Does a 2015 MacBook Pro still cut it in 2024?

[meggie_v]

The 2015 MPB 13" 8/128 I'm using to write this post has been a total champ. Other than new battery service a couple of years back, it's just been 9 years of working all day almost every day without a hitch. Everything still works as well as the day I brought it home.

That said, going into this year I can feel father time catching up. Support for current MacOS versions ended two versions back--Monterey is the latest it can take--and this fall security update support for that will end as well. iMessage / Safari / Notes / iCloud syncing services with my current-versioned iPhone have gotten a little slow or a little sketchy, too--understandable given the number of changes and new features on the iOS end--but that will only get worse as time goes on.

Personally: if I were in the market for a highly capable $500-ish-or-less computing device, I'd make a bee-line to an 11" M2 iPad Air or the latest regular iPad. If I could stretch to $650, a brand new M1 Macbook Air (available from WalMart at that price) would also run circles around a 2015 Intel Pro in most practical ways and would receive updates and new features (notably, Apple Intelligence) for years to come.

My sense is, unless you have specific must-cover workflows requiring older Intel-Mac specialty software or 32-bit apps running an older MacOS, the 2015 Pro's time is coming to an end. And it really did have a GREAT run.

 

[rwh63]

i'm reading all your replies. thank you!

 

[rwh63]

There is nothing flimsy on a 14 or 16“. When u look for a M1 pro you can find them used for less than half the price.
This should last u another 10years.
And u get all the ports a 2015 has (except USB A)

i'll have to compare my 2011 to a 2024 next time at Apple. my impression is the 2011 chassis is much heavier than the
2024. the aluminum feels "thicker". and the bottom 2024 felt "flatter", as well as the top lid. i think the newer style does away with the edge beveling and is more square edged. the whole 2024 just seemed thinner than the 2011 (yes, i know, there has been a long march towards skinniness and lightness, partly by removing ports, superdrive, rely on wifi/bluetooth for all connectivity). my 2011 has taken a few falls to the floor in the house over the years. never damaged. would the new ones survive unblemished? accidents do happen.

 

[Shirasaki]

and a hub really isn't the hassle I imagined it to be.

I use two unpowered hubs to connect my USB HDD to my M1 MacBook Pro. And immediately I notice two issues:
1. Power delivery through the usb-c port may not be sufficient if I connect too many HDD.
2. My desk is too narrow to put hubs properly on the table. Yeah, my problem, but hub cable being dragged by hub weight and connected cable weight caused sudden disconnect a couple of times, almost destroyed one of my HDD.
So yeah, I’d rather have more built in ports than using hubs if possible.

The big problem is that Monterey, their last officially supported OS, likely won't be getting many more security patches after Sequoia is released. So you'll need to get comfortable with OCLP.

The lack of security updates really don’t matter that much as most people think. Obviously to do banking and other similarly sensitive/confidential scenarios, you better use the latest device. But what if that’s not the case? Or they just want 32-bit support? Or it just doesn’t matter to the user? For all security practices, USER is, and will continue to be, THE WEAKEST link.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Love my 2015 15”

I’ve given up trying to convince anybody else … I just know it works great for me and my laptop needs.

 

[Minghold]

*New* MBA M1's are being sold for under $700 now (there was a main page post only a few days ago). Second hand ones should go for even less. Honestly, if you can afford that, do it, and save yourself the pain of incremental updates every 2 years. The speed upgrade from Intel is huge, and your battery life will be much longer.

The speed downgrade of being stuck with wideload subscription-model software as opposed to the sleel 32bit versions usable through Mojave more than offsets this. A 20teens intel laptop that hasn't been updated past Mojave is a fast machine with a long battery life. Chromium-legacy is the only upgrade they need.

 

[Minghold]

I went from a 2015 to an M1 Max, and it’s a totally different computing experience. If you’re doing anything serious on the 2015, the fans sound like a Cessna taxiing for liftoff.

Backgrade to Mojave cloned to an HFS+ partition. Clean 2rd-party junk out of the Library/LaunchDaemon folders. Disable MRT and Spotlight Indexing in Terminal.

