Mac Book Pro - Used?

[Silly Moustache]

Hi guys, thanks for all your input.

I've spoken to him today and agreed to buy it. He says he's going to run all the updates for me by next weekend.

I checked the spec with similar items on ebay (and there were lots) and his price is about half what most are asking.

He runs the local custom pc builder and IT services shop, and has always given me great service.

He confided last week that he's always stayed with pc gear but he is so tired of the games that MS play that he's decided to move more to Apple stuff.

I'll not part with my laptop yet but I'm thinking that if I get on with the mac book , I may treat myself to an apple desktop - they look so kewl!

[Dirk Hofman]

I may treat myself to an apple desktop

I use my MacBook professionally for software design and code, and I don't need the desktop. I just attach it to a Cinema Display. This is my home (and work) setup:

[Photojeep]

Originally Posted by Silly Moustache

Hi guys, thanks for all your input.

I've spoken to him today and agreed to buy it. He says he's going to run all the updates for me by next weekend.

I checked the spec with similar items on ebay (and there were lots) and his price is about half what most are asking.

He runs the local custom pc builder and IT services shop, and has always given me great service.

He confided last week that he's always stayed with pc gear but he is so tired of the games that MS play that he's decided to move more to Apple stuff.

I'll not part with my laptop yet but I'm thinking that if I get on with the mac book , I may treat myself to an apple desktop - they look so kewl!

I own a MacBook Air and work on an iMac at the college where I teach photography and can tell you after 5+ windows' based machines, I'm happy you are getting the MacBook!

Enjoy,
PJ

[pukematrix]

I think you'll like it - you'll have to report back after you pick it up. I made the switch from Windows in 2012 and am typing this on my 2012 13" Macbook Pro. The only modifications I've made were installing a 500gb SSD and maxing out the ram at 16gb. It's been pretty much trouble-free.

Austin

[imwjl]

A few tips now that you’ve committed.

In the settings app make sure you enable all the options your trackpad has for gestures, taps and motions etc.... Then take a little time to know them. What the difference between 1, 2, 3 and 4 fingers is can mean a lot.

Check out the multiple desktops option in settings. You might know those if you’ve used UNIX or Linux GUI in the past. Command + Tab gets you around like Alt + Tab in Windows but that’s another nice option for productivity. Related is check out how your programs behave in the full screen mode.

Be aware of the same stuff that creates misunderstood and inane whining with newer versions of Windows. You might be moving to more hardened security. You have to trust unvented apps as an example.

Finally, check out and use the stuff called continuity and handoff if you have an iPhone. Now much of those features you get depends on the age of your computer and phone. Even though I use a Windows VM in my Macs daily, those continuity and handoff features are super. You cut, copy and paste between phone and computer. You can pick up and leave off work between the devices.

An above all must do is dedicate an external hard drive to the Time Machine backup.

[The Kid!]

I bought a refurbished MacBook Pro. Great warranty. They even repaired it when it was a few months past warranty for free. Besides one issue, it has been amazing for about 7 years.

[v32 finish]

A bit late to this thread, but congrats on getting a good deal on the Mac. I am considering starting doing some mild video editing as well.. so I have been debating between getting a Mac or a PC, as my Lenovo laptop just wont handle the load .

I am not a fan of Windiws 10. I havent had huge issues, but to me feels significantly slower. Both mine and my wife's laptops are win10, and within the system requirements, but run slooow. And both are relatively new. I don't have evidence of this, but my gut tells me that Win10 is a resource hog. If I do get a PC, it will be very fast. "All in" type of approach- war of attrition Mac is tempting, because as someone said, for media it is pretty well known to be better. But I have been PC/Android since the flip-phones and Win95 came out .. (probably before that, really).. so I'm not comfortable making the switch. Certainly not for a large outlay of cash.

I think I may try to get ahold of a good deal type used apple laptop or desktop, just to see if I can get on with it. For now, I'm looking at Origin PC and their "Neuron" model, which can be fully customized. . Anyway, only time will tell!

Just wanted to say congrats !! Hopefully it works out well, and I would love to hear how you get along with it . Cheers

Scott

[robj144]

Originally Posted by v32 finish

A bit late to this thread, but congrats on getting a good deal on the Mac. I am considering starting doing some mild video editing as well.. so I have been debating between getting a Mac or a PC, as my Lenovo laptop just wont handle the load .

I am not a fan of Windiws 10. I havent had huge issues, but to me feels significantly slower. Both mine and my wife's laptops are win10, and within the system requirements, but run slooow. And both are relatively new. I don't have evidence of this, but my gut tells me that Win10 is a resource hog. If I do get a PC, it will be very fast. "All in" type of approach- war of attrition Mac is tempting, because as someone said, for media it is pretty well known to be better. But I have been PC/Android since the flip-phones and Win95 came out .. (probably before that, really).. so I'm not comfortable making the switch. Certainly not for a large outlay of cash.

