My MacBook Pro is almost 3 years old, what can I do to keep it working well for the years ahead?

[Hieveryone]

Is there anything I can do to maintain it? I don't want to run into issues down the line. Right now it is working great and I would like to keep it that way. I know there is probably dust inside but I am not an expert and not sure if I should open the bottom panel. I wouldn't want to damage anything. I may upgrade in the future but for now I'm thinking I would like to keep this model. The reason why is because I like the form factor (more portable than the current 16" Macbook Pro model).

This is a 2019 MacBook Pro 15" base model

 

[brosenz]

Replace the battery, if you do it at Apple they will replace the whole bottom, meaning the dust will be gone as well

 

[darngooddesign]

Open the bottom panel and look inside for dust in the fan. iFixit has easy-to-follow guides and tools if you need them.

If your keyboard is occasionally not working, like one or two keys sometimes don't work, you can take advantage of Apple's extended repair program. I bet you can call them up and say that it occasionally happens but you can't make it happen so they authorize the fix.

Keyboard Service Program for MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro - Apple Support

Keyboard Service Program for MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro

support.apple.com

 

[Hieveryone]

Open the bottom panel and look inside for dust in the fan. iFixit has easy-to-follow guides and tools if you need them.

If your keyboard is occasionally not working, like one or two keys sometimes don't work, you can take advantage of Apple's extended repair program. I bet you can call them up and say that it occasionally happens but you can't make it happen so they authorize the fix.

Keyboard Service Program for MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro - Apple Support

Keyboard Service Program for MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro

support.apple.com

I wouldn't even need to do that because my "E" key is brighter than the rest of the keys...not really an issue if you don't mind it, but it is a defect IMO

 

[Hieveryone]

Replace the battery, if you do it at Apple they will replace the whole bottom, meaning the dust will be gone as well

Ok, is there a way to check if my battery needs to be replaced?

EDIT: I just saw I have 132 charge cycles. That's pretty good right?

 

[darngooddesign]

Ok, is there a way to check if my battery needs to be replaced?

EDIT: I just saw I have 132 charge cycles. That's pretty good right?

Does it seem like your battery life is short?

 

[brosenz]

Ok, is there a way to check if my battery needs to be replaced?

EDIT: I just saw I have 132 charge cycles. That's pretty good right?

What value do you have here:

System Information --> Hardware --> Power --> Battery Information --> Maximum Capacity

 

[Hieveryone]

What value do you have here:

System Information --> Hardware --> Power --> Battery Information --> Maximum Capacity

For full charge capacity it (mAh) it says 5881. I didn't see a Maximum Capacity :/

 

[Hieveryone]

Does it seem like your battery life is short?

It's hard for me to tell because I don't use it on battery that often

 

[brosenz]

For full charge capacity it (mAh) it says 5881. I didn't see a Maximum Capacity :/

I just found out, that information is only available on Apple Silicon devices, you can install CoconutBattery, that will give you the information you need

 

[Dealmans]

sell it

 

[planteater]

sell it

I'll add my own response, although I'm sure the OP will be more than happy to speak for their own needs.

Not all of us let go of devices while they still have useful life. Personally, although I can afford to buy new devices each year, I don't. I like to get value out of them and use them until there is a logical reason to upgrade. Also, I tend to keep devices that I enjoy using. Upgrading too often would impair my getting full enjoyment from them.

 

[Hieveryone]

I'll add my own response, although I'm sure the OP will be more than happy to speak for their own needs.

Not all of us let go of devices while they still have useful life. Personally, although I can afford to buy new devices each year, I don't. I like to get value out of them and use them until there is a logical reason to upgrade. Also, I tend to keep devices that I enjoy using. Upgrading too often would impair my getting full enjoyment from them.

I actually genuinely enjoy my 2019 MacBook Pro 15" Base model. I love the form factor. It's thin and more portable than the new 16". For a person who does not need max power, I value form factor. My model has an excellent form factor IMHO.

People say the keyboard yadda yadda but I have not really had an issue that bothers me. No stuck keys or anything major at all.

It is able to hand everything I throw at it. In fact, it might as well be new because it works just as good as day one.

Yes it gets hot, but why would I care? It's not like I'm keeping it on my skin. It sits on the table.

Is the touchbar useful? Sometimes. Definitely not a "home run" for me personally. But does it look cool? You bet haha

These are just the few of the criticisms I've seen. The pros are endless. It handles everything I throw at it, it's fast, it's snappy, the screen is great, the trackpad works amazing, it looks amazing...I love it

 

[Diablo360]

You MBP isn’t that old. Nothing to maintain really. Just take good care of it Amd you should get many more years of usage out of it.

 

[Pakaku]

Dusting is pretty important, so you might need some special tools to undo any pentalobe screws. Shouldn't be that hard to open it apart from that, and you don't need to do it that often. My MBP is about ten years old and I've never really had to do anything other than dusting. I did upgrade the old SSD to something bigger and faster, but I don't think you'll need to do that until several years down the line.

 

[Hieveryone]

You MBP isn’t that old. Nothing to maintain really. Just take good care of it Amd you should get many more years of usage out of it.

That's great! My hope is to use it for as long as there isn't a compelling reason to upgrade (for me personally). Right now I have great respect for the new MacBook Pros. The 16" is awesome, as well as the 14". But for me personally, aside from the screen, there isn't much of a benefit. There isn't anything that I am missing materially because the laptop I have now works perfectly for my day-to-day use.

 

[Hieveryone]

Dusting is pretty important, so you might need some special tools to undo any pentalobe screws. Shouldn't be that hard to open it apart from that, and you don't need to do it that often. My MBP is about ten years old and I've never really had to do anything other than dusting. I did upgrade the old SSD to something bigger and faster, but I don't think you'll need to do that until several years down the line.

I would like to clean out the dust, but I am just hesitant I will break it. I guess I could watch a youtube video which would give me more confidence or maybe even contact Apple and see if they provide such support.

I'm guessing there is probably some dust inside after ~3 years of use, and that removing it would make my laptop run cooler.

As far as performance, I don't the dust has caused any slowdowns. Feels as snappy and fast as day 1. It runs hot, but I can't tell if it runs hotter than before.

 

[Jeven Stobs]

Replace the battery, if you do it at Apple they will replace the whole bottom, meaning the dust will be gone as well

Um, what?
OP is probably concerned about dust in the fans, but a top case replacement „only“ includes the battery, keyboard and trackpad, none of which have much to do with dust. Also such a replacement is really expensive, 300-400 bucks I believe.
OP, don’t worry about dust if your environments haven’t been dusty. I’ve once opened my 2017 MBP to check on dust and found basically none, and my fans are almost always spinning.

 

[Jeven Stobs]

Ok, is there a way to check if my battery needs to be replaced?

EDIT: I just saw I have 132 charge cycles. That's pretty good right?

iStat Menus can give you an estimate on your battery health, I’m not sure right now but in Settings you might see one, too.