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I'm about to buy a rMacBook Pro 15, but some questions before

Dgrohl

Dgrohl

macrumors member
Original poster
Jan 15, 2016
46
13
Hi everyone, I'm new here and I'm glad to have found this forum.

I'm planning to buy a refurbished rMBP 15, the top of the line, I mean, the one with discrete GPU, but I've a couple of doubts that I'd like to resolve before making any move on this topic.

¿There are hardware issues with this model? I come from a theorythecally "premium pc" but its performance was awful due its design problems, freezing apps like Blender or Premiere, or kicking off the fans without use.

And, with a bunch of rumors and with the the buyer's guide advice in mind...what would you do considering that at the moment, I haven't got computer?
 
TBH unless you absolutely need the descrite GPU I wouldn't even bother getting it imo. Integrated GPU's aren't as poor as they used to be and can handle themselves quite well compared to them a few years ago.
 
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Closingracer said:
TBH unless you absolutely need the descrite GPU I wouldn't even bother getting it imo. Integrated GPU's aren't as poor as they used to be and can handle themselves quite well compared to them a few years ago.
Click to expand...

I'll be using Unity3D, Photoshop, Final Cut, Premiere, After Effects and Blender or 3DS mostly...do you think that Intel Iris will be ok handling that kind of apps? I'm not going to render Toy Story 5, but I want it to be my principal computer for the next years.

Thanks!
[doublepost=1452847363][/doublepost]
PKBeam said:
the iris pro 580 actually beats the current 15" dGPU in performance, so that gives you an idea of where iGPUs are at.
Click to expand...

Oh, I didn't knew that, but then, you think that I should wait until Apple release their next MacBook? But I can't wait until June or May...
 
PKBeam said:
the iris pro 580 actually beats the current 15" dGPU in performance, so that gives you an idea of where iGPUs are at.
Click to expand...


Really that much better then the AMD gpu? shocking lol. As a gamer I would never use integrated graphics on my windows laptop but that sounds great for the tech though considering Intel integrated cpu wasn't that great before.
[doublepost=1452847475][/doublepost]
Dgrohl said:
I'll be using Unity3D, Photoshop, Final Cut, Premiere, After Effects and Blender or 3DS mostly...do you think that Intel Iris will be ok handling that kind of apps? I'm not going to render Toy Story 5, but I want it to be my principal computer for the next years.

Thanks!
[doublepost=1452847363][/doublepost]

Oh, I didn't knew that, but then, you think that I should wait until Apple release their next MacBook? But I can't wait until June or May...
Click to expand...


I am not that knowledgable about those programs enough to tell you a definite answer but I would say you'll do fine with the iris pro graphics and invest into 16GB of RAM and 515GB SSD or perhaps the 1TB
 
Sauce.
15" dGPU is R9 M370X. Skylake GT4e actually beats it by quite a bit (16% faster), along with GTX 750.
Dgrohl said:
Oh, I didn't knew that, but then, you think that I should wait until Apple release their next MacBook? But I can't wait until June or May...
Click to expand...
You can still get the 15" now - the iris pro 5200 used in the broadwell CPUs are about 20% slower than the dGPU. I'm not quite sure about RAM (I think its 1.5 GB vs 2 GB) but I think you can still get along with an iGPU.
 
PKBeam said:
Sauce.
15" dGPU is R9 M370X. Skylake GT4e actually beats it by quite a bit (16% faster), along with GTX 750.

You can still get the 15" now - the iris pro 5200 used in the broadwell CPUs are about 20% slower than the dGPU. I'm not quite sure about RAM but I think you can still get along with an iGPU.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply, now and this is a more personal question. Do you think the Skylake models will be with us on March, or it's likely to be launched on May-June?
 
Dgrohl said:
Thanks for your reply, now and this is a more personal question. Do you think the Skylake models will be with us on March, or it's likely to be launched on May-June?
Click to expand...
if you check the skylake MBP thread most people are split between march and june.
it depends on when Intel releases the 580. we know it exists because of skull canyon but as for the CPUs, we're in the dark. they might announce it during GDC 2016 at march but we really don't have a way of knowing for sure.
 
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The 2015's dGPU throttles. lol

The 2014's dGPU doesn't.

They have the same RAM, CPU, everything else.

A refurb 2014 would be a better buy.
 
emilioestevez said:
The 2015's dGPU throttles. lol

The 2014's dGPU doesn't.

They have the same RAM, CPU, everything else.

