M1 Pro/Max owners: Are you upgrading to M3 or staying put?

[mactinkerlover]

We get 7 years of iOS/iPad OS updates as a general rule. Apple publicly acknowledges that people keep Macs longer than iPhones/iPads, so the implied strategy is they can extend feature-macOS releases beyond 7 years since they transitioned to Apple Silicon.

Yes. Except for the a10 and a11 iPhones that only got 5-6 years, which is extremely impressive in the smartphone world. I have a feeling a12 is going to be the cutoff for at least one more year in iOS land.

Apple knows they made the M1 too good so cutting off support after 5-6 years will be a great way to force people to upgrade.

Also, we must remember that M1 is the first and apple always short shippers first gen products.(granted, I know it’s not the first gen of apple silicon technically, but it’s the first gen of AS macs.)

Of course these are just my opinions and speculations based on what I’ve seen in the past and what we know now. We’ll have to wait a few years and see what happens.

 

[mactinkerlover]

My Early 2015 Broadwell 13 in MacBook Pro originally came with OS X Yosemite (10.10) and last supported release was Monterrey and I expect to get two additional years of support, 2023 being the last year. So, thats 8 releases of macOS which includes the one it came with. That's 9 years of support.

Considering the pace of innovation in desktop operating systems has kinda slowed, Apple could go beyond 10 years supporting Apple Silicon Macs. But we all know they will implement some for of planned obsolescence. I would say to them, its better to have more Macs out there to sell services to, whether thats online or physical repair services. Grow the user base and use it as a way to differentiate from the Windows PC.

But with AI becoming the new 'it' thing, Apple is likely gonna introduce functionality in future macOS releases that are just not possible on Apple silicon Macs built between 2020 and 2025.

Yes, the macs get typically 7-8 years of support, and I expect the trend will probably continue for M3 and up.

I’m concerned for M1 and less so M2 because M1 is a kind of a first gen and apple has a tendency to cut support early for first gen products. Also, apple knows they made M1 too good so cutting support at 5-6 years will be a great way to force users to upgrade sooner.

Of course, these are just my opinions and speculations and I could be wrong, but I guess we’ll wait a few years and see what happens.

P.S. M1 Max 16 in user who plans to keep the machine for at least another couple years.

 

[Backtothemac]

how did you sell it for 1900 when you can get it at store for under 1500? I ordered the M3 Max 14" for around $3,000 so it's kinda hard to spend that same cash on a Mac that has like half the power. I also have the 16" M1 but too big.

M1 16" Pro with 16GB and 512 SSD for under 1500??? HOW?

 

[NeonNights]

M1 16" Pro with 16GB and 512 SSD for under 1500??? HOW?

Edit: sorry, that's a 14".

Adorama is selling a 32GB/512GB M1 Pro for $1499, free shipping.

Apple MacBook Pro: M1 Pro 8-Core, 14.2" Liquid Retina XDR, 32GB RAM, 512GB SSD $1499 + Free Shipping

Adorama has Apple 14" MacBook Pro Laptop (Silver, 2021, Z15J0021W) on sale for $1899 - $400 off with coupon code APINSIDER = $1499. Shipping is free. Note, temporarily on backorder ...

slickdeals.net

 

[NeonNights]

...but some MicroCenters do have pre-owned 16" 16GB/512GB for $1349

Apple Certified pre-owned MacBook Pro 16” (M1 Pro, 16GB memory, 512GB SSD) in-store pickup only at Micro Center $1349.99

Apple M1 Pro 10-Core Chip 16GB Unified Memory Apple M1 Pro Chip 16-Core GPU 512GB SSD 16.2" Liquid Retina XDR Display https://www.microcenter.com/product/669383/apple-macbook-pro-mk183ll-a ...

slickdeals.net

Or 16" M1 Max 64GB/1TB for $1999

Refurb MacBook Pro 16” M1 Max 64gb 1Tb SSD (Microcenter In Store Only) YMMV - $1999.99

