What is your longest lasting Apple product?

[ElectricPotato]

2010 Mac Mini. It was an HTPC until replaced last year with a 2018 Mac Mini. The 2010 mini is still chugging away as a video slide show machine in a church. I replaced the still working spinning rust with an SSD in 2016.

My 2011 iMac was also going strong when I replaced it last year with a 2018 MBP. That got handed down and is still running as a daily driver. That also got an SSD upgrade in 2015. I'm skeptical of the MBP lasting that long, but time will tell.

All my home wintel laptops and desktops had to be put down after 3-5 years due to various ailments. At work we had an original IBM AT that ran for 15 years (with the original hard drive) doing lab tasks. It was retired while still fully functional.

Clearly, manufacturers have the option: design to last or planned obsolescence.

 

[vkd]

2011 iMac 27", 2.7GHz Intel Core i5, 16GB DDR3, AMD Radeon HD6770M 512MB, (1TB HDD + 240GB SSD) Fusion Drive, Mac OS 10.9.5 Mavericks. Going great today, thank God.

 

[MacBH928]

The PowerBook G4 in my sig has seen frequent use for about 7 years now and I continue to use it today.

This is out of topic but... may I ask why use BSD over say Linux

even longer time-frame, they still use the 20" Cinema Display (aluminium) I bought new with a G5 PowerMac circa 2004 more frequently, with a 'new' (2014 model, bought August 2018) Mac mini.

My 2011 MBP17 is still running as an iTunes server (for now), but it's become less 'original' (although mostly with same-spec parts) over time, so far replacements have been: memory (upgraded to officially unsupported 16GB in 2012), both fans (one of them twice), the optical drive (replaced with a SSD caddy containing the original SSD), the factory SSD (replaced with a WD... blue (or maybe green?) SSD), battery has been replaced about 3 times I think. Mainboard has been replaced I think three times under warranty / AppleCare and then extended service program.

How is the Display doing? I assumed LCDs just fade over time plus its cheap to get a replacement.

and there is about nothing original left of that MBP except maybe the screen

However, I do still use my old iPods fairly regularly and have a 160GB Classic that's coming up to 10 years old and a 3rd gen iPod Nano from 2007 that are still used at least once a month.

how are the batteries doing? I am assuming they are non-replaceable. I don't understand chemicals but I am not sure if its safe to use a battery that old.

Clearly, manufacturers have the option: design to last or planned obsolescence.

even more, they also have the option to make it repairable or dispose it if one part malfunctions. I was once told that Land Rover cars were built in a way that every single screw in that car is replaceable.

 

[2984839]

This is out of topic but... may I ask why use BSD over say Linux

I have used Linux in the past but never for long. I just don't like it as much. It's nowhere near as clean, simple, secure, well-documented, or reliable as OpenBSD. I run OpenBSD on all of my computers and network equipment and it "just works" without any fuss.

 

[Phil A.]

how are the batteries doing? I am assuming they are non-replaceable. I don't understand chemicals but I am not sure if its safe to use a battery that old.

The battery lives are down a bit but not as much as you might think (probably about 80% of what they were new). I don't think there are any safety concerns as long as they don't start swelling and distorting the devices

 

[Stephen.R]

How is the Display doing? I assumed LCDs just fade over time plus its cheap to get a replacement.

I mean, I haven't heard any complaints from them about it but I haven't physically seen it in about 6 years so I can't be sure, and they're both in their 70s so I don't know they'd notice minor issues with it.

 

[Oohara]

Lots of people with way older gear here but I'd like to give a honourable mention to my 1st generation Apple Watch which has been on my wrist every day since summer 2015. Obviously apps on it have been laggy since the start and hardly even load these days, but for receiving messages and alerts, setting timers, basic stuff like that, it's still a champ. I even use it for my daily workout though in a very basic way. Battery still lasts all day.

 

[bobnugget]

2000 Pismo. Currently out of action awaiting a new HD for a few days, but has been in constant use as a remote iTunes server since 2012, and was used as a backup mac since 2007. It's on its third disk now, and has had RAM maxed to 1 GB, and the CPU upgraded to 500 Mhz (still have the 400 though!). Battery lasts minutes...

 

[Stephen.R]

2000 Pismo. Currently out of action awaiting a new HD for a few days, but has been in constant use as a remote iTunes server since 2012, and was used as a backup mac since 2007. It's on its third disk now, and has had RAM maxed to 1 GB, and the CPU upgraded to 500 Mhz (still have the 400 though!). Battery lasts minutes...

What version of macOS/iTunes is that running that it’s usable by other devices?

 

[bobnugget]

What version of macOS/iTunes is that running that it’s usable by other devices?

10.4 Tiger and iTunes 7 or 8 IIRC - remote from iOS 12 works, but warns that I may not have the best experience occasionally (!)
iTunes 9 also works but runs horrifically slowly, as in, the remote app on a connected iPhone lags.

