Need to Upgrade soon... question about new macbooks

[Synergie]

Right now I have a Macbook Pro mid 2012 13". Wanting to upgrade as this is starting to show the wear LOL. Half my keys are chipped and the trackpad is feeling a bit worn etc. At the time I got the higher processor and I doubled the RAM on my own. I also took out the original HDD and added a really fast (the gaming one) solid state drive (I can't remember the brand but the size was 400 something Gigs... not like the usual 512 or 250 etc.if that helps)

Anyway I was going to look at another MBP but the cost has seemed to gone way up LOL. The Macbooks look pretty cool now with gold etc. But the screen is smaller... only 12" and there are no built in card reader. I dont really care about the optical drive anymore but I really would like a few USB slots that are separate from the power and an SD card reader.

A few questions about this one port for everything deal:

Is there a card reader where you can also attach the power to the card reader? So if you are working off the card reader for any length of time, you don't have to worry about the power being drained?

Is the maximum storage size only 250 Gigs?? If I need more, do I have to go MBP again?

Is the smaller MBP also only 12" now as well, or is it still 13"? An inch makes a huge difference!

Should I just bite the bullet and go with a new MBP 13" (if it is still 13)? I'd like 15" but holy cow the price is really high!!! LOL

 

[Altis]

I'm in the same boat where I want the 15" but the prices here in Canada went up $500 for what's now a pretty dated machine.

Try to hold off to see if some new models come out this summer if you can.

Otherwise, the MBP is 13" and 15". Only the rMB is 12" (though a 14" model would certainly be welcome).

You will likely notice a hit in performance with the rMB so you should try one out if you can before you get it. It really depends on what you use it for, ultimately.

 

[kvyoung]

I have a mid-2012 rMBP and a 2015 rMB. For my needs the rMB is powerful enough but your usage will really determine your performance needs.

In terms of adaptors I picked up a HooToo adaptor that plugs in to the usb-c slot on the MacBook. The adaptor has pass through power, 3 usb slots, an SD Card reader slot and HDMI output. The adaptor is about 1" x 3" and weights next to nothing. The single port doesn't bother me in the least.

http://www.amazon.com/HT-UC001-Shut...1460396253&sr=8-3&keywords=hootoo+usb+3.0+hub

 

[adonis3k]

Plenty of second hand ones around, well UK anyway. I picked up a MBP retina 15" 2013 i7 15GB 1TB drive for $1320 according to Xe.com

 

[MRrainer]

The 15" MPBs come with 16GB RAM. You can choose a higher CPU-frequency and larger SSD-size (and/or choose the one with the dedicated GPU) until it's priced out of your budget.
Talking of budget - what is your budget actually?

 

[deeddawg]

Yes, I think retina tended to jack the prices a bit.

You don't mention what you DO with your current MBP. That's a pretty relevant bit of info, nobody can really advise you without that.

The 12" retina Macbook is (for me) a fine system for what I bought it for; portability and light usage. It's no cpu powerhouse, and if you need to plug in a lot of stuff you'll need add-on hubs/docks. Still it does fine for most purposes if you're not hammering the CPU.

To your questions:
#1 Yes, there are power-passthrough adapters. Even a handful of Apple branded ones right on Apple's website that offer power-passthrough as well as USBC and HDMI connections. Third party solutions (see the Sticky thread at the top of the forum) are available as well offering even more ports. Just use a $7 USB3 card reader plugged into one of these. Or plug the $7 card reader into a $5 USBC to USB3 dongle. Or this $15 USBC to USB3 dongle with power passthrough.

#2 No, the max is 512GB. Have you looked at Apple.com?

#3 No, the base MBP is currently 13.3" and is available in both retina and non-retina screens. Again, have you looked at Apple.com?

As for 12" vs 13.3" -- I went to the 12" rMB from a 13.3" MBA and haven't had any issues with the smaller display. I run the rMB display at 1440x900 so I have the same screen real-estate as I had on my MBA13. If you've been happy with the 1200x800 display I doubt you'd have an issue.

#4 You should choose the system that fits your NEEDS and fits your BUDGET. I'd start by defining the former. How will you use the system? Is it an always with you thing or sit on the desk thing? What do you run on it? Games? Big compute heavy software? How much memory do you need, is 8GB enough or do you do a lot of VMs or giant complex graphics/photos? Or do you do mostly web and email and minor office-document stuff? Are you doing video editing of big 4K files on a 5K monitor, or running dual big displays on your desk? That sort of stuff.