Previous popular deal was around 2199 for 32gb so this one 64gb for less 1999.99 seems like a pretty good deal. It's the top spec except Storage. 32 core GPU. 64GB Ram. but only 1TB it's my firs ...

slickdeals.net

 

[Backtothemac]

...but some MicroCenters do have pre-owned 16" 16GB/512GB for $1349

Apple Certified pre-owned MacBook Pro 16” (M1 Pro, 16GB memory, 512GB SSD) in-store pickup only at Micro Center $1349.99

Apple M1 Pro 10-Core Chip 16GB Unified Memory Apple M1 Pro Chip 16-Core GPU 512GB SSD 16.2" Liquid Retina XDR Display https://www.microcenter.com/product/669383/apple-macbook-pro-mk183ll-a ...

slickdeals.net

Or 16" M1 Max 64GB/1TB for $1999

Refurb MacBook Pro 16” M1 Max 64gb 1Tb SSD (Microcenter In Store Only) YMMV - $1999.99

Previous popular deal was around 2199 for 32gb so this one 64gb for less 1999.99 seems like a pretty good deal. It's the top spec except Storage. 32 core GPU. 64GB Ram. but only 1TB it's my firs ...

slickdeals.net

I guess I did pretty good LOL. It did have AppleCare on it for two more years. Sold it to a customer, so they know how I care for my machines.

 

[Lucas Curious]

I guess I did pretty good LOL. It did have AppleCare on it for two more years. Sold it to a customer, so they know how I care for my machines.

you sure made a good sale. what a sucker. Best Buy offers $800 for trade-in on that model.

 

[Backtothemac]

you sure made a good sale. what a sucker. Best Buy offers $800 for trade-in on that model.

That isn't indicative of the value of the computer. That is a $2400 computer with a $400 Apple care that is less than six months old. I did a good deal, but it wasn't out of line. Apple has it at $1839 without Apple Care and I sold it for $1850. Rounded to $1900. They got a solid, barely uses system. Only had 11 charge cycles on it. The micro center deal is a good deal, but no we don't have one within five hundred miles of where we live.

 

[NeonNights]

That isn't indicative of the value of the computer. That is a $2400 computer with a $400 Apple care that is less than six months old. I did a good deal, but it wasn't out of line. Apple has it at $1839 without Apple Care and I sold it for $1850. Rounded to $1900. They got a solid, barely uses system. Only had 11 charge cycles on it. The micro center deal is a good deal, but no we don't have one within five hundred miles of where we live.

11 charge cycles in under 6 months is pretty good. I'm trying to sell my less than 4-month-old 16" M1 Max with 10 charge cycles on the battery.

Macrumors member was interested but changed their mind, which is absolutely fine. I just listed the MBP 16 on Swappa and will see how that goes. If no takers then also fine as it's one helluva machine and it won't be the worst thing in the world to keep it. The original plan was to keep it 10 years and I'm a little shocked at myself for being so easily tempted by the new Space Black M3 Max. If I do sell the 16" M1 Max then I might go down in size to the 14" M3 Max. Right now I connect the 16" to a 4K 43" TV anyways and prefer the portability of the 14" when undocked.

 

[BigJohno]

I am still on the fence but leaning towards no. I have less than 100 cycles on my 14” and 16” M1 Pros and they’re already extremely fast for everything that I do.

I know there are a lot of post before mine but Ill throw in my 2 cents. I purchased a M1 Max Studio in January for my office. Love it to death. I still kept my 2019 MBP i9 since I work as a photographer and need to tether to it on location. I saw that B&H was having a sale on M1 Max 64gb 2tb MBP + an open box model with an additional 8% off. I jumped on it and it arrived today. I couldn't be happier and for only $2300 that seemed like a pretty good deal. I'm happy waiting until m5 or 6 to think about upgrading. Apple made too good of a computer.

 

[loby]

Yes. Except for the a10 and a11 iPhones that only got 5-6 years, which is extremely impressive in the smartphone world. I have a feeling a12 is going to be the cutoff for at least one more year in iOS land.

