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Probably buying base MacBook Pro 14"

ProQuiz

ProQuiz

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jul 15, 2009
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Thinking of buying a base model MacBook Pro 14" with the M2 Pro, 16 GB RAM, and 512 GB SSD. However, based on the MacRumors Buyer's Guide, the MacBook Pro 14" and 16" are currently categorized as "Caution - Approaching End of Cycle." My question is, are new 14" models due soon in January? I've heard rumors that they are likely to come out "early" 2024 which could mean not as early as January. I wouldn't really want to buy now if they are due as soon as January 2024.
 
ProQuiz said:
Thinking of buying a base model MacBook Pro 14" with the M2 Pro, 16 GB RAM, and 512 GB SSD. However, based on the MacRumors Buyer's Guide, the MacBook Pro 14" and 16" are currently categorized as "Caution - Approaching End of Cycle." My question is, are new 14" models due soon in January? I've heard rumors that they are likely to come out "early" 2024 which could mean not as early as January. I wouldn't really want to buy now if they are due as soon as January 2024.
Click to expand...
New models may come out in Jan/feb. If M3 pro chips adopt 3nm manufacturing, performance will improve significantly( if you need that much power).
 
ProQuiz said:
Thinking of buying a base model MacBook Pro 14" with the M2 Pro, 16 GB RAM, and 512 GB SSD. However, based on the MacRumors Buyer's Guide, the MacBook Pro 14" and 16" are currently categorized as "Caution - Approaching End of Cycle." My question is, are new 14" models due soon in January? I've heard rumors that they are likely to come out "early" 2024 which could mean not as early as January. I wouldn't really want to buy now if they are due as soon as January 2024.
Click to expand...
You just need to figure out what your use case is. For me, I couldn't care less that the new models are coming out. I have a base M2 Pro and it works fine. It'll continue to work fine for me for many, many years.
 
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Depends on what you plan to use the computer for. I'm more of a power user than the average person (Audio & Graphic work) using an M1 Max config and don't have any plans of upgrading my system anytime soon. These are extremely powerful machines. I'm sure the M3 will have a boost in performance, it's just a matter of will you see the difference in the tasks you plan to be doing on yours.

If I had to guess, the biggest improvements will most likely be seen by people doing 3d rendering work and video work - most likely reducing export / rendering times.

M1 is still a very powerful chip for intense work. With the discounts that you can get from 3rd party retailers (brand new machines) you can see up to 40% off on most configs which make it a steal of a buy.
 
Thanks for the replies.

Is a 512 GB SSD enough for a daily use laptop? How much space does macOS take up on its own? I doubt I'll be install many third-party apps and I don't have many pictures and videos saved either.
 
The OS and included apps take around 30 GB. Based on your described use pattern, 512 GB will be more than enough.
 
ProQuiz said:
Thanks for the replies.

Is a 512 GB SSD enough for a daily use laptop? How much space does macOS take up on its own? I doubt I'll be install many third-party apps and I don't have many pictures and videos saved either.
Click to expand...

Based on what you've said, that should be MORE than sufficient. I bought an MBP M2 Pro 16GB/512GB, and it's more than sufficient for me...and I probably have more pics than most, though I'm no amateur photographer.
 
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512GB is sufficient and external nmve storage is cheap these days. I spent the money on upgrading RAM to 32gigs and using a 2TB Nvme enclosure. You can save a tonne on official refurb models and put that money towards upgrading RAM/Apple Care/5 % savings account.
 
I have the earlier 2021 MacBook Pro 14" in the base configuration (16/512), bought in Feb. 2022.
It was fast when new and it's still fast getting close to 2 years later.
The base configuration was all I needed -- the MBP is my "second computer".

A m2pro MBP 14" would certainly be as good, probably somewhat better.

The old "computer buying question" applies here:
If you NEED it now, BUY now.
But...
If you don't absolutely need it, and can afford to wait 4-6 months, then... wait.
 
