2017 or 2015 MacBook Pro, what would you do?

[Kentuckienne]

Argh, so conflicted. I need a laptop. I've read so many threads I'm even more uncertain than when I began. Sorry for adding another one but I seek moral support. Or firm correction. A second opinion, and I trust this forum.

I ordered a refurb 15" mid-2015 MBP, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD from Apple and it should arrive today.

I went with the 2015 for a few reasons:

1. Performance tests seem to show not much difference between the 2016 and the 2017 and the 2016 not great improvement over the 2015.
2. SSD is replaceable
3. I have only USB/TB peripherals and would have to buy dongles..
4. Keyboard reviews. I use a big old clicky Das Keyboard with my mini (is the new Mac Mini EVER going to come?) and I love it. I'm a fast typer, I type a lot, and this keyboard is so responsive and fast. I tried that Apple wireless keyboard a few years back, and hated it. I couldn't tell when I'd pressed a key or not. It was impossible to type on. I tried the 2016 MBP keyboard. It was awful.

I'm guessing that the 2015 refurb should be a good machine, plenty of power and capacity for the long term.

BUT... Should I be looking at the new 2017 model without the touchbar? It's not as powerful, but it's lighter and cheaper. I don't care about the TB at all. I don't do any video editing, Lightroom and PS is about it. The refurb 2015 MBP is $1900 plus AppleCare, and the newest MBP without touch bar and 256 GB instead of 512 is about the same price. Since I have a desktop and external hard drives for storage, maybe the smaller drive would be OK. How bad is the keyboard really for fast typers? What's the worst that could happen? Will the 2015 become obsolete way before the 2017, or are they close enough that it won't matter? Am I making a big mistake? Am I overlooking something?

 

[MikeArtworks]

Mid-2025. I'm jealous! Haha

 

[Kentuckienne]

Busted! I'm actually from the future, and this is to settle a bet with Drongosilon 5. See, with a time machine, time becomes a place. Kind of like how in California, winter is a place and not a season - when you want winter, you drive to the mountains, and when you tire of winter you drive back to the beach. So one of us argues that Maddicts in the past will buy anything as long as it's new, and one of us says no, back then people didn't have renewable money and they had to think about it. If I'm right, Drongo has to do the dishes for the rest of his life, which is about 8000 years more than my life expectancy, so I have the right to will the service to my heirs. If he's right, I have to stand on a chair in the middle of Houston Intergalactic Spaceport and announce to everybody that I was wrong, I'm always wrong, and Drongosilon Msfrto Jakalaririliraian 5 was right, he is always right. Which doesn't seem so bad except ever since the Txsprtian incident, mispronouncing a Martian's name in public is punishable by death. So help me out, guys, 2015 or 2017?

 

[Fishrrman]

IF you were happy with the 2015 when you bought it (I bought a 2015 MBPro instead of a 2016, as well)... why change just yet?

 

[ZapNZs]

Did you buy one of the dGPU models like this?
https://www.apple.com/shop/product/...-28ghz-quad-core-intel-i7-with-retina-display

 

[vjobs]

I don't understand that you're asking if you should consider the MacBook Pro 2017 after purchasing the 2015 model... Might be better to think this first before choosing/purchasing.

Coming to your question; the 2015 MacBook Pro will be great for your usage and will last at least 4-5 years.

 

[Retromac2008]

they re all the same from a lot of years.
macbook pro 15 2017 is good as macbook pro 15 2015 was

 

[Kentuckienne]

vjobs....

I just bought it, and it hasn't arrived yet. I pick it up today, and I have 14 days to reconsider. So of course after long thought and research I immediately began to fret that I had not decided right. Wondering if I should return it and buy the 2017 model instead...2015 more ironed out, better keyboard, but maybe sooner obsolete?
-------

Did you buy one of the dGPU models like this?

https://www.apple.com/shop/product/...-28ghz-quad-core-intel-i7-with-retina-display

------------

Close - not as fast a processor, but is this also a dGPU model? I read those sometimes had problems and didn't see that exact acronym in the description. It's this one:
https://www.apple.com/shop/product/...-25ghz-quad-core-intel-i7-with-retina-display

 

[lbdesign]

Each situation is different. But I can share that I HATE the keyboard/trackpad situation on my 2016 15" MBP. The uselessly gigantic trackpad is constantly interpreting the presence of my palms as clicks and swipes during typing, which makes all sorts of chaos on the screen — deleting text, launching apps, etc. And the keyboard is numb. It's hard to feel the outline of the keys, so touch-typing is a different experience. I'd suggest going to an Apple store and spending a LOT of time typing on the new one while you are still in your return window and have the luxury of deciding.
(and yes, I've played with all the settings already, and had long calls with Apple support, who tell me this is "normal")

 

[Falhófnir]

You mention 'non touchbar' so does that mean you're considering a 13" as an alternative? It'll be less powerful, less screen space, arguably worse keyboard experience, only 2 thunderbolt 3 vs 2 thunderbolt 2, 2 USB A 3, SD slot and MagSafe, but with a slightly more colour-rich screen if you're viewing content that supports the wider standard and it's obviously more svelte. As they're still selling the 2015, I'm guessing it might get longer support in MacOS than usual, of course it's still more powerful than the '17 MacBook, so staying fluid on later versions shouldn't be an issue. Overall I'd say stick with the 2015 15".