Need help with choosing which macbook pro, please.

[DeadLock69]

Hey guys, nice to meet you all
I needed a little help in deciding which macbook pro to buy. I am confused between either the 13 inch Retina Display(2015-256GB) or the 15 inch Retina Display (2014-256GB). The 15 inch (refurbished from official apple site) is available for the same price as the 13inch(new).
From what I can see, the difference in 2014 and 2015 comes in the touchpad, the change in SSD(SATA to Pcle) and slightly higher battery. Any other changes that I missed?
Size matters, but for newer features I can settle for a smaller size. The 15 inch obviously has some advantages too, like an i7, with 16GB RAM and such.
Also, does refurbished look like a brand new one? That would definitely be a decision maker for me.
Does the SSD and forcetouch pad and other new features make a big difference?
What do you guys recommend I should go for, and why?

 

[saratoga172]

Apple refurbs usually go through better qa than a lot of companies new products. I would have no problems purchasing an apple refurb for any of their devices (laptops, phones, iPads).

If you prefer the larger size and screen then go for the 15. Still gets solid battery life and has a bump in processor and memory. I'm preferential to the 13 inch size but 15 sounds like what you're looking for.

 

[Meister]

What for?

 

[DeadLock69]

Apple refurbs usually go through better qa than a lot of companies new products. I would have no problems purchasing an apple refurb for any of their devices (laptops, phones, iPads).

If you prefer the larger size and screen then go for the 15. Still gets solid battery life and has a bump in processor and memory. I'm preferential to the 13 inch size but 15 sounds like what you're looking for.

Actually I am preferential to 15, but I would prefer newer features too, so if I'd be missing out on a better experience with the 13, I would go for that. So would the new 2015 model be much better in terms of new features?

 

[DeadLock69]

What for?

Generally college, but I would use for little bit of gaming and stuff, basically anything possible with a laptop (that's why 13" might also suit me, I'm too confused )
That's why I didn't choose macbook air, because specs are too low on that.

 

[sebseb]

I hate it when people say I need it for college, well what major?? It's not like a political science will need a quad core i7 with 16GB of ram and a dGPU unless he/she wants to game. If I were you I would grab a Macbook Air 13" and a console!

If your games are not intensive, then just a MBP 13". People who get the 15" are those who either find the 13" display too small or those who need more power.

 

[Meister]

I hate it when people say I need it for college, well what major?? It's not like a political science will need a quad core i7 with 16GB of ram and a dGPU unless he/she wants to game. If I were you I would grab a Macbook Air 13" and a console!

If your games are not intensive, then just a MBP 13". People who get the 15" are those who either find the 13" display too small or those who need more power.

"For college", "for work", "for normal things" and then everyone starts giving random opinions.
The usual nonsense ...

 

[T5BRICK]

From what I can see, the difference in 2014 and 2015 comes in the touchpad, the change in SSD(SATA to Pcle) and slightly higher battery. Any other changes that I missed?

The 2014 models also have PCIe SSD, it just isn't as fast as the newer models.

Does the SSD and forcetouch pad and other new features make a big difference?
What do you guys recommend I should go for, and why?

I went with the new 13" model because portability is a big factor to me. The quad core CPU in the 15" model(vs dual core in the 13") is nice, but I don't need it. It sounds like you don't need it either.

 

[placidity44]

I'd personally go with a refurbished 15". Apple's refurbs are either last years model that they are trying to clear inventory or 14-day returns in which Apple checks everything and it goes through rigorous testing. I actually have OCD and was hesitant to buy refurbished but over the last 5 years all of my macs, ipad, apple tv's etc have been refurbished. I won't buy new if there's a refurb option with the spec i'm after. All my refurbs have been in immaculate condition and when I ordered my 2012 15" I ordered a 2.2GHz i7 with 256GB of flash storage and got a 2.6GHz i7 model with 512gb of storage. That happens occasionally and I paid the price of the lower tier model. My rMBP came with a cycle count of 3 on the battery. For the same price as a 2015 13" rMBP you'll get a machine that's a great deal more powerful but without force touch. I like force touch but I don't see a ton of use for it as of yet...certainly not a must have for me. The PCIe storage on the 2014 models is already blazingly fast I really doubt the majority of users will notice a difference between the two so that shouldn't be a factor. Regardless unless you need force touch which I doubt anybody does i'd get a refurbished 13" or 15" rMBP and save a good bit of money and get a machine that is as good if not better than brand new. Only difference is the box. You get the same 14-day return window and standard one year warranty as with the new machines. You can also purchase Applecare for it. You have absolutely nothing to lose buy going with a refurb.