Used 15'' MBP or New 13'' MBP ?

[Sarngate]

Currently deciding between the two. The 13'' MBP from Apple comes with the education discount, and costs £856. I can get a used 15'' MBP, 2.5Ghz, 500GB, 9400/9600 for £670 plus shipping.

For those of you who have the older gen 15'' models, how are your batteries holding up ? Obviously i wouldn't get the same life from a used 15'' as a new 13'' but if i can get 4+ hours with a new battery i'd be happy.

The used will also come with Apple Care until Jan 2012.

 

[johnnymg]

Currently deciding between the two. The 13'' MBP from Apple comes with the education discount, and costs £856. I can get a used 15'' MBP, 2.5Ghz, 500GB, 9400/9600 for £670 plus shipping.

For those of you who have the older gen 15'' models, how are your batteries holding up ? Obviously i wouldn't get the same life from a used 15'' as a new 13'' but if i can get 4+ hours with a new battery i'd be happy.

The used will also come with Apple Care until Jan 2012.

I have both computers. My 2.66 GHz 2009 15" MBP has a ~4 hour battery life. The 2010 13" MBP has a >8 hour battery life.......... probably close to 10 hour now that it has an SSD. Battery time indicator (not super accurate) varies from 9 to 11+ hours (when fully charged) with half screen brightness and WiFi enabled.

The two computers are somewhat complementary. i.e. the 15" is more useful for graphics processing (FCS) and the 13" is amazing for a "travel" computer. If I had to have only one..................... tough choice!

OH, my 15" MBP was a refurb and it looked new when I got it. Has worked perfecto since day one.

 

[Sarngate]

I'm really having trouble deciding. The thing is, i could buy this 15'' for £670 and still have enough cash left over for a nice SSD, which would bring the battery life and performance up. The only thing that is a little about a used one is the fact that it isn't new, and even though it sounds stupid i like the feeling of something being mine.

I also have to take into consideration the Student offer, because i'm going on holiday for a month around the middle of June, and if the free iPod deal happens at the end of May like it did last year i would split the saving with my Dad. Last year it was £145 off an iPod Touch, and he really wants one, so we would probably take £70 off the cost of both, meaning the 13'' would only cost me £780.

Really tough choice.

 

[johnnymg]

I'm really having trouble deciding. The thing is, i could buy this 15'' for £670 and still have enough cash left over for a nice SSD, which would bring the battery life and performance up. The only thing that is a little about a used one is the fact that it isn't new, and even though it sounds stupid i like the feeling of something being mine.

I also have to take into consideration the Student offer, because i'm going on holiday for a month around the middle of June, and if the free iPod deal happens at the end of May like it did last year i would split the saving with my Dad. Last year it was £145 off an iPod Touch, and he really wants one, so we would probably take £70 off the cost of both, meaning the 13'' would only cost me £780.

Really tough choice.

The 15" sounds like a "better deal" considering it comes with 18 months of aaplecare and is cheaper to boot. I suspect you would get 4+ hours with the 15" after installing a low power SSD.

How confident are you in the condition of the used MBP? Seems like it would only be a good deal if it was in VERY good condition.

 

[Sarngate]

The 15" sounds like a "better deal" considering it comes with 18 months of aaplecare and is cheaper to boot. I suspect you would get 4+ hours with the 15" after installing a low power SSD.

How confident are you in the condition of the used MBP? Seems like it would only be a good deal if it was in VERY good condition.

According to the Seller it is in immaculate/nearly new condition, i'll be covered by the Paypal 21 day payment holding, so if i did receive it and the condition didn't match the description it would be going straight back. I can deal with some light marking here and there, but i would like it to appear as new as possible.

 

[johnnymg]

According to the Seller it is in immaculate/nearly new condition, i'll be covered by the Paypal 21 day payment holding, so if i did receive it and the condition didn't match the description it would be going straight back. I can deal with some light marking here and there, but i would like it to appear as new as possible.

Another small consideration might be the inclusion of the ExpressCard 34 slot on the 15" MBP. That's the reason I bought mine as a refurb .......... the new ones don't have it.

I should just mention that my 4 hour bat estimate is based on a fairly new battery: 40 cycles and 7 months old. It's likely, the unit you're looking at has an older battery which would likely have slightly less life. i.e. if bat life is an important issue for you be warned that you will probably be looking at no more than 4 hours of use with an SSD................. Again, the new 13" has SIGNIFICANTLY longer battery life.