Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Is Selling and Buying a New MBP Every Year a Good Idea?

MICHAELSD

MICHAELSD

macrumors 603
Original poster
Jul 13, 2008
5,522
3,535
NJ
I'm back into wanting and really considering a MacBook Pro, like I have been for the last year and a half. The only thing that kept me from getting one instead of my desktop was because of the 8600M GT. I'm going to wait to see what's in the new revision, which is when I would buy. Did anyone here ever see the MBP's resale rate on eBay? You can easily sell a year-old, or older, MBP and only pay a little extra to get a current, new model. I know that the video card in the new MBP won't hold up for as long as I'd like if it isn't at least a 9700M GTS, so selling an old one to get a newer, faster one sounds like a good idea to me.

Does anyone here sell their MBP every year to get a new one? How does it usually go?
 
I do it because I travel between countries and can usually sell it without loss, I also buy used instead of brand new
 
If you got cash to do it...then do it. But, you wont see big performance leaps every year. If I were you, I would update every 2 years.
 
I see a new 2.5 GHz 15" MBP goes for $2699, about $2888 after tax. Same computer sold on eBay for $2010, about 1960 after eBay fees. So it would cost about $930 to own this computer for a year.

Would you pay $900 to rent a computer for a year?
 
DaveF said:
I see a new 2.5 GHz 15" MBP goes for $2699, about $2888 after tax. Same computer sold on eBay for $2010, about 1960 after eBay fees. So it would cost about $930 to own this computer for a year.

Would you pay $900 to rent a computer for a year?
Click to expand...

+1

This is pretty much an on par analysis. I think it's a waste of money and not a good investment considering the upgrades each year are minor.
 
totally waste of money.
but if you have lots and lots of money..
have you ever considered giving some back? to charity:)

seriously,
i don't see the reason behind changing something ( not just computers/electronics) for a the "next" release with a very minimal upgrade.
the things you can do now for your current machine, i believe you can still do them for the same machine after 2-3 yrs.., of course the new one will make your work faster but still..it's just a waste of money.

i can't help but think of my brother who has a 8.1 Megapixel camera..
he's not into photography, he simply points and shoots.. ( probably uses between 4-5 MP /shot) and now he wants to upgrade to a 12 or 15MP??:mad:

am i the only one living in the US? and feeling the recession? the inflation?
:mad:
 
DaveF said:
I see a new 2.5 GHz 15" MBP goes for $2699, about $2888 after tax. Same computer sold on eBay for $2010, about 1960 after eBay fees. So it would cost about $930 to own this computer for a year.

Would you pay $900 to rent a computer for a year?
Click to expand...

So then you should wait a while after a release one time, buy this laptop at the used price you mentioned. Then sell it a bit later for maybe 1700, pickup another used one for about the same amount.

A few hundred more if there are upgrades all around (video card/processor/hard drive) doesn't seem too far out of the question, especially considering these are notebooks and you pretty much are stuck with what you get unless you upgrade the entire unit.
 
markrivers said:
seriously,
i don't see the reason behind changing something ( not just computers/electronics) for a the "next" release with a very minimal upgrade.
the things you can do now for your current machine, i believe you can still do them for the same machine after 2-3 yrs.., of course the new one will make your work faster but still..it's just a waste of money.
Click to expand...

For me, Mac is a working-tool the primary source of income. Therefore, I believe that two years is a reasonable period of time, after which it's worth to change my computer with a new one.
 
DaveF said:
I see a new 2.5 GHz 15" MBP goes for $2699, about $2888 after tax. Same computer sold on eBay for $2010, about 1960 after eBay fees. So it would cost about $930 to own this computer for a year.

Would you pay $900 to rent a computer for a year?
Click to expand...

Ditto. This is the way to think about it imo.

Thinking in these terms...updating every two years tends to give best return on investment.
 
markrivers said:
am i the only one living in the US? and feeling the recession? the inflation?
:mad:
Click to expand...

