Is now a good time to buy a Macbook pro?

[kmac007]

Hey everyone,

New to these forums but looking forward to learning more about macs and learning from all the awesome people in this community.

I've been a long time PC user and have an old laptop from 2009 that's barely getting by. I want to upgrade to the mac book pro but I have a few questions first.

1. Seeing as the new mac book pros were not announced today, is it a good time to buy one now or wait a couple of months?

2 If I wait a bit longer how much do the prices usually drop on the previous generation mac book pros?

3. When do you predict the upgraded macs will come?

4. If the upgraded macs have the newer Skylake processors, exactly how much faster and more powerful will they be? Will this make a substantial difference worth waiting for?

5. Do macs have any maintenance programs to keep them running in good shape? For example windows has software like registry optimizer and speed booster that constantly makes various tweaks so your pc doesn't start running slow.

6. How is the battery life on the current macs? (please include your usage) is the battery replaceable?

7. I noticed some users were complaining that their screens retinas were peeling and apples was not addressing this. Has the issue been solved?


Any help would be appreciated, you don't have to answer them all (unless you like to even just one answer is good. Love to hear your opinions

 

[JTToft]

1. Wait a couple of months. WWDC in June will likely see the introduction of new models.

2. They don't, at least not from Apple. Previous models are discontinued. Third party resellers may offer discounts to varying degrees.

3. June.

4. Depends on usage. Someone else will be able to speak more intelligently on this.

5. Not needed.

6. Look it up on Apple's website. Their claims are realistic.

7. I don't believe there is an issue. If you get a bad machine in some way, just get it replaced.

 

[hiddenmarkov]

4. can and will vary based on uses and what you are using.

generally to get the most impact from a processor it has to be coded for. This is why Intel makes compilers and performance libraries. Devs buy them, they tweak things in coding/compilation and by many reports in C(++) and fortran runtimes improve greatly.

Not doing this you get some "muscling" of the code to run faster but this can be hit or miss. the gains may not be there in abundance. Insert my joke about nothing makes java run decent here (not a fan of java...if my only 2 choices was a java app or carving my work into stone I'd say pass me the hammer and chisel so I can get started...lol).


Skylake iirc offers better power use potentially. Not a major factor for me. Others mileage will vary as to this ofc. Generally if slamming my MBP I am on power anyway. Photo or video work spins fans up fast and power gets sucked away fast.

 

[kmac007]

4. can and will vary based on uses and what you are using.

generally to get the most impact from a processor it has to be coded for. This is why Intel makes compilers and performance libraries. Devs buy them, they tweak things in coding/compilation and by many reports in C(++) and fortran runtimes improve greatly.

Not doing this you get some "muscling" of the code to run faster but this can be hit or miss. the gains may not be there in abundance. Insert my joke about nothing makes java run decent here (not a fan of java...if my only 2 choices was a java app or carving my work into stone I'd say pass me the hammer and chisel so I can get started...lol).


Skylake iirc offers better power use potentially. Not a major factor for me. Others mileage will vary as to this ofc. Generally if slamming my MBP I am on power anyway. Photo or video work spins fans up fast and power gets sucked away fast.

Thanks for your detailed reply . I appreciate it. By power use potentiality, you mean battery power? If so how much of a jump do you estimate we could get?
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1. Wait a couple of months. WWDC in June will likely see the introduction of new models.

2. They don't, at least not from Apple. Previous models are discontinued. Third party resellers may offer discounts to varying degrees.

3. June.

4. Depends on usage. Someone else will be able to speak more intelligently on this.

5. Not needed.

6. Look it up on Apple's website. Their claims are realistic.

7. I don't believe there is an issue. If you get a bad machine in some way, just get it replaced.

Thanks for taking the time to reply JTToft. Big fan of Scandinavian countries, got cousins up in Sweden.

3. What can we expect in June to happen that I should wait for?

5. So you mean to tell me if I had my mac for 4 years it would still run as fast as they day I got it? (keep in mind I'm coming from PC to this would be a pleasant surprise for me)

 

[dk808]

Probably the worst time to buy one. Wait until June

 

[hiddenmarkov]

Not sure of the power savings to keep the battery running longer tbh.


In terms of your maintenance stuff how windows and rest do it differs. Because of how windows does its registry thing you can get bloat that weighs it down. *nix/BSD tends to avoid this issue. they don't really have the registry issue. mac OS is based in this *nix/BSD realm.

To be honest the only long term bloat I have seen with Mac OS is excess drive space use in a hidden library folder. You tend to uninstall via delete from the application folder. This can leave its application support folder in this hidden library folder still on the system. It just eats up space if that folder has large files.



Before asked if you get one....when you hit go menu item, hit alt key and the library entry should come up. If you don't hit the alt key you won't see the library entry. here is where applications store various files/folders.

Its not like registry where windows looks at that and can slow things down as it grows and collects orphaned objects in time. These application support files just sit there. Mac OS doesn't look for them if you don't ask it too basically.

