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Upgrade advice

V

vandrv

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 27, 2008
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i currently have a 2010 mackbook pro, and have been planning to upgrade it for a while, but was in no hurry. Well my Mac mini died yesterday, so maybe now is the time to replace the laptop. I am looking at the 15.4 model. I don't need the latest and greatest, but am thinking maybe I would like to consolidate down to a single computer. I'm a photographer and need a large monitor for editing so I might just go with a laptop and connect it to my monitor at home. My main programs I use are Lightroom and Photoshop.
Reading the reviews of the newest MacBook Pros, there seem to be lots of people who are less than impressed. Would I be just as well off looking for a 2014 or 2015 model? Thanks for any advice.
 
You really need to make that decision for yourself. Play with the new MBPs, see if they fit your workflow.

I was originally disappointed in the new, thinner MBPs, but finally broke down and got one - and am overall very happy. Keyboard is fantastic after you get used to it, battery life is great for basic tasks but suffers a bit as compared to the '15s, ports are a love/hate relationship until you get all the dongles you need and adjust. Everything else is really great.

One thing that I really enjoy is how quiet the cooling on the new MBPs is. It is noticeably improved over prior generation, both from max noise to how quickly it turns on.
 
polbit said:
You really need to make that decision for yourself. Play with the new MBPs, see if they fit your workflow.

I was originally disappointed in the new, thinner MBPs, but finally broke down and got one - and am overall very happy. Keyboard is fantastic after you get used to it, battery life is great for basic tasks but suffers a bit as compared to the '15s, ports are a love/hate relationship until you get all the dongles you need and adjust. Everything else is really great.

One thing that I really enjoy is how quiet the cooling on the new MBPs is. It is noticeably improved over prior generation, both from max noise to how quickly it turns on.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply, I appreciate it. Unfortunately I'm not very close to an Apple Store, but I will try to get there and check the new ones out. I don't use the keyboard a lot, so I'm not sure how much of an issue this would be for me, but I do worry about the large trackpad. Are there dongles available to connect all my peripherals, especially a monitor? I have nothing that uses thunderbolt 3.
 
vandrv said:
Thanks for the reply, I appreciate it. Unfortunately I'm not very close to an Apple Store, but I will try to get there and check the new ones out. I don't use the keyboard a lot, so I'm not sure how much of an issue this would be for me, but I do worry about the large trackpad. Are there dongles available to connect all my peripherals, especially a monitor? I have nothing that uses thunderbolt 3.
Click to expand...

You can probably check them out at a Best Buy if you have one close by.
 
destroyboredom said:
You can probably check them out at a Best Buy if you have one close by.
Click to expand...

Actually I do have a Best Buy not far away. I didn't even think of them as being an Apple retailer. I will go take a look. I don't know that a quick look will be enough to make up my mind unless I either love it or hate it. I really like my current Macbook Pro, but it needs a battery and it has reached the end of its upgrade trail, so I think it is time to retire it.
 
The 2015-model 15" MacBook Pro is still in "the active product lineup" -- you can still buy these new from Apple.

To see them, you need to go to store.apple.com, then go to the MacBook Pro's, then go to the 15" models, click "buy", and then scroll down (I believe).
You CAN'T "see them" on the intro page.

This doesn't mean you shouldn't investigate the 2017 models as well.
But you might like the feel of the "older" keyboard better, and you might want the "legacy ports". It's your choice.
 
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I just went to Best Buy and they had both the 2015 and the 2017 on display. I didn't do much with either of them, but the 2015 was very familiar. It wasn't much different from my 2010. The newer one certainly had a somewhat differnt feel to it, but I didn't immediately hate it. My guess is I could probably get used to it without much trouble. What does give me pause about the new one is the fact that I have nothing that would plug into it without a dongle. I could see this as being a problem.
 
vandrv said:
I just went to Best Buy and they had both the 2015 and the 2017 on display. I didn't do much with either of them, but the 2015 was very familiar. It wasn't much different from my 2010. The newer one certainly had a somewhat differnt feel to it, but I didn't immediately hate it. My guess is I could probably get used to it without much trouble. What does give me pause about the new one is the fact that I have nothing that would plug into it without a dongle. I could see this as being a problem.
Click to expand...

