Let's talk about Intel MacBook Pro and buying them in 2025

[rafark]

TLDR: I think there are still plenty of life left with Intel Mac and if one is looking to purchase an Mac on a budget, Intel MacBook Pros are still offers values that can't be matched by Apple Silicon Macs.

So the writing is on the wall now, macOS Tahoe is the last release for Intel and Apple is done with Intel. Whether or not this is good thing or if Apple dropped Intel too soon, it is up to debate and I don't think there will ever be agreement. So this left two questions:

1. Should Intel MacBook Pro users abandon ship and upgrade.
2. Should anyone purchase Intel MacBook right now.

I have every generation of Intel MacBook Pro from 2009 with exception of 2018 and 2020 version. For Apple Silicon Macs, I have M1 MacBook Pro, M1 MacBook Air, M2 MacBook Air, M1, M2 and M3 Mac mini. So I have plenty experiences with Intel Mac and Apple Silicon Macs.

So let's talk about the two questions, at least in my opinion:

1. Should Intel MacBook Pro users abandon ship and upgrade?

The short answer is yes, if you have the budgets. Apple Silicon MacBook Pro offers better performance than Intel MacBooks and it runs much cooler, battery life is certainly better than Intel MacBook Pro.

But it doesn't mean that every Intel MacBook Pro users should just throw their MacBook Pro and shell out for Apple Silicon MacBook Pros. I am typing this on an 2017 MacBook Pro 15" with Core i7 Processor, 16GB of RAM, 500GB of SSD, brand new battery for little over $250USD. I am able to install macOS Sequoia with OCLP, run BlackMagic davinci resolve for video editing, doing office work, enjoying movies or TV shows without any issues.

In opinion, for Intel MacBook Pro users, if don't need the most updated Mac or your workflow is fine with Intel MacBook Pro, I don't think upgrading Apple Silicon Mac would dramatically improve your experience in meaningful manner (maybe battery life is better). But if you have the budget and/or your workflow requires more powerful hardwares, then by all means upgrade.

Let's talk about support.

I have macOS Sequoia installed on all MacBook Pro from 2013 onwards. I can honestly say, Sequoia runs perfectly fine. This is meanly due to insignificant performance uplifting from Intel's Haswell to Coffee Lake processor. OCLP is very straight forward and requires very minimum amount of maintaining. So for most Intel MacBook Pro users (expect 2019 16" and 13" wth four Thunderbolt ports), there are two more years of software support.

2. Should anyone purchase Intel Macs

Lots of people in this forum or reddit think purchasing Intel Mac in 2025 is not a good idea and they are probably have point. M1 MacBook Air or M1 MacBook Pros have became cheaper in 2025 and some 16" M1 MacBook Pro are less than $1000 USD on eBay. You would be right, for the same amount of money, you should choose Apple Silicon MacBook over Intel.

But it doesn't mean Intel MacBook Pro aren't worth to purchase. Depends on your usage, some 2016-2018 MacBook Pro were selling less than $300 and for regular users, these laptop are sufficient enough for everyday usage.

Intel MacBook Pros also provides more flexibility than Apple Silicon MacBook Pros. Older Intel MacBooks from Retina generations to TouchBar generation, are all compatible with EFI. So installing Windows on these machine is pretty easy. Booting of Linux distribution is also possible. So these machines are cheap enough for kids, regular people who are not need lots of computing needs, or simply looking for a cheap Mac.

But keep in mind, no-one should go buy Unibody MacBook Pros (2009-2012, non-retina), as these machines are very old. Sonoma and Sequoia aren't work well with these machines.

So, as most people in this forum are transition away from Intel MacBook Pros, I still hold on lots of my Intel MacBook Pros. I think there are lots of usefulness and you can do lot with these Intel MacBook Pros.

Intel Macs are awful to buy at this point, let alone for half a thousand dollars or more. Also, I don’t want to sound rude but it doesn’t seem like you’re telling the truth. Someone who has that many macs including all those Apple silicone macs as you claim wouldn’t be justifying their intel MacBook purchase with the excuse of being on a budget. Intel macs are deprecated and there’s no reason to buy one with m1’s being so cheap. I purchased an almost brand new m1 air with 100% battery for about $350 back in January.
The only valid reason I could think of is if you’re a collector.

 

[uacd]

I am able to install macOS Sequoia with OCLP, run BlackMagic davinci resolve for video editing, doing office work, enjoying movies or TV shows without any issues.

So, basically you had already answered your question: if it works for you, it works. Do not overcomplicate. I bet you paid more than 2k for this machine when it was new. Why change stuff? Your Mac is probably more powerful than some 2020 Intel models (because Intel so obviously SUCKS). After 2012 Intel processors were mostly copypasta with minor changes, upgrade from 2015 to 2019 model offered very so slight speed boosts.

. So installing Windows on these machine is pretty easy

Yeah, probably the one and only advantage of these machines: you can install native Windows and have universe of apps and games, legacy or not.

