Which of these two 13" MBP Would You Recommend?

[yhc]

I am looking for a new MBP for my daughter in college. She is using a 3 or 4 year old 13" MBP for her school work right now but intermittently it is giving her some issues. As I am not familiar with MBP I would like to solicit your advice.

Currently I can pick up a new 2015 13" MBP (Model MF843LL/A) with the following for $1699. The specs are:

MacBook Pro with Retina display
Intel Core i7
16GB Memory
512GB Flash Storage

OR

I could pick up the latest 2016 model with the following spec for the same price.

MacBook Pro® with Touch Bar
Intel Core i5
8 GB Memory
256GB Flash Storage

Which one would you recommend? If you have another recommendation I am all ears.

Regards,

 

[kokhoong0624]

Get the new MacBook Pro 2016 without touchbar and upgrade the SSD and RAM. You'll get negligible performance differences for school work and in the similar price range.

 

[idark77]

2015

 

[tubeexperience]

2015

Apple has gone completely crazy with the price of the 2016 MBP.

 

[maflynn]

MacBook Pro with Retina display
Intel Core i7
16GB Memory
512GB Flash Storage

OR

I could pick up the latest 2016 model with the following spec for the same price.

MacBook Pro® with Touch Bar
Intel Core i5
8 GB Memory
256GB Flash Storage

Intersting choice, I like the 2016 model, because its going to have a crazy fast SSD, it's lighter and smaller then the prior model, and its going to be faster overall.

Yet the 2015 model is going to have more ram and storage, unless your daughter will need 512GB of storage or need that ram, I'd go with the newer model.

 

[jksu]

2016 base non-touch bar from b&h (discounted price and no tax it outside ny)

she'll appreciate you got her the "new" one

 

[Naimfan]

2015.

Better overall user experience.

 

[Winterfibre]

I just bought the 2015 model over the new model. Purely for the USB and other connections it has. The new model has just USB-c and a few dongles. For me it was the dongle that put me off.

 

[zone23]

I got the 2016 non-TB personally I don't need all those ports anyway.

 

[yhc]

Thank you all for your input. It seems like I can't go wrong with either option.

Regards,

 

[yhc]

When I walked into a local authorized Apple retailer today there was a mid-2015 15" rMBP with Intel Core i7, 16 GB, 1 TB Flash Storage. Not that she needs all that storage but I t came with a 3 year Apple care plan and the store offered me a great deal that I couldn't resist.

I will ship it off to my daughter tomorrow. I am sure she will be happy with it. Once again thank you all for your feedback.

Regards,

 

[ihatetoregister]

2015 was definitely the right choice there
That's a very nice machine you got her !

 

[jksu]

When I walked into a local authorized Apple retailer today there was a mid-2015 15" rMBP with Intel Core i7, 16 GB, 1 TB Flash Storage. Not that she needs all that storage but I t came with a 3 year Apple care plan and the store offered me a great deal that I couldn't resist.

I will ship it off to my daughter tomorrow. I am sure she will be happy with it. Once again thank you all for your feedback.

Regards,

hope she likes it.

but to be honest, as generous and kind as you seen to be wanting to buy your daughter a laptop, you kind of sound like a typical dude that is buying specs, size and deals that maybe you'd want but not necessarily what your daughter might want.

15" is great as a desktop replacement but if she's the on-the-go cafe type the 13" especially the new one or even 12" macbook are so much more portable than the 2015 tank. we don't really know too much about how she uses her current laptop or her needs but the fact you jumped from one of the 13" to now a 2015 15" suggests you may not know either.

after a few years of marriage and fatherhood i've figured out while surprises are nice, actually knowing what she wants is always better. i've done exactly what you've done and learned no matter how great of a deal... keep the receipt because it'll probably go back

 

[yhc]

2015 was definitely the right choice there
That's a very nice machine you got her !

Thank you or should I say "tusen takk".

*******************

jksu,

Initially I also had the same concern re: portability of 13" vs 15" but no worries I did consult with my daughter when we made that jump. This MBP isn't a surprise gift but rather she has been in the decision process each step of the way for this purchase. My daughter is a cognitive science major so she uses her MBP more than just as a word processor. Like you I have learned my shares of lessons through a couple decades of marriage.

I actually had placed an order with the retailer for the 2015 13" MBP that I have posted about originally. The retailer ended up over selling the item so the local store offered me this 15" rMBP with a 3 year Apple care service for the same price as the 13" MBP! After a brief phone conversation with my daughter WE made the decision to go for it. She is thrilled and I am quite sure she will be happy with it once she receives it in the mail later this week.

But just in case I will keep the receipt as you recommend...that's always a good policy and I will need it for Apple care service if needed in the future. ✌️

Regards,

 

[Fishrrman]

Here's one more vote for the 2015.

Consider: your daughter is far FAR more likely to encounter USB devices with "A" connectors in school (than USB-c). The "A" style USB ports on the 2015 model will be much more practical.
Particularly with printers -- essentially all of them will have USB "A" but NOT "c".

She'll also have easier connection to an external monitor using either HDMI or a minidisplayport cable.

More "bang" for your money in the 2015, as well.

 

[jksu]

Thank you or should I say "tusen takk".

*******************

jksu,

Initially I also had the same concern re: portability of 13" vs 15" but no worries I did consult with my daughter when we made that jump. This MBP isn't a surprise gift but rather she has been in the decision process each step of the way for this purchase. My daughter is a cognitive science major so she uses her MBP more than just as a word processor. Like you I have learned my shares of lessons through a couple decades of marriage.

I actually had placed an order with the retailer for the 2015 13" MBP that I have posted about originally. The retailer ended up over selling the item so the local store offered me this 15" rMBP with a 3 year Apple care service for the same price as the 13" MBP! After a brief phone conversation with my daughter WE made the decision to go for it. She is thrilled and I am quite sure she will be happy with it once she receives it in the mail later this week.

But just in case I will keep the receipt as you recommend...that's always a good policy and I will need it for Apple care service if needed in the future. ️

Regards,

great job dad! i can only hope my daughter is as bright some day

wonderful seeing a shop making up for their mistake. nice to see businesses doing right for customers