Anyone regret getting an M1 Pro/Max?

[StuAff]

M1 Pro refurb bought on the night of the M2 Pro/Max launch here. Buyer's remorse? Not in the slightest. Saved over £600 compared to the M2 Pro, nearer £700 now, for something barely faster. Its predecessor (2009 MacBook) lasted me well enough…I don't expect to get the same life out of this, but I should be good for a few years.

 

[cateye]

M1 Pro refurb bought on the night of the M2 Pro/Max launch here. Buyer's remorse? Not in the slightest.

++ Bought my M1 Pro 16" as a closeout long after the M2's were released. My business was paying for it, so budget was key. It's a production-only machine, used to do work 8-10 hours a day and it does that with aplomb. It balances capabilities against value against budget perfectly. At some point it will no longer be able to do so, or will lose support, or will suffer some kind of failure, and that is the point I will buy whatever again meets budget versus capabilities versus availability.

 

[stevec618]

No. I'm too busy using my machine to create stuff.

 

[colinsky]

I bought an m1 Mini with full knowledge that it was an interim box. I wanted to replace my Late 2015 iMac and waited until the m1 iMacs were released, and the 24" monitor was unacceptable for my needs.

So I bit the bullet and bought a 27" LG Ultrafine and a 16/512 m1 Mini. I was worried about whether that smaller level of memory would be enough or not, but I limped along okay with it until the Mini m2 Pro was released. I bought a 32gb/1tb Mini and now I feel as though I'm back to full power for my pro tasks. I don't need the power for routine browsing etc, and the m1 was pretty good. The only time it failed me was at the critical moments.

Doesn't matter what the m3 offers, my m2 Pro will be mostly overkill for several more years.

 

[ggCloud]

Even the base M3 is weaker in everything vs the M1pro/max except single thread usage and ray tracing so being left behind isn’t anything worry about. It’s the Intel Macs that have the handwriting on the wall.

The binned M1 Pro is slower than M3. But all Apple silicon chips are great

 

[JouniS]

If you need a computer as tool to do work or to make money or both: Buy what you need when you need it for what you need it to do. Budget should reflect its potential to advance your earnings. The moment it is no longer able to do what you need it to do, then you buy what is currently available that once again meets that need. What is "on the horizon" makes no difference. You buy to put into production, to earn money or advance a hobby or set of tasks. Repeat as budget allows.

It doesn't work like that. A computer bought early in the release cycle is more valuable than the same computer bought later in the cycle, because you can expect it to meet your needs longer. Because Apple doesn't lower the prices of its products every month to reflect this loss of value, it's sometimes rational to wait for a few months before buying the next generation of the product. At least if you assume that Apple can keep improving its products with every generation.

 

[Mac-ajs]

I honestly thought the pro/max series were the second iteration of M1 and now its being shown they are just an M1 in Apple's eyes. I got an M1Pro because at the time it was the perfect mid range.

If you honestly thought that then you didn't do enough research prior to making your purchase.

Regardless, I just stopped using a 2015 iMac as I recently upgraded to a 2023 M2Pro Mac mini, as others have stated you should easily get 5-7-10 years out of your purchase if you take care of it and your workloads don't change significantly.

 

[GuruZac]

My M1 MBA is still a great little workhorse. It’s not even remotely close to being obsolete or unsupported. The M1 chip is just 3 years old. I think the most realistic upgrade for me will be either the M3 iPad Pro or M3/M4 MacBook Air 15”.

 

[Elon69]

I honestly thought the pro/max series were the second iteration of M1 and now its being shown they are just an M1 in Apple's eyes. I got an M1Pro because at the time it was the perfect mid range. I'm now scared about losing OS support and would have waited until M3 Max if I knew in advance how it would unfold as a yearly update schedule also now that the Pro line will now be the base and the base will be a joke.

Not at all. I got it November 2021. Now it’s 2 years after and it’s still faster than what I need it to do.

