Why are so many people using out of date Macbooks?

[tonyr6]

I walk the streets and see them in cafe's and the parks. I see so many people with MacBooks from 2012 that have the light in the back with a out of day OS yet they are using an iPhone 14 or newer. I just don't understand why they don't at least upgrade to a M1 MacBook Air for $800. If they can afford a new iPhone they can afford to update there out of date, insecure laptop.

 

[Weaselboy]

I'm guessing, unlike the average MacRumors forum member, these people view a computer as simply an appliance and as long as it still gets the job done for them, they see no reason to update.

 

[sunapple]

They probably don't realise the selfie cam (I know it's actually "webcam") has vastly improved.

 

[NT1440]

Because their appliance still works for everything they care to do with it.

Most computer users just use them, there’s no reason to upgrade until it doesn’t work anymore.

 

[Big Bad D]

I walk the streets and see them in cafe's and the parks. I see so many people with MacBooks from 2012 that have the light in the back with a out of day OS yet they are using an iPhone 14 or newer. I just don't understand why they don't at least upgrade to a M1 MacBook Air for $800. If they can afford a new iPhone they can afford to update there out of date, insecure laptop.

Because they don’t need it? If it continues to satisfy their needs then what’s wrong and why judge them by your expectations?

 

[EdwardC]

My 2017 Air has the backlit Apple logo and is still a great little laptop for e-mails and web browsing. I still use it almost daily but must admit it was replaced with a Think Pad (less $ / More RAM and can run programs needed).

 

[headlessmike]

Most people I know never update their OS. So people I know are still running things like Mavericks and Sierra. There are certainly reasons to upgrade, but for them its more important to have a system that they recognize and know how to use (for mostly simple tasks).

 

[weckart]

I walk the streets and see them in cafe's and the parks. I see so many people with MacBooks from 2012 that have the light in the back with a out of day OS yet they are using an iPhone 14 or newer. I just don't understand why they don't at least upgrade to a M1 MacBook Air for $800. If they can afford a new iPhone they can afford to update there out of date, insecure laptop.

Why insecure? My 2012 Mac Mini and 2010 Mac Pro run Sonoma fine enough for my needs. I just don't see the value in "upgrading" when the bottleneck is the internet itself.

 

[MapleBeercules]

I walk the streets and see them in cafe's and the parks. I see so many people with MacBooks from 2012 that have the light in the back with a out of day OS yet they are using an iPhone 14 or newer. I just don't understand why they don't at least upgrade to a M1 MacBook Air for $800. If they can afford a new iPhone they can afford to update there out of date, insecure laptop.

a. They are cheap
b. They dont need a new laptop because they have a new phone.
c. They dont care about having cool toys.

Not everyone prioritizes spending money on technology.

 

[eicca]

Because they just work.

And probably because they can be fixed cheaper than buying a new one when something goes wrong.

 

[kwikdeth]

They all put Windows on their "out of date and insecure hardware" and suddenly it was no longer out of date and insecure.

 

[ignatius345]

I walk the streets and see them in cafe's and the parks. I see so many people with MacBooks from 2012 that have the light in the back with a out of day OS yet they are using an iPhone 14 or newer. I just don't understand why they don't at least upgrade to a M1 MacBook Air for $800. If they can afford a new iPhone they can afford to update there out of date, insecure laptop.

Because they still work for their uses.

I think we should applaud people who keep using the tool that works for them instead of buying new for new's sake.

I've got an iPad Mini 4 kicking around here for playing cartoons for the kid. Is it slow? Absolutely. Does it matter, really? Not enough to spend several hundred dollars on a new one.

 

[Tuck_]

In my case, its because I dont want to pay Apple's ludicrous RAM/SSD upgrade prices. My old computer still works fine for daily web browsing, which makes this a "want," not a "need," so I can delay my purchase. I expect this will be the last year I delay however, as the computer will soon be ten years old.

 

[seek3r]

I walk the streets and see them in cafe's and the parks. I see so many people with MacBooks from 2012 that have the light in the back with a out of day OS yet they are using an iPhone 14 or newer. I just don't understand why they don't at least upgrade to a M1 MacBook Air for $800. If they can afford a new iPhone they can afford to update there out of date, insecure laptop.

