Should I repair or replace my MBP?

[EchoSierra]

I'm currently using a Mid 2010 13" MBP. I've upgraded it to 16GB of RAM, and replaced the boot drive and optical drive with 1TB SSDs (so I'm running two SSDs in this thing). The machine is snappy and I'd hate to see it go.

The middle row of the keyboard on my MBP from S to L are very intermittent in operation. I've taken the back off and looked at it, I've reseated the keyboard ribbon cable, and I've insulated the connector with a piece of tape just in case it was shorting out. After all of this, the keyboard is still only works sometimes, so I'm pretty sure it's a broken trace. This keyboard has not suffered any sort of liquid damage.

So, I started looking into replacement options should this MBP finally bite the dust. I travel quite a bit, and towing along an external keyboard is not really a feasible option.

These are the options I came up with. I'd like some input please, on which option gives me the best bang for my buck.

Option 1: A USED 2012 13" MBP with a Dual Core 2.9GHz i7. It would cost me about $900 plus another $100 for a RAM upgrade to 16GB, and I'd simply swap my SSDs over. My only concern is that it's only two years newer than my current MBP, and given the age of the machines, would I only get two years of use out of it? If so, then does spending $1000 for two years of use make any sense?

Option 2: A refurb 2017 13" MBP with a dual core 3.5GHz i7 and Touch Bar. I'd get the version with 16GB of RAM and 1TB PCIe-based onboard SSD. I can probably time machine or clone my 1TB boot disk over to it, and use my second 1TB SSD as external storage. The downside is that it's ~$2500 and I'd also need to get dongles for it.

Option 3: Wait for the MBP refresh this year (expected mid-2018) to see what's new. Also, maybe the Option 2 model would decrease in price due to the announcement of the Mid 2018 model.

Option 4: Buy a keyboard for my mid 2010 MBP and spend two hours installing it. This would most certainly be the least expensive option, but I'd rather take Option 1 if it's not a bad idea. Option 1 would also get me USB 3.0 USB-A ports. My mid 2010 MBP only has USB 2.0 ports.

 

[Pearl Wisdom]

Option 1 sounds pretty good, but you might consider getting the 2012 2.5GHz i5 because even that lower config is almost twice the CPU power of your 2010. The 2012 2.9GHz only benchmarks about 17% faster than the 2.5GHz i7. Look for an excellent condition machine and you should get some good years out of it. I'm a little bummed today that my 2011 17" seems to have finally developed the well known graphics problem which I had hoped it had dodged - it had gotten a lot of use but has been in excellent condition until this sudden total breakdown.

Given that you seem to be fond of huge SSDs, it makes a lot of sense to get the 2012 that you can just move your current SSDs into.

You might also consider the same strategy as Option 2, but get a used 2014 instead of a refurb 2017.

I also just happened to notice this alternative to Option 2 if you've ever thought about a 15". New on sale for $2500 with 16GB/1TB : https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod...z0sh_mlh4230_bh_macbook_pro_15_inch_with.html

 

[velocityg4]

Option 1: But not at $900. You can easily get the 2.9Ghz i7 model for $450 on eBay. eBay has a great money back guarantee. You also have Paypal guarantees. I don't care how good the warranty is that the store offers. It's not $450 good on a used 5 year old computer. Does it even guarantee a brand new battery and charger? At that price I'd expect fully refurbished and mint condition with new HDD, Battery and charger. All Apple OEM with a five year warranty.

Then get the 16GB RAM for about $100 as you planned. For about $60 you can also pick up a very well reviewed battery from Temark off Amazon or $95 for a NuPower from Other World Computing (a well regarded aftermarket brand for Macs). I'd buy the NuPower given that it is only $35 more. $600 to $650 when all is said and done.

Then replace the keyboard on the 2010 model and sell it on Craigslist (or similar).

As for useful life. I couldn't say. $650 for 2-3 years is a whole lot better than $2500 for 5-7 years. CPU differences aren't that huge and you are stuck at 16GB RAM. So, the differences in useful life may be closer to each other. In three years you could sell it off for a few hundred. By then the Macbook Pro should offer a Quad Core i7 u series and 32GB RAM. So, there is a major performance leap between the 2012 model and a new model.

Who knows maybe Intel will have hexa core u series if AMD and ARM put pressure on the low power usage laptop market and 10nm does well.

 

[EchoSierra]

I also just happened to notice this alternative to Option 2 if you've ever thought about a 15". New on sale for $2500 with 16GB/1TB : https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod...z0sh_mlh4230_bh_macbook_pro_15_inch_with.html

Ooh nice! Even the one with the i7 and the Radeon is the same price! I'll keep this in mind. I know B&H says that they're an Apple authorized reseller, but is that actually true? If I buy a machine from them, will I be able to take it to the Apple store and get AppleCare for it as well? If I'm spending all that money for a new machine, I would want to get Applecare for it as well (I had it for my 2010 MBP and it had paid for itself).

I think that if I am to take this option, that I would probably want to wait until the next MBP refresh before pulling the trigger.

Option 1: But not at $900. You can easily get the 2.9Ghz i7 model for $450 on eBay. eBay has a great money back guarantee. You also have Paypal guarantees. I don't care how good the warranty is that the store offers. It's not $450 good on a used 5 year old computer. Does it even guarantee a brand new battery and charger? At that price I'd expect fully refurbished and mint condition with new HDD, Battery and charger. All Apple OEM with a five year warranty.

The price I quote at $900 was from OWC. I'd rather buy from OWC where I know someone who know what they're doing has looked at it before putting it up for sale, than an individual who may have abused their laptop (more than I have with mine).

 

[Fishrrman]

My suggestions:

Either get an Apple-refurbished 2015 MacBook Pro, or "hold out" for the 2018 MBPro's.

The current version (2017, along with the 2016's) seem "too full of problems" to get my recommendation.

 

[EchoSierra]

What kinds of problems are people experiencing with the 2016/2017s?

EDIT: I'm assuming you mean the flawed keyboard design? I agree, I wouldn't want to buy a $2500 machine with the keyboard disease.

If anyone is interested, I ended up buying a 2012 13" MBP with the 2.9 GHz i7, and bought a pair of RAM to go with it. Total cost $1107. I'll swap over my SSDs so there's no upgrade cost there. I expect to get at least 3 years of useful life out of it, so the cost over time is similar to getting a current MBP with a touch bar.