 

[profcutter]

Backgrade to Mojave cloned to an HFS+ partition. Clean 2rd-party junk out of the Library/LaunchDaemon folders. Disable MRT and Spotlight Indexing in Terminal.

Sure, I mean, I could have done that. For my use case I’m pretty satisfied with the M1 Max, I know others may have other needs. I mean I can do all you suggested, but I’m still not getting security updates when Apple feels like stopping them. What bothers me is the whole AI push, and it seems like lots of optimizing is happening for AI. I’m sure I might find it useful one day, but as of now I’m reallly not bought in, and I’d rather they develop in other areas like… I don’t know… making safari not suck!

 

[wilberforce]

The 15" packs severely more performance than the 13" due to being quad core and available with a dedicated GPU. But even the 13" is okay for aforementioned light tasks.

This. There is a massive difference between 4 cores and 2 cores, when the processor is straining to keep up with the latest software demands.
I had a 13" and finally got so annoyed with the delayed response I traded it in. It is like talking on a phone when there is a 1-second delay each way.
15" is actually usable.

 

[Eracles]

My advice is to buy a new latest model, any money spent on an old machine is not to return very much... I own a 2012 mbpro, it is struggling, I'm saving and waiting for an M4 but probably will need to buy soon even an M3 pro or max

 

[Minghold]

I wouldn't say that a 2015 MBP would be much of an upgrade at all. A second hand M1 MBA, if you can afford it, I promise you, would be a revelation. Super snappy response, completely silent, cool, battery lasts forever,

The speed of 32bit apps is a revelation to those who've never experienced them. E.g., Photoshop CS6 Extended launches in two seconds flat off a 2015 MBP. Many productivity suites also contain features that were later removed or converted into paid-expansions.

and the latest versions of macOS and apps.

Those are demerits. You're fully shackled to the AppStore now, where Apple is a fat tick exacting gatekeeper rent from every developer. --This is the end-stage of "enshattification".

 

[Minghold]

Personally: if I were in the market for a highly capable $500-ish-or-less computing device, I'd make a bee-line to an 11" M2 iPad Air or the latest regular iPad.

Either are less capable than an 11" 2011 MBA running El Capitan with Chromium-legacy, because it's a real computer (with a tweakable OS) capable of running probably ten times the number of unique pieces of software. At the very least you can get rid of all the ads with uBlock Origin.

If I could stretch to $650, a brand new M1 Macbook Air (available from WalMart at that price) would also run circles around a 2015 Intel Pro in most practical ways and would receive updates and new features (notably, Apple Intelligence) for years to come.

"Apple Intelligence" (how they must have laughed themselves silly giving it that name, knowing full well that most users wouldn't get the joke) is the last thing I want anywhere near my computer.

 

[maerz001]

i'll have to compare my 2011 to a 2024 next time at Apple. my impression is the 2011 chassis is much heavier than the
2024. the aluminum feels "thicker". and the bottom 2024 felt "flatter", as well as the top lid. i think the newer style does away with the edge beveling and is more square edged. the whole 2024 just seemed thinner than the 2011 (yes, i know, there has been a long march towards skinniness and lightness, partly by removing ports, superdrive, rely on wifi/bluetooth for all connectivity). my 2011 has taken a few falls to the floor in the house over the years. never damaged. would the new ones survive unblemished? accidents do happen.

Have u been to an apple store to see them in person?
I had the old unibody with dvd drive and yes all models after that became thinner.
I had an Air and a 12“ and a 2018 15“.
But with the 16“ M1 pro i have now they really went in the different direction and made it thicker and sturdier.

I wouldn’t recommend to drop any laptop. Use a case if u are concerned.
No way this would be a reason to chose a 10y old computer over this.

2015:

• Height: 0.71 inch (1.8 cm)
• Width: 14.13 inches (35.89 cm)
• Depth: 9.73 inches (24.71 cm)
• Weight: 4.49 pounds (2.04 kg)

2021:

• Height: 0.66 inch (1.68 cm)
• Width: 14.01 inches (35.57 cm)
• Depth: 9.77 inches (24.81 cm)
• Weight (M1 Pro): 4.7 pounds (2.1 kg)

Having a M processor over any intel especially in a laptop with constraint cooling is such a win.

