M2 MBP vs M3 Question

[Standard]

Hi all,

Less than two months ago I purchased a brand new fully loaded 16” MBP with 4TB of storage.

I just saw the news of the new M3 and I’m kicking myself. Essentially, my new MBP has been sitting on my desk unused for the time being due to my work schedule.

Just wondering, what do you guys think my M2 would be worth? Probably has less than 50 hours on it, with full AppleCare.

Also, do you think it would even be worth it at this point to go from the M2 to the M3 if I ultimately will end up buying a desktop? I guess it’s more of a punch to the gut since it’s been sitting without being used and then I see the new ones being released which I assumed weren’t coming out until next year. Hah!

I’m curious to see if it’s worth upgrading or just keep it and get an M3 Ultra when it releases.

Thanks!

 

[Populus]

Honestly, the M2 Pro MacBook Pro is already a great machine, and I don’t think you will miss having the M3 Pro unless you really tax that CPU/GPU and put it to its limits. So, in short, I don’t think you should worry about it. Yes, the new Space Black is nicer, and the screen is a bit brighter, but other than that, don’t worry too much about that. Also, if you plan to get a desktop when the M3 or M4 desktop releases, then there’s little point in selling your current laptop to get another one you’ll soon sell.

At least, that’s my opinion.

If you had purchased an Intel MacBook or even an M2 13” MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, well, I could understand your interest in upgrading. But you have a new, terrific, awesome MacBook Pro. Enjoy it!

 

[Standard]

Honestly, the M2 Pro MacBook Pro is already a great machine, and I don’t think you will miss having the M3 Pro unless you really tax that CPU/GPU and put it to its limits. So, in short, I don’t think you should worry about it. Yes, the new Space Black is nicer, and the screen is a bit brighter, but other than that, don’t worry too much about that. Also, if you plan to get a desktop when the M3 or M4 desktop releases, then there’s little point in selling your current laptop to get another one you’ll soon sell.

At least, that’s my opinion.

If you had purchased an Intel MacBook or even an M2 13” MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, well, I could understand your interest in upgrading. But you have a new, terrific, awesome MacBook Pro. Enjoy it!

Hi there! Thank you very much for your advice.

One thing I did forget to mention is that I am pushing the machine to its limits when I use it. I purchased it for high end vfx and real time character / creature work. So the software I use ends up eating up a lot of system resources.

Just curious for those reading, what do you think I could sell this machine for? I am going to call Apple and try to plead with them for a return, but I don’t think that will pan out.

Keeping it won’t be the worst thing if I do end up getting a loaded M3 Ultra in the future.

Cheers.

 

[OrenLindsey]

I don't think going from M2 Pro to M3 Pro will solve your problems. (I, personally, think M2 Pro is better than M3 Pro actually (for multiple reasons), but that's just me.)
Even at the max, M3 Pro will only be about 10-15% faster than M2 Pro. Your best bet to get more performance is to buy an M2 Max or M3 Max machine.

 

[Standard]

I don't think going from M2 Pro to M3 Pro will solve your problems. (I, personally, think M2 Pro is better than M3 Pro actually (for multiple reasons), but that's just me.)
Even at the max, M3 Pro will only be about 10-15% faster than M2 Pro. Your best bet to get more performance is to buy an M2 Max or M3 Max machine.

That’s what I have now. A loaded 16” M2 Max and would replace with a M3 Max.

Do you think that would not be a significant upgrade ?

 

[OrenLindsey]

That’s what I have now. A loaded 16” M2 Max and would replace with a M3 Max.

Do you think that would not be a significant upgrade ?

That's a different story. The M3 Max chip is about 45% faster than M2 Max according to early testing. Some signs are saying it beats the M2 Ultra. If you're pushing the M2 Max, the M3 Max will definitely be a good upgrade.

 

[Standard]

That's a different story. The M3 Max chip is about 45% faster than M2 Max according to early testing. Some signs are saying it beats the M2 Ultra. If you're pushing the M2 Max, the M3 Max will definitely be a good upgrade.

Do you think it would be reasonable to get 5k out of my M2 Max?

 

[OrenLindsey]

Do you think it would be reasonable to get 5k out of my M2 Max?

maybe a little less, they're going on eBay for ~$4500-4750

 

[Standard]

maybe a little less, they're going on eBay for ~$4500-4750

Ok thanks a lot. I’m guessing that is USD? I’m from Canada so if so, should be in line with what I’d like to get out of it.

 

[OrenLindsey]

Ok thanks a lot. I’m guessing that is USD? I’m from Canada so if so, should be in line with what I’d like to get out of it.

yes it's USD

 

[Standard]

yes it's USD

Thanks. Do you recommend eBay for someone who’s never sold on there?

 

[OrenLindsey]

Thanks. Do you recommend eBay for someone who’s never sold on there?

Ebay is always the best place to sell used computers. You could try Facebook marketplace or craigslist, etc. but those types of sites always have weirdos and scammers. On eBay you have protection from bad buyers.
The only problem is they take a cut but that's understandable. They aren't running a charity

 

[jz0309]

Hi all,

Less than two months ago I purchased a brand new fully loaded 16” MBP with 4TB of storage.

I just saw the news of the new M3 and I’m kicking myself. Essentially, my new MBP has been sitting on my desk unused for the time being due to my work schedule.

Just wondering, what do you guys think my M2 would be worth? Probably has less than 50 hours on it, with full AppleCare.

Also, do you think it would even be worth it at this point to go from the M2 to the M3 if I ultimately will end up buying a desktop? I guess it’s more of a punch to the gut since it’s been sitting without being used and then I see the new ones being released which I assumed weren’t coming out until next year. Hah!