Can I get a fast machine now? Of course. Why would you think it will stop there. Intel upgrade every year too…

Anyway. M1 has at least 5 more years of OS support left. Relax

 

[TheRoxyTheatre]

Weird that OP left the chat…

 

[Ethosik]

Is there literally anyone left on MacRumors that isn't rendered absolutely non-functional by purchase-based over-analysis? These threads are beyond painful at this point.

If you need a computer as tool to do work or to make money or both: Buy what you need when you need it for what you need it to do. Budget should reflect its potential to advance your earnings. The moment it is no longer able to do what you need it to do, then you buy what is currently available that once again meets that need. What is "on the horizon" makes no difference. You buy to put into production, to earn money or advance a hobby or set of tasks. Repeat as budget allows.

If you are buying Apple products as an Apple-user lifestyle choice: Buy the low-end, mid-tier, or high-end depending on your available free income. What it does doesn't matter because you're buying it to own it, not to use it to potential or against earnings. But don't buy beyond your means. The moment there's a rumor (or better, an event announcement) that is likely to highlight a replacement for what you own, sell it immediately. Before the new model is on sale. Once the new models are on sale, jump back to the beginning.

There's literally no other reason to buy a computer. None. I guarantee any purchase will fit into one of these two pathways, and by following them, leaves you immune to whatever release schedule shenanigans Apple has in store.

Yeah things have just gotten too crazy lately. Things were bad in the early days on this site, but it's just gotten worse. I am on the verge of just clocking out on here as these conversations are just painful as you said. Its all Apple hate or purchase regret....all....the....time.

 

[leifp]

Not sure why I’m posting this. @cateye has posted a much superior analysis and I only dilute things by posting an anecdote rather than a hard and fast rule set. But hey, I’m human (mostly)… I’ll cite “horses for courses”

As my M1Max is more than I require for regular use (M1Pro would likely have been sufficient but I like to future-proof) and will remain so until I get off my duff and actually chase an old dream (never? Later…), I anticipate using it for a few years still with no concern whatsoever for dropped macOS support. When I replace it, it will be because a new Mac offers Thunderbolt 5 (for the video bandwidth needs of the next generation of top end monitors) as well as my return to the desktop fold (Studio here I come). Perhaps I’ll have started requiring more of it than it can provide by then as well (doubtful), however it will be fully covered by many remaining years of macOS updates.

My previous machine, a ”fully loaded” 2014 5K iMac, was still in limited use last year (it was far from a powerful computer even when new, CPU aside). Started feeling its age, though and support had been dropped for it in macOS, and then I do not keep them. I don’t tinker meaningfully with old hardware and have a personal requirement that the device is at least still getting security updates if I’m going to use it.

I expect the M1Pro/Max generation to last a good long while: if RAM becomes the cutoff point, they’re at 16+GB and the M3 still starts at 8GB. If power does, the base M1Pro handily outperforms an M2 (excepting single core) and likely an M3 in CPU, decently in GPU, matches them in video encoders/decoders (excepting AV1 on the M3), and only comes up short when ray tracing and mesh shaders enter the scene (M3, and whether Apple’s implementation of them is any good has not been tested). Anybody want a gentleman’s bet that macOS won’t drop M1 support until 2028 at the earliest and that there’s a greater than 50% chance the M1 Pro/Max/Ultra chips retain support for another release or two thereafter?

Intel Macs, on the other hand, are dying a rapid death in macOS and that is not likely to decelerate much. Although I dislike that pace, I expect presently supported Intel Macs in macOS to remain supported in the next version (15) in autumn 2024 (Intel Macs with T2 chips can still be plenty fast and secure) and then either completely deprecated or on deathwatch the macOS thereafter (16), autumn 2025 (the absence of ”neural” cores seals their fate).

 

[Basic75]

It doesn't work like that. A computer bought early in the release cycle is more valuable than the same computer bought later in the cycle, because you can expect it to meet your needs longer. Because Apple doesn't lower the prices of its products every month to reflect this loss of value, it's sometimes rational to wait for a few months before buying the next generation of the product. At least if you assume that Apple can keep improving its products with every generation.