Two days ago I read in newspaper that America isn't in a recession. According to preliminary data, during the second quarter GDP grew by 1.9% so it's not so bad. Keep cool and more optimism, please! :)
 
SpookyLars said:
Two days ago I read in newspaper that America isn't in a recession. According to preliminary data, during the second quarter GDP grew by 1.9% so it's not so bad. Keep cool and more optimism, please! :)
Click to expand...

unfortunately, the US is not " technically" in a recession until some "know it all agency" says it is.

but others believe it has started already
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=axADxPkA6IA8&refer=home

but so far, the facts are staring us in the face for months:

1. foreclosure
2. gas prices on the pump
3. high prices of groceries
4. mass layoffs
5. same old salary

the thing is, it's really hard to be optimistic if your gov't.. errr. our dEAR president is in a Denial.

there's only one good news this quarter.
EXXON made a quarter profit of $18 billion wow!

going back to the topic.

is it a good idea to buy a NEW MBP every year?
it is NOT.
if you use your MBP for work,
have you considered buying a Mac PRO instead?
then just use your MBP when you go out to show your work to your clients?

i have to say, if you can't resist buying the "next" new and shiny thing.
i suggest you keep the old machine.. in that case you're not FLIP Floping!
 
markrivers said:
unfortunately, the US is not " technically" in a recession until some "know it all agency" says it is.

but others believe it has started already
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=axADxPkA6IA8&refer=home

but so far, the facts are staring us in the face for months:

1. foreclosure
2. gas prices on the pump
3. high prices of groceries
4. mass layoffs
5. same old salary

the thing is, it's really hard to be optimistic if your gov't.. errr. our dEAR president is in a Denial.

there's only one good news this quarter.
EXXON made a quarter profit of $18 billion wow!

going back to the topic.

is it a good idea to buy a NEW MBP every year?
it is NOT.
if you use your MBP for work,
have you considered buying a Mac PRO instead?
then just use your MBP when you go out to show your work to your clients?

i have to say, if you can't resist buying the "next" new and shiny thing.
i suggest you keep the old machine.. in that case you're not FLIP Floping!
Click to expand...

OK, I'm sorry, I didn't want to start a political topic. I mentioned only information that I've read in the newspaper. The above-mentioned article slightly changed my view on the presented issues.

BTW. Regarding the second point. High fuel prices isn't only a problem in the United States. In Poland, we also struggling with high fuel prices, but the appreciation of the zloty (I mean weak U.S. dollar) somewhat mitigates the effect of price increases. Despite this, at the beginning of the week I paid 4.9 PLN (about $2.3) per liter of fuel :( (For the record, 1 gallon -- 3.8 liters).

Going back to the topic. I usually get a new Mac in order to avoid possible problems that may arrived due to age of my old Mac. That's all. I don't buy a new one every year but every two. In European Union, a statutory warranty period is two years. After the expiry of warranty I just sale a Mac. As I already mentioned, Mac is my working-tool and so far, this method works very well.

Regarding Mac Pro. I don't need Mac Pro because my essential tools are the text editor and Terminal. In those kind of tasks, MBP works well and gives me great flexibility and portability. Furthermore, having a one Mac, I don't have any problems with the synchronization of data between computers.
 
markrivers said:
unfortunately, the US is not " technically" in a recession until some "know it all agency" says it is.

but others believe it has started already
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=axADxPkA6IA8&refer=home

but so far, the facts are staring us in the face for months:

1. foreclosure
2. gas prices on the pump
3. high prices of groceries
4. mass layoffs
5. same old salary

the thing is, it's really hard to be optimistic if your gov't.. errr. our dEAR president is in a Denial.

there's only one good news this quarter.
EXXON made a quarter profit of $18 billion wow!

going back to the topic.

is it a good idea to buy a NEW MBP every year?
it is NOT.
if you use your MBP for work,
have you considered buying a Mac PRO instead?
then just use your MBP when you go out to show your work to your clients?

i have to say, if you can't resist buying the "next" new and shiny thing.
i suggest you keep the old machine.. in that case you're not FLIP Floping!
Click to expand...

Those are all true but "Recession" has a definition, which is 2 consecutive quarters of negative growth. Just because CNN babbles all day about how bad things are, doesn't make it a recession. For the most part it a self fulfilling prophecy.