A refurb 2014 would be a better buy.
Click to expand...

But the 2014 hasn't got the new trackpad, and the 750M is slower than the AMD. How bad is the AMD? And in what sittuations does it throttles?
 
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emilioestevez said:
The 2015's dGPU throttles. lol

The 2014's dGPU doesn't.

They have the same RAM, CPU, everything else.

A refurb 2014 would be a better buy.
Click to expand...

In terms of value down the road, if the OP decides to sell it in a few years, the 2015 is a better buy. I was in the same boat myself and it was the same price to buy the 2015 or 2014 model new.

OP you can find open box units at BestBuy for like $2100 (or less). Use 10% movers coupon and you have a great deal. I paid back in November about $1950 for mine.
 
Dgrohl said:
Hi everyone, I'm new here and I'm glad to have found this forum.

I'm planning to buy a refurbished rMBP 15, the top of the line, I mean, the one with discrete GPU, but I've a couple of doubts that I'd like to resolve before making any move on this topic.

¿There are hardware issues with this model? I come from a theorythecally "premium pc" but its performance was awful due its design problems, freezing apps like Blender or Premiere, or kicking off the fans without use.

And, with a bunch of rumors and with the the buyer's guide advice in mind...what would you do considering that at the moment, I haven't got computer?
Click to expand...
[doublepost=1453079730][/doublepost]i was in the exact same boat as you about a month ago. Highly recommend you buy off someone who promises you can return it if you are not satisfied.
i bought 3 refurbed rMBP 15" since xmas 2015, and in the 2 or 3 weeks since i've returned all three. Ghosting, image retention, discoloured and faulty displays were all i got, so i returned them all. there are a load of 2012 / 2013 rMBP for sale all over the net, and no you know why.
2012 / 2013 rMBP were the subject (apparerently) of a class action lawsuit - search for that if you've not seen it,
- it seems the screen is either made by LG or Samsung.. the LG ones were prone to failure or something, either way,
there are several problems with the early rMBP. the LG screened rMBP were the most troublesome, Samsung less so. most dealers or users don't (or won't) know, there is a command you can enter into the terminal to find out, but of course, you need the rMBP in front of you first :(
Strangely some 2012 / 2013 rMBP were fine .. i got three in a row in one month that were faulty, in such a small sample size it put me off. i personally dont think the hi res retina display is a must have, reports on some websites tell tales of one person who had seven in a row... he had more patience, and luck than I have. Its a gamble. Good luck.
 
Dgrohl said:
Do you think the Skylake models will be with us on March, or it's likely to be launched on May-June?
Click to expand...

My guess is June, the rumored March event will be probably for other things. Apple has had other early spring events, and I believe its been a very rare occurrence for them to include new laptops.
 
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maflynn said:
My guess is June, the rumored March event will be probably for other things. Apple has had other early spring events, and I believe its been a very rare occurrence for them to include new laptops.
Click to expand...
In the Skylake waiting thread, some people has seen info about MacBooks (or not) with Skylake processors. Are you still thinking on June for the release date?
[doublepost=1453122854][/doublepost]
mark/uk said:
[doublepost=1453079730][/doublepost]i was in the exact same boat as you about a month ago. Highly recommend you buy off someone who promises you can return it if you are not satisfied.
i bought 3 refurbed rMBP 15" since xmas 2015, and in the 2 or 3 weeks since i've returned all three. Ghosting, image retention, discoloured and faulty displays were all i got, so i returned them all. there are a load of 2012 / 2013 rMBP for sale all over the net, and no you know why.
2012 / 2013 rMBP were the subject (apparerently) of a class action lawsuit - search for that if you've not seen it,
- it seems the screen is either made by LG or Samsung.. the LG ones were prone to failure or something, either way,
there are several problems with the early rMBP. the LG screened rMBP were the most troublesome, Samsung less so. most dealers or users don't (or won't) know, there is a command you can enter into the terminal to find out, but of course, you need the rMBP in front of you first :(
Strangely some 2012 / 2013 rMBP were fine .. i got three in a row in one month that were faulty, in such a small sample size it put me off. i personally dont think the hi res retina display is a must have, reports on some websites tell tales of one person who had seven in a row... he had more patience, and luck than I have. Its a gamble. Good luck.
Click to expand...

If I do it, I'll buy the 2015, but thanks for your experience, it has to be awful paying so much for a laptop and receive a faulty unit over and over again.
 
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