I’m curious to see if it’s worth upgrading or just keep it and get an M3 Ultra when it releases.

Thanks!

What does your M2 NOT do that you think the M3 WILL do?
What is relacing a 2 months old laptop with a brand new one going to change for you? Other than “losing” money?

 

[Populus]

What does your M2 NOT do that you think the M3 WILL do?
What is relacing a 2 months old laptop with a brand new one going to change for you? Other than “losing” money?

Especially if they “ultimately will end up buying a desktop”.

 

[Silencio]

What does your M2 NOT do that you think the M3 WILL do?
What is relacing a 2 months old laptop with a brand new one going to change for you? Other than “losing” money?

For OP's stated workflow of high end VFX and real time character work, and their observation that they're already maxing out their current M2 Max for this work, I expect they will see enough performance gain from the M3 Max to make it worth their while. The additional RAM (128GB vs 96GB) and improved GPU alone should make a big difference for that type of work.

Personally if I were in that situation, I'd wait for the M3 Ultra Mac Studio to come out, unless they need to be 100% portable.

 

[HDFan]

Do you recommend eBay for someone who’s never sold on there?

There have been numbers of posts of people losing all of their money with eBay scams. If you are careful and take appropriate precautions it can be relatively safe, but not risk free.

Normal PayPal is very safe if you take all the precautions. I do not send to mail drops. (UPS stores, freight forwarders etc) I look up the address in google maps and zoom all the way in to see the home. If anything feels off I cancel the transaction. I take a picture of the item outside the box and video it being packed at FedEX or UPS and then turned over to fedex. All are sent with direct signature required. I have only experienced one attempt to scam me via eBay. The waited 40 days to submit the claim that the item never arrived. After receiving the video and FedEx status showing it was delivered the dispute was resolved in my favor.

Ebay is always the best place to sell used computers.

It is a tradeoff between price, risk, and convenience. Ebay may give you a good price at the cost of some risk and inconvenience. Trading in at an Apple store sacrifices price for minimized risk and maximized convenience.

 

[OrenLindsey]

It is a tradeoff between price, risk, and convenience. Ebay may give you a good price at the cost of some risk and inconvenience. Trading in at an Apple store sacrifices price for minimized risk and maximized convenience.

It's true, but eBay has much lower risk than PayPal and such. And trading it at the Apple Store gives you peanuts compared to what you could get selling it online.

 

[ChrisA]

Hi all,

Less than two months ago I purchased a brand new fully loaded 16” MBP with 4TB of storage.

I just saw the news of the new M3 and I’m kicking myself. Essentially, my new MBP has been sitting on my desk unused for the time being due to my work schedule.

Just wondering, what do you guys think my M2 would be worth? Probably has less than 50 hours on it, with full AppleCare.

Also, do you think it would even be worth it at this point to go from the M2 to the M3 if I ultimately will end up buying a desktop? I guess it’s more of a punch to the gut since it’s been sitting without being used and then I see the new ones being released which I assumed weren’t coming out until next year. Hah!

I’m curious to see if it’s worth upgrading or just keep it and get an M3 Ultra when it releases.

Thanks!

What will you use the Macbook for (when you get around to using it)? Do you find that you have to wait while the M2 MBP completes tasks, like renders? If so, then the newer M3 will cause you to wait 20% less.

But if you never have to wait for tasks to complete then you would never notice the difference.

Generally, in order for a computer to be noticeably faster for everyday tasks the specs have to be doubled (or cut in half). It takes a factor of 2 to make a perceived difference. The M3 is faster by only a factor of 0.2, ten times less than enough to make it noticeable in everyday tasks. But, if you really are working on compute-intensive tasks and are on a deadline 20% might be enough to make you upgrade.

If you have some extra cash lying around, use it to set up a wireless Time Machine backup to a large local disk and also some kind of off-site.

 

[Standard]

What does your M2 NOT do that you think the M3 WILL do?
What is relacing a 2 months old laptop with a brand new one going to change for you? Other than “losing” money?

Yes, I am at a loss financially. One of the largest advantages the M3 gives me for my work is Ray Tracing. I use this in a live setting for my real-time look development. Aside from this is the obvious, more ram, faster performance, etc.

For OP's stated workflow of high end VFX and real time character work, and their observation that they're already maxing out their current M2 Max for this work, I expect they will see enough performance gain from the M3 Max to make it worth their while. The additional RAM (128GB vs 96GB) and improved GPU alone should make a big difference for that type of work.

Personally if I were in that situation, I'd wait for the M3 Ultra Mac Studio to come out, unless they need to be 100% portable.

This is exactly what I am after, and specifically the ray tracing capabilities for real-time/offline rendering.

What will you use the Macbook for (when you get around to using it)? Do you find that you have to wait while the M2 MBP completes tasks, like renders? If so, then the newer M3 will cause you to wait 20% less.

But if you never have to wait for tasks to complete then you would never notice the difference.

Generally, in order for a computer to be noticeably faster for everyday tasks the specs have to be doubled (or cut in half). It takes a factor of 2 to make a perceived difference. The M3 is faster by only a factor of 0.2, ten times less than enough to make it noticeable in everyday tasks. But, if you really are working on compute-intensive tasks and are on a deadline 20% might be enough to make you upgrade.

If you have some extra cash lying around, use it to set up a wireless Time Machine backup to a large local disk and also some kind of off-site.

The RTX capabilities drastically improve my live working experience. At the moment, Ray tracing is emulated through the software. It works well, but it is still bogged down for heavier characters with specific grooms in the scene.

 

[MBAir2010]

Keep
your
macbook excellent

dont
read
articles
about
new
things


enjoy!