If it works for them they’ll use it. The major disadvantage is security updates, but honestly most people dont think about that, and *most* security vectors for most people these days are web based so if they’re using an up-to-date browser (and, let’s be real, people use chrome over safari more often than not of the current browsers) a lot of that is mitigated (not enough by any stretch for me to be comfortable, but for a lot of folks not in tech they’ll consider that enough)

 

[seek3r]

They all put Windows on their "out of date and insecure hardware" and suddenly it was no longer out of date and insecure.

Most people dont update at all after the “update now” popups go away. They arent bothering to install windows, they’re mostly just using an old copy of MacOS

 

[seek3r]

a. They are cheap
b. They dont need a new laptop because they have a new phone.
c. They dont care about having cool toys.

Not everyone prioritizes spending money on technology.

On b that’s a huge point, for most people their phone is their main computing device these days, it’s a much bigger priority than a laptop

 

[uller6]

I walk the streets and see them in cafe's and the parks. I see so many people with MacBooks from 2012 that have the light in the back with an out of day OS yet they are using an iPhone 14 or newer. I just don't understand why they don't at least upgrade to a M1 MacBook Air for $800. If they can afford a new iPhone they can afford to update there out of date, insecure laptop.

Because my 2013 MacBook Pro refuses to die. And it is still fast enough for basic email web surfing and writing in word. And to be honest I like the keyboard more than my new M2 air. Yeah.

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

The average iPhone and MacBook user doesn't edit photos, video, audio, code, build apps, work in Photoshop, etc.

They just want something that lets them work on text, spreadsheets, email, browse the Internet, watch YouTube, iMessage, FaceTime, is synced to their other Apple devices, etc.

I don't think they should upgrade if their current Mac gets it done.

On top of that, most use their smartphones way more than their computers and will upgrade to a new iPhone over a new MacBook.

Apple didn't become and stay iPhone-centric for 10+ years for fun. Smartphones outsell any and all computers by a mile.

 

[winxmac]

I walk the streets and see them in cafe's and the parks. I see so many people with MacBooks from 2012 that have the light in the back with a out of day OS yet they are using an iPhone 14 or newer. I just don't understand why they don't at least upgrade to a M1 MacBook Air for $800. If they can afford a new iPhone they can afford to update there out of date, insecure laptop.

Why don't you buy the new model and give it to people who still use the older models (if you are that concerned/bothered)?

Some saw the issues in 2016-2019 models and that made them stick with 2015 and older... Some still use the older hardware ports/features in those models...

Some just want the Apple logo that still lights up when the MacBook/MacBook Pro is on...

As what oldversion dot com says, newer is not always better...

 

[DHagan4755]

1. "If it ain't broken don't fix it."
2. They can't afford a new one.
3. They don't care.

 

[Sami13496]

I just don't understand why they have iPhone 14 or newer.

 

[cateye]

Not everyone prioritizes spending money on technology.

Honestly, there are quite a few people on MacRumors who would benefit from following this script: Computer as basic appliance, use as needed, shelve when not, and not as lifestyle-altering obsession prone to enabling worrying about battery cycles, worrying about fingerprints, worrying about benchmarking, worrying about why other people are using computers that are different than the ones they're using.

It's just a tool. Nothing more. And like most tools, there's no point thinking about replacing it (or thinking about it at all) until you need to.

 

[allenvanhellen]

I use my 2011 MBA 11” as a music and video iPod. It runs Mountain Lion and Front Row. I put a 2tb SSD in it. I love it.

 

[OneBar]

I walk the streets and see them in cafe's and the parks. I see so many people with MacBooks from 2012 that have the light in the back with a out of day OS yet they are using an iPhone 14 or newer. I just don't understand why they don't at least upgrade to a M1 MacBook Air for $800. If they can afford a new iPhone they can afford to update there out of date, insecure laptop.

That's patently untrue. If I purchase a new phone, I no longer have the funds to purchase a new computer. Not all of us are made of money and sometimes a phone is more important than the newest computer.

Insecure? Are they no longer putting out security updates for older macOS versions like they do for older iOS versions? Insecure in what manner, regarding what software? The software manufacturers are ultimately responsible for their code being secure, not Apple?

And finally, what's it any of your business? You don't need to understand why someone is still using a completely functional device that still satisfies their needs.

 

[Frixos]

I'm guessing, unlike the average MacRumors forum member, these people view a computer as simply an appliance and as long as it still gets the job done for them, they see no reason to update.

Yeah but, you don’t have to be a MR forum member to think an 11 year old laptop is old and slow