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Why does the MD101 still exist?
- Thread starter deepen03
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Stop the whining and get on with you life and don't worry about what other buy or what Apple sells!
So that's 3 years, not 5. It's also not out of character seeing as Apple still sells the iPhone 5C (which is basically a 5 in colored plastic), and the iPad mini, and the current gen of Apple TV. And, again, if people are buying it, and it's capable of doing the job, what exactly is the problem?
That I can agree with. The pricing is high. A lower price point would make sense.
Even I use ethernet every day, and I'm on an rMBP. But anyway: clearly enough people use it to keep buying this thing, and have the mindset that these features are absolutely necessary.
Great. I encourage anyone to do so. Because again, it boils down to one thing: Apple wouldn't continue to make this thing if lots of people weren't still buying it.
the body is 5yrs old, so a processer upgrade doesn't change that fact.
It should not cost more than $899 with what it offers based on 2015 specs.
USB to Ethernet adapters cost a couple of dollars online and do Gigabit speeds
If Apple just axed it tomorrow, nobody would bat an eye. You need to make consumers shift focus.
1. Well Apple is the largest company in the world, so if they wanted to, they could make a new version of the MD101 and still satisfy those who want a CD/DVD drive and those other features.
2. How is a $1099 laptop "cheap?" This thing should not cost more than a MacBook Air 13 in today's market!
3. Yeah, that would cost the same as a 15inch rMBP LOL
Keep in mind that once Apple retires this model, they most likely will not offer a single portable with upgradeable RAM or SSD(since there are currently no 3rd party SSDs available).
You know they won't do that. Just stop whining about it already and move on with your life. If you don't like the cMBP, don't. freaking. buy. one.
I already have the i7 retina 15" MBP with 16GB/500GB and am still thinking of buying this now that it's $899 at BestBuy. I have $60 in certificates that I can use which will bring the total price just above $900 after tax. I miss having the optical drive.
I was still using a 2008 black MB up until last summer and it did everything I needed it to. I just couldn't make purchases on the app or iTunes stores because it was permanently banned. I bought a 2012 i7 Mini to replace it in September.
I was still using a 2008 black MB up until last summer and it did everything I needed it to. I just couldn't make purchases on the app or iTunes stores because it was permanently banned. I bought a 2012 i7 Mini to replace it in September.
*1 - They have - it is called...wait for it......the Retina MBP (ready for an external optical drive!)
*2 - It is 'cheap' because it costs less than ANY other Macbook Pro
*3 - I'd say it would be way less than a 15" rMBP. ($899 + $300 of upgrades) ??
Anyway, the point is, just as Apple is not upgrading the iPhone 4S it will not be upgrading the MD101.
because it kicks ass. typing this on a maxed out md102 that will last longer than most retinas 
So much this. While it pains me to use this model at work when I have a brand new rMBP I just bought, it's cost effective for the education market and fits the bill.
We ordered 120 of them and 10 MBA's. The problem with the entry level rMBP is the paltry storage they come with. 128 and 256 are not adequate enough for 60% of our users. They are used to 500 GB drives and moving them to anything below that would be hard. Too much data. Upgrading a rMBP to come equipped with 512 standard would be costly when you're ordering 130 new machines a year. They are plenty fast for what they are used for.
My work machine was upgraded when it came in from 8 to 16 gb ram and a 500 gb hd to a 500 gb SSD. Made a huge difference alone.
Just because you don't see value in it doesn't mean it should be wiped away.
If you read the current reviews on the BestBuy website for this model, people are buying this everyday. Most are extremely happy with it.
I picked this model up yesterday, ordered it while it was $899 and used my $60 reward certificate. Side by side with my 15" 2015 Retina MBP, the screens are nearly identical except for the fact that the 2015 has a retina display. The colors are the same and speed wise, obviously, the 2012 MBP will open apps slower. Other than that, not much difference.
Both computers will have a purpose in my daily use. Both of my MBPs are 2.5GHZ processors but the 15" is the i7 quad core so in many tasks, it will be faster but in my normal use, it won't be much different.
I bought the 2015 15" for the fast SSD and capacity first and foremost and for the 15" Retina display second. It's overkill for most of my uses but I bought it for the reasons I just mentioned.
Current MB won't meet my purposes and neither will an Air. I planned on getting this 2012 MBP last summer before I made up my mind to buy the 2012 Mini instead.
I picked this model up yesterday, ordered it while it was $899 and used my $60 reward certificate. Side by side with my 15" 2015 Retina MBP, the screens are nearly identical except for the fact that the 2015 has a retina display. The colors are the same and speed wise, obviously, the 2012 MBP will open apps slower. Other than that, not much difference.