 

[AlixSPQR]

People having old stuff: Old stuff is great. Even better, sometimes.
People having new stuff: Only new stuff cuts it, ITHO's.
Me: I’m content with my MBP 15" Mid 2014 (Big Sur), mini i7 Late 2012 (Sonoma), and MBP 13" Late 2011 (Monterey).
So I’m joining people having old stuff.
I don’t mind Tim Cook and his sycophants despising/hating me.

 

[hooks]

This thread has become a YES/NO between people who prefer older software/hardware, and those who prefer newer. Neither is "better" until you define what better means for you.

If you prefer updated software and hardware, you should go for a new machine. If you prefer/rely on older software/hardware, the 2015 is the last model that still has ports and some adjustability, and you should be able to get one cheaply. I had one, it was great. But the quiet, small and fast M2 is much better for my needs (travel, audio recording, graphic design) and I love the newer models. In the end though, I am not you and you should decide what 'cut it' means for you.

 

[mauAtzori]

not comparing one to the M-series laptops. but, i believe the 2015 (whose design i believe was available new through about 2018) was lauded as the peak of that generation. i have a 2011 13" still running, and was considering either a new one or a 2015. obviously, the new one is best in most ways, but the price would be substantially different, and i like the heavier build and design of the 2015 over flat and flimsier 2024. i only use a laptop for regular duty (document creation, internet stuff, streaming, photo/video storage, email, etc).

should i give up this idea, and move into the newest generation?

You are probably good: I still use my 2015 MBP for the same type of tasks.
I replaced the battery myself, and I am using Dortania’s OpenCore Legacy Patcher to run the latest macOS version: it still works fine.
There are no features in the current new Mac that compel me to upgrade.
The era of local ML models will change that, but we are not there yet.

 

[Tuck_]

I have one. For internet browsing it's largely fine though definitely shows its age at times if you have multiple windows open. For Lightroom, it's a pain to use.

The 2015 model doesn't hurt my eyes though, and the new ones do, so Ive stuck with the old one.

 

[turbineseaplane]

@Minghold

Have you penned a write up anywhere (or is there one you can recommend) for all the steps one should take to go Mojave on HFS and most "debloat"?

I'm fascinated with this and might give it a go on one of my 2015 15"s to see what I think (I have a couple of them)

 

[Yebubbleman]

not comparing one to the M-series laptops. but, i believe the 2015 (whose design i believe was available new through about 2018) was lauded as the peak of that generation. i have a 2011 13" still running, and was considering either a new one or a 2015. obviously, the new one is best in most ways, but the price would be substantially different, and i like the heavier build and design of the 2015 over flat and flimsier 2024. i only use a laptop for regular duty (document creation, internet stuff, streaming, photo/video storage, email, etc).

should i give up this idea, and move into the newest generation?

On a 2015 MacBook Pro, you can only run up to macOS Moneterey, which will become unsupported in the fall. You could use one to run Windows 10, but that becomes unsupported next fall (unless you run either the 2021 or 2019 version of Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC). I know that whether or not an OS is supported with security updates isn't always a concern for home/individual users, but it seriously ought to be (considering you'd be vulnerable to all sorts of possible cyber-attacks with an unpatched/not-maintained OS).

That said, the current generation of MacBook Pros isn't any more flimsy than the 2012-15 MacBook Pros. If anything, they're leaps and bounds better across the board (save for not having any USB-A whatsoever). And they're definitely better than anything that had a butterfly keyboard in tow.

I'd just go for a newer Mac. If you were even considering a 2015 15-inch MacBook Pro, my guess is that the power of even an M1 Pro based 16-inch MacBook Pro ought to be more than fine for your needs.

 

[dennis264]

I had a 13" 2015 MBP and except for my Quadra, it was the best machine I ever had. During covid, it was in for a battery replacement, they couldn't get me one(they were stuck on a boat in LA), so they replaced my machine with an M1.

