if you buy a cheap battery from China; those are cheap for a reason!). When it comes to the battery one shouldn't be so worried.
Let's not forget that those old machines don't have a very good battery life compared to current hardware (it's like 4 hrs vs 10 hrs).
My 2012 MBP is running quite well - upgraded to SSD and 16GB RAM. The only issue I have now is the battery, the laptop shuts down around 50%. But I'm always near a power source, so it's not a biggie.
SamVilde
macrumors regular
So when people on these threads say they have to get a new computer because their 2013 or 2014 laptop bit the dust ... what is happening to those computers that hasn't happened to my 2008?
My 2008 MacBook with 6GB RAM and new SSD is quite fast and capable, too, compared to my 2011 iMac at work and my BF's 2014 MBA.
I think it's because the SSD is new and fast. And I could not have kept the machine as I bought it, with a 128 HDD and 2GB RAM.
You haven't convinced me that a non-upgradable computer can have as long a (reliable; useful) life.
My 2008 MacBook with 6GB RAM and new SSD is quite fast and capable, too, compared to my 2011 iMac at work and my BF's 2014 MBA.
I think it's because the SSD is new and fast. And I could not have kept the machine as I bought it, with a 128 HDD and 2GB RAM.
You haven't convinced me that a non-upgradable computer can have as long a (reliable; useful) life.
bradl
macrumors 603
Not entirely sure, but I'll give you some background on what happened to my wife's 2008 15" MBP.
roughly 2 years ago, it started to bite the dust and badly. Motherboard fried, screen started to go (literally, it only lit up on half the screen).. It became completely unusable, but still worked. Turned out that the battery and motherboard were expanding inside the body of the MBP. We were able to plug it into our TV and use it as a monitor and throw on a USB mouse (the trackpad was expanding along with the case) and take one last TM backup of it, to later used on her 2015 rMB. Right now, I have to pull the drive out of it for it to be totally e-wasted. the way it looks, it would explode if we powered it on again. The battery looks like it has separated from the chassis altogether, let alone the ODD.
So to say that the Mac lasted her 7 years is saying a lot, considering that she came from a Dell at the time, which lasted her 15 days after the 2-year warranty expired. She's going to get another 15" MBP soon, as the rMB's screen is too small for her (she's blind).
On the other side of that, I'm 6 years into my mid-2011 13" MBA without a problem.
BL.
Sadly the issue with my 2012 MBP is the ram headers on the logic board. This means an entire new board which is looking very expensive.. Anyone know where I could pick up an i7 13" board cheap? Otherwise the things a gonner.. 🙁 It's done pretty well imo seeing as its seen almost 5 years of very heavy use.
pallymore
macrumors regular
my 2013 MBP died today. Faulty integrated graphics - the whole screen keeps flashing green and pink lines.
Its battery died 4 months ago - which i paid $299 out of pocket to fix. (1 month out of applecare)
Since (almost) everything is soldered together - i guess it's time for a new laptop.
I bought this one back in Sept. 2013 - so it only lasted 2.5 years - My longest lasting laptop is an Asus...I bought that one back in 2009, surprisingly it's alive and well, The only maintenance I have done to it is to upgrade its harddrive to a SSD. It's currently running windows 10, and being used by my dad for light internet browsing and social networks.
Its battery died 4 months ago - which i paid $299 out of pocket to fix. (1 month out of applecare)
Since (almost) everything is soldered together - i guess it's time for a new laptop.
I bought this one back in Sept. 2013 - so it only lasted 2.5 years - My longest lasting laptop is an Asus...I bought that one back in 2009, surprisingly it's alive and well, The only maintenance I have done to it is to upgrade its harddrive to a SSD. It's currently running windows 10, and being used by my dad for light internet browsing and social networks.
2013 dying that age is pretty disappointing 🙁 My screen on my 2012 non retina kept doing that so I think its faulty ram headers and integrated gpu.. Really annoying because I bought it 2nd hand for a ridiculously good price. My longest lasting laptop is a 2010 samsung r530, still on original HDD and everything, windows 10 and runs nice.
its hard to say an average life for the ones I have/had. my longest lived I think would be my 2007 17" . But I would say it comes down to how hard you run them and abuse them. I have thermally killed units in less than 6 months, and I have had GPU failures in 1-2 years. and I still have that 10 year old unit which still runs happily. your mileage WILL vary.
