I need your advice, share your .2 cents

[touchbearr]

Hi guys, long time lurker here. I bought my first mac a year ago (MBP 13" early 2015 base model) and it is the best piece of tech I ever had. It was a test drive and now I am selling it because RAM and STORAGE are not enough and I would love to fully commit to the mac and buy a:

- MBP 13" 2016 no touchbar (base model with upgraded 16gb ram & 512gb ssd)

Would this be enough for me CPU wise if the last years model was enough (besides for ram and storage) and would the iGPU be able to run smoothly while hooked up on a 4k or 5k display? It would cost me around 2k and I would love to use it a couple of years. (I usually have 30 chrome tabs, mail, skype, music, adobe CC, VMs open)

 

[JohnnyGo]

Hi guys, long time lurker here. I bought my first mac a year ago (MBP 13" early 2015 base model) and it is the best piece of tech I ever had. It was a test drive and now I am selling it because RAM and STORAGE are not enough and I would love to fully commit to the mac and buy a:

- MBP 13" 2016 no touchbar (base model with upgraded 16gb ram & 512gb ssd)

Would this be enough for me CPU wise if the last years model was enough (besides for ram and storage) and would the iGPU be able to run smoothly while hooked up on a 4k or 5k display? It would cost me around 2k and I would love to use it a couple of years. (I usually have 30 chrome tabs, mail, skype, music, adobe CC, VMs open)

If you need the RAM go for it. The TB version would give you better iGPU vs nonTB for adobe CC and external displays.

 

[tbobmccoy]

Hi guys, long time lurker here. I bought my first mac a year ago (MBP 13" early 2015 base model) and it is the best piece of tech I ever had. It was a test drive and now I am selling it because RAM and STORAGE are not enough and I would love to fully commit to the mac and buy a:

- MBP 13" 2016 no touchbar (base model with upgraded 16gb ram & 512gb ssd)

Would this be enough for me CPU wise if the last years model was enough (besides for ram and storage) and would the iGPU be able to run smoothly while hooked up on a 4k or 5k display? It would cost me around 2k and I would love to use it a couple of years. (I usually have 30 chrome tabs, mail, skype, music, adobe CC, VMs open)

I'd vote on not upgrading right now. The difference won't be enough for it to matter for you right now.

I'm only upgrading now from my mid 2009 MBP. Save the money and keep the 13" you've got. In a few years, it'll be a better upgrade.

 

[aevan]

I'd vote on not upgrading right now. The difference won't be enough for it to matter for you right now.

I'm only upgrading now from my mid 2009 MBP. Save the money and keep the 13" you've got. In a few years, it'll be a better upgrade.

And in even more few years, it'll be even better! He should, actually, never upgrade!

Honestly, computer upgrades are incremental, and there is no mythical future-proof super-upgrade coming next year or the the one after that. Since he clearly needs more space and RAM now is a good time to upgrade and get a brand new design that will remain unchanged for some time. In fact, it's a perfect time to upgrade.

 

[deliriumxy]

2015 model is still very recent. You mention RAM and storage have reached maximum. Still, if you also value battery life, it may be worth waiting a year. Bloomberg reports Apple rushed the battery on this iteration for the Holiday shopping season. Apple couldn't implement the new battery technology on time, and reverted to the old design. That's why people are reporting battery life far south of 10 hours.

I don't think you're going to notice a great difference in CPU speeds between 2015 and 2016 models, though.