MBP lifespan/longevity

[Waldszenen]

Hi guys,

What is the usual lifespan or longevity of a MBP provided that it is used daily for 4-6 hours but is taken care of? By "lifespan" I mean the length of time before either it breaks down, or it becomes too slow or glitchy and is unbearable to use.

The reason I ask is because I bought a 17" MBP right after last year's refresh and I just began a four-year uni degree during which time I doubt I could afford a new MBP if this current one stopped working or became too slow.

 

[SandboxGeneral]

If you take care of it, it will last you a very long time. I am still using my early 2007 MBP (2,2) daily and it keeps up with everything I throw at it.

 

[Merkava_4]

3 years, tops.

 

[DudeMartin]

Depends how long you want it to last - that is, how well you treat it.

 

[AlphaDogg]

3 years, tops.

No. I know people who have MBP's that are going on their 5th year . Has it been that long since Apple announced the switch to Intel? I guess it has...

Depends how long you want it to last - that is, how well you treat it.

This is quite true.

 

[mrsir2009]

You can use it well for 5 years if you max out all the specs

 

[mrwonkers]

You can use it well for 5 years if you max out all the specs

I disagree, Apple computers from a few years ago were built to last..... not any more.
Last year I purchased 4 new Macs, every single one has had a serious hardware issue causing failure within 6 months of purchase. I bought 2 notebooks and 2 desktops. The last machine I bought was a MacBook Pro i7 17" it seemed fine for about 5 months, I took it to see a Genius this week.... Logic board fried!
Apple quality control over the last couple of years has gone down the toilet, BUY APPLECARE chances are your going to need it! I think if you make it to 3 years with any current Apple computer without a major hardware failure you should buy a lottery ticket...

 

[kevink2]

My opinion, on computers in general, and not MBPs in particular, is that if you buy at the low end, they get obsolete faster. And are less likely to age well otherwise.

My previous laptop, a Toshiba, was a higher end (>$2000) computer. Except for the motherboard replacement under warranty, it is still better than the netbooks that were popular over the last few years (it was purchased nearly 5 years ago).

My desires had changed, though, over this time. Maximum usable memory changed through the years. My current MBP can be upgraded to 8GB. I have the hi res screen. So, based on history, even for me this system should last at least 4 years. My 3 year old Mac Pro is still sufficient, except for hard drive speed at bootup. But if my usage was photoshop or frequent video editing, it would probably be time to upgrade

 

[tdream]

It's not about when the computer becomes obsolete. My sis had an imac G5 which was still purring away recently until she sold it. And it's doing fine in the hands of the new owner. If all you want is to browse the web and edit office documents, which lets face it 90% of computer users around the world is all they do, then ancient computers with good reliability are perfect fine.

I have an inkling the Aluminium Macbooks are good for up to 10 years if the parts don't break down. Very unlikely too, given the sturdy shell the components are encased in. Replace the battery after 2-3 years and you're good to go.

 

[Brettla]

I have a PowerBook G4 1.5 ghz with 1.25 gb ram that I've used everyday since April of 2004, the speed wasn't really an issue up to about 6 months ago, I also have a 3.5 ghz quad core 8gb ram desktop windows 7 machine that I use about one time a week, but I really had no interest in upgrading my laptop for about 6 years because I didn't really have any problems with it and it would still do everything I needed it to, so who knows you could get 6 to 7 years if you take care of it.

 

[badcrc32]

my experience

Hi guys,

What is the usual lifespan or longevity of a MBP provided that it is used daily for 4-6 hours but is taken care of? By "lifespan" I mean the length of time before either it breaks down, or it becomes too slow or glitchy and is unbearable to use.

The reason I ask is because I bought a 17" MBP right after last year's refresh and I just began a four-year uni degree during which time I doubt I could afford a new MBP if this current one stopped working or became too slow.

I use my notebook more hours a day then you up to 16 sometimes. That being said when I purchased mine 2.5 yrs ago I purchased Applecare, I had so many things go wrong I just got a brandnew one renewed my applecare for three more years, and upgraded all the specs. GL

 

[jlc1978]

Hi guys,

What is the usual lifespan or longevity of a MBP provided that it is used daily for 4-6 hours but is taken care of? By "lifespan" I mean the length of time before either it breaks down, or it becomes too slow or glitchy and is unbearable to use.

The reason I ask is because I bought a 17" MBP right after last year's refresh and I just began a four-year uni degree during which time I doubt I could afford a new MBP if this current one stopped working or became too slow.

It should easily last through 4 years at uni - I have an old MB that is still going strong after 3 years (of weekly travel through multiple airports) and know plenty of students with 4 year old MBs that still work fine. The most common things done is get a bigger hard drive (no matter how many GBs you have you always want more) and maybe max out the memory.

Macs, in my experience, are less prone to become glitchy or slow done than PCs; probably because of Apple's ability to maintain more control over the OS/HW combo vs Windows where every program seems to install yet more junk.

If you are really worried about problems look into Apple care and maybe a 3rd party insurance for damage/theft (which generally is relatively cheap and good to have). The biggest problem I've seen with any laptop is the tendency for them to "walk," especially in a university environment. Thieves, unfortunately, know students generally have laptops, are careless or leave them in the dorm / rental when on vacation, and may not even be around if they get caught and go to trial.

 

[greystre3t]

you'll definitely get a long life out of it. i'm on my fourth year with mine and the only thing that's wrong with it right now is the superdrive, other than that, i re-install snow leopard about once a year (i use it literally everyday, so it start's getting sluggish about after a year) and once i re-install, it feels like a new mac again.

 

[MugsyMD]

Macbook Pro Oct 2008

I got my Octo 2008, Macbook pro 15" and all I have done is change the hard drive to 500 gb 7200 and I use mine pro about 4 to 6 hours per day, 7 days per week - and the keyboard gets one heck of a workout as I probably type about 5000 words per day and my notebook is still going strong.
I take care of it too - and the original battery is still giving about 2+ hours of charge.

 

[deeesea]

The MBP will ONLY last 10 thousand hours. After which your computer will die in a firey ball of ....well...fire.

Seriously though, just use it, when it dies it dies.

 

[h00ligan]

I've had my 3,1 since mid-late 2007, it works, however... i have had the following replaced (under apple care)

Everything but the bottom case, ram, and hard drive.

LCD
Logic Board/processor/gpu (not nvidia related I don't think, I'll have to check why, I can't even remember)
Top case
Keyboard
Trackpad
Closing clasps
Battery

So basically in the course of a send off and an apple store visit, they have replaced nearly everything.. disappointing qc, but glad I bought apple care.