Yes, it works exactly like that if you actually need a computer for your work like @cateye wrote. When my main work laptop was hit by the Nvidia issue the choice was between not to work for a couple of weeks or buy a new computer and continue earning money. I went into the shop and purchased what they had even though it wasn't the model I would have chosen, but I didn't fret over it, and I didn't count how long it lasted or measured how much better other computers were because I needed this computer right now, and it got the job done, which is all that really counts.

 

[jeffpeng]

Don't develop an inferiority complex because you ain't got the latest and greatest. Get what you need if you can, get what you want if you have to, but don't let yourself be driven to dump all your income on the next shiny thing because there's no end to shiny things.

 

[JouniS]

Yes, it works exactly like that if you actually need a computer for your work like @cateye wrote. When my main work laptop was hit by the Nvidia issue the choice was between not to work for a couple of weeks or buy a new computer and continue earning money. I went into the shop and purchased what they had even though it wasn't the model I would have chosen, but I didn't fret over it, and I didn't count how long it lasted or measured how much better other computers were because I needed this computer right now, and it got the job done, which is all that really counts.

The need is rarely that sudden. Usually when people upgrade, it's not because they suddenly have no computers capable of doing what's needed. It's more likely that they could continue using their old computers for another year or three, but the new models are better in one way or another, and that translates into higher productivity. They upgrade once the expected gain is high enough to justify the opportunity cost of upgrading.

When my main work laptop started having battery issues early this year, I could have just ordered a ~$3k MBP and received it quickly enough. Instead, I spent some effort to justify that a ~$5k model with 96 GB RAM would be better for my work, and getting it approved and delivered took an extra month. That delay didn't matter much, because I was usually working from home on my iMac (with 128 GB RAM), and I also had an M1 MBA from work if I needed to go somewhere else.

 

[Basic75]

Instead, I spent some effort to justify that a ~$5k model with 96 GB RAM would be better for my work

So you waited because you need more RAM. Fair enough.

 

[eropko]

Love these "is my mac sufficient for <not gonna say what i'm doing on it>" posts.

 

[Hastings101]

No, my M1 Max MBP is probably the best laptop I have ever owned (excluding the notch). Quiet, stays cool, great battery life, incredible speakers, and very fast in real world usage.

I'm not worried about Apple dropping OS support, the soonest that would happen is probably 5 years from now. I could be dead by then or have dropped a gallon of water on it and fried it by that point.

 

[reklex]

I honestly thought the pro/max series were the second iteration of M1 and now its being shown they are just an M1 in Apple's eyes. I got an M1Pro because at the time it was the perfect mid range. I'm now scared about losing OS support and would have waited until M3 Max if I knew in advance how it would unfold as a yearly update schedule also now that the Pro line will now be the base and the base will be a joke.

you should try keeping up less with Apple news.

there are “stop recommending me this” buttons on most social media and you can limit how much you access this website for example.

if the machine still does the things you need it for it is a good machine, no amount of Apple marketing should tell you otherwise.

maybe you just need a battery replacement or to add a dBrand skin to make it look like the Space Black M3.

 

[mcled53]

I honestly thought the pro/max series were the second iteration of M1 and now its being shown they are just an M1 in Apple's eyes. I got an M1Pro because at the time it was the perfect mid range. I'm now scared about losing OS support and would have waited until M3 Max if I knew in advance how it would unfold as a yearly update schedule also now that the Pro line will now be the base and the base will be a joke.

I have no regrets. Best laptop I've ever owned (MacBookPro18,3). I see no need to upgrade.

 

[msackey]

No. Why would Apple marketing newer computers make your perfectly-fine ones not adequate anymore? It still has years left and there’s nothing to regret.

I was thinking the same thing. Why would new iterations of processors and/or computer make one feel so inadequate about one's own device? Maybe this is more of a FOMO and the loss of feeling the glitz of having something new, but that is not about the device itself and rather one's own attitude, is it not?