 

[JTToft]

Thanks for taking the time to reply JTToft. Big fan of Scandinavian countries, got cousins up in Sweden.

3. What can we expect in June to happen that I should wait for?

5. So you mean to tell me if I had my mac for 4 years it would still run as fast as they day I got it? (keep in mind I'm coming from PC to this would be a pleasant surprise for me)

- Sweden is nice.

3. Rumours haven't been very explicit. But definitely Skylake processors. Some are hoping for a redesign. Thunderbolt 3 is probably quite likely.

5. So far as concerns the operating system itself, yes. I don't use anything of the sort, and my much older MacBook Pro hasn't slowed down one bit between 2012 and now across several OS X versions. In fact, it's gotten faster because of the optimisations between OS X updates.

 

[kmac007]

Probably the worst time to buy one. Wait until June

Sounds like the general consensus. I think I will hold off until then. Planning on replacing my old Blacberry with a Iphone SE. Finally coming out of the stone age of technology lol.
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Not sure of the power savings to keep the battery running longer tbh.


In terms of your maintenance stuff how windows and rest do it differs. Because of how windows does its registry thing you can get bloat that weighs it down. *nix/BSD tends to avoid this issue. they don't really have the registry issue. mac OS is based in this *nix/BSD realm.

To be honest the only long term bloat I have seen with Mac OS is excess drive space use in a hidden library folder. You tend to uninstall via delete from the application folder. This can leave its application support folder in this hidden library folder still on the system. It just eats up space if that folder has large files.



Before asked if you get one....when you hit go menu item, hit alt key and the library entry should come up. If you don't hit the alt key you won't see the library entry. here is where applications store various files/folders.

Its not like registry where windows looks at that and can slow things down as it grows and collects orphaned objects in time. These application support files just sit there. Mac OS doesn't look for them if you don't ask it too basically.

Thanks for your detailed reponse. So Macs maintain the same boot up time and don't eventually start running slower than when you go them on the first day?

For example people often format PCs once they start running slow. Would this be good to do on a mac or it's just going to run as fast as they day I got it, 3 years later?

 

[glenthompson]

5. Just say no to most such programs like Clean my Mac and MacKeeper.

6. Battery life is usually very good. If you can avoid installing Flash, it will be even better. My 4.5 year old MBP easily goes 4 to 5 hours of light use.

 

[mfram]

If you need a computer now, then buy a computer now. I think the talk about Intel chipset roadmaps have pretty much proven that nothing released in the next year is going to be significantly different than what's available today. Minor speed bumps and power optimizations. USB-C would be the only thing I can think of that's feasibly going to happen. And for that you'll have to buy all new USB cables.

 

[kmac007]

If you need a computer now, then buy a computer now. I think the talk about Intel chipset roadmaps have pretty much proven that nothing released in the next year is going to be significantly different than what's available today. Minor speed bumps and power optimizations. USB-C would be the only thing I can think of that's feasibly going to happen. And for that you'll have to buy all new USB cables.

Thanks for your response USB- C is definitely something I wanna avoid for the time being. I wanna have HDMI so I can run it to a monitor while at home and enjoy the screen, on the go.
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5. Just say no to most such programs like Clean my Mac and MacKeeper.

6. Battery life is usually very good. If you can avoid installing Flash, it will be even better. My 4.5 year old MBP easily goes 4 to 5 hours of light use.

5. Why no if they have a chance at speeding up the run time/ boot time of the mac? Or am I wrong here?

6. Are the batteries replaceable on the new mac book pros?

 

[glenthompson]

5. Why no if they have a chance at speeding up the run time/ boot time of the mac? Or am I wrong here?

6. Are the batteries replaceable on the new mac book pros?

They have a greater chance of screwing stuff up than improving things. MacKeeper is closer to malware than any help. OS X does a fine job keeping the system up to speed. My MBP is over 4 years old, has been through 5 OS upgrades, lots of applications loaded and deleted, and it still runs great without ever running a cleaning or speed up program.

Pretty much nothing is user replaceable on the new MBPs. I think Apple service can replace a battery.

 

[JTToft]

Thanks for your detailed reponse. So Macs maintain the same boot up time and don't eventually start running slower than when you go them on the first day?

For example people often format PCs once they start running slow. Would this be good to do on a mac or it's just going to run as fast as they day I got it, 3 years later?

- Right on the first count. On the second, formatting and reinstalling has literally no effect, so there's no need to do it. It's seen as a last resort to get a messed up system working again, not as a way of maintenance.

Thanks for your response USB- C is definitely something I wanna avoid for the time being. I wanna have HDMI so I can run it to a monitor while at home and enjoy the screen, on the go.

- Those aren't necessarily mutually exclusive. It could be that Apple just upgrades the two Thunderbolt 2 ports to Thunderbolt 3 (which includes USB-C) and leaves all other ports as they are.
Even if they do drop the HDMI port, there'll be plenty of other ways to connect to HDMI devices.

