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Return Haswell rMBP 2.4/256/8 13" ($1249) for a Base 15" ($1699)?

ducatiti

ducatiti

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 18, 2011
932
153
Return Haswell rMBP 2.4/256/8 13" ($1249) for a Base 15" ($1699)?

The saying goes ......the lawn is greener on.....

Well, I can't make up my mind especially now that the 15" rmbp's are $300 off.

Don't want to splurge on the high end model with the discrete graphics but rather just the base model at $1699 which I think is a great deal. I just plan to do light photo and video editing, vmware etc.

The thing is I will lose the x3 BB reward points around 3800 pts when I return the 13" but would love to have a quad core machine and a bigger screen.

I say do it but I would like to hear your opinions.
 
Do it!

The base 15'' will not be this cheap until Broadwell releases.

Also, if you really got your 13'' rMBP for $1250, you can sell it for a guaranteed $1400 and make like what, $50 profit (after factoring in the tax you paid), and you'll get to keep your reward points, for more $. Even if you can't find anyone to buy it - if you purchased it in November from BB, you have until January 15th to return it, due to extended holiday return period.

15'' is way better than 13'' in every way, IMO.
 
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aiyaaabatt said:
Do it!

The base 15'' will not be this cheap until Broadwell releases.

Also, if you really got your 13'' rMBP for $1250, you can sell it for a guaranteed $1400 and make like what, $50 profit (after factoring in the tax you paid), and you'll get to keep your reward points, for more $. Even if you can't find anyone to buy it - if you purchased it in November from BB, you have until January 15th to return it, due to extended holiday return period.

15'' is way better than 13'' in every way, IMO.
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Lol, didn't think of selling the 13" I have on hand. Great idea!
 
aiyaaabatt said:
Gogo and buy it now! Sale might end this weekend, or today even. :)
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Here is what I plan to do. Buy the base 15 and keep both systems for now. If the 15" is flawless, I will return the 13". Don't want to go thru the hassle of selling it.

I guess it's not worth getting the $2599 model at $2299 right? :)
 
ducatiti said:
Here is what I plan to do. Buy the base 15 and keep both systems for now. If the 15" is flawless, I will return the 13". Don't want to go thru the hassle of selling it.

I guess it's not worth getting the $2599 model at $2299 right? :)
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Well, you have to realize you would be investing over $1100 more than you initially planned (as opposed to a ~$500 bump with the base 15'').

$1100 is a lot. Are you a power user? If not (and I am assuming you are not, because you went with the 13''), the base 15'' might be your best bet. Besides, given that both discounts are the same $300 off, you are getting a better deal for the base model than you would be for the higher model.

But, its up to you. :)
 
aiyaaabatt said:
Well, you have to realize you would be investing over $1100 more than you initially planned (as opposed to a ~$500 bump with the base 15'').

$1100 is a lot. Are you a power user? If not (and I am assuming you are not, because you went with the 13''), the base 15'' might be your best bet. Besides, given that both discounts are the same $300 off, you are getting a better deal for the base model than you would be for the higher model.

But, its up to you. :)
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You have been a great help. I don't consider myself as a power user but I have the apps to be one but never got the chance to learn them :) Final Cut Pro, Aperture, Adobe Creative Suite, etc.... To be honest, I still do not know how to use Photoshop :) but will get there soon. I've had a Nikon D7000 for two years now but haven't used it much to include its features. I will be also running Win 8.1 Pro and Fusion 6.

You are absolutely right about the base model being a better deal given the same discount. I guess you get more for the money $1699, than $2299 right? Is that what you meant?

So it solely comes down to a $500 upgrade to get quad-core, bigger screen, and Iris Pro but at $1699 instead of $1999, for me.

Thanks again.
 
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ducatiti said:
You have been a great help. I don't consider myself as a power user but I have the apps to be one but never got the chance to learn them :) Final Cut Pro, Aperture, Adobe Creative Suite, etc.... To be honest, I still do not know how to use Photoshop :) but will get there soon. I've had a Nikon D7000 for two years now but haven't used it much to include its features. I will be also running Win 8.1 Pro and Fusion 6.

You are absolutely right about the base model being a better deal given the same discount. I guess you get more for the money $1699, thank $2299 right? Is that what you meant?

So it solely comes down to a $500 upgrade to get quad-core, bigger screen, and Iris Pro but at $1699 instead of $1999, for me.

Thanks again.
Click to expand...

Welcome.

What I meant was, at $300 off for each machine, you are saving 15% on the base model (at $2000 MSRP), but only 11.5% off the high end model (at $2600 MSRP). 15%>11.5%, so, technically you are getting a better deal on the base model.
 
aiyaaabatt said:
Welcome.

What I meant was, at $300 off for each machine, you are saving 15% on the base model (at $2000 MSRP), but only 11.5% off the high end model (at $2600 MSRP). 15%>11.5%, so, technically you are getting a better deal on the base model.
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OiC. I'm here literally in front of BB.
 
aiyaaabatt said:
Good luck. Hope you get a good screen and creak-free chassis! :)
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Thanks. I just walked out of BB with base 15". They honored the $50 i7 coupon too :)

Not worrying about the defects much. If so, will just return it and keep the 13.

So how did you do with the screen lottery?
 
ducatiti said:
Thanks. I just walked out of BB with base 15". They honored the $50 i7 coupon too :)

Not worrying about the defects much. If so, will just return it and keep the 13.