I think I may try to get ahold of a good deal type used apple laptop or desktop, just to see if I can get on with it. For now, I'm looking at Origin PC and their "Neuron" model, which can be fully customized. . Anyway, only time will tell!

Just wanted to say congrats !! Hopefully it works out well, and I would love to hear how you get along with it . Cheers

Scott

What are the specs of your computers? I have a laptop with Win 10 that's three years old and it's very fast. My laptop at home is blazingly fast with Win 10... From off to being able to use it is maybe 40 seconds at most.

SSD drive make a huge difference.

[v32 finish]

Originally Posted by robj144

What are the specs of your computers? I have a laptop with Win 10 that's three years old and it's very fast. My laptop at home is blazingly fast with Win 10... From off to being able to use it is maybe 40 seconds at most.

SSD drive make a huge difference.

Mine is an Intel i5 (dont remember model exactly) at 2.4ghz? My wife's is I believe an intel celeron at 1.6 ghz and is the one that gives us more trouble. Both have 4gb ram and SSDs. For a while, i know the problem with hers was that it only had a 32gb SSD.. which, i should've done better research prior to buying it, buut.. i dont think they should sell them that low. Because Win10 itself uses over 20 or even 25gb (dont remember exactly how much) and within a month it was COMPLETELY out of space . And this is without much of anything stored, just for browsing, her school, etc. Even with a modest processor and 4gb of ram should be more than enough for simple browsing; the problem was the SSD.

Anyway, I upgraded that.. and with plenty of room, for a while it seemed OK. now its slowing down again. I open the task manager right after booting, without any applications open, and sometimes it shows 5-10% CPU usage(like mine..), but sometimes it spikes to 30-40% and i havent been able to figure out why.

I think someone else mentioned optimization.. I think with windows, you have to be willing to tinker a little bit. I ran Malwarebytes to make sure she hadn't picked anything up, it scanned clean, and inexplicably is running fine again. For now.

Mine is a little better, and I got a great* deal on it, so I cant complain much. I was just used to Winfows 7 and in my experience I remember it just being quicker to navigate and open things, but .. may not be a totally fair comparison. For now I think we are Ok, but I'm looking at getting a desktop .. and possibly upgrading her laptop a while down the road.

If anyone has any tips for software that can help with the regular maintenance, file cleanups etc etc.. I would love some tips with stuff like that. Anyway, thanks!

[robj144]

Originally Posted by v32 finish

Mine is an Intel i5 (dont remember model exactly) at 2.4ghz? My wife's is I believe an intel celeron at 1.6 ghz and is the one that gives us more trouble. Both have 4gb ram and SSDs. For a while, i know the problem with hers was that it only had a 32gb SSD.. which, i should've done better research prior to buying it, buut.. i dont think they should sell them that low. Because Win10 itself uses over 20 or even 25gb (dont remember exactly how much) and within a month it was COMPLETELY out of space . And this is without much of anything stored, just for browsing, her school, etc. Even with a modest processor and 4gb of ram should be more than enough for simple browsing; the problem was the SSD.

Anyway, I upgraded that.. and with plenty of room, for a while it seemed OK. now its slowing down again. I open the task manager right after booting, without any applications open, and sometimes it shows 5-10% CPU usage(like mine..), but sometimes it spikes to 30-40% and i havent been able to figure out why.

I think someone else mentioned optimization.. I think with windows, you have to be willing to tinker a little bit. I ran Malwarebytes to make sure she hadn't picked anything up, it scanned clean, and inexplicably is running fine again. For now.

Mine is a little better, and I got a great* deal on it, so I cant complain much. I was just used to Winfows 7 and in my experience I remember it just being quicker to navigate and open things, but .. may not be a totally fair comparison. For now I think we are Ok, but I'm looking at getting a desktop .. and possibly upgrading her laptop a while down the road.

If anyone has any tips for software that can help with the regular maintenance, file cleanups etc etc.. I would love some tips with stuff like that. Anyway, thanks!

It could be throttling down too. In task manager, what is your CPU speed when it gets up to 30 to 40%?

[paulp1960]

I switched to Apple after years of having audio issues with Windows.
By that I mean pops and crackles when using low latency settings in my DAW.
I see that some people are still having the same audio issues with Windows 10.

If you get lucky with Windows for audio it can work as well as a Mac but you are at the mercy of the 3rd party drivers used to manage the hardware.