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I need a Macbook Pro for college... but I'm afraid of updates.

D

doublementh

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Apr 24, 2012
2
0
Hey, all, I'm new.

I'm gonna be off to college soon, but I am afraid of buying a MacBook Pro from the university bookstore, because I fear buying one, and then having it be updated a week later. The buyer's guide says it's approaching the end of a cycle, but I would love to hear everyone's thoughts.

Thanks!
 
If you buy now then Apple will give you an updated machine within 14 days of purchase. However unless you need one right now your better off waiting for the update as it should be very soon.
 
Nobody but Apple knows when a new MacBook Pro is going to be released.

If you don't need a new Mac right now and can afford to wait, then do so, and wait for the update. With the release of the new Intel processors it seems likely that a minor update will happen soon. However, If you need one now then go ahead and buy, they are still great machines.
 
iisforiphone said:
Nah just a prediction based on his ability to research a topic that's been beaten to death, although I might be wrong and the OP is Dogie Hosard
Click to expand...

Since OP's question is entirely (100%) subjective and it depends on his immediate needs and desires, i am afraid that no amount of research could answer this question for him. And do you really consider reading rumors research? One person says one thing, another person says another. No one knows for certain when the new line will be released except for c-level management.
 
roofz said:
Since OP's question is entirely (100%) subjective and it depends on his immediate needs and desires, i am afraid that no amount of research could answer this question for him. And do you really consider reading rumors research? One person says one thing, another person says another. No one knows for certain when the new line will be released except for c-level management.
Click to expand...

Correct there is no right or wrong answer but simple research would see that and also see multiple threads that cover the topic and the OP could of added his questions concerns to those existing threads
 
If you can let go of having to have the "latest and greatest" Mac you can possibly save a ton of money if you buy a previous-generation Mac at your university bookstore.

Colleges often purchase a bunch of discontinued Macs at very low prices and pass the savings along to students and staff. I have saved up to 50% on brand new discontinued Macs at university bookstores. The 24" iMac that I am using right now was originally $1999. I got it for $1100 and that price included $150 off the iPod of my choice, so you could say that I actually paid $950 for the iMac.

Mac upgrades are often incremental with speed increases of around 10%; sometimes the internal drive size increases too.

The next rumored MacBook Pro upgrades will likely see a 10-20% CPU speed increase. MBPs that utilize integrated graphics will probably see a 20% improvement in the GPU. Even those improvements wouldn't matter much to me if I could snag a previous-generation MBP at a sweet price.

If I were in your shoes I would check with your university bookstore about the possibility of it acquiring discontinued MBPs when the new models come out. Some bookstores have a history of such purchases and others don't. The University of Oregon and UCLA are two universities that I know regularly offer discontinued Macs at greatly discounted prices. One caveat: they tend to go quickly, so you need to call everyday or get on a mailing list if the bookstore has one.
 
you don't NEED a macbook pro for college...
but you will feel really dumb since a refresh is imminent very soon
 
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