Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Considering buying macbook for the first time: refurb 15in 2015 pro?
- Thread starter Issa29
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
The level of questions leads me to think a 2015 is not the right computer for you. For a hobbyist that understands what they're getting, fine. For day-to-day use, school, and business - nope. Get something new (or new-er at least).
I wouldn't touch an Intel-based Retina MacBook Air for any reason. They are total slugs. Intel processor + passive cooling = slug.
The 2019 16" MacBook Pro is the least bad 2016–2019 MacBook Pro. They are still half decent systems. The keyboard is better, the cooling is somewhat better — though not nearly robust enough when you get into the Core i9 processor and higher end ATI GPUs. Battery life is not good.
We still have a 2015 15" MacBook Pro as a daily driver at my home. It does the job, but I went through the trouble of replacing the battery recently and upgraded the SSD to a 2 TB NVMe after researching compatibility. We bought that laptop new back in... 2015, so we know where it's been. Still, it's due for an upgrade soon, probably to a 15" MacBook Air.
The 2019 16" MacBook Pro is the least bad 2016–2019 MacBook Pro. They are still half decent systems. The keyboard is better, the cooling is somewhat better — though not nearly robust enough when you get into the Core i9 processor and higher end ATI GPUs. Battery life is not good.
We still have a 2015 15" MacBook Pro as a daily driver at my home. It does the job, but I went through the trouble of replacing the battery recently and upgraded the SSD to a 2 TB NVMe after researching compatibility. We bought that laptop new back in... 2015, so we know where it's been. Still, it's due for an upgrade soon, probably to a 15" MacBook Air.
Minority opinion here, but I still consider the 2015 MacBook Pro the best laptop Apple ever manufactured, with the possible exception of the 2012 13” non-retina MacBook Pro (depending on your use case). The main flaw of the 2015 retina model was the widespread “staingate” screen coating delamination issue, but you can still find a few screens in good condition, and there is a company in New York who will replace the entire screen polarizer at a reasonable price. This was the last MacBook with removable/upgradeable storage (important for data recovery) and some level of user-serviceable components. If you can find a second-hand machine with a covered serial number, Apple will still replace your whole top case/battery with a brand new one due to a recall.
It’s true that the Apple Silicon machines are far more powerful and efficient. On the other hand, you give up the option to boot other x86-based operating systems (Windows), there are weird quirks (like the machines turn on basically just by being touched, making it difficult to clean them), there are widespread issues with eye strain supposedly related to the M1 graphics drivers (or possibly the display panels), and frankly the whole architecture functions more as a locked-down black box, with some previous features being removed and less understanding of the architecture in general. Subjectively, the physical construction of the newer MacBooks also feels more fragile and less robust in the hand versus the 2015-era models, and modern flaws in Apple laptops (soldered-on SSDs reaching NAND cell exhaustion, display ribbon cable wear/cracking, display glass micro fractures, etc.) are extremely expensive or impractical to repair by virtue of Apple’s design choices.
As much as I want Apple to succeed in creating great products, they’ve taken away value (as far as their products being robust and repairable) which existed in the past, and as a customer I am not afraid to hold them to account.
It’s true that the Apple Silicon machines are far more powerful and efficient. On the other hand, you give up the option to boot other x86-based operating systems (Windows), there are weird quirks (like the machines turn on basically just by being touched, making it difficult to clean them), there are widespread issues with eye strain supposedly related to the M1 graphics drivers (or possibly the display panels), and frankly the whole architecture functions more as a locked-down black box, with some previous features being removed and less understanding of the architecture in general. Subjectively, the physical construction of the newer MacBooks also feels more fragile and less robust in the hand versus the 2015-era models, and modern flaws in Apple laptops (soldered-on SSDs reaching NAND cell exhaustion, display ribbon cable wear/cracking, display glass micro fractures, etc.) are extremely expensive or impractical to repair by virtue of Apple’s design choices.
As much as I want Apple to succeed in creating great products, they’ve taken away value (as far as their products being robust and repairable) which existed in the past, and as a customer I am not afraid to hold them to account.
There's really nothing wrong with the M1 Mac's. There will always be a level of failure with any mass produced electronics in the early or latter stages of the operating life (bathtub theory). Those suffering such issue make the most noise as is the norm. If M1 was flawed we'd know about it by now similar to other Mac's from the past with critical issues.
Right now depending on territory there are some great deals to be had on M1 Mac's. Even the base M1 Air will run multiple rings around the majority of the Intel Mac's. The 2015 is too old unless you are getting it for buttons and as others have said such older Mac's are best left for those who are enthusiasts and or willing to work at it. I still own an ill fated 2011 15" and it's very specific in it's needs, hence why I kept it.
M2 is simply an iteration of M1, little more proficient, little faster no more no less. If new to the Mac smart money is on an M1 with a good deal, if you then like consider to upgrade to M3 in time. The only caveat is if you need to run Windows as that is now more more complex and less flexible with Apple Silicon.
FWIW my own 2020 M1 MacBook Pro is a good as new.
Q-6
You are not in the miniority, many did/still do. It was good kit.
Im not sure you are up on some of the repairability the M1s offer. For example, a client tweaked their M1 MBA USB ports. Which in day-to-day use, not surprising... especially if you charge a lot, or hook a hub often. Its a $20 part, and DIY: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Air+13-Inch+Late+2020+USB-C+Board+Replacement/142552
MBPs are the same, maybe slightly more.
