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MBP 15" - old or new?

G

grani13

macrumors member
Original poster
Hello,

I need a new laptop and I will need it relatively soon.

Looked at the options and I have to say that the old MBP 15 is quite tempting.
I looked at it at the Apple store and despite being like 3 years old, it's still attractive: "normal" USB ports, HDMI out, and the old style keyboard that I somehow prefer over the new one with the minimal key travel (my daughter has a MacBook Retina and while the machine itself is brilliant - the keyboard would drive me nuts).

Any reason apart from some upgraded specs to NOT chose the old one but go for the new one? Touchbar doesn't really do anything for me, at least it's not a compelling buying or not-buying decision.

thanks in advance
grani
 
Most compelling I can think of is the lack of a discrete GPU with the 2015 model. Personally I wont purchase the new 2016 design MBP as it doesn't meet my needs on several levels. The 2015 model not having a dGPU also kills that deal...

Q-6
 
lack of discreet gpu could be an advantage due to the fact they seem to be a major point of failure over the years for 15" MacBook pros.
 
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Heat, fan noise, battery life, screen brightness, HEVC 10-bit decode, SSD speeds, graphics performance, TB3 eGPU support, multi-purpose USB-C ports, weight, thickness, all of these are better on the 2016 and why I just pulled the trigger on a 2016/450 Pro over a 2015/M370x. Both models with dGPU were available on my local refurb store. The 2016 was just $100 more and I felt I would enjoy having all the above while waiting to see what changes 2018 brings to the MBP lineup, vs going for the 2015 just to avoid the dongle life. I only really need 1 USB-A port and even that may go away soon, so I only absolutely need one tiny dongle for the time being. Everything else I connect will be wireless/bluetooth. YMMV on that.
 
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I found myself in a very similar pickle not too long ago.

How did I solve it? Well, I went ahead and bought a second hand early 2013 machine for about a third of the price of a brand new one. Sure, the new one has a slightly faster CPU, better GPU and SSD, makes a bit less noise along with being slightly thinner and lighter. However I hate the new keyboard with it's dirt ingestion problem, it's use of nothing except USB TypeA ports meaning you have to use an adapter even for connecting a simple USB thumbridive, think the removal of the MagSafe power connector was one of the most boneheaded things has done in a while and I think the touch bar is an idiotic gimmick created primarily to distinguish the Pro from it's competitors rather than serving any useful purpose.

As usual people are going to defend the new models and the keyboard, but that really doesn't mean they're any less wrong than the people who defended the keyboards on the early Sinclair machines.
 
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Don't feel compelled (or let yourself be browbeaten here) to buy the 2017 version "just because it's new".

The 2015 design was a mature, robust one.
If you prefer the keyboard and like the ports, you may find yourself dissatisfied after using the new one a while. Especially if it develops keyboard problems.

A year ago, just after the 2016 design MBPros were released, I stopped by a store and compared the 2015 design vis-a-vis the 2016, "side-by-side".
I ended up ordering the 2015. No regrets. No problems, either!
 
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I was looking at the 2016/2017 models because of the dGPU, but I was lucky enough to find a MR user with a 2015 DG model. Saved at least $400 over the 2016 model. My heart wanted the newer model, but in the end my head (and my wallet) prevailed.
 
captcha said:
lack of discreet gpu could be an advantage due to the fact they seem to be a major point of failure over the years for 15" MacBook pros.
Click to expand...

Yes! I've owned 3 15 inch MBPs, 2 of them had discrete GPUs and by far had more problems than my Iris Pro graphics model. It wasn't as fast at exporting video but handled editing in Proxy well enough and played the games I play smooth as butter. Not sure what it is but the ones with GPUs just have so many glitches and bugs. I'm bout to send my 2016 model in now I have a list of weird problems written down for it lol
 
i-n said:
I’m in a similar situation, other than it’s the 13” MBP I’m after. Does the 2015 13” MBP still show up in the refurb store?
Click to expand...

If they have them will show. I think they only show stock on hand so you have to check frequently and be ready to order. There was a site that would check for you and send you an email when your item was available, so you might look into that.
 
I recently picked up a 2015 2.8/16gb/1TB/370x and I could not be happier. I saved roughly $1000 compared to a similarly specced 2017.

As a developer, I can't hang with the touch bar. Also, the 2015 just feels like a better build quality. I had a 2017 for about a week and I couldn't help but feel like I was going to break it.

Just my 2 cents. I think you will be happy either way you go. They are both amazing machines!
 
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vetruvian said:
I recently picked up a 2015 2.8/16gb/1TB/370x and I could not be happier. I saved roughly $1000 compared to a similarly specced 2017.