It felt just as sturdy was as my 2015. In fact, I now have a M3 Pro Space gray and have dropped that thing from my car seat to the asphalt, and from my bag to the sidewalk... gnarly scratched, but it's fine.

The 2015 is going to lose Chrome support soon. You don't have to get a new Mac, but I recommend at least a M2/M3. They are relatively cheap for performance and you will get a good 5-6 before it "FEELS" slow.

Also note, the newer machine are actually EASIER to replace some part(battery). You'll be able to do it yourself in ~5 years.

 

[MallardDuck]

not comparing one to the M-series laptops. but, i believe the 2015 (whose design i believe was available new through about 2018) was lauded as the peak of that generation. i have a 2011 13" still running, and was considering either a new one or a 2015. obviously, the new one is best in most ways, but the price would be substantially different, and i like the heavier build and design of the 2015 over flat and flimsier 2024. i only use a laptop for regular duty (document creation, internet stuff, streaming, photo/video storage, email, etc).

should i give up this idea, and move into the newest generation?

As long as they are completely offline, you're ok. But if you want to be online, then you need to be on a machine that can run the current OS's, otherwise you're at high risk of a security compromise.

 

[Dylan33x]

Just bought a Max Specced, lightly used one a few months back on FB. I got lucky, it was a used for stage production at a local auditorium and only had 45 cycles on the battery!

As far as your question, yes. I bought a fully specced late 2015 IMac at the same time, and they both hold up really great. Obviously the MacBook less so, but it’s still really fast. Especially if you aren’t comparing it to Apple silicon, as you stated.

I got a really good price of.. I want to say 175, for it to max specced and in pristine condition. And I’m extremely happy and grateful, as I always wanted this model.

Lastly, I haven’t tried to max out the workload on them, but the only thing I’ve thrown at either that they couldn’t do was play an 8K video. And that was almost entirely for giggles.

 

[ChrisA]

not comparing one to the M-series laptops. but, i believe the 2015 (whose design i believe was available new through about 2018) was lauded as the peak of that generation. i have a 2011 13" still running, and was considering either a new one or a 2015. obviously, the new one is best in most ways, but the price would be substantially different, and i like the heavier build and design of the 2015 over flat and flimsier 2024. i only use a laptop for regular duty (document creation, internet stuff, streaming, photo/video storage, email, etc).

should i give up this idea, and move into the newest generation?

I have an older 2014 Mac Mini with SSD and 8GB RAM. I use it as a small server. It runs headless with no monitor or keyboard. I access it sith screen sharing or ssh. It is able to run a couple servives under MacOS and a few more inside a virtual Machine that in turn runs Linux. The CPU is a dual core Intel i5. It makes a very reliable home automation and backup server. Even with all that running I can still run Safari with reasonable performance.

That said any Apple Silicon Mac would run circiles around it.

My daughter is just started grad school and is stillinging the 2011 MBP I gave her for school. It has been upgraed to a 1TB SSD and maximum RAM but. it is still a 2011 model. She has a current moodel iPad to cary around but the old MBP is for writing papers and presentation. Apple's apps like Pages, keynote and safari run well in the old MBP, Even light vidio editing can work.

On the otherhand, I'm working at ther limit of what my M2-Pro 16/512 can do but I'm doing robotics and AI. I think a Mac Studio is my next computer, Perhaps an M5?

 

[MBAir2010]

I’m not sure I get it but perhaps you laid it out in detail above and I missed it. Aside from windows and 32 bit software, why would a 2012 machine be any better than an m1? It’s certainly not my experience in daily use. Sure, I miss being able to upgrade the components, but that’s not something I do daily, just once or twice when necessary.

Well the minor annoying problems is not with the Macbook air M1 and mini, but the Home speaker set up
i found this out this morning by performing some test advised by a mac guru i know, bless their soul!

anyways the older macs seem to run great with some limits and i'm happy to use both eras.

many rejoicing and salutations!

 

[MBAir2010]

Above all, stop giving this enshattified company your money.

Hallelujah!​