Well, think about what you need to plug in, and price stuff out. USB-A to USB-C little dongles are few bucks, for example.
 
polbit said:
Well, think about what you need to plug in, and price stuff out. USB-A to USB-C little dongles are few bucks, for example.
Click to expand...
I'm sure in the big picture the price of dongles is not a big deal, but I have both USB and FireWire devices as well as I would need either a DisplayPort or hdmi dongle for my monitor. It seems like it would get rather complex after a while.
 
vandrv said:
No I don't do anything with any video. In fact, I had to google HEVC to even know what it was.
Click to expand...
HEVC is actually used for Live Photos as well, if you have any iOS 11 devices. And HEIC still images are actually basically just a subset of HEVC. The latest Macs are the only ones that have built-in hardware HEVC decode.

Mind you, the HEVC videos in those files are only a few seconds long so software decode is OK for that.
 
Some of the dongles do add up in cost, but once you get them you can leave them attached, unless you need them on the go, but if you can leave them, there becomes no difference in plugging them in or legacy ports into a older machine. The 13" is such a nice machine. Having a smaller screen is a -, but the portability around the house and to work daily has been so nice.
 
EugW said:
HEVC is actually used for Live Photos as well, if you have any iOS 11 devices. And HEIC still images are actually basically just a subset of HEVC. The latest Macs are the only ones that have built-in hardware HEVC decode.

Mind you, the HEVC videos in those files are only a few secon
ds long so software decode is OK for that.
Click to expand...
I do have a iPhone and an iPad but haven't upgraded either to iOS 11 yet. I usually wait until they get the kinks worked out. I will do some research on HEVC before I make any decision,

lax28 said:
Some of the dongles do add up in cost, but once you get them you can leave them attached, unless you need them on the go, but if you can leave them, there becomes no difference in plugging them in or legacy ports into a older machine. The 13" is such a nice machine. Having a smaller screen is a -, but the portability around the house and to work daily has been so nice.
Click to expand...
Most of the things I plug in to my laptop are left at home other than my FireWire card reader.
 
lax28 said:
For the price of all the difference adaptors you may want to look into one that plug into the side that provides all the legacy ports. Or pick up a new card reader so no adaptor is needed for firewire.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_2_15?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=thunderbolt+card+reader&sprefix=Thunderbolt+car,undefined,147&crid=1H85XQBBD1GCY&rh=i:aps,k:thunderbolt+card+reader
Click to expand...
Yes certainly something like one of those hubs would eliminate a lot of dongles.
 
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OP wrote:
"but I have both USB and FireWire devices as well"

Be aware that to use firewire devices with the 2016/2017 MacBook Pro's, you need a "double-dongle" setup:
1. thunderbolt3-to-thunderbolt2 dongle,
and
2. thunderbolt2-to-firewire-dongle.

With a 2015, you need only #2 from above.

I believe that some thunderbolt3 "docks" will have a firewire port, but they're more expensive...
 
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Fishrrman said:
OP wrote:
"but I have both USB and FireWire devices as well"

Be aware that to use firewire devices with the 2016/2017 MacBook Pro's, you need a "double-dongle" setup:
1. thunderbolt3-to-thunderbolt2 dongle,
and
2. thunderbolt2-to-firewire-dongle.

With a 2015, you need only #2 from above.

I believe that some thunderbolt3 "docks" will have a firewire port, but they're more expensive...[/QUOTE

It looks like Apple hasn't made things easy. I looked at the QWC docks and while they really look nice it makes a new laptop even more expensive. Maybe it's time to go back to Windows. (Just kidding)
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
vandrv said:
i currently have a 2010 mackbook pro, and have been planning to upgrade it for a while, but was in no hurry. Well my Mac mini died yesterday, so maybe now is the time to replace the laptop.

. . .

Would I be just as well off looking for a 2014 or 2015 model? Thanks for any advice.
Click to expand...

Yes. I have a 2016 and find it almost unusable due to the repeated keyboard issues keyboard and needlessly large trackpad.
 
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Naimfan said:
Yes. I have a 2016 and find it almost unusable due to the repeated keyboard issues keyboard and needlessly large trackpad.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this. The more I look into it, the mote I'm starting to lean towards the older version. The keyboard isn't a real big deal for me, as I don't do a lot of typing on it, but the lack of inputs could be an issue.
 
I really appreciate all the advice I have received here, but have a followup question. I have pretty well decided I might just as well get either a 2016 or 2017 Macbook Pro, but notice there are several graphics cards available. as of right now I'm thinking I will use this as my only computer eliminating my Imac. I need one that will run one possibly two monitors, and work well with Lightroom and Photoshop. Any recommendations as to which graphics card will best suit my needs? Thanks again.
 
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