Mac Book Pro from Craigslist

[Gypsychick23]

Hi all,

I am planning on buying a macbook pro. I have never had a mac anything...had a sony vaio and currently a dell. though i do use an iphone anyways...since I dont have a couple grand for a new one i am looking at my local craigslist...
all you experts out there can u tell if this is a good deal for a first time mac user, soon to be med student, broke like no joke???

all helps is appreciated )

here are the specs (copy pasted off of craigslist

Apple Macbook Pro 15"

Fully Loaded 2008 model

Specs:
-2.4ghz Intel Dual Core
-2GB Memory
-160GB Hard Drive

This computer is in pristine condition. No dents or cracks. A few small scratches on the bottom is all.

I had the computer checked out at the Mac Outlet and the diagnostics came back perfectly.

You will NOT find a Macbook Pro in better condition!!

Fresh operating system install, just like buying a brand new computer.

I will include a mag safe charger which usually go for around $80

Search terms:

Apple iMac Macbook PRO Mac Book Laptop Lap top macbook air powerbook 15"

pictures were posted at the bottom


again i really do appreciate all insight...

 

[ThunderSnake]

What is the asking price?

 

[MatP]

I would say that is worth about 350-400. I have the same generation with the faster processor and I like it a lot. Be aware that that generation is prone to having the video card go bad.

 

[cherishzm]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A334 Safari/7534.48.3)

What'a your max budget? If you can wait a little while I'm sure you can find a good 2010 15" MBP at a reasonable price and under warranty (around $1000).. I just bought 2010 15 MBP with i7 and 2yr AppleCare remaining for $950 on CL.

I would ask for a serial number first.

 

[Mojo1]

See this thread: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1330506/

I sold the same lightly-used model in mint condition with a Waterfield Designs Sleevecase and RadTech screen protector for $900 in December. Everymac.com put that price at the low-end of the range. Current eBay sale prices would be worth a look-see.

Personally, I would pass due to the faulty GPU issue. The MBP that I sold was hardly touched the first year and rarely used and never pushed hard after that. MBPs that have seen a lot of use and been transported a lot are going to be in a lots worst shape inside...

 

[Elbert C]

Are the install disks included with the sale?

 

[ZZ Bottom]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

Whatever they're asking it's not worth it. The failure rate of the logic board due to faulty NVidia GPUs is far too high on that model of the MBP. As a first time Mac buyer don't let your first purchase be one of the worst examples of Apple's otherwise great quality.

 

[leftywamumonkey]

I will include a mag safe charger which usually go for around $80

again i really do appreciate all insight...

The charger is something that should be included, I don't see the purpose of including the price of it. Just something I thought was silly and unnecessary.

Personally, I wouldn't spend more than $500 on it and I agree with the posters above regarding the high percentage of the graphics failing.

 

[Outkast27]

cl

I bought this mac Im on , on craigslist for $1200. its a
2.0ghz 4gb ram (8 gb now) quad core I7 15'' 500 gb hd. It came with a spec hard case, charger, and book/cd folder. Its in pristine condish. I can get apple care for it too, up until september.

My cuz got his first mac after I talked him into it, from craiglist also. Its a 13 inch 2.3 ghz dual core 500 gb hd 4 gb ram. Came with case and charger, also pristine but no cd's. I was actually going to buy it till I found my deal.

The deals are out there if you have patients.

 

[Jpalessi]

recertified

they dont have any REAL cheap ones now but newegg sometimes has re certified macbook for under a $1000. I would look for something that has or can take at least 8gb.. Lion seems to run like turd on anything less.

 

[ThunderSnake]

The charger is something that should be included, I don't see the purpose of including the price of it. Just something I thought was silly and unnecessary.

I almost mentioned that too. The prose in that ad really rubs me the wrong way.

OP, if at all possible, I'd try to get something from Apple's refurb page. You get the same Apple warranty and the same option to extend Apple Care. You'll have the security of knowing that Apple has your back if there is a hardware failure in the middle of the semester.

 

[jjfactory]

You can also consider to get one from cowboom or amazon warehouse Deals. They have new inventory come in pretty often. With their return policy you don't need to worry if the machine is not working properly.