Want to pick up a MacBook for the wife - should I nab a 2017 model now or wait for a sale on a 2016?

[neoelectronaut]

So my wife is going back to college in a few weeks and I'd love to pick her up a 12" MacBook as a gift for her to use but I'm super torn about which to get. Ideally the best thing to do would be to suck it up and pick up the most current model but at the same time I'd love to save some cash.

Best Buy apparently has been putting the 2016 models on sale occasionally and apparently I just missed out on a $300 price drop and that super bums me out. I'm guessing the 2017 models won't get any sales any time soon, but do you think sales for the 2016 are done or should I just keep an eagle eye out for those?

 

[Esquire1]

How would anyone know?

 

[neoelectronaut]

Thought maybe some of the folks 'round these parts kept track of how often Best Buy (or other retailers) run sales on Apple hardware and could make a fairly decent estimate.

 

[mtneer]

You could also pickup a refurb. Anyone going for a MacBook already is not going for top performance, so I do not think the performance difference between 16 or 17 models will matter over a typical 4 year college stint.

 

[fokmik]

2017 i think is better if you buy a new one, better cpu (i5 recommend+8 gb ram), the ssd are 50% faster
the mac feels different, im comparing the 2015 m3 vs 2017 i5 both with 8 gb ram

 

[wx4olf]

2017 i think is better if you buy a new one, better cpu (i5 recommend+8 gb ram), the ssd are 50% faster
the mac feels different, im comparing the 2015 m3 vs 2017 i5 both with 8 gb ram

You also get the second generation butterfly keyboard that's on the latest MacBook Pro's that provides a little more travel and better feel than the keyboard on the 2016 model which may be worth the upgrade by itself.

 

[neoelectronaut]

2017 i think is better if you buy a new one, better cpu (i5 recommend+8 gb ram), the ssd are 50% faster
the mac feels different, im comparing the 2015 m3 vs 2017 i5 both with 8 gb ram

I was actually gonna go for the m3/256GB model to save a little money, is there any reason I shouldn't get that and go for the i5 instead?

 

[BananaX]

Lol

We are in the same boat. I just found out a MacBook Rose Gold 2016 is on sale AUD$1600. Which is $300 cheaper than the 2017 one. I am going to get the 2016 for her.

Reasons:

1. She loves MacOs
2. All she does is youtube/Microsoft Office/web/stupid drama shows

I don't think she will find any differences between 2016 and 2017. All she cares about is ROSEGOLD.

Its all depends on what you do with your MacBook I think. She is perfectly fine with her 2013 Air, I bet the new one will be great.

xD

 

[bigjnyc]

If she’s taking a major that requires a lot of paper writing and typing then do her a favor and get her the 2017.... the keyboard is so much better

 

[Treyhunna]

Meh unless U hate the 1st gen on, performance will likely be the same or not noticeable. battery is rated the same. Same port. Same screen. Same body. Same webcam. Just slightly faster chips and some faster write speeds of the ssd

 

[viperGTS]

How would anyone know?

Wow, what an insightful and helpful comment! Thanks for contributing to the discussion!

@OP, if I were in your position, I would check out B&H. They typically discount Mac's by $100, even very early on in the product lifecycle. Since the 2017's were just released, right now is a prime time to buy one. The 2017 models have that better keyboard, CPU, and SSD.

I just checked B&H and they're currently $1299, $100 more than their asking price for an equivalent 2016 model ($1199). I think the extra $100 is well spent on the better performance and keyboard.

My guess is that we wont be seeing any major discounts for the 2016s anymore because, should they exist, there would be a huge price difference between them and the 2017s, discouraging most people from buying the 2017s.

 

[ARK]

Bh Photo has a sale currently though not as good as Best Buy has been in the past.

 

[irontiger82]

Lol

We are in the same boat. I just found out a MacBook Rose Gold 2016 is on sale AUD$1600. Which is $300 cheaper than the 2017 one. I am going to get the 2016 for her.

Reasons:

1. She loves MacOs
2. All she does is youtube/Microsoft Office/web/stupid drama shows

I don't think she will find any differences between 2016 and 2017. All she cares about is ROSEGOLD.

Its all depends on what you do with your MacBook I think. She is perfectly fine with her 2013 Air, I bet the new one will be great.

xD

hahaha. I think we have the same wife. But I will get her the 2017....when there is a discount.

 

[BananaX]

hahaha. I think we have the same wife. But I will get her the 2017....when there is a discount.

Lmao.

I just bought the 2016 one. Brand new, $400 discount and comes with a free wifi color printer and some antivirus code thing worth $120. I was shocked when they gave me the printer. Gonna put both on eBay.

Happy wife, happy life.

 

[epca12]

From what i've seen online, the 2017 seems like a solid upgrade over the 2016 model. I also tried it in store this weekend and I could tell the difference with the keyboard and overall speed with applications.

 

[Saturn007]

I thought the 2016 MacBook already came with the second generation butterfly keyboard!

You also get the second generation butterfly keyboard that's on the latest MacBook Pro's that provides a little more travel and better feel than the keyboard on the 2016 model which may be worth the upgrade by itself.

 

[bigjnyc]

I thought the 2016 MacBook already came with the second generation butterfly keyboard!

Nope, 2015 and 2016 come with the first gen that so many people hate. 2nd gen wasn't introduced until the touchbar MBP's were released.

 

[Saturn007]

Right you are! My bad!

The better keyboard is a HIGE deal, right"

That sounds then like the refurbished 2016 MacBooks are NOT that good a deal and that one should spring for a bit more and buy the 2017 version!

 

[EugW]

Right you are! My bad!

The better keyboard is a HIGE deal, right"

That sounds then like the refurbished 2016 MacBooks are NOT that good a deal and that one should spring for a bit more and buy the 2017 version!

It's a major improvement IMO. It's still not awesome but at least it's decent. Before it was not decent. It's mainly what made me hold off buying the MacBook for 2 years.

 

[Xavier Pander]

Right you are! My bad!

The better keyboard is a HIGE deal, right"

That sounds then like the refurbished 2016 MacBooks are NOT that good a deal and that one should spring for a bit more and buy the 2017 version!

i think the first and second gen keyboard differences are minimal. Yes, you can feel a more defined pressure point, but with such little travel and typing fast, you won't notice it anymore. I actually like the 1st generation better, since my wife has a MBP with 2nd gen. to compare with, but that might be me, got used to one the I have.

Reliability is mostly dependent on debris entering the little space around the keys and that seems to happen with both gen keyboards. I personally would not base my decision on the keyboard, to be honest.