In my haste, I bought a 2013 MBPr, good buy or bad?

[vahdyx]

So a buddy of mine was selling his Late 2013 Macbook Pro and without thinking about it, I said, "I'll buy it, bring it over!" He brought it over and it's in great shape, but after I pay him $700 and play around with it, I notice it's an i5 with 4 GB of RAM and has 128 GB of storage....

I suddenly am overcome with buyers remorse.

This would be a gift for my wife, so keep that in mind. She's a first grade teacher and doesn't need anything too heavy, just docs and some video editing but on a very low scale. Her [current] laptop is an i5 3000 series with 8 GB of RAM and it's currently running Windows 10, the problem with her laptop is her battery is going out, and her WiFi adapter is dead.

So thoughts on my buy?

 

[decio]

I dunno man, I think you've been had! Switching an i5 with another i5 and less Ram doesn't really seem that sound of an idea to me.

 

[jlc1978]

This would be a gift for my wife, so keep that in mind. She's a first grade teacher and doesn't need anything too heavy, just docs and some video editing but on a very low scale. Her laptop is an i5 3000 series with 8 GB of RAM and it's currently running Windows 10, the problem with her laptop is her battery is going out, and her WiFi adapter is dead.

So thoughts on my buy?

Will it meet your wife's neds? Does she like it? If so it's a good buy.

 

[vahdyx]

Will it meet your wife's neds? Does she like it? If so it's a good buy.

She hasn't seen it yet, but I can't imagine her being unhappy with it since the screen is infinitely better than her current computer and it is nice looking, but going from an i5 3000 to an i5 4000 with half the RAM and way less storage makes me wonder.

 

[doitdada]

Would try to get my money back.

 

[Schranke]

Personally i will feel that going down on both ram and storage would be a downgrade, even with a better screen.
How much space does she use on her current machine?

 

[ixxx69]

So a buddy of mine was selling his Late 2013 Macbook Pro and without thinking about it, I said, "I'll buy it, bring it over!" He brought it over and it's in great shape, but after I pay him $700 and play around with it, I notice it's an i5 with 4 GB of RAM and has 128 GB of storage....

I suddenly am overcome with buyers remorse.

This would be a gift for my wife, so keep that in mind. She's a first grade teacher and doesn't need anything too heavy, just docs and some video editing but on a very low scale. Her [current] laptop is an i5 3000 series with 8 GB of RAM and it's currently running Windows 10, the problem with her laptop is her battery is going out, and her WiFi adapter is dead.

So thoughts on my buy?

Price-wise, that's a fair enough deal (about what they go for on ebay), especially considering the condition and knowing its previous owner.

Spec-wise, it should be fine for her needs, though the 4GB of RAM is a little tight in the long run (the SSD really helps with that though). Also hard to do more than a few minutes of video at a time on 128GB, but doesn't sound like she needs more storage than that, right? (she can always use an external HDD for longer-term storage).

How many cycles on the battery?

I know it's kind of beside the point, and people come in all different flavors, but always kind of curious about that level of impulse-buying where you buy something without checking the specs first?

 

[tubeexperience]

Terrible price. I wouldn't pay $700 for that.

You are better of upgrading her Windows laptop with a SSD.

480GB SSD can be purchased for ~$100.

 

[vahdyx]

I don't have too much experience with Macs, I'm mainly support Windows servers and network equipment for work, but just looking at the spec sheet, I instantly felt like I spent too much.

As for ixxx69 question, yeah, I should have known better, but the word "Mac" and "wife" made my mind fuzzy and I crossed the street without looking both ways. Idiot move I know.

 

[tubeexperience]

Definitely get your money back!

 

[ixxx69]

I don't have too much experience with Macs, I'm mainly support Windows servers and network equipment for work, but just looking at the spec sheet, I instantly felt like I spent too much.

Before my previous reply, I checked out Ebay's "completed" sales on that model, and the most recent sales were mostly in the $675 range for typical condition. So $700 is "fair" (no one's suggesting "great deal!"). If you change your mind on it and you're not comfortable asking your friend to take it back, you can always sell it - you might take a small loss, but it's not like you got burned.

I've got no agenda or bone to pick, but I know some people on these forums do. ;-) Good luck with whatever you decide!

Cheers!

 

[tubeexperience]

Before my previous reply, I checked out Ebay's "completed" sales on that model, and the most recent sales were mostly in the $675 range for typical condition. So $700 is "fair" (no one's suggesting "great deal!"). If you change your mind on it and you're not comfortable asking your friend to take it back, you can always sell it - you might take a small loss, but it's not like you got burned.

I've got no agenda or bone to pick, but I know some people on these forums do. ;-) Good luck with whatever you decide!

Cheers!

I bought a 2013 MacBook Pro Retina 15" with twice as much memory and storage as this for $400.

It came with original box and accessories + receipt.

This is definitely not a good deal.

 

[T5BRICK]

I bought a 2013 MacBook Pro Retina 15" with twice as much memory and storage as this for $400.

It came with original box and accessories + receipt.

This is definitely not a good deal.

The one with water damage that you posted about earlier this week?

