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ghanwani

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 8, 2008
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6,104
With the new MBA announced, I wanted to see what my 2019 MBA would be worth as a trade in. However, Apple's trade in program doesn't show a 2019 model, the newest being Late 2018. Any ideas on whether it would be possible to trade in a 2019?
 

MrKennedy

macrumors 6502
Aug 8, 2011
369
320
You'll likely get more selling it privately. Also not sure if trading in a 2019 for a 2020 is worth it...
 

ghanwani

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 8, 2008
4,791
6,104
You'll likely get more selling it privately. Also not sure if trading in a 2019 for a 2020 is worth it...
Just trying to avoid the hassle of a private sale. I traded in my 2017 MBP for my current MBA and the process was totally painless. Prior to that I had listed it on craigslist, and the offers I was getting were far below the list price and even below the trade in price. So now, I don't even want to bother with that route.

In terms of worth it, I guess I will wait till I see reviews. I want to see what the battery life is and how well the cooling works. I'm happy with the current machine, but having a more silent keyboard and 80% faster graphics would be nicer. I do notice some struggle when using Chrome on graphics-heavy websites.
 

ilikewhey

macrumors 68040
May 14, 2014
3,606
4,663
nyc upper east
unlike iphone trade in, mac trade in is worst than the lowest of all low ball offer you typically get, same goes for apple watch.
 

ghanwani

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 8, 2008
4,791
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Trade-ins are a joke, you can get 3-5x as much selling it
Not in this case. I paid $1299, but a new one can now be had for $999. The trade in value was IIRC $560 for a similarly spec’d 2018. If the 2019 were $600, I think it would be hard to do much better selling it myself.
 

Trixs

macrumors regular
Mar 26, 2008
163
100
Not in this case. I paid $1299, but a new one can now be had for $999. The trade in value was IIRC $560 for a similarly spec’d 2018. If the 2019 were $600, I think it would be hard to do much better selling it myself.
Fair enough, might be ok deal in your case then yeah! I was looking at a macbook pro 2018 and they were quoting around 500-600$ as well while it's a $2000+ laptop and current models are almost identical.
 

ghanwani

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 8, 2008
4,791
6,104
Fair enough, might be ok deal in your case then yeah! I was looking at a macbook pro 2018 and they were quoting around 500-600$ as well while it's a $2000+ laptop and current models are almost identical.
They don’t seem to give any premium at all for RAM and CPU upgrades. They do offer a premium for SSD upgrades. For someone that upgraded the CPU and RAM, it may not be a good deal.
 
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MrKennedy

macrumors 6502
Aug 8, 2011
369
320
Not in this case. I paid $1299, but a new one can now be had for $999. The trade in value was IIRC $560 for a similarly spec’d 2018. If the 2019 were $600, I think it would be hard to do much better selling it myself.

This still isn't a good deal, IMO. Let's do the math:

-Purchased 2019 at $1299
-estimated trade in value $560
-Baseline 2020 out the door is $439 (applied trade in)
-Total out of pocket $1738

It's worth it to you to spend over $1700 for a slightly updated, identical laptop? If you were willing to spend that much when you were shopping the 2019 air, you could've picked up a higher spec pro.

Other than issues with graphic heavy websites on Chrome... how else do you think the 2020 air will benefit you?
 
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ghanwani

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 8, 2008
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This still isn't a good deal, IMO. Let's do the math:

-Purchased 2019 at $1299
-estimated trade in value $560
-Baseline 2020 out the door is $439 (applied trade in)
-Total out of pocket $1738

It's worth it to you to spend over $1700 for a slightly updated, identical laptop? If you were willing to spend that much when you were shopping the 2019 air, you could've picked up a higher spec pro.

Other than issues with graphic heavy websites on Chrome... how else do you think the 2020 air will benefit you?
A better typing experience.

I tried both MBP models (both config’d to 16 GB / 512 GB) before settling for the Air. I didn’t particularly like either At the time I decided the best strategy is to buy the cheapest machine I could live with and upgrade as soon as something better came available.

MBP is also a little heavier and runs a LOT hotter than the Air, especially when watching videos or on conference calls with Skype/Zoom.

This thread isn’t so much about maximizing trade in value as in the logistics of trading in a 2019 MBA. The website doesn’t seem to have an option for it.

Anyway, in the absence of better info, I will wait for reviews on the 2020 and if I decide to pull the trigger I may have to call Apple if the website doesn’t offer the option of trading in a 2019 by then.
 

MrKennedy

macrumors 6502
Aug 8, 2011
369
320
Looks like some first hands on are trickling out today. Let us know if you decide to do it!

For what it's worth, I've got a 2018 Air (same as 2019 minus the true tone) and I think it's a fantastic machine.
 
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ghanwani

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 8, 2008
4,791
6,104
Looks like some first hands on are trickling out today. Let us know if you decide to do it!

For what it's worth, I've got a 2018 Air (same as 2019 minus the true tone) and I think it's a fantastic machine.

Aside from processor/graphics performance and keyboard, I am most interested in cooling performance. I hope it runs as cool as the 2019 MBA I have.

It's a bummer that we have the virus thing going on otherwise I could have seen it in person too before making a decision.
 

MrKennedy

macrumors 6502
Aug 8, 2011
369
320
It's a bummer that we have the virus thing going on otherwise I could have seen it in person too before making a decision.

The computer will still be there once this situation (hopefully) gets under control. Stay safe + healthy!
 
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ghanwani

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 8, 2008
4,791
6,104
Looks like the cooling in the 2020 MBA is not so great, so I will probably hang on to the 2019 for a bit.
 
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