As a developer, I can't hang with the touch bar. Also, the 2015 just feels like a better build quality. I had a 2017 for about a week and I couldn't help but feel like I was going to break it.

Just my 2 cents. I think you will be happy either way you go. They are both amazing machines!
Click to expand...

I had a 2014 MBP which I was very happy with but sold it with a view to getting a 2017 MBP. Now that I’ve looked into ACD compatibility, the 2015 might make more sense as a replacement than the 2017. Either that or a 2017 MBA.
 
Queen6 said:
Most compelling I can think of is the lack of a discrete GPU with the 2015 model. Personally I wont purchase the new 2016 design MBP as it doesn't meet my needs on several levels. The 2015 model not having a dGPU also kills that deal...

Q-6
Click to expand...

This machine will be used for "business" applications....word processing, email, Excel. Not intending to use it for any gaming or similarly graphics intensive....

Would I ever notice what kind of GPU it is?
 
grani13 said:
Would I ever notice what kind of GPU it is?
Click to expand...

No 🙂 you can totally go for the old model, but look for a good price. Btw, the biggest disadvantage of the older MBP is probably that in 2-3 years the USB-A will most likely become extinct and what’s convenient now will become rather annoying 🙂
 
grani13 said:
This machine will be used for "business" applications....word processing, email, Excel. Not intending to use it for any gaming or similarly graphics intensive....

Would I ever notice what kind of GPU it is?
Click to expand...
Then do not fear getting the 2015 model. It's still a damn capable machine and you won't notice any difference performance-wise for the use case you described. The newer models cost more yet would bring you little benefit and more annoyance it seems. Try to find a good deal on a used 2.2Ghz 2015 model that still has a year or two of Apple Care left on it. Apple still sells these machines so it's possible someone bought it recently with Apple Care until 2020 and decided to sell it early for whatever reason.
 
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metalsquid said:
Try to find a good deal on a used 2.2Ghz 2015 model that still has a year or two of Apple Care left on it.
Click to expand...

I can get it new here for like 1800 CHF (about on parity with the USD) new from resellers vs Apple store price of 2150 CHF. Base model MBP with touch bar starts at 2200 CHF.

The difference in price is not the deciding factor here....it's rather the fear that the new ones turn out to be more hassle than anything else (e.g. need a dongle for a "normal" USB stick, need to buy a new cable to charge my phone....)
 
grani13 said:
I can get it new here for like 1800 CHF (about on parity with the USD) new from resellers
Click to expand...
Sounds good to me. If you don't want to deal with dongles then don't. Feelings of resentment towards your tools can only negatively affect your productivity.
 
grani13 said:
This machine will be used for "business" applications....word processing, email, Excel. Not intending to use it for any gaming or similarly graphics intensive....

Would I ever notice what kind of GPU it is?
Click to expand...

No not at all with your intended use, go for the 2015 design, save some money and potential headaches with the 2016/2017 models. Omission of USB C wont present any issue, until likely the notebook is due replacing.

Q-6
 
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grani13 said:
good point
Click to expand...

The problem of course is that Apple really does seem to think this keyboard is the way forward... They're going for thinness above anything else. I have the feeling that other suppliers will follow at some point.

As an aside, will you actually be using the laptop as-is? Or will it often be docked?

I've got a 2016 MBP and I'm not too crazy about the keyboard, because it's so sensitive to even the tiniest crumb. However, during the workday, it's docked and I'm using a nice, big external keyboard.
 
In this situation myself. I have the 2015 15” with no dGPU currently as my work computer. If you don’t game it is a great machine and compared to my 2013 13” MBA (personal computer) the screen is just amazing. This machine handles my web development work flow relatively well, although the fans sometimes go crazy with heavy multitasking.

But for my personal computer I absolutely need something lighter. The 2015 15” is a brick (coming from a 3lb MacBook Air).

Part of me wants to get the 2017 15” MBP for the screen size. I think the slightly lighter weight will be ok. But the prices are insane. And having usb-c ports that I will have to integrate into a desktop setup that also needs to work with usb-a/HDMI (for my work computer) sounds expensive and annoying.

I might get a 2015 13” MBP instead? Or take the risk and do personal projects on my work computer? Not really sure. I just know that Apple’s current computer lineup is making my upgrade choices harder than it needs to be...
 
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bartvk said:
The problem of course is that Apple really does seem to think this keyboard is the way forward... They're going for thinness above anything else. I have the feeling that other suppliers will follow at some point.
Click to expand...

After a lot of comments here I have read up a bit on the forum here....seems that there is an abnormal amount of problems with the keyboard after all that I wasn't aware of. Guess it not only feels flimsy, it actually is.
Getting more and more driven away from the TB model the more I think about it.
 
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