$700 isn't an outrageous price for an early 2013 13" rMBP with the specs that the OP listed. Seems par for the course on eBay and Craigslist. It's not a great deal either, but nobody is saying that it was.

 

[ixxx69]

I bought a 2013 MacBook Pro Retina 15" with twice as much memory and storage as this for $400.

It came with original box and accessories + receipt.

This is definitely not a good deal.

Because you were able to score a great deal doesn't make this a bad deal. $400 is a steal if it's as good as you suggest. Lucky you! Could have the OP gotten virtually the same laptop for $600? Yeah, probably... may have had to shop around, item may have had a bunch of dings and scratches, may have had to wait two weeks for it to arrive only to discover it wasn't as promised, etc. OP bought it from a friend, saw first hand the condition, didn't have to do a sketchy craigslist meet, etc. That can be worth something.

I've noticed in many of your posts you seem to equate your own personal experience as the way it should be for everyone. Not cool.

 

[triptolemus]

The one with water damage that you posted about earlier this week?

Oof!

 

[tubeexperience]

The one with water damage that you posted about earlier this week?

$700 isn't an outrageous price for an early 2013 13" rMBP with the specs that the OP listed. Seems par for the course on eBay and Craigslist. It's not a great deal either, but nobody is saying that it was.

Oof!

No, it is not. No liquid damage.

I got this one over a month ago.

Same model, different laptop.

 

[Toutou]

I'd say it's an okay deal if it's in good shape. Those models are only marginally slower than the newest ones (I have one) and while 4 gigs of RAM isn't too much, it should be fine for your wife's usage. I would worry more about the small SSD - it may be enough for some, for others not so much.

 

[T5BRICK]

No, it is not. No liquid damage.

I got this one over a month ago.

Same model, different laptop.

Then you got a really good deal. The OP didn't get a good deal, but they didn't really get ripped off. The laptop will likely serve the needs of a 1st grade teacher just fine.

 

[RoboWarriorSr]

She hasn't seen it yet, but I can't imagine her being unhappy with it since the screen is infinitely better than her current computer and it is nice looking, but going from an i5 3000 to an i5 4000 with half the RAM and way less storage makes me wonder.

If its a 2013 model like you mentioned, it would have the Iris 5100 which would be a pretty big jump in performance over earlier Intel graphic.

 

[vahdyx]

It also has Apple care until 2017 March, so that's a plus. It's in great physical condition. The biggest concern is the spec sheet vs price. Granted it has a way better display, and if I'm not mistaken an M.2 SSD? And it's a late 2013 model and he bought it in 2014 new he said.

Doing some more research before I ask him for my money back and to see if it's worth it. I know from Macsales.com I can upgrade the SSD for a few hundred dollars so there's that option, but it's just more money to a system that may not be worth the expense.

If its a 2013 model like you mentioned, it would have the Iris 5100 which would be a pretty big jump in performance over earlier Intel graphic.

It is it's a late 2013 model

 

[T5BRICK]

Granted it has a way better display, and if I'm not mistaken an M.2 SSD?

The connector is similar to m.2, but not physically compatible. You can't use normal m.2 drives.

I know from Macsales.com I can upgrade the SSD for a few hundred dollars so there's that option, but it's just more money to a system that may not be worth the expense.

The drives that Macsales sells are slower than some stock drives, and they use a weird controller.

Honestly, if she doesn't need a ton of storage space the computer will probably suit her needs just fine.

 

[vahdyx]

The connector is similar to m.2, but not physically compatible. You can't use normal m.2 drives.



The drives that Macsales sells are slower than some stock drives, and they use a weird controller.

Honestly, if she doesn't need a ton of storage space the computer will probably suit her needs just fine.

I see, interesting. Yeah she doesn't use a ton of space. She's using 67.5 GB total including the what Windows takes up.

 

[killawat]

Don't think thats a smoking hot deal; I usually see 2012, 2013 15 rMBP w/ 8 GB ram and 256 SSD for that price.

Brand new Macbook Air 13 w/ 8 GB of RAM could be had from best buy for $750 , 2015 Macbook Pro base for $1100 or $1000 if you have student coupon (which anyone can sign up for).

 

[jlc1978]

She hasn't seen it yet, but I can't imagine her being unhappy with it since the screen is infinitely better than her current computer and it is nice looking, but going from an i5 3000 to an i5 4000 with half the RAM and way less storage makes me wonder.

I would not worry about, nor that it has 4GB of ram. From the sounds of it she isn't doing much heavy lifting to require better specs; and you can always add a fast external drive if you need more space for video editing. El Capitan takes less than 8GB of space, compared to Windows 16-20GB. How much HD space does she use now?
As for the price, $700 is a fair price; right around market.

 

[tubeexperience]

I would not worry about, nor that it has 4GB of ram. From the sounds of it she isn't doing much heavy lifting to require better specs; and you can always add a fast external drive if you need more space for video editing. El Capitan takes less than 8GB of space, compared to Windows 16-20GB. How much HD space does she use now?
As for the price, $700 is a fair price; right around market.

I only have a few tabs open on Safari and I am already over 4GB memory.