Apple knows they made the M1 too good so cutting off support after 5-6 years will be a great way to force people to upgrade.

Also, we must remember that M1 is the first and apple always short shippers first gen products.(granted, I know it’s not the first gen of apple silicon technically, but it’s the first gen of AS macs.)

Of course these are just my opinions and speculations based on what I’ve seen in the past and what we know now. We’ll have to wait a few years and see what happens.

don't say "too good". Apple could cripple it with a firmware update. It was the first power Mac with Silicon and they wanted to make an impression. They did. Let's keep the M1 "good" for a long time. Apple knows that those who buy M1 will eventually buy another M+ sometime. Only "some" will hold it for many years. Older users tend to do, so Apple give older loyal users a break and don't cripple M1 so we have to update.

 

[Chiswickian]

Sold my 16" M1 Pro for $1900. Just ordered the M1 Max 64GB 4TB 32-Core 16" from B&H. Got it for $2999. That is a lot of computer, a lot of storage and a lot of ram that should last me years to come. Not impressed with the 14" Pro M3 11 core. So it is going back to Best Buy.

What was it in particular that you didn't like with the 14" Pro M3 11-core? What we you trying to do with it. I'm more a photographer than videographer and watching ArtisRight analysis on youtube, it looks like for some reason the 11-core often outperforms the 12-core version. Still, keen to hear your detailed thoughts on the M3 Pro 11-core and where it fell short. I'm sure the M1 Max you've ordered will be amazing of course.

 

[Backtothemac]

11 charge cycles in under 6 months is pretty good. I'm trying to sell my less than 4-month-old 16" M1 Max with 10 charge cycles on the battery.

Macrumors member was interested but changed their mind, which is absolutely fine. I just listed the MBP 16 on Swappa and will see how that goes. If no takers then also fine as it's one helluva machine and I won't be heartbroken if forced to keep it. The original plan was to keep it 10 years and I'm a little shocked at myself for being so easily tempted by the new Space Black M3 Max. If I do sell the 16" M1 Max then I might go down in size to the 14" M3 Max. Right now I connect the 16" to a 4K 43" TV anyways and prefer the portability of the 14" when undocked.

Honestly, I would stay with the M1 Max unless you are doing serious editing work. It is faster, but is 10 minutes for a task vs 13 minutes just isn't worth it to me.

 

[Backtothemac]

What was it in particular that you didn't like with the 14" Pro M3 11-core? What we you trying to do with it. I'm more a photographer than videographer and watching ArtisRight analysis on youtube, it looks like for some reason the 11-core often outperforms the 12-core version. Still, keen to hear your detailed thoughts on the M3 Pro 11-core and where it fell short. I'm sure the M1 Max you've ordered will be amazing of course.

Here is the thing, we all get drawn in with the new color and the faster performance. I had the 16 M1 Pro with 512GB and 16GB. I do light editing, and office tasks, so for me there was no reason to go to the M3 Pro. I wanted to downsize, or so I thought. I consume a lot of media on this machine when I am traveling and the screen size was just to small. I came to the realization that ram and storage is more important than a percentage of increase in speed. My time is valuable, but not that valuable LOL. I would rather have all my files when I need them than managing space. Knowing that I have a 4TB drive is just so relieving. I can't explain it. Same with the 64GB of Ram. Paying $100 more and going from M3 Pro 12 Core CPU 18 Core GPU with 36GB Ram and 512GB Storage to M1 Max 10 Core CPU 32 Core GPU 64GB of Ram and 4TB of Storage was just a no brainer for me. I haven't been able to find a video comparing the M1 Max 32 Core to the M3 Pro. That is the video that I want to see, but I cannot imagine that the performance is going to be that much different. I think the M3 is a wonderful device. I love the Space Black. I have a Dark Knight Secret Labs desk and it just looks so good on it!!!! At the end of the day it was a value proposition for me. I thought I wanted 14" so I sold my 16" and got the M3 14, but alas, I really miss the 16....