I get your point completely. Money is tight for me now as well, so i am getting a old Macbook Pro off ebay, to repair and upgrade, which i love doing, for 100 bucks (if you are curious, im getting a 2011 15" Macbook pro with that great antiglare high res display, i know it has that infamous gpu issue, but i am fine with it for now).Old intel macs are reliable, but you are right in your choice, because the 2015 15" MBP is the best non-apple-silicon macbook. The 2015 is very good.
Also, you can use OCLP with a 2015 MBP and run the latest macOS on it without much issue. I tried it on a 2010, worked fine. So, its not a nightmare like these people here make it look like lol
Last edited by a moderator:
No, if youre on a budget and need a Macbook the best is the 2015 15" MBP. The M1 Air is ok, but honestly i couldnt live with that port selection and screen size. That being said, if you can find a M1 Air for under 500 bucks in working condition, i would consider it, but only if you can live with 2 usb c ports only and a 13in screen.
2016-2019 was the worst Macbook era, not 2015-2019.
Last edited:
How does it make any sense to “plan ahead” for data recovery, yet not plan to just back up your data? 🧐
easily solvable, 7 more for $20 https://www.amazon.com/UGREEN-Deliv...d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9zZWFyY2hfdGhlbWF0aWM&psc=1
Not true. M2 is a substantially superior box.
1) The tens of thousands of additional engineering hours that went into M2 do matter, even if they are non-obvious via simplistic benchmarks.
2) Performance benchmarks show ~20% improvement in M2, which is a big deal coming from the already-strong M1.
3) M2 has WiFi 6E, M1 usually does not.
4) M2 has Bluetooth 5.3, M1 usually does not.
5) M1 generation has by definition a much shorter remaining life cycle and will EOL 1-2 years sooner.
Buying M1 to save a lot of money may be appropriate for some folks' finances. But suggesting the M2 improvements are minimal is just wrong.
Intel MacBook prices have come way down in the last year. A base model 2019 16" goes for $600. The OP could purchase a 2015 15" for $200 or so but as others have already stated, it's obsolete. The only reason to go with Intel now is if you want to boot into Windows without having to deal with emulation.
No clue on your last line, no one has said 2016+ Intel were the ‘best’ years. Too many va decisions in them (kb, touchbar etc) and for pretty marginal performance gains overall. 2019 fixed the kb and ram limits along with having a physical ESC key (Not positive if any models prior added the ESC key before then as 206-2018 were useless for me to consider).
The 2015 was a decent machine overall but no way I’d recommend one with a fully clear conscience over an Apple Silicon model. My own 2015 had the joy of an expanded battery just after I replaced it with a 2019…thankfully I got lucky with Apple and they covered it then I donated it to one of my wife’s students..hopefully still running as it was otherwise kept immaculate.
For a typical not-overly-technical user, the M1 Air or 13” Pro has support ability/OS updates for some time to come, less likely to have a battery expansion or performance/capacity issue, and overall better performance.
The port selection - yeah…sigh. ‘thanks Apple for the ‘bravery’ (stupid Ive quote iirc on lack of ports)’ still in play there. I think I got used to carrying a travel hub with me, not as limited as the 2016-18 era, and I don’t disagree on the screen size in general, which is why I went 16” on the 2019MBP, but my wife loves her 13” Air, I’m almost always connected to at least one external screen. I went to the MBP14 recently from my 2019 16” and do like it quite a bit more than the 13” air or mbp13 on screen size alone.
With current used Intel mbp pricing, the OP could pick up a 2019 mbp16 for <$1k, which is pretty good bang for the buck, but I’d still push an M1 variant f possible, especially if a 13” could work out for them.
yeah. lol - I think I’ve had 3-4 fail for me over time, others still fine. Roll the dice on random China brand and sometimes they’re fine. It’s possible it was down to multiple ports in constant use - ethernet, hdmi for one display and a USB speakerphone, but at least they’re cheap
It was usually the display output that woud fail, but also had a fairly $ Cal-Digit dock go belly up in a few months while the replacement is now going on years.
Kind of the "get what you pay for" mantra =). If there was a request for ports, refurb 14" M1 Max MBP, @1500. But now double the cost.
Key is to not buy random. Anker, orico, OWC, sabrent, etc. all good.
And of course, everyones needs are different. Even with 4 macs in our house, plus me running a design studio in the garage... there are zero ethernet cables here. Zero SD/SF cards. Zero thumb drives. Plenty of other stuff, but none of those... which others couldnt live without. =)
Key is to not buy random. Anker, orico, OWC, sabrent, etc. all good.
And of course, everyones needs are different. Even with 4 macs in our house, plus me running a design studio in the garage... there are zero ethernet cables here. Zero SD/SF cards. Zero thumb drives. Plenty of other stuff, but none of those... which others couldnt live without. =)
of course, yes, i agree that if he has the budget a M1 Mac is the way to go, but ports? Screen size? I dont think he wants to carry a huge hub around with him everywhere! That hub will put so much stress on the port..
I know they exist lol, but who wants to carry around a big hub everywhere? Now if the op can find a M1 MBP 14" for less than 1000, THAT would be perfect imo. They do exist, on ebay, quite often.
All the points you made probably will never make a difference to most people, and the softwate support on M1 is going to surpass the machine's use.
Exactly, majority of Mac's are used casually and those on a budget as in this case would be well served by an M1 Mac. M2 is an iteration of M1, M3 will have a reduced process node with associated benefits. As said if on a budget you cant go wrong with an M1 Mac.
The Intel Mac's are pretty much confined to history, barring those that need support for Windows applications.
Q-6
M1 is already so much better than Intel that anything more than it is just unnecessary to the majority of people.
Yet some here would like people to believe they need a fully spec's out MBP just to surf the web LOL...
Q-6
me sitting here thinking about getting a specced out MBP for light photo editing and web browsing...