Dilemma... Your opinions/advice?

[Knowlege Bomb]

I bought my 13" MBP last Tuesday and upgraded the RAM in-store. I love it to death and it's more than capable of handling any task I'll be throwing at it but with all of this talk of updated Macbooks coming at the end of the month, I'm in quite the pickle. I'm worried that deep down I'll be a little dissatisfied knowing I could have had a better machine for the same price.

If it were you, what would you do? Would you take it back and eat the restocking fee and buy at the end of the month or stick with what you already have? If I do end up taking it back will I get reimbursed for the RAM upgrade? (I only ask because when I bought my first iPod touch and paid for the firmware update in-store, they didn't refund me for that)

 

[Spandexman]

sepends on the restocking fee. It it's less that 50$, go for it, if it's more, i'd say not worth it.

 

[UTclassof89]

why don't you keep your brand frickin' new computer (that you admit you love), and donate the amount that the restocking fee would have been to acquire a slightly newer, ever so slightly shinier laptop to a charity like Hereford.org (you know--the ones that help feed people who are on the edge of starvation).

Get some perspective.

 

[Knowlege Bomb]

why don't you keep your brand frickin' new computer (that you admit you love), and donate the amount that the restocking fee would have been to acquire a slightly newer, ever so slightly shinier laptop to a charity like Hereford.org (you know--the ones that help feed people who are on the edge of starvation).

Get some perspective.

Okay so what you're saying is that I'm selfish because I'm thinking of upgrading my newly purchased laptop for the price of a restocking fee?

I'd call that smart...

Anybody else?

 

[m85476585]

I'm worried that deep down I'll be a little dissatisfied knowing I could have had a better machine for the same price.

That's exactly what Apple wants, and that's how they make a lot of money. They convince you that you "need" to upgrade to the latest model when it comes out, and since they are always updating, you are always spending money. The newer ones might not be out for a few months, and you might get more dissatisfaction by not having a shiny new MBP for the few months while you are waiting.

I'd say keep what you have, be happy with it, and don't let the marketing people get to you. The new ones won't be that much faster, I think around 20% at the most for the same clock speed. That is really insignificant since most tasks are not CPU-bound. I'd say put the money that you would pay for the restocking fee towards a nice SSD, which will give you a huge speed-up for anything disk related.

The only situation where I would say you should return it and wait for the upgrade is if you do lots of video editing (professionally, maybe), since video software tends to be heavily optimized for the latest processors and you might see more than a 20% speed increase. If you only occasionally do video stuff it's probably not worth it.

 

[ARF900]

With the 13 inch model I dont think your going to get that big of a refresh. Youll probably get a speed boost and that would be it. Dont worry about it no major change.

 

[Knowlege Bomb]

That's exactly what Apple wants, and that's how they make a lot of money. They convince you that you "need" to upgrade to the latest model when it comes out, and since they are always updating, you are always spending money. The newer ones might not be out for a few months, and you might get more dissatisfaction by not having a shiny new MBP for the few months while you are waiting.

I'd say keep what you have, be happy with it, and don't let the marketing people get to you. The new ones won't be that much faster, I think around 20% at the most for the same clock speed. That is really insignificant since most tasks are not CPU-bound. I'd say put the money that you would pay for the restocking fee towards a nice SSD, which will give you a huge speed-up for anything disk related.

The only situation where I would say you should return it and wait for the upgrade is if you do lots of video editing (professionally, maybe), since video software tends to be heavily optimized for the latest processors and you might see more than a 20% speed increase. If you only occasionally do video stuff it's probably not worth it.

With the 13 inch model I dont think your going to get that big of a refresh. Youll probably get a speed boost and that would be it. Dont worry about it no major change.

Thank you both for your helpful replies. I'm thinking I'll be hanging on to it.

 

[csdibiase]

Thank you both for your helpful replies. I'm thinking I'll be hanging on to it.

Had I already made a purchase that would be my inclination too. Shoot, I'm still tempted to throw down on a refrubished 13" instead of wait for the refresh.

There will always be a "new shinny" just over the horizon. Can't get them all, no matter how much gadget hounds like us might want to.

 

[UTclassof89]

Okay so what you're saying is that I'm selfish because I'm thinking of upgrading my newly purchased laptop for the price of a restocking fee?

I'd call that smart...

Nope; I never said you were selfish (and I certainly won't accuse you of being smart).
I'm saying of all the possible things to spend money on, an extra 0.5 ghz of processor speed on a slightly newer laptop is silly, since it won't do you any measurable good; it might appease you for another 6 months, at which point you'll see a sightly newer thing to covet.

 

[Knowlege Bomb]

Nope; I never said you were selfish (and I certainly won't accuse you of being smart).
I'm saying of all the possible things to spend money on, an extra 0.5 ghz of processor speed on a slightly newer laptop is silly, since it won't do you any measurable good; it might appease you for another 6 months, at which point you'll see a sightly newer thing to covet.

You're kind of an ass, aren't ya?

My laptop will actually be appeasing me for the next 5+ years, so I think of it as a smart consumer decision. If I can spend a little bit extra and get something that is going to last me a little longer why should I worry that it's only .5 GHz faster or that it has an SSD rather than an HDD? They may be small differences but they will make a difference in the long run. However, if these features turn out to be something that I need in the future, I can pay to have them installed which is why I've decided to keep it.