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If I order a new one from the online Apple Store, will the laptop come with the latest version of macOS (Sonoma) installed or is it too "early" for that and it will come with the previous version?
 
My guess (and it's ONLY "a guess") is that if you ordered today, it would still come with Ventura.
Two, three weeks from now... might change.
 
Kung said:
Based on what you've said, that should be MORE than sufficient. I bought an MBP M2 Pro 16GB/512GB, and it's more than sufficient for me...and I probably have more pics than most, though I'm no amateur photographer.
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Oh yeah, way more than enough. 512GB is totally sufficient for most people unless you have a ton of media.
 
I have the base and it's faster than anything I've ever had previously. Works great. I did get a 1 TB hard drive because I'm a musician with 400GB + of videos and music stuff.
 
OP wrote:
"Base model bought. Ships in 1-2 weeks as per online store. This is my first Mac."

You're currently on a PC, is that correct?

Although I've never used it, I believe Apple has some software "migration tools" designed to help with the migration to Mac. Perhaps others will comment on that.

Suggestion:
Plan on keeping the PC up and running for a few weeks AFTER you have the Mac running. Just in case you run into a problem -- if you can't solve it quickly on the Mac, you'll still have the PC to fall back to.

Also, don't try to do too much at once.
Get music set up and working, then photos, etc.

Best of luck!
 
It won't be released anytime soon. My best guess would be summer of 2024 during WWDC. Remember they have to release the base M3 chips first before they can release the Pro, Max, and Ultra version.
 
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Is it a given that a new M3 MBP will also be a lot more expensive?

I know Apple often keeps the same price point and just bumps the specs, but I’m thinking this might not be the case here.
 
Just to confirm, I'm pretty sure 16 GB RAM is enough too, correct? I don't have many apps open at the same time.

Also, is there a big difference between M2 Pro 10-core vs. the M2 Pro 12-core that are available with the MacBook Pro 14"?
 
Kottu said:
New models may come out in Jan/feb. If M3 pro chips adopt 3nm manufacturing, performance will improve significantly( if you need that much power).
Click to expand...

I doubt we will see M3 Pro/Max SoCs that early in the 3nm product lifecycle. While M2 pro/Max came out in January of this year, they were also based on the well established 5nm process, which meant higher yields of usable silicon to make M3 variants. With 3nm currently only being used with A17, I find it odd that Apple would sacrifice 3nm inventory currently used for the iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max in favor of an M3 Pro/Max SoC which would sell in lower quantities than anything with a stock M3.
 
Found out the 512 GB SSD in the MacBook Pro 14" is slower than the 1 TB and higher size SSDs. Something to be concerned about?
 
"Found out the 512 GB SSD in the MacBook Pro 14" is slower than the 1 TB and higher size SSDs. Something to be concerned about?"

The 1tb SSD is TWICE AS FAST as the 512gb SSD. Something like 3,000MBps v 6,000MBps.
The difference in price is $200.
If it was me, I'd pay the extra $200 for the extra space and faster drive.

Having said this, 3,000 is not "slow" -- it's still pretty fast.
But there's no hiding the fact that the 1tb SSD is (again) twice as speedy.

Could this make a difference in real-world, day-to-day usage?
Depends on what you're going to do.

If you're going to use a lot of RAM-intensive apps, that "hit the drive" with a lot of virtual memory disk-swapping, then I'd say, YES, a faster drive might make things -a little more- speedy. (I said "a little", not "a lot").

But for most everyday stuff, I will guess that the average user wouldn't notice it at all.

Can you cancel the order you've already placed?
 
Yeah, I can cancel right now but I'm not going to. Just going to stick with what I ordered. This is going to be general usage laptop with no real intensive work being done on it.
 
ProQuiz said:
Yeah, I can cancel right now but I'm not going to. Just going to stick with what I ordered. This is going to be general usage laptop with no real intensive work being done on it.
Click to expand...
It sounds like you have the right configuration for you. If your usage changes in the future you can always upgrade and take advantage of a Mac's nice trade-in value!
 
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