I had both Macs and windows computers that are over a decade old and work fine. In fact, I threw a bunch (10+) of them away when I moved a couple of weeks ago. I tried to give them away but no one wanted the old systems, so off to the recyclers they went (sans drives🙄).
jackoatmon
macrumors 6502a
computers (and all other digital devices) last only up to 5 years, when software/firmwear updates are introduced to obsolete the hardware
you can sometimes squeak out an extra year or two if you're very careful never to install updates
you can sometimes squeak out an extra year or two if you're very careful never to install updates
kschendel
macrumors 65816
I disagree with the "only up to 5 years" bit. Our Early 2009 is still getting updates and it's 6 years old. If I upgrade it within a year it will be to get a larger, nicer display. My 2009 Mac Pro has at least 4 years in it since it's running Linux and can stay current. Both machines have had hardware upgrades. The 2013 rMBP isn't upgradeable in any real sense but it's fast enough to do what I use it for, for at least another 5 years. I think in general you can expect to get at least 6 or 7 years out of a machine, except those with hardware design faults.
maerz001
macrumors 68030
Because the upgrade of RAM and SSD this time is not possible!? So you can't increase the speed or extend memory like with the old MBP.
Imagine they had soldered down the components on the old model than you would not talk about future proof;-)
A friend of mine has a 2008 unibody macbook pro (one of the first), still on original HDD and the only thing that's been replaced is the battery because it swole up and smashed the trackpad.. It really depends on what you use the laptop for..
Sept. 2013? So it lasted 3.5 years, not 2.5. So rounding up, it's about 4 years. It's not terrible, but you've had bad luck with the battery and graphics both going.
My early 2013 is still going strong but the battery is definitely not as great as it once was, and one of the Thunderbolt ports doesn't seem to work. If there's a compelling update to the MBPs in mid to late 2017, I might spring for it.
[doublepost=1493993617][/doublepost]
Software isn't really becoming more demanding like it used to. The emphasis these days is on power efficiency.
Stefan johansson
macrumors 65816
Normal life span for any computer depends on how long it can be updated,for the old windows XP,it was around 12-14 years,but for modern macs it's probably less than 10 years,depending on what you use it for.
maerz001
macrumors 68030
But we are talking here about laptops. Where almost everything is now soldered to the logic board, a failure of one component leads to a financial total damage.
Planned obsolescence won't give u 14 years lifetime
gobikerider
Suspended
Oh lord That would've been awful but today the overhead in speed of what goes into them is so great we won't have to worry about the slowdown. Specifically concerning the hardrive which is now like 1Gb write per second something crazy
Ive just replaced my 2010 MacBook Pro as the battery exploded in it and thought it better to get a new machine rather than mess with bills on older machines. The machine still work fine now that I removed the battery but obviously not very portable now. I have noticed that the hardware was starting to give after about 5 years old but I think for a laptop thats a good life when its used all the time and taken all over the place.
One thing, and I know this will split opinions but I always find that a Mac will keep going at the same speed and in the same way for a much longer than a windows machine. I'm not saying Windows are bad machines, just that I think you need to give them a bit more TLC to keep them functioning at their prime. A Mac you just pick up and don't have too thin too much about in order to make them last.
One thing, and I know this will split opinions but I always find that a Mac will keep going at the same speed and in the same way for a much longer than a windows machine. I'm not saying Windows are bad machines, just that I think you need to give them a bit more TLC to keep them functioning at their prime. A Mac you just pick up and don't have too thin too much about in order to make them last.
Stefan johansson
macrumors 65816
The 14 years life span was an Alienware 17 inches dell laptop,running windows XP,of course,with today's evolving electronics,a quad core windows machine is obsolete,but between 1999 and 2012,that machine served well.for the modern MacBooks,depending on what you use them for,5-8 years is more realistic.
pallymore
macrumors regular
Yea, you are right, it's 3.5 years.
It's not too bad. I consider 4 years to be the average length of service for a work computer as a software engineer.
I'm thinking about upgrading if they come out with something acceptable this year.
One thing that annoys me is that this MBP basically is worth nothing now - i coulda have sold it for a few hundred bucks (that i can use to get some dongles - I guess) if everything is still working. :/