 

[Beau10]

you sure made a good sale. what a sucker. Best Buy offers $800 for trade-in on that model.

FWIW, Apple just did a trade-in of $905 for my 14" base M1, which by Swappa's standards would be in "fair" condition and sell for about the same price in their market.

I recall they offered $600 when the M2 Pros were released. So if you were turned off by Apple giving miserly trade-in values in the past it's worth checking again.

 

[Andain]

I was lucky enough to basically "steal" a M1 Pro 14" (but the upgraded 10 core, the 2 extra performance cores) along with the 1TB off eBay for $1500. That was a $2400 computer, tax not considered, just 9 months before, so yeah I am happy. The computer was still within the 1 year apple warranty and 20 battery cycles, immaculate condition.

I am very happy with it, especially the battery, for light/office work/browser, lots of light apps open "study on campus mode", after almost 6 hours I was down to only 66%, absolutely love it. I am sure in time and with OS updates it will go down lower. I basically wanted a MacBook Air Pro and that's exactly what I got.

Apple is offering me $1050 for trade-in for my config, and the EDU discount gets if you off the M3 Max $300 from the get go (plus extra small discounts for ram/ssd upgrades) which made me consider it or a couple of days. But even with all those things together, I would still have to take out around $3200 out of my pocket for the config I wanted. It's mid-2020s, I want 64 gigs of RAM and (at least) 2TB for the full out M3 Max. Also run Windows 11 through Parallels daily. Ultimately it wasn't worth it for maaybe 30% increase (and that in certain scenarios).

Will definitely upgrade when Thunderbolt 5 kicks in with even better monitor support, even better battery life (even for the big gpu models) and a decent config for $4000 tops. So I assume around M5/6.

But congrats to anyone who made the jump already.

 

[NeonNights]

Honestly, I would stay with the M1 Max unless you are doing serious editing work. It is faster, but is 10 minutes for a task vs 13 minutes just isn't worth it to me.

I only do some light photo/video editing, run a Windows VM occasionally, and do some app development...all manageable with my previous M1 Air with 16GB. The M1 Max was 3x faster than the M1 Air when it came to DxO PhotoLab DeepPrime exports. The 64GB and 4TB will definitely last me a long time as I'm not really pushing the M1 Max at all.

I am really fine either way, keeping the M1 Max 64GB/4TB or finding a buyer for it and downsizing to a 14" base M3 Max with 36GB/1TB (maybe upgrade to 2TB). I have some Apple credit to burn and it will be nice to go back to a lighter MacBook Pro. The 16" isn't that bad to carry around the house. It's really a toss-up and I'm fine one way or another, not in any rush to make a move. Maybe with time the urge to splurge will wear off.

 

[lovehateapple]

I have no need for a new computer right now. My M1 MBP still has lots of life left in it. It's silly to upgrade every time apple releases the next generation of one of its machines unless the prior generation can't do something you need it to.

 

[nbjustforfun]

I am still on the fence but leaning towards no. I have less than 100 cycles on my 14” and 16” M1 Pros and they’re already extremely fast for everything that I do.

I heard the M3 max screams with MS Office apps! Kidding…don’t waste ur money. If u have to ask u don’t need it. Apple sucks people into the feeling of obsolescence with their previous devices. Don’t get scammed.

 

[Eric_WVGG]

I just upgraded from a 16gb 16" M1 Pro to a 32gb 16" M3 Max

The M1 Pro was perfect for what I was doing two years ago — basically light web dev. Now I'm on a project that requires about six Docker containers and some typescript schemas that made the M1 c-r-a-w-l while I was trying to type.

A bump like this isn't necessary for most folks — by far — but when you need it, you need it.

=======

Oh, one other thing — my M1 display looked like complete sh*t. Every MacBook I've had over the past twenty years has developed stains and scuff marks from the keyboard rubbing against the screen while in my bag. This drove me particularly crazy on the M1, maybe because the blacks are so good that the crud was even more visible.

