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My Macbook turns 7 years today.

hamiltonDSi

hamiltonDSi

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Jul 29, 2012
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Romania
On January 15 2009 I bought the new Aluminium Macbook (launched in October 2008).
I went with the high-end model (C2D 2.4GHz, 4GB, 320GB @ 7200RPM, backlit keyboard - 1,600$)

Best.Investment.EVER.

It was used by me 'till 2011 when I bought a 13" Pro, than by my father and lastly by my sister.
She used it every day since 2012 until yesterday when she bought a 13" rMBP.

This laptop is amazing - It feel from the 1st floor (it's a little bent) and had Coca-Cola spilled on it.
No repairs. Never.
It still runs perfect-ish (it's old) with the original components.
The only thing that needs service is the battery (lasts about 5 mins - 1,032 cycles) and the backlit keyboard - only half of the keys light up.
It looks rough (see the pics) and it's old, but my sisters is a web developer and until yesterday this Macbook was her only computer. For home and work.

Just finished installing 10.11 and plan to use it as a Plex Media Server for my ATV 4.

I created this thread because I am satisfied with my purchase.
For me, Apple products are not overpriced ; this Macbook and my 2008 iPod Nano are perfect examples These devices have been through hell and back and still work perfectly.
Amazing to see Macs from 2008 still being supported with free software updates.

:)
 

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Love this thread. I had that same model, except after Apple arbitrarily decided to call it "Pro" despite the identical specs. It was a solid computer.

This is also why I think Macs are actually a great deal, despite their higher initial cost. You paid $1600, but because it lasted so long, the cost of owning it was less than $20/month. A similarly specced windows PC back then would have probably cost just under $1000, let's say $800 for arguments sake. But it would have lasted 2 or 3 years at best, $22-33/month in ownership cost. Macbook was actually a better deal.
 
My old HP 200lx running DOs 3.0 running on just 2 AA battery's still works 20 years on with lotus 123 and several other built in apps :)

Kinda shows you what was possible all thoughts years past for just a few ozs

My in-laws still use our old MB's for playing solitaire and day to day email and banking but as you note batteries completely knackered now
 
Very similar story to the OP. Mine is also an October 2008 model which I purchased in December(ish) 2008.

I have replaced the battery (recently), upgraded to 8GB RAM, replaced the primary drive with an SSD, removed the optical drive and put the old spinning disk in there and am running the EL Capitan beta.

It's a solid machine that still does what I need it to do.

I haven't dropped mine so no real battle scars to show unfortunately
 
oneMadRssn said:
I had that same model, except after Apple arbitrarily decided to call it "Pro" despite the identical specs. It was a solid computer.
Click to expand...
If I remember corectly the first 13" Pro had a backlit keyboard as standard, a firewire port, a better screen (view angle, contrast) and a bigger battery because it was non removable.
Also, the CPU choices were 2.2 and 2.5GHz C2D.

Great little machines :)

Anyway, now I'm using a 15" rMBP since 2013. Can't go back to 13" screens. I'm getting older lol.
 
Happy birthday!
My mother has that same '08 MacBook (2.4 C2D as well). Purchased, I believe, in April '09. Still her daily machine, and other than an upgrade from 2 to 4 GB, it's identical to when it was new. Battery still lasts a couple of hours, running Yosemite as well as can be expected, and it's still on its original MagSafe.
Absolutely nothing wrong with it. Quite impressive, really.
 
Chris.L said:
Very similar story to the OP. Mine is also an October 2008 model which I purchased in December(ish) 2008.

I have replaced the battery (recently), upgraded to 8GB RAM, replaced the primary drive with an SSD, removed the optical drive and put the old spinning disk in there and am running the EL Capitan beta.

It's a solid machine that still does what I need it to do.

I haven't dropped mine so no real battle scars to show unfortunately
Click to expand...


Share a story of mine. I bought a ThinkPad T61 in 2008, and a friend of mine bought this MacBook. I offered several times to exchange with some extra money, though not so serious, I was willing to.2011 I got a ThinkPad x121e,really a small netbook, weak performance and low price, but my friend liked it, so it made the deal come true two years later in 2013.At last I offered <$300 to buy this MacBook, and spent ~$150 for 8G ram and SSD to update, dual HD too.Untill now, it is my everyday work machine,with a 1080p external monitor,better look than OP's though lower specs, running El 10.11.4 Beta
The end of the story is the T61,died in 2013.

As OP, these merchandises bears years of memory as time past,the older the more.
 
My 2010 13" macbook pro still runs really well, updated the RAM to 8GB and installed an SSD. It's fantastic


my girlfriend uses it now with no issues
 
We had a 2010 MBP ran perfectly well and got a good price for it even though there was a crack trackpad and battery needed to be replaced. My daughter used it everyday! :D
 
These macbook are real battlers! They can withstand almost anything! I have a white macbook that is about seven years this year. It was the my first macbook after coming from Windows XP... No regrets switching to Mac OS.
 