5. Why no if they have a chance at speeding up the run time/ boot time of the mac? Or am I wrong here?

- As above, they have pretty much zero chance of speeding anything up. At best, you'd be wasting your time. At worst, screwing up system files or deleting things you don't want deleted. Just stay away and don't worry about it.

6. Are the batteries replaceable on the new mac book pros?

- Depends on how you define replaceable. They're glued into the aluminum enclosure. The normal practice is to replace the entire top case including battery, trackpad and keyboard when one of the components needs replacing. That said, separate batteries can be procured, and glue can be removed, but it's not really meant to be done that way.

 

[kpaaron]

Agree with mfram. If you need a laptop now, get it. The keyboard on my mid-2009 15" MBP started dying a couple of months ago - I've been toting around an external keyboard since then - and I vowed to hold out until today but no longer. Just picked up a refurb 15" rMBP and will not look back.

 

[skiltrip]

My thoughts are that these MBPs last so long, just buy it when you feel like it. I bought my 2011 a few days after release. It stayed with me for 5 years, and while I had it, I never pined for a newer model because it worked so well. It would still be with me if I didn't have a peculiar incompatibility problem with a certain piece of software. Got a refurb 2015 a few weeks ago. I won't be worrying about any of this again for a while. The price was right and it's an awesome computer. Looking forward to the 2019 model!

 

[Howard2k]

I'm still waiting. I bought a MBA and it wasn't right. I wil suck it up with my 07 iMac for another six months or so rather than make a knee jerk reaction and picking up something that I'm buying out of frustration.

 

[kmac007]

- Right on the first count. On the second, formatting and reinstalling has literally no effect, so there's no need to do it. It's seen as a last resort to get a messed up system working again, not as a way of maintenance.


- Those aren't necessarily mutually exclusive. It could be that Apple just upgrades the two Thunderbolt 2 ports to Thunderbolt 3 (which includes USB-C) and leaves all other ports as they are.
Even if they do drop the HDMI port, there'll be plenty of other ways to connect to HDMI devices.


- As above, they have pretty much zero chance of speeding anything up. At best, you'd be wasting your time. At worst, screwing up system files or deleting things you don't want deleted. Just stay away and don't worry about it.


- Depends on how you define replaceable. They're glued into the aluminum enclosure. The normal practice is to replace the entire top case including battery, trackpad and keyboard when one of the components needs replacing. That said, separate batteries can be procured, and glue can be removed, but it's not really meant to be done that way.

Thanks for your help. I learned a lot.

 

[Razeus]

No. I mean Apple is selling refurbished Macbook Pro's from 2013 for $2k! How absurd.

 

[Fishrrman]

NO!
DON'T buy now -- unless you really NEED one, right now, right at this moment.

New MacBook Pros are in the works and coming soon.

Buy something right now, and I guarantee you that in within three months, you may regret it!

 

[kmac007]

I think I'm gonna hold off until June. I'm running a HP

No. I mean Apple is selling refurbished Macbook Pro's from 2013 for $2k! How absurd.

Why are they 2k if they are from 2013?

 

[Razeus]

I think I'm gonna hold off until June. I'm running a HP

Why are they 2k if they are from 2013?

Because Apple.

Don't ask me dude.

 

[BoneDaddy]

There are two question that will be key in making your decision, although it looks like you have.

1. How much are you looking to spend, for what kind of specs?

2. What is the most extreme task you will need it for?

If the answer to both of these questions sits below the necessity for a 2016 Macbook Pro, the necessary decision would be to get a used, refurbished Mac, or a new one that is being sold by a third party retailer, at an appropriate price for the year and specs.

If you're currently using an HP, I am 100% sure that you will fair well with a 2014-15, for the next few years. If you needed something spectacular, you wouldn't be on this forum asking for opinions, because the necessity for it would be urgent.

 

[kschendel]

Put me in the camp that says if you need a replacement now, just do it with no regrets. Whatever update comes along in June is likely to be incremental rather than revolutionary, IMHO. Also, it's unlikely to have a large effect on used / refurb equipment pricing.

If you can wait, and if you want the subjective satisfaction of having the latest and greatest, and don't mind paying the extra dollar for it, by all means wait for the (probable, but not certain) summer update.

 

[skiltrip]

I'm always a fan of the last year of certain ports or other such things. I bought in 2011 because I wanted to secure an optical drive for the next few years. I'm glad I did as I used it a lot. At this point though, I'm good without an optical drive. However, I love the HDMI port and dual T-Bolt ports. The SD card slot has proved incredibly useful to permanently dock a Jetdrive. I'm glad I grabbed a 2015 before it's USB-C mania.

 

[CE3]

If you can avoid installing Flash, it will be even better.

And it's getting easier and easier to avoid Flash. I have a Windows desktop if flash is an absolute must, but all the sites I've come across on my Mac that require it aren't worth installing it for.