2nd hand Mac laptops

[LostCorpse]

Do you think its worth gettings a 2nd hand apple MacBook Pro 2015 for around £400.

My understanding is the apple laptops have a shelf life of 10yesr if i understand correctly, so th 2015 models would only be supported to 2025 if i undeertand the apple cycle correctly.

what at people doing with devices out of support trading them in/recylce?

reasons is my step daughter is looking for an apple for light work and basic word prcessor and spread sheets. she had a windows laptop ages ago but probably forgot how to operate it. shes and Apple Iphone and Ipad user, so i think shs after the prestige/same eco system.

i was going to suggest she use something like Libraoffice as its free, any other suggestions?
or should she be looking at something like a 2017 model for around 5yrs of use.
i dont use apples so not as clued up on them and their usage.

any thoughts or advise apprecaiated thank you.

edit : MacBook Pro

 

[ChrisD.]

Personally I would up the budget and get a used/refurbished M1 MacBook Air.

 

[Feek]

Do you think its worth gettings a 2nd hand apple mac Pro 2015 for around £400

Assume you mean MacBook Pro, not Mac Pro.

No. It’ll already be on the obsolete list.

I wouldn’t buy any Intel Mac now as the Apple Silicon Macs have been out for nearly three years. Intel are old tech, run really slow (and very hot) compared to the newer models.

If you can pick up a second hand (or refurb) M1 MacBook Air, that would be ideal.

 

[LostCorpse]

updated main post to be more spesific inline with Feek comment. it was a MacBook Pro

seems ike the 2017 models are the minimum people should be be going for at moment.

thank you both for your thoughts

 

[Feek]

i was going to suggest she use something like Libraoffice as its free, any other suggestions?

Forgot to say, this is absolutely fine. If she’s a student, I think she can probably get MS Office at a decent price though.

seems ike the 2017 models are the minimum people should be be going for at moment.

Nope. Look at the 2020 M1 MacBook Air.

 

[LostCorpse]

thank you kindly.

shes not a student, she's going the pratical expirence route.

 

[Irish_Tom]

I actually have a 2015 MBP as my primary laptop (I use an M1 iMac as my daily work machine).

It was maxed-out spec wise at the time, so not an off-the-shelf MBP.

The screen is good, the keyboard is good, and the connectivity is still pretty good (although obviously no USB-C).

For general web browsing, emails and a bit of Microsoft Word/Excel it’s just about ok. It struggles if I have to do anything in the Adobe Creative Suite.

It gets hot, even under fairly minimal load. It’s not ging to burn your thighs or anything but it can get uncomfortable if you actually use it on your lap or in bed (unless you need a hot water bottle, then it’s a good replacement).

Because it gets hot, the fans ramp up to max pretty quickly and on max they are loud.

Would I buy one now for £400? No chance.

Get something with an M1 chip in it.

 

[LiE]

Most people can use an iPad with a keyboard case for their main computing device.

 

[matt1]

Most people can use an iPad with a keyboard case for their main computing device.

I much prefer a proper laptop and the OS with it, don’t feel like iPads are there yet.

I wouldn’t buy any Mac laptop with Intel inside, M1 is already a few years old now and I think when Apple comes to drop support they might be quite a drastic cull on the Intel era machines.

M1 air is a lovely machine and can be bought for ~£600 used.

 

[LiE]

I much prefer a proper laptop and the OS with it, don’t feel like iPads are there yet.

Surely it depends on what a person is using a personal computer for. House admin tasks, emails, holiday research, some documents, printing, banking and view media, an iPad will do these with ease.

 

[goldy6660]

The new iPads are phenomenal machines, essentially a Mac. Especially the new M1 versions if you're ever doing any coding

 

[matt1]

Surely it depends on what a person is using a personal computer for. House admin tasks, emails, holiday research, some documents, printing, banking and view media, an iPad will do these with ease.

Yes completely agree and there is a large element of personal preference.

 

[Oh Ed not again.]

Personally wouldn't own a MacBook without AppleCare these days.

Parts are too expensive to fix out of warranty, and they're a pig to work on.

Example. My spacebar came off my 2016 MBP, Apple replaced the whole palm rest including battery and trackpad as it was all bonded together.

They're great machines to use I can't dispute that, I use one every day for work but would I buy one for personal use let alone a secondhand one? Nope.

 

[jrwagh333]

Surely it depends on what a person is using a personal computer for. House admin tasks, emails, holiday research, some documents, printing, banking and view media, an iPad will do these with ease.

So will a phone, so will a Chromebook.