I am still using a late 2008 Aluminum MacBook as well (5,1) that I bought refurbished in early 2009. Still all stock on it except I upgraded the RAM from 2GB to 4GB right after buying it. I have been toying with and putting off upgrades since probably 2012 thinking it is due to die soon. Never has and is still a very solid and nimble machine.

My biggest regret is that it still runs 10.6.8. I tried to upgrade it to 10.11.X last November but the installation stalled about 90% through. I removed the .kext files by booting into recovery mode and the installation still didn't work. I used time machine to revert back to 10.6.8 and haven't decided if I should attempt another upgrade or not.

I am glad I am not the only one awed about its longevity!

Brian
 
I have the base model (2 GHz) of the 2008 MacBook which is also coming up on 7 years in April. Paid £849 with a student discount (and the 3 years Apple Care that comes with student purchases in the UK). It got an upgrade to 4 GB in 2011, an SSD in 2012, a new battery under Apple Care two weeks before it ran out and it will be getting 8 GB later this week. Still my main machine. People who say there isn't a "right time" to buy a computer are wrong - this was the sweet spot. First machine to introduce the multitouch pad, better GPU than the first Core iX models that followed, a user upgradable battery panel and the first aluminium unibody design.

Still get 3 hours from the battery. The only things I would like are backlit keyboard (but even this was available on the model up), AirPlay and better Bluetooth for continuity features. I will probably be getting a new Mac when a redesign comes but this has only cost about £10/month for the period of ownership and still handles everything I throw at it (it's not too keen on Flash content though)
 
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I have Beige PowerMac G3 (1997) and still works fine and looks good. I have installed Mac OS X 10.4 via XPostFactor. I dunno why you talking about just 7 years old Mac.
I still have iMac first gen with Intel CPU.
 
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Using my 8 year old MacBook black 4,1 as my main computer. Works fine with 4gb ram and Samsung evo ssd. Just bought a new top case and some new thermal paste but haven't had the time to change it yet.

The battery is beginning to die (1100 cycles) but there's still around 1,5 hours left. Can you still get original apple batteries somewhere?
 
Jkj12 said:
Using my 8 year old MacBook black 4,1 as my main computer. Works fine with 4gb ram and Samsung evo ssd. Just bought a new top case and some new thermal paste but haven't had the time to change it yet.

The battery is beginning to die (1100 cycles) but there's still around 1,5 hours left. Can you still get original apple batteries somewhere?
Click to expand...
Apple quit selling the batteries almost two years ago. I too have a 4,1 black MB that still works today. Mine is nearly new condition and all it needs is a new battery. I've been using it without a battery for a few years now because I refused to buy a new one from Apple at $119. I never took the MB anywhere so using it without a battery was never a problem.

Mine still has the original top case and palm, rest and nothing has ever needed to be replaced.

You can buy batteries for the 4,1 MB from iFixit for about $79 or so but I don't know how the quality is. I would stay away from the eBay or Amazon $20 batteries.

Mine has 4GB RAM and a 250GB HD in it. Mine is sitting in the box now. I replaced it with a 2012 non retina MBP.
 

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Primejimbo said:
I have that same model and it's a still running like a champ. I put in 8GB of RAM and a SSD, and it flies.
Click to expand...

Mine is just shy of 7 years old as well. I went to 6GB of ram and then to 8 with the addition of an SSD, moving over to Yosemite at the same time. I have had ZERO problems whatsoever and see no sign the battery is in need of replacing. When the time comes, I will. This rig is a rocket.
I have no plans on parting with it anytime soon. I think El Capitan is next.
My kid finally came over to a Mac after calling me a 'Mac Snob' for years. In the time I've owned this, she and her husband went through 2 Sony laptops before cluing in.

86
 
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Sword86 said:
Mine is just shy of 7 years old as well. I went to 6GB of ram and then to 8 with the addition of an SSD, moving over to Yosemite at the same time. I have had ZERO problems whatsoever and see no sign the battery is in need of replacing. When the time comes, I will. This rig is a rocket.
I have no plans on parting with it anytime soon. I think El Capitan is next.
My kid finally came over to a Mac after calling me a 'Mac Snob' for years. In the time I've owned this, she and her husband went through 2 Sony laptops before cluing in.

86
Click to expand...

I love this kind of threads. User experience and the longevity are two of the major advantages of Macs over everything else.
My machine is not quite that old, yet. I do use a MBP Early 2011 (released when Steve was still around, with Snow Leopard pre-installed) and it is running great with Mavericks (and El Cap, but honestly I do not like the new UI).
So, hopefully, in 2018 when my machine will hit the 7 years, this thread will still be going strong...
 
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I'm typing this reply from one right now!

It was my first Mac. I hardly use it anymore though, since I have a new iMac - though I certainly could.

The only issue is the original battery inside will not hold a charge. Everything's fine as long as I'm plugged in. I've been meaning to look into replacing it, but I think that it would have to be third party...
 
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