Buy 13" MBP now or wait (based on my need and usage)

[applesed]

If you can wait, why not wait.

Intel MBPs are going away soon with a 2 year max timeline. Apple says by the end of the year they are bringing out Apple Silicon based systems. If you can wait until the end of the year or even better this time next year the MacBook landscape will have change quite a bit. Also, anything you buy now is going to take a hit in depreciation.

A couple things.
You will still get support for at least 4 years on a mbp you buy this year.
You may want to avoid 1st rev hardware and software compatibility.
So I think the sweet spot for transitioning to the established version of the new platform is mid-2022, although it could be sooner.
Windows is still supporting Intel CPUs, and it runs on the Macbook Pro.
Worst case scenario, instead of recouping at least 50% of the value in a resale in 2-3 years,
you recoup 20 - 30% of the value, the buyers market being people that want to run Windows on solid hardware.
And that lost value is perhaps gained time on not being a beta tester, working on a solid hardware platform with software support already.

 

[26139]

I plan on getting back into photo editing at some point and therefore have excluded the MBA.

What made you decide to exclude? The MBA can handle Photoshop.

 

[jerryk]

A couple things.
You will still get support for at least 4 years on a mbp you buy this year.
You may want to avoid 1st rev hardware and software compatibility.
So I think the sweet spot for transitioning to the established version of the new platform is mid-2022, although it could be sooner.
Windows is still supporting Intel CPUs, and it runs on the Macbook Pro.
Worst case scenario, instead of recouping at least 50% of the value in a resale in 2-3 years,
you recoup 20 - 30% of the value, the buyers market being people that want to run Windows on solid hardware.
And that lost value is perhaps gained time on not being a beta tester, working on a solid hardware platform with software support already.

Users have already seen the power of Apple Axx chips through their use of the iPhones and iPads. These are leading devices in respective categories in terms of performance.

Also, there is a lot to gain from adopting Axx silicon. Such as ability to run phone/ipad apps on your device; lower power consumption; better accelerators, etc. For people all in on the Apple ecosystem should be a big win.

Porting of existing apps seems to be moving at fast pace with some of the big apps like MS Office 365 and Adobe Creative Cloud moving well. Will their be bumps sure. But my gut says this will be pretty smooth and Apple is throwing a lot of resources at this transition.

I question of value loss is an interesting one. In 20 days, buyers of the 2020 13" MBP $1799 model saw the unit drop to $1599. I know I was one, but fortunately could send my unit back and rebuy the model for $1599. That saved me from a 15+% loss of value. But I have no illusion that the resale will take another big drop as soon as the equivalent Apple Silicon unit ships.

As for being solid, I guess so. But owing both a 16" and 2020 13" seeing the issues posted in these forums does give me concerns. I sort of wonder if Apple engineers and managers working on these products knew the Intel Macs days were numbered and made half-hearted efforts. Also, being an engineer, I know if I were on the Mac team I would try to get on the Apple Silicon project ASAP. No engineer wants to working on, or heaven forbid, maintaining, "old tech". So that may have resulted in the brain drain on the design and rollout of the latest Intel based designs. Maybe that explains the 2 year old 8th gen CPU still being in the base MBP 13"

 

[meteoreos]

I’m in the same predicament. I want a MBP 13” for work, and I was pretty much set on the 2020 model. However, if the new ARM MBP is due in September/October, I think I’ll wait. Which begs the question, can we expect its release before November?

 

[sixtydashone]

I would try to hold off and wait to see what the ARM laptop looks like before buying anything, if you can hold out that long.

 

[matram]

The OP has gone silent and his only contribution to the discussion seems to be he does not want an MBA.

 

[Mojer]

The OP has gone silent and his only contribution to the discussion seems to be he does not want an MBA.

It was a busy Friday here. Hence the reason I haven’t been around. I want to exclude the MBA because I want to be able to keep this machine for five years and for a few hundred dollars more I can get what I believe to be a better machine. The difference in cost is literally a few pennies a day over that five year period. Also, I like the form factor of the MBP better. I don’t doubt that the MBA is more than capable of my “current” uses and I think it’s a great machine, but I just want a MBP. Thanks for everyone’s input.

 

[Yebubbleman]

I don't necessarily need a new MBP but I would like to get one at some point. I was hoping by September to have one, BUT now with Apple switching to ARM processors I just cannot decide what to do. I am somewhat of a basic user (email, internet, Spotify, Netflix, docs and some other minor tasks. I plan on keeping this machine for 3-5 years. And I am not interested in a MBA. So please help me decide what I should do. Thank you!!!

1) Are you in a rush to buy?

2) Is there any reason why you'd need Intel? (i.e. Do you need to run Windows via Boot Camp, x86 virtualization or any other thing specific to x86?)

If the answers to both of those are no, I'd definitely wait, since the 13" MacBook Pro seems like it'll be first to be transitioned. Otherwise buy now.

I'm going to buy an Intel one, but that's because my answer to 2) is yes (albeit, not necessarily for Boot Camp reasons, though that is a nice plus). I'm recommending to anyone that asks me for computer advice to wait (especially if they're not one to buy new computers all that often).