I should add that I'm using it as a remote player, but if i remember rightly the library is shared too.

I can confirm that iTunes version when my mSATA <-> IDE adapter arrives and i re-image it, as the hard disk died recently.

 

[SuperMatt]

I use a 2006 Mac Pro as my main Mac every day. I got it free on Craigslist a little over 2 years ago. When I have to fly, I take my original 2001 iPod for listening so my iPhone will have a full battery when I disembark.

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

2000 Pismo. Currently out of action awaiting a new HD for a few days, but has been in constant use as a remote iTunes server since 2012, and was used as a backup mac since 2007. It's on its third disk now, and has had RAM maxed to 1 GB, and the CPU upgraded to 500 Mhz (still have the 400 though!). Battery lasts minutes...

Loved the Pismo, a very capable machine for its day.

My girlfriend and I had one each, and I used to tinker a bit with them, like adding wifi, more RAM, and changed hard drives several times. (Never got my hands on a 500 MHz G3 chip for it, though, that would have been nice.)

Still have those two Pismos, neither in full working order, but there should be enough working parts for one of them. So, I have an intention to - one day** - put them together again...

** Never gonna happen, but it's still a nice intent, isn't it?

 

[sammy2066]

2007 AEBS, 2008 unibody MBP, 2009 iMac, and a ton of iPhones (since 2007) - they all still work.

 

[MacBH928]

I use a 2006 Mac Pro as my main Mac every day. I got it free on Craigslist a little over 2 years ago. When I have to fly, I take my original 2001 iPod for listening so my iPhone will have a full battery when I disembark.

Does the Mac Pro run any new software? I imagine no software released in the past 3 years would run on it. I also imagine browsing the web would be horrific.

 

[SuperMatt]

Does the Mac Pro run any new software? I imagine no software released in the past 3 years would run on it. I also imagine browsing the web would be horrific.

Any software that runs on 10.11 (El Capitan) runs on it. With an SSD boot drive, it runs quite well. There’s a reason they call these Macs "Pro” - I wish the new Pro was less than $6000 because I think it would be worth buying and probably be useful for over a decade too.

 

[tranceking26]

I've had 11 years of my iPod Classic. Almost daily use. Legend.

 

[fehhkk]

2009 wired and wireless keyboard. Still using it to this day, works great.

 

[Dc2006ster]

My 2006 Mac Pro died this year but because I messed up installing a rack for the two internal SSDs in one of the optical drive bays: smoke came out of the back one day. I had shorted something. Before that happened it was used everyday mainly for photo editing. The only change I had done to it was to switch the CPUs from dual to quad core. I now have an iMac and really miss the 4 internal drive bays and the 2 extra SATA ports on the motherboard which gave me, in total, 4 spinning drives and two SSDs.

I still use my 2005 iPod. It has new battery and hard drive this year.

 

[MacNut]

My 2010 MBP was finally retired in December. That was the longest I have ever run a computer.

 

[MacBH928]

2009 wired and wireless keyboard. Still using it to this day, works great.

Apple should ditch the butterfly keyboards and go back to these ultimate ones.

 

[benshive]

Up until the release of the 2018 iPad Pros I was still using an iPad 2. I also still use my grandfathers keyboard that he used to use with his Power Mac G5.

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

Just remembered another of my Apple gadgets still going strong: A 1st gen iPad.

I bought it in London in the Spring of 2010, and - though I don't use it myself, any longer - it's still in (almost) daily use amongst the kids in the Kindergarten (!) where my partner works.

The force is strong in those first iPads.

 

[noxivs]

The Time Capsule has proven MUCH more reliable than the AirPort Express it replaced. My 4th gen has also been running flawlessly 24/7 since I got it, sometime in 2011/12 (cannot remember exactly). Very happy with that, too.

Same here. 2009 3rd gen 802.11n Time Capsule running great. I just had to replace its power supply like 2 weeks ago because it was too hot to the touch then. It still runs hotter than expected. Maybe because the power supply I got was a 2nd hand refurbished one. I didn't even need to replace the HDD

 

[kazmac]

View attachment 852228
Time Capsule.
Bought 2009.
Running 24/7/365, for almost 10 years straight.
1TB Model A1355.

Has never failed.
For either WiFi or for Time Machine.

Same here.

2nd would be my 2013 27" iMac which is still my main driver.

 

[bapegg]

I’m still using my 2010 Mac Mini though it is showing its age. I get the occasional spinning beach ball and the built in Ethernet port is hit or miss. I hardly ever shutdown or restart the mini and it keeps chugging along.

I recently bought an IPad Pro 11 that I use daily for most things. I will probably replace the Mac Mini with another one or with an IMac when my current mini stops getting updates or dies (which ever happens first)