But keep in mind, no-one should go buy Unibody MacBook Pros (2009-2012, non-retina), as these machines are very old. Sonoma and Sequoia aren't work well with these machines.

I don’t think it is very true, at least for 2012 models. They are awesome machines if battery works. They have lots of ports, work nicely and can still have latest browser version on macOS or Windows which is installed. And I judge machine’s usefulness literally by the ability to install modern browser. Yeah. Browser is everything nowadays. It definitely won’t be much useful for DaVinci color grading and stuff, but you still can edit fun videos in iMovie or old Final Cut versions. I bet for music producers it will still be more than adequate. For watching movies it will suffice as well.

I have iMac 2012 and honestly, while it still has Catalina installed (didn’t even bother with this OCLP stuff, what is the point?? More lags and bugs?), it still works very good for any task thrown at it. I even installed Logic just for fun and it works great with my Launchpad MK3, fun for occasional beatmaking.


In fact, I would stay firm by my beliefs that no one should buy Intel in 2025 unless for very cheap. But most ARM models can already be purchased for much cheaper than those were initially sold, so maybe there isn’t much need for going even cheaper than that, considering you can get new device vs used one

 

[uacd]

You might want to do some clean installation on MacOS and cleaning inside of your computer.

Oh, I forgot to add.

Year 2020 offered a huge leap in terms of device longevity.

ARM processors are 3x cooler than Intel and it is a gamechanger. All Macbook Air models are now fanless. Some hate it but I would not buy any laptop with fan again in my life. I love that I can use this laptop as if it was an iPhone or iPad. I don’t even care if surface I am gonna put it on has cat’s fur, dust or sand since it doesn’t suck air inside.

And I guess it will be in same condition even 10-15 years from now and still won’t be overheating, unless battery goes south

 

[uacd]

In reality, there are lots people buying used iPhone XR or iPad 7th generation.

But there isn’t much fun. I have 11 Pro and already feel constrained when seeing all other people having fun with newest camera options like ProRAW, photographic styles and such.

I love that nowadays we can choose to upgrade and not do it because our current device is lagging. My phone still works lag-free, it just has no modern features.

Second, this brings license issue (as far as I know), Microsoft doesn't opening sell ARM version of Windows 11. There download link for Windows 11 ARM64, how would you go obtain license key is issue.

🏴‍☠️
Because f Microsoft and their stupid policies. They are the worst company not just in California but in whole United States. They are awful greedy bean counters whose main product is basically spyware disguised as operating system.

I get the appeal of using it for work-only and gaming. Other than that it is very bad. Creative work on it sucks, unless you are into Adobe products.

But honestly I didn’t even bother trying or cracking Windows 11 for my MBA M1, because I don’t want to stare at these stupid menus “OS updating” or “this Windows version is not genuine” EVER AGAIN.

I mean, Windows cannot even be officially installed on external SSD because of following “muh licensing issues”. Mac OS can run off external SSD or flash drive ever since Leopard or even earlier

 

[throAU]

What Intel Mac is better than a 700 buck M1 Air/Pro?
Intel Macs make sense if you still NEED windows without running a VM, apart from that they are trash.

as someone who has 4 intel macs in this room with me right now... 100% true

 

[throAU]

Probably. 8GB is just as not future proofing as Intel Mac.

A CPU from this decade is more future proof than an intel mac with dead end macOS and other software support.

 

[throAU]

But buying an old laptop today, at a decent savings, to run macOS for three years and then being able to continue using it safely online with Linux, is not so odd to my mind. People pay more to do less all the time.

If your end game is linux, just buy something to run linux today.

 

[familychoice]

Intel MacBooks are also going strong and performs great for basic tasks.

Interesting all these comments about Intel MBP's being 'trash', and only useful for basic tasks.

I'm basically earning a living and running a business from my 16" 16gb 2019 i7, and have been for the last 5 years. It's used for web development, graphics, email, spreadsheet work, Zoom/Teams training/meetings etc. I'm typing on it now, using the great keyboard and listening to music via the excellent speakers.

I bought a M1 Mini a few years back, and it's great, but I much prefer the portability of the MBP compared to sitting at a desk all day, so the M1 is mainly used for back-up.

I also have a 14" M4 Pro for personal music projects. It's lightning fast - obviously much faster than the Intel. But where the M4 Pro opens an application instantly, the Intel might take a few seconds. I can live with that.

But the thing is, the Intel is faster when used for my day job vs my new 14" MBP, as the bigger screen means I can have more windows visible, so there's no shuffling around like there is on the 14" (yes I can hook it up to the monitor, but that misses the point of using the laptop).

So, not trash. But, when/if this thing geets crippled by the next OS update, or the battery goes (still registering as 'normal' though) next year, I won't be replacing it with another Intel or working on the new 14", I'll see what the cheapest 16" 16gb option is M-wise, just to give me a few more years usage.

But I'm grateful for this piece of trash that's still helping to pay the bills, and keeping a roof over my family's heads.