Unless your doing something that requires lots of processor power like graphic design, video or animation your not going to see any improvements from year to year. Word processing, spreadsheets, email and web surfing aren't really going to show any improvement, updating every year is not going to do anything, even two years. For that matter a laptop isn't your best choice for doing anything that requires lots of processor power on anyways.
 
SpookyLars said:
Two days ago I read in newspaper that America isn't in a recession. According to preliminary data, during the second quarter GDP grew by 1.9% so it's not so bad. Keep cool and more optimism, please! :)
Click to expand...

Oh, well, you read it so it must of course be true.

Only, the GDP reflects the nation's aggregate performance, without accounting for who it is exactly that's most responsible for that growth or lack thereof. It's entirely possible (and it appears to be the case) that the poor and lower-middle class may be taking the brunt of what's happening, even if it's not reflected in the nation's GDP due to the select few who make up for it and are rewarded handsomely for it.

Please try to use your head a bit more.

Anyway, it's a silly strategy, and as mentioned, will end up being both expensive and fruitless.

I'd ask you to please use your head as well, in respect to your mention of the 9700 GTS... if you think one of those (rather expensive) monsters would fit in even the 17" MBP with its 60W power consumption- rivaling many desktop GPUs, and representing a 200% increase in power over the 8600 GT currently used- you're dreaming. Or possibly you're awake, and are simply hopelessly mistaken. Your pick.

If you want a gaming laptop, go out and buy one. You're going to want a desktop replacement that costs more than a 17" MBP and weighs about 8 or 9 pounds. Just don't look to Apple to deliver it, please.
 
Simply put: no. The upgrades aren't significant enough to blow the money on a new one annually. Unless minutes are money for how you use your MBPro it's a waste.

And, as it was said, if you have the kind of money to even consider purchasing these every year you probably have the money to buy a gaming machine. Get both, or just the gaming machine, and it will be money better spent.
 
Even if you have money to burn this is poor spending and you'll develop a bad habit; now if you needed to keep up because of work then sure getting and upgrade yearly will do, but I'm assuming you don't work in those fields, so it's a bad idea.

Also if you're going to upgrade a lot, you might as well do it every refresh which is around half a year--that way the resell will be on a warrantied machine that you don't have to buy AppleCare on, the computer will look new and you'll get a lot back for each sale.
 
I think it is silly to buy and sell every year. Maybe every 2 years? 3-4 years seems like the best to me though
 
SpookyLars said:
For me, Mac is a working-tool the primary source of income. Therefore, I believe that two years is a reasonable period of time, after which it's worth to change my computer with a new one.
Click to expand...
What depreciation schedule do you follow (for your taxes)? I've not heard of many people buying on a two year business cycle -- some do it according to the depreciation schedule to balance computer cost against tax deductions.


Ah, I see you're not in the US. Your tax situation could be completely different from what I'm used to.

m1stake said:
Spending money for the sake of spending money is not a good idea.
Click to expand...
But if you can afford it may not be a bad idea. For some people, blowing $2500 on a computer is like me spending $10 on a movie ticket: it just doesn't matter and isn't worth considering. I don't think the OP is in that category (or he wouldn't be asking us :)), but you never know.
 
Firefly2002 said:
Oh, well, you read it so it must of course be true.
Click to expand...

I didn't say that. I just recalled information about recession in US after I have read markrivers' post. That's all. Never mind.

Please try to use your head a bit more.
Click to expand...

I always do :p

I'd ask you to please use your head as well, in respect to your mention of the 9700 GTS...
Click to expand...

??
I haven't mentioned about 9700 GTS. I'm not the man you take me for.
 
I've owned every single MBP revision that's come out. I do the buy and sell deal every time. If you are smart, and patient, and know where to get good deals, you can actually come out very OK. I've even made money upgrading once, believe it or not. One thing that helped (that I don't do anymore, though, because of the hassle) was being pretty on top of likely product releases, and selling it right before a new one comes out. There is an element of risk here -- you might guess wrong. But if you can live with this, and guess right, you'll be laughing all the way to the bank.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back