So, I've got this deal...

[andreyush]

Hi!
A guy offers me his 2015 macbook pro retina 13" 8GB RAM, 256SSD with i5 cpu, for my rmbp mid-2012 15" 8GB, 256SSD. What do you guys think I should do?
I want a newer macbook pro but I don't want to get rid of the performace. Also there is the logic board failure problem :/ on 2011,2012 and early 2013 models..
I work most of the time in Logic Pro X so I don't know how well does a 13" macbook pro perform. Has anybody tried?

Thanks!

 

[darksithpro]

Hi!
A guy offers me his 2015 macbook pro retina 13" 8GB RAM, 256SSD with i5 cpu, for my rmbp mid-2012 15" 8GB, 256SSD. What do you guys think I should do?
I want a newer macbook pro but I don't want to get rid of the performace. Also there is the logic board failure problem :/ on 2011,2012 and early 2013 models..
I work most of the time in Logic Pro X so I don't know how well does a 13" macbook pro perform. Has anybody tried?

Thanks!

Interesting, I looked at eBay prices and both the models are within the 850-1k ball park. Do you want to work on a smaller screen? 2 inches on a laptop is a major difference.

 

[Fancuku]

Just so you know, The 13" will have half the CPU power of the 15".

 

[Sanpete]

It may be newer, but the 13" is less powerful and has less screen space, so unless you're especially interested in downsizing, I don't see much upside for you in the trade.

 

[xb2003]

I'm not sure what you do in Logic, but you'd have to push it pretty hard for the 13" to not have the ability to get the job done.

I would personally keep the 15"

 

[andreyush]

Thanks guys! I am just afraid with that logic board failure.

 

[Sanpete]

Think of it this way, if you move from a quad core to a dual core you've already had a 50% failure!

 

[duervo]

Pro's to getting the 13":
- Chance of warranty still being valid for a short period on the 13", allowing you to possibly extend it with purchase of AppleCare.
- Easier to transport.
- The 13" 2015 is worth slightly more than the 2012 15" (~20% more.) Given that, you could do it, then sell the 13" and put the money towards a newer 15" unit. Depends on how willing you are to go through the steps to do so.
- Faster storage.
- Thunderbolt 2 vs Thunderbolt 1.
- 802.11ac vs 802.11n
- Better battery life. Both due to the age of the 2012, as well as the lower processing demands of the 2015 (less cores and no dGPU).
- No dGPU (re: repair program for dGPU-related issues with the 2012 15".)
- Force Touch trackpad.

Con's to getting the 13":
- Multi-threaded workloads would suffer on the 13". Single-threaded would be closer to the same, but I believe still slower (by how much would depend on the specific CPU models in the 13" and 15" systems being compared.)
- No dGPU. Lower performance for video work and other workloads that take advantage of the GPU. Note: This might be negated by faster storage, but would depend on workload.
- Less screen real estate.
- Force Touch trackpad (not everybody likes it, so this could be either a good or bad thing.)

 

[andreyush]

Think of it this way, if you move from a quad core to a dual core you've already had a 50% failure!

Ok. I would stick with the 2012 a little bit. If it will survive another 2-3 years I will buy another 15" one. Thank you guys!