Anyway, it turns out that the Mini LED that makes those blacks possible is delicate — I got two yellow marks on my screen from trying to clean the damned thing. Looking at it was driving me insane.

This time around, I got a tempered glass screen protector. It makes the the screen a bit visibly glossier and more reflective than stock, but it closes just fine. I anticipate replacing it about once every six months as the inevitable scuffs accumulate.

Spigen Tempered Glass Screen Protector [GlasTR Slim] Designed for MacBook Pro 16 inch (M3 / M3 Pro / M3 Max / M2 Pro / M2 Max / M1 Pro / M1 Max) [9H Hardness]

The GLAS.tR Slim⢠is the ultimate solution for screen defense with case compatibility. Its tempered glass features 9H hardness to handle everyday scratches. Its oleophobic coating ensures the surface to remain fingerprint-free, touch-responsive and clear just as its original screen. Shield the ...

www.amazon.com

 

[fromgophonetoiphone]

Trying to decide right now. M1 Pro => M3 Pro.

No the upgrade isn't because I need it. It's more that I'm thinking of passing my parents the M1 Pro. They're using a 10+ year old laptop. It's really disgusting and just putting the screen side by side I don't know how my mom is able to even read the screen. It's an eyestrain.

I could buy her a cheaper machine like an Air, or I could just pass her my M1 Pro. As long as she takes care of it, it could easily last her 10 years. But for myself I'm a little curious what going M1 Pro => M3 Pro results in.

 

[King_Kai]

For me, it's a hard pass. The M3 isn't ground breaking enough for me to move towards. I bought my baseline M1 Pro 18 months ago and I just hit 63 cycles and have a 97% capacity.....so I'm good for a while. I'm more interested in what's on the horizon for iPad Pro and the M3 MacBook Air. I need to upgrade my wife's M1 Touch Bar MacBook Pro to something more practical and up to date.

 

[lclev]

Trying to decide right now. M1 Pro => M3 Pro.

No the upgrade isn't because I need it. It's more that I'm thinking of passing my parents the M1 Pro. They're using a 10+ year old laptop. It's really disgusting and just putting the screen side by side I don't know how my mom is able to even read the screen. It's an eyestrain.

I could buy her a cheaper machine like an Air, or I could just pass her my M1 Pro. As long as she takes care of it, it could easily last her 10 years. But for myself I'm a little curious what going M1 Pro => M3 Pro results in.

I went from an M1 Max to an M3 Max. I also had someone I wanted to pass the M1 on to. The jump in performance was not that great. I create videos and I did not notice any big difference in encoding time. I guess it depends on how much you want to spend. Your mom will definitely notice a huge jump in performance over her current computer.

 

[ilikewhey]

Trying to decide right now. M1 Pro => M3 Pro.

No the upgrade isn't because I need it. It's more that I'm thinking of passing my parents the M1 Pro. They're using a 10+ year old laptop. It's really disgusting and just putting the screen side by side I don't know how my mom is able to even read the screen. It's an eyestrain.

I could buy her a cheaper machine like an Air, or I could just pass her my M1 Pro. As long as she takes care of it, it could easily last her 10 years. But for myself I'm a little curious what going M1 Pro => M3 Pro results in.

you will see a improvement in battery, and a bit faster in rendering and codex type of stuff, thats about it from what I seen.

 

[pshufd]

I usually keep new MacBooks for 7 years as my primary. I sized my M1 Pro to be good for at least 5-7 years. I do not have a good alternate use for this if I bought another one and this current one meets current and anticipated needs. The M3 Pro is interesting as it has more efficiency cores for more battery life but battery life on my M1 Pro is great as it is. My CPU performance requirements are met by the base M1 CPUs. I got the M1 Pro for the RAM options, ports and larger screen. So faster CPUs aren't a selling point to me while efficiency is.

Things that would get me to upgrade in the near term: 17+ inch screen, 4k resolution instead of the funky Apple resolutions, a USB-A port, getting rid of the notch. The laptop is near-perfect as is.