So how did you do with the screen lottery?
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So, you got it for $1650 before tax? That is a great deal. And you are lucky, because it says on the $50 i7 coupon in the fine print that it is not applicable to Apple products.

I have the higher spec haswell 15''. My screen is absolutely perfect (LG), for me at least. Zero backlight bleeding that I can notice (which is extremely rare), white whites, and excellent, though not perfect, screen uniformity with no noticeable yellowing in any corners.

But let me tell you, I went through more exchanges than I care to admit... to finally get an acceptable machine... some had good screens, while the chassis creaked horribly, and visa versa... seems the stars had to align to finally get a machine that was acceptable through and through.
 
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Actually going to go pick one up later tonight. Gonna be returning the 15" early 2013 refurb with 16gb memory for the base 15" Haswell. Im praying I don't have any issues with 8GB memory running Windows on VM. Gonna be needing VM for Visual Studio and this price seems like its too good to pass up.
 
aiyaaabatt said:
So, you got it for $1650 before tax? That is a great deal. And you are lucky, because it says on the $50 i7 coupon in the fine print that it is not applicable to Apple products.

I have the higher spec haswell 15''. My screen is absolutely perfect (LG), for me at least. Zero backlight bleeding that I can notice (which is extremely rare), white whites, and excellent, though not perfect, screen uniformity with no noticeable yellowing in any corners.

But let me tell you, I went through more exchanges than I care to admit... to finally get an acceptable machine... some had good screens, while the chassis creaked horribly, and visa versa... seems the stars had to align to finally get a machine that was acceptable through and through.
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Just an update. Replacement was creaking as well. Busted out my pentalobe driver and loosened, then tightened the side where the creaking was. I made sure to press on the bottom plate firmly while tightening. Creaking gone but I am still not contented :) I feel like my system has been tampered with now lol. I wanted it to be rock solid out of the factory. Maybe it's just me.

I have a rare Samsung screen on the base model 15 (A022). I read that they are mostly LG's. I thought my LG on the 13" was white, but this is whiter! No backlight bleeding at all on this one.

Now the I have to make a decision of what to return. 13" or 15". I want to do it today to get it over with.
 
nabeel24 said:
Actually going to go pick one up later tonight. Gonna be returning the 15" early 2013 refurb with 16gb memory for the base 15" Haswell. Im praying I don't have any issues with 8GB memory running Windows on VM. Gonna be needing VM for Visual Studio and this price seems like its too good to pass up.
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Then get 16GB Ram and play safe!
 
Another update. I totally give up on the 15". Will be waiting for the next major release.

Creak was fixed but there is still bottom case flex in a way that it feels like that the case is hitting a component inside. One of the screw heads is about to get rounded after all my attempts. Returning my 15" and will stick with the 13". Samsung screen on the 15 seems dim anyways.
 
ducatiti said:
Another update. I totally give up on the 15". Will be waiting for the next major release.

Creak was fixed but there is still bottom case flex in a way that it feels like that the case is hitting a component inside. One of the screw heads is about to get rounded after all my attempts. Returning my 15" and will stick with the 13". Samsung screen on the 15 seems dim anyways.
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Yea, I understand. I am a macbook reseller. And the bottom case flex issue is present on about 50% of the 15'' rMBP systems I come across. So, it is definitely a common issue - nevertheless it is an unacceptable one, IMO. I think it has to do with the size of the 15'' or something.

Sorry the 15'' didn't work out for you. You still got the 13'' at a great price though! So be happy and enjoy it! You can resell it next year for probably a $100 loss, which is not bad at all, if you want to upgrade when the Broadwell refresh comes out.
 
ducatiti said:
Another update. I totally give up on the 15". Will be waiting for the next major release.

Creak was fixed but there is still bottom case flex in a way that it feels like that the case is hitting a component inside. One of the screw heads is about to get rounded after all my attempts. Returning my 15" and will stick with the 13". Samsung screen on the 15 seems dim anyways.
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why you think they are discounting them already
 
Buck987 said:
why you think they are discounting them already
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Best Buy has always been doing this no matter what release. This particular one lasted two days without further notice or ads. The BB representatives weren't even aware of the sale. I had to show them the link online.
 
thurgood said:
I'm assuming nabeel was planning to take advantage of the deal on the base 15in. can't get the deal on 16gb ram unless you opt for the $2600 config
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Yea, if I wanted the 16gb memory I would've had to go with the high end model.

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ducatiti said:
Best Buy has always been doing this no matter what release. This particular one lasted two days without further notice or ads. The BB representatives weren't even aware of the sale. I had to show them the link online.
Click to expand...

Same here, when I went to BB yesterday they had no idea of the sale. Actually had the $1994 price up.
 
Be careful! The 15" models tend to have yellow, splotchy screens. If you're curious, just do a Google search, or even a search of this forum. For example, here's one particular thread that's nearly 50 pages long: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1660649/

The 13" models are your safest bet until the Broadwells are released. The 13" screens are nearly flawless, albeit a bit smaller than the 15" screens.

Disclaimer: I have a yellow, slightly splotchy 15" model. I'm keeping it because I need a larger screen, and I don't want to risk getting a worse model if I do an exchange. I just avoid looking at the bottom-left corner, which isn't too difficult considering most of the content is in the middle of the screen. :D

Edit: It looks like you decided on a 13" inch model after all. That's probably the best choice for most people.
 
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