How long will my MacBook Pro last?

[kohlson]

The problem with the newer MacBooks is they lack standard USB ports so one needs to buy an adaptor just to sync their iPhone!

To me, this is not the strongest argument. On Amazon these USB-C converters are 2 for $7. I bought 4 for my daughter, who has a tendency not to hang onto things like this, and haven't heard anything otherwise in 13 months.

Re: SSD. I'm glad you're satisfied with the current performance of your 2012 MBP. Just know that when it's not doing it for you anymore, an SSD will make it run better than new. So you've got some headroom. Also, keep in mind that your HDD is 5 years old. That's a long time for a laptop drive.

 

[ZapNZs]

Maye so but they are expensive.

They are worth the investment. They were worth the investment when they were $1+/GB IMO.

You will wonder how you went without one before, and why you waited so long to get one.

 

[softlysunlit]

That is another reason why I went with a 2015 MBP over a 2016.

Would you recommend getting the 2017 version?

 

[TonyK]

Would you recommend getting the 2017 version?

The 2016, 2017, and 2018 all use USB-C ports. As I don't own or have used the 2017 MBP, I cannot weigh in on a recommendation for it. If it were me I'd wait and see how well the 2018 does especially for the keyboard.

 

[Glockworkorange]

Would you recommend getting the 2017 version?

I have a 2016 13 inch TB model and a 2017 15 inch model.

Neither of the keyboards have given me problems, although my 13 inch had some TB 3 port issues and the logic board needed to be replaced.

I'd wait for some reviews of the 2018 before shelling out $$$$.

 

[Ma2k5]

I bought my MacBook Pro in 2015 so its running on 3 years. I keep it in excellent shape and the battery life is excellent. I may not upgrade past Hi Sierra since this os runs great on it and besides I need support for 32-bit apps. So anyone else with a 2012 model and how long should it last?

It'll last a few years yet (of course you could get a component failure but that is with every laptop). I think you should upgrade once Cannonlake finally arrives, which might be ~2020. We are looking at around 25% performance increase and a massive 45% reduction in power reduction (LPDDR4 RAM goodness too) - of course these are best case scenarios but this will be huge for mobile computing.

 

[jwolf6589]

It'll last a few years yet (of course you could get a component failure but that is with every laptop). I think you should upgrade once Cannonlake finally arrives, which might be ~2020. We are looking at around 25% performance increase and a massive 45% reduction in power reduction (LPDDR4 RAM goodness too) - of course these are best case scenarios but this will be huge for mobile computing.

This could be completely false.

 

[Stuart in Oz]

I bought my MacBook Pro in 2015 so its running on 3 years. I keep it in excellent shape and the battery life is excellent. I may not upgrade past Hi Sierra since this os runs great on it and besides I need support for 32-bit apps. So anyone else with a 2012 model and how long should it last?

My 2012 13" i7 is still going strong. I've replaced the HDD ribbon cable twice in 7 years as they tend to abrade but that only costs $60 for the part from iFixit and takes 10 minutes to do at home. My trackpad is getting hard to mechanically click so I just use tap to click now instead. I'm on my third (or fourth?) battery. At this point every day is a financial bonus - it just keeps on keeping on.

The machine has had a hard life too - it went out with me every work day for the first five years, most days in the topbox of my motorbike, and that's not a smooth place to be.

As to performance, the i7 is still plenty powerful. I put a 1TB SSD and 16GB of RAM in it some years ago and it flies for daily productivity.

Every time I look at the price of a new MPB wth the same size SSD and RAM my heart has palpitations.

 

[Glmnet1]

My 2012 13" i7 is still going strong. I've replaced the HDD ribbon cable twice in 7 years as they tend to abrade but that only costs $60 for the part from iFixit and takes 10 minutes to do at home. My trackpad is getting hard to mechanically click so I just use tap to click now instead. I'm on my third (or fourth?) battery. At this point every day is a financial bonus - it just keeps on keeping on.

The machine has had a hard life too - it went out with me every work day for the first five years, most days in the topbox of my motorbike, and that's not a smooth place to be.

As to performance, the i7 is still plenty powerful. I put a 1TB SSD and 16GB of RAM in it some years ago and it flies for daily productivity.

Every time I look at the price of a new MPB wth the same size SSD and RAM my heart has palpitations.

And if you end up spending the money, I doubt a new MBP would still be functional 7 years later with the same kind of usage and no way to upgrade or repair it.

 

[pshufd]

My 2008 MacBook Pro 2008 died summer of 2018. The display or screen backlight is gone. I bought two 2014 MacBook Pros, one for myself and one that my son took. They're used daily and run fine. I bought a 2015 in January and it runs fine. My expectations on these models is 10 years of use. And I expect Apple to fix their issues by the time I need to replace at least the 2014. So, you really don't know how long they will last. But they can last for a very long time. Or you could get a very bad year like 2011 where the Discrete Graphics goes and you can't get it fixed and Integrated isn't an option.

 

[Oen Humphreys]

The problem with the newer MacBooks is they lack standard USB ports so one needs to buy an adaptor just to sync their iPhone!

I have a May, 2012 Macbook pro 13-inch non retina laptop with a 750GB hard disc. It is used daily, and has had a very active life, e.g. emails, searching internet, very heavy m/s Word and Excel use, including running a business, stock control, payroll calculations and slips, invoices, and large storage of documents for copyng, printing, lots of scanning, You Tube clips, news, videos, movies, and an extensive photo record (about 20,000 pix), heavy photoshop use, etc, etc.. Most days it is running about 6 hours a day. It has two USB ports, the great Magsafe power connector for charging (I have seen later models with worn out plug-in power cables off for expensive replacements), an SD card reader, which was great when using a digital camera, a headphone jack. and other connection points for projectors, using a socket now obselete. The keyboard is the same type as the new 2020 Macbook pro now uses, and not the "butterfly" keyboard they introduced in 2015 with all its attendant faults. Apple have "upgraded" the new keyboard to what I already have! My Macbook feels and looks really substantial, and runs without fail.
I have listed all the above to stress that this 13-inch Macbook is still going strong after 8 years of pretty heavy use. I get about 6 hours out of the original battery, which lasts about a day, and needs charging daily.
It's a pity that they don't make them like this any more. I expect a few more years out of it, but I think that support for its operating system (Mojave V 10.6.2) will eventually cease. I'm not upgrading to more recent OS, because these are in 64-bit, and my purchased Microsoft office,being 32-bit, won't work on the new OS.
If you look after this model, it should give you at least 10 years' service, maybe a lot more!

 

[Jimmy James]

2008 week 1 unibody daily driver.

 

[nfl46]

I have a Late 2013 (i5) with 8GB and its still running fine. My battery health is currently at 186 cycles. I doubt I'd be getting rid of my MacBook anytime soon. Maybe Late 2021 - probably not if its still running fine. Heck, its looks like its in mint condition. Fortunately, for me, I never experience the issue with the screen coating coming off.

 

[topcat001]

My mid 2009 machine is still going strong, on the original 7200 rpm HDD! However I needed/wanted a computer with new macos and all the bells and whistles newer Apple hardware can do, so I got a 2019.