So do us a favor and pull the reigns on your moral high horse left (or right, if you so choose) and trot your way out of my thread. I'm sure there's a charity somewhere that could use your services.

 

[m85476585]

You can never upgrade the CPU; it's soldered to the logic board. Same with the GPU. The hard drive and RAM can of course be upgraded.

If you do want to upgrade a few years down the line, macs have great resale value.

 

[thegoldenmackid]

Were you not aware of the rumors of new ones? Just be content with a purchase, whatever it is... There's no telling if the 13" will be updated and if so, what it will be. It seems logical that Apple would separate it from the MacBook, but there really is no telling.

 

[btbrossard]

You're kind of an ass, aren't ya?

When you made your purchase, you didn't know that the product you're buying is nearing a refresh?

Something new is always coming out. You are always going to feel like if you just waited a little longer you could have had that one extra feature.

You came here asking for opinions and someone gave you one you didn't like, so you call them an ass? That's 100% pure classy.

 

[maflynn]

Keep it and enjoy the machine. There will always be a better faster computer coming out around the corner.

There's no guarantee that apple will actually release an updated MBP by the end of the month. People have often speculated that will do such and such by x date. That date comes and goes.

The second point to consider is that even if apple updates its MBP line in a couple of weeks, those new machines may not be ready for shipment for several more weeks.

You have a computer that you love and I assume is defect free. Don't worry what the future may bring but enjoy what you have now.

 

[Knowlege Bomb]

You came here asking for opinions and someone gave you one you didn't like, so you call them an ass? That's 100% pure classy.

See below.

Nope; I never said you were selfish (and I certainly won't accuse you of being smart).

Was that at all necessary? That's why I called him an ass. And the whole perspective thing in his first post was laughable too. I came for opinions and advice relating to my laptop, not what I choose to do with my money. Attacking me as a person when you have no idea how I live my life seems childish. But it's not really important. Let it be.

With that aside I'm completely happy with what I have and the more I think about it, the more I feel like I'd be taking a chance of them releasing something not to my liking. Plus I'm not sure I'd be able to go back to my Windows laptop and potentially be stuck with it for however long Apple decides to delay the release after the introduction...

Thanks to those who helped.

/thread

 

[Gen]

Keep it. It's a nice computer, and really capable.

 

[Freewayjim]

See below.



Was that at all necessary? That's why I called him an ass. And the whole perspective thing in his first post was laughable too.

I have to agree with the OP on this, some people in these forums can be quite snobbish and arrogant when what most of us really want is some simple insight or reassurance without a personal agenda thrown in for good measure.

As for the computer? you have a great machine, just enjoy it because there will always be something new coming down the road. What you have will most likely suit your needs regardless.

 

[LastZion]

You can never upgrade the CPU; it's soldered to the logic board. Same with the GPU. The hard drive and RAM can of course be upgraded.

If you do want to upgrade a few years down the line, macs have great resale value.

Yes, and I wager his resale value will be greater with the updated computer/processor.

 

[PacMookBro]

I bought my 13" MBP last Tuesday and upgraded the RAM in-store. I love it to death and it's more than capable of handling any task I'll be throwing at it but with all of this talk of updated Macbooks coming at the end of the month, I'm in quite the pickle. I'm worried that deep down I'll be a little dissatisfied knowing I could have had a better machine for the same price.

If it were you, what would you do? Would you take it back and eat the restocking fee and buy at the end of the month or stick with what you already have? If I do end up taking it back will I get reimbursed for the RAM upgrade? (I only ask because when I bought my first iPod touch and paid for the firmware update in-store, they didn't refund me for that)

At this point, if I were you, I would keep it since you needed it by last Tuesday and you are "loving it to death" since then. In the long run, what you have right now and what Apple will probably release at the end of the month won't make much difference anyway.

It is completely normal to be "in quite the pickle," especially if you bought Mac when update is imminent and coming to MacRumors asking for second opinion.

Of course, what you could have done was to wait for the imminent update trusting the rumor site called MacRumors. That's what some people here is inferring from your post as an option.

All in all, your money well spent. Don't worry about the update.

 

[Dozerrox]

I'm quite jealous that you have one now. I've convinced myself to wait, but if I had a new laptop today I'd be pleased.

 

[Habitus]

I bought my 13" MBP last Tuesday and upgraded the RAM in-store. I love it to death and it's more than capable of handling any task I'll be throwing at it but with all of this talk of updated Macbooks coming at the end of the month, I'm in quite the pickle. I'm worried that deep down I'll be a little dissatisfied knowing I could have had a better machine for the same price.

If it were you, what would you do? Would you take it back and eat the restocking fee and buy at the end of the month or stick with what you already have? If I do end up taking it back will I get reimbursed for the RAM upgrade? (I only ask because when I bought my first iPod touch and paid for the firmware update in-store, they didn't refund me for that)

As any Apple sales rep would say, if the product meets your needs, why sell it? Honestly, I doubt the updates (if they even happen) will drastically benefit your current needs. Keep the Mac you have and plan on upgrading in a few years for a even better Mac.

Habitus

 

[mscriv]

So do us a favor and pull the reigns on your moral high horse left (or right, if you so choose) and trot your way out of my thread.

Well done sir or madam! A wonderful blend of sarcasm, wit, and boundary setting.