 

[msackey]

Is there literally anyone left on MacRumors that isn't rendered absolutely non-functional by purchase-based over-analysis? These threads are beyond painful at this point.

If you need a computer as tool to do work or to make money or both: Buy what you need when you need it for what you need it to do. Budget should reflect its potential to advance your earnings. The moment it is no longer able to do what you need it to do, then you buy what is currently available that once again meets that need. What is "on the horizon" makes no difference. You buy to put into production, to earn money or advance a hobby or set of tasks. Repeat as budget allows.

Interesting thoughts and I agree with the above!

If you are buying Apple products as an Apple-user lifestyle choice: Buy the low-end, mid-tier, or high-end depending on your available free income. What it does doesn't matter because you're buying it to own it, not to use it to potential or against earnings. But don't buy beyond your means. The moment there's a rumor (or better, an event announcement) that is likely to highlight a replacement for what you own, sell it immediately. Before the new model is on sale. Once the new models are on sale, jump back to the beginning.

There's literally no other reason to buy a computer. None. I guarantee any purchase will fit into one of these two pathways, and by following them, leaves you immune to whatever release schedule shenanigans Apple has in store.

I haven't heard of anyone put it the way you did above, but that's interesting! I do find it very interesting that people buy such products as a lifestyle choice (or perhaps I might say lifestyle statement) and when that object becomes no longer in trend, they feel regret. That is so bizarre to me but I can see it for those who have a desire to keep up with the Jones's.

 

[msackey]

It doesn't work like that. A computer bought early in the release cycle is more valuable than the same computer bought later in the cycle, because you can expect it to meet your needs longer. Because Apple doesn't lower the prices of its products every month to reflect this loss of value, it's sometimes rational to wait for a few months before buying the next generation of the product. At least if you assume that Apple can keep improving its products with every generation.

I would see it as this: if you can wait a few months before buying the next generation of product, then keep waiting until you need to buy a new machine! Don't base the need out of what the product release cycle is. Base it out of what you actually need it for.

So in other words, if you can wait for the next release cycle, and you can keep waiting even after that release cycle, then it means you didn't really need a new machine and can keep using the old machine. Then use the old machine.

 

[msackey]

The need is rarely that sudden. Usually when people upgrade, it's not because they suddenly have no computers capable of doing what's needed. It's more likely that they could continue using their old computers for another year or three, but the new models are better in one way or another, and that translates into higher productivity. They upgrade once the expected gain is high enough to justify the opportunity cost of upgrading.

When my main work laptop started having battery issues early this year, I could have just ordered a ~$3k MBP and received it quickly enough. Instead, I spent some effort to justify that a ~$5k model with 96 GB RAM would be better for my work, and getting it approved and delivered took an extra month. That delay didn't matter much, because I was usually working from home on my iMac (with 128 GB RAM), and I also had an M1 MBA from work if I needed to go somewhere else.

True, the need is not usually that sudden. But then upgrade when you feel you can't "stand it any more" or just before you get to that point. Or if desired, upgrade a little earlier depending on your own preference and tolerance level.

In your scenario with your work laptop, you would factor in as you already have, all the administrative delays and actual need to use the laptop, to come up with the schedule of when it is necessary for you to upgrade. You even said, and I quote: "That delay didn't matter much, because I was usually working from home on my iMac."

 

[Beau10]

From my point of view, this way of thinking (OP) is a serious misconception.

I think the OP might be referencing what Apple considers a vintage machine, ie. 7 years from release date, at which time Apple may choose to stop providing software updates. This isn't really attached to a processor class though, and it's not necessarily an Intel thing. As a recent example Apple no longer supports the 12" Macbook. For the M1 Pro/Max laptops this means they will receive support until fall of 2028.

I get it, but it's not necessarily a hard deadline and you can continue to use the machine past a certain point of support just fine, you just won't get the latest OS update. Really the big concern comes when there is a significant security patch on an OS that is no longer supported, you're taking your chances by keeping it online.