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Refurb or new MBP 13"?

jbachandouris

jbachandouris

macrumors 603
Original poster
Aug 18, 2009
6,012
3,237
Upstate NY
I see the 'old' version (2.26GHz, 2GB RAM, 160GB HD, 7 hr battery life) for $929 on Apple's website (refurb), but $1199 gets me a shiny 'new' one. Is it really worth the $300 after taxes?

This will be my first Mac, so no, I have no idea how I will use it.

A new one I can buy immediately, while a refurb will be shipped and I have to wait...I hate suspense!
 
If you don't know your uses, how can we help?

The refurb deal is a good one, but the new MBP has a greater battery life and a better graphics card. The CPU speed increase can be neglected though. The HDD can be user replaced, so that shouldn't count either.

So if the better battery and graphic performance are valued for you, get the new MBP, if the older one is sufficient get the older MBP.
 
spinnerlys said:
If you don't know your uses, how can we help?

The refurb deal is a good one, but the new MBP has a greater battery life and a better graphics card. The CPU speed increase can be neglected though. The HDD can be user replaced, so that shouldn't count either.

So if the better battery and graphic performance are valued for you, get the new MBP, if the older one is sufficient get the older MBP.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply. This is why I am on the fence.
 
$1159 shipped no tax from Amazon for the latest one vs. $1021.90 shipped for a prev. model refurb from Apple. I think the extra 2 GB RAM and video card are worth $125. I don't care that much about audio out and the slightly better battery life.
 
robby818 said:
$1159 shipped no tax from Amazon for the latest one vs. $1021.90 shipped for a prev. model refurb from Apple. I think the extra 2 GB RAM and video card are worth $125. I don't care that much about audio out and the slightly better battery life.
Click to expand...

I plan to use the Apple Credit Card which means no interest for 12 months. If I buy from Amazon, interest would eat up all the savings. Thanks for the tip though.
 
Well, the Apple CC is officially in my hands now. I have still not decided. You see, I sold some things on eBay to help justify the purchase, but only have $350 total. I really want to buy the new one since I can have one immediately, but to pay a new one off in a year, that would be about $70/month as oppossed to $40-50 for the refurb.

The improved graphics chip, double memory, and bigger hard drive out of the box are hard to pass up, but I talked to an Apple Store employee and he has the previous MBP with 2GB and he has not seen any reason to upgrade.

Windows has brainwashed me into thinking that I always need the fastest processor and maximum memory. This mindset does not necessarily translate in the Mac world (or so I have read/heard).
 
If you are a student, the Apple store gives a student discount worth $100 on this model. Closes the gap some. Both systems are the base 13" MBP from their generation. However, the previous generation was *very* similar to the MacBook white. The new base model is much like the upgraded 13" from the previous generation, with a better video card (some 2X faster).

While the hard drive can be upgraded out of the box, do you want to do this right out of the box? In other words, how long will 160GB versus 250 last you before you want to upgrade? A year, more? Also, from experience, upgrading the hard drive in these is a pain (about 75% tear down of the case required). RAM is easy to upgrade, but once again when and how do you want to do this? Finally, you can't upgrade the video card, ever. This is a big reason I want a new MBP; my current laptop can't handle HD video.

The extra longevity may be worth the new price. Also, there is no way to tell why a unit is refurbished. Apple techs are awesome, but I would still recommend Apple Care with a refurb, in case the system was abused in a previous life.
 
col sandurz said:
If you are a student, the Apple store gives a student discount worth $100 on this model. Closes the gap some. Both systems are the base 13" MBP from their generation. However, the previous generation was *very* similar to the MacBook white. The new base model is much like the upgraded 13" from the previous generation, with a better video card (some 2X faster).

While the hard drive can be upgraded out of the box, do you want to do this right out of the box? In other words, how long will 160GB versus 250 last you before you want to upgrade? A year, more? Also, from experience, upgrading the hard drive in these is a pain (about 75% tear down of the case required). RAM is easy to upgrade, but once again when and how do you want to do this? Finally, you can't upgrade the video card, ever. This is a big reason I want a new MBP; my current laptop can't handle HD video.

The extra longevity may be worth the new price. Also, there is no way to tell why a unit is refurbished. Apple techs are awesome, but I would still recommend Apple Care with a refurb, in case the system was abused in a previous life.
Click to expand...

Not a student. Applecare is a must of course (within the first year anyway!). Good point about the former life, you just never know. Then again, they could just be last model year left-overs (I can dream can't I?).
 
buchhla said:
You can get the new 2.4 Ghz for $1050 after rebate with no tax and free shipping.

http://www.macconnection.com/IPA/Shop/Product/Detail.htm?sku=11301204&cac=Result&SourceID=k188598

The extra 2GB of RAM alone is worth that as it would cost you way more than that to upgrade, and while 2GB is okay, you will really wish you had 4 once you start using it.

The extra bettery life and better video card are just icing on the cake...
Click to expand...

As posted earlier, I will be using the Apple Credit Card with 1 year of no-interest. If I go with the mac connection deal, CC interest will eat up any savings. Good info though. Thanks!
 
I struggled with this same problem but I was paying cash... I know the processors are the same but only a step up in speed and you got more RAM out of the box and as for the hard drive i will be putting in a 500gb 7200rpm anyway.

This is my first MAC and I went for the low-end 13" and it will do everything that I need and more.

The refurb I was looking at was $999 and then remember I still needed to add RAM at $120.

So I got the new one with the 4GB RAM and used the student discount and paid $1099 plus taxes
 
Chupa Chupa said:
Microcenter is selling the previous 2.2Ghz MBP for $999 new.
Click to expand...

Again, I will be using the Apple Credit Card for no interest for 1 year. That will only work when buying from Apple. If I go to Microcenter, all savings will be eaten up by the interest on whatever card I put it on. Unfortunately, I do not have the $1000 in cash.
 
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