Both computers will have a purpose in my daily use. Both of my MBPs are 2.5GHZ processors but the 15" is the i7 quad core so in many tasks, it will be faster but in my normal use, it won't be much different.
I bought the 2015 15" for the fast SSD and capacity first and foremost and for the 15" Retina display second. It's overkill for most of my uses but I bought it for the reasons I just mentioned.
Current MB won't meet my purposes and neither will an Air. I planned on getting this 2012 MBP last summer before I made up my mind to buy the 2012 Mini instead.
Even though the current asking price is high for older technology, I think we've reached a point where computing power has surpassed what is required by the vast majority of people. There will always be those on the bleeding edge who desire/need more power and performance, but I would say that around 2008 or so, we got processors that were able to handle the load of most casual users. If we weren't trying to drive a gazillion pixels, I doubt there would be nearly as many complaints about GPU performance, but there is still room for growth on that front. With SSDs becoming increasingly affordable, the biggest current bottleneck in computing has disappeared. It's not as though the MD101 is running like my old 12" PowerBook G4 was on Tiger where it was using something like 40%-60% of the CPU's processing power just to run the OS. Rather with todays ridiculously bloated OS, it chugs along using 1%-5% of the CPU at idle. I can run a virtual machine without issue when I need to, primarily to demo lab software for my students and such.
I have to say that this machine is still a fully capable machine, and is plenty for the vast majority of use cases, particularly after swapping the internal drive for an SSD and bumping the ram to 8GB+. It does everything I ask of it without any issues. By the time you add a larger SSD to the retina machine, and add in all of the dongles needed to have ethernet, FW800, optical, etc., the retina machine is over $1600 from Apple, and was significantly more when I purchased my machine last spring. If I'm spending that kind of money, then I'd force myself to stow away a few extra bucks to get the 15" machine.
On a tight budget, I had the choice of stepping away from a Mac, getting a throwaway retina machine, or getting a machine that I could upgrade to what I wanted/needed. I chose the latter option, and gave up amenities such as a retina display that I felt no great desire to have, a faster TB2 dongle port, as many TB accessories are generally cost prohibitive, and wireless ac. I don't see my ISP nor my employer's ISP saturating wireless n any time soon.
These machines may not be for those who chase specs, but considering they have much the same hardware as the early retina machines, I don't see them being forced into either software nor hardware obsolesce before many of the current retina models.
I have to say that this machine is still a fully capable machine, and is plenty for the vast majority of use cases, particularly after swapping the internal drive for an SSD and bumping the ram to 8GB+. It does everything I ask of it without any issues. By the time you add a larger SSD to the retina machine, and add in all of the dongles needed to have ethernet, FW800, optical, etc., the retina machine is over $1600 from Apple, and was significantly more when I purchased my machine last spring. If I'm spending that kind of money, then I'd force myself to stow away a few extra bucks to get the 15" machine.
On a tight budget, I had the choice of stepping away from a Mac, getting a throwaway retina machine, or getting a machine that I could upgrade to what I wanted/needed. I chose the latter option, and gave up amenities such as a retina display that I felt no great desire to have, a faster TB2 dongle port, as many TB accessories are generally cost prohibitive, and wireless ac. I don't see my ISP nor my employer's ISP saturating wireless n any time soon.
These machines may not be for those who chase specs, but considering they have much the same hardware as the early retina machines, I don't see them being forced into either software nor hardware obsolesce before many of the current retina models.
Or cheaper when it shows up in the refurb store.
I've been using Macs for over 13 years. I still think this is a decent system. To me, I can slap 16Gb for $70, and a SSD and have a nice system for the price. It'll last forever, too. And, I can swap out the optical drive too with a caddy and have two internal drives.
To each their own
I paid $840 for mine. I added 16GB RAM yesterday and this thing is amazing now. The difference between 4GB and 16 is night and day. Didn't have to pay the Apple price to max out the ram. I doubt the price on 16GB RAM will get much lower then it is now.Or cheaper when it shows up in the refurb store.
I've been using Macs for over 13 years. I still think this is a decent system. To me, I can slap 16Gb for $70, and a SSD and have a nice system for the price. It'll last forever, too. And, I can swap out the optical drive too with a caddy and have two internal drives.
To each their own
Ugh... This thread again. It's still for sale because it sells, period.
If anyone is morally offended by its continued existence, then it's time to start reevaluating your priorities.
If anyone is morally offended by its continued existence, then it's time to start reevaluating your priorities.
I shall be replacing the ODD with a 1TB SSD when they come on sale around Black Friday. I'm hoping they drop below $300.
i'd say to be careful about that - i tried a sata3 on the optibay (granted, el cheapo from ebay) for a while, it works but would eventually break (disk not ejected properly after some sata errors). went back to the good old 750gb sata2 OEM and zero problems since that.
cheers