How old is your Macbook

[DawnM]

and does it still run well?

I have a 2009 Macbook and it is really slowing down but I can't bring myself to spring for a new one right now. Maybe next school year. But work gives me a PC laptop and I am getting by with that one at work, and this one at home.

 

[Gigi22]

and does it still run well?

I have a 2009 Macbook and it is really slowing down but I can't bring myself to spring for a new one right now. Maybe next school year. But work gives me a PC laptop and I am getting by with that one at work, and this one at home.

I had to replace my MacBook Pro at about the 5 year mark. Slowing down may be an indication of a problem. Are you fully backed up?

 

[KBoopaloo]

Mine is 7 years old and also slowing down a bit. I've started thinking about a new one.

 

[Eureka]

We have a MacBook Pro we bought in 2010 and it doesn't run well anymore at all. I really can't use it because having email and anything else open at the same time crashes it. Sometimes just running Safari crashes it. Using quicken crashes it. Sometimes opening a folder does too. Both my kids have MacBook Airs and that is what we will get for the next one, whenever that will be. Right now it's not a priority bc both kids are still at home and we use theirs when we need to, but with them both in high school next year, we know that's a time-limited solution.

 

[bigbabyblues]

The one I'm using is from 2009. It runs just fine but the battery doesn't last long when it is unplugged.

 

[greentea]

I bought my macbook air in 2011 and haven't had any problems with it.

 

[CoP Luv]

I have had mine for only two years, but I also have an iMac from 2007. It is slow and it isn't my primary computer, but I still use iPhoto on it because I like that better than the photo program on the MacBook. I hope my macbook lasts as long.

 

[Chaoster]

2009 macbook pro. was slowing down. deleted/backed up files/photos and iTunes. runs fine now.

 

[cariann77]

I have a love/hate relationship with mac. I seem to burn through them so much quicker than other PC models that we've had. We have a 2008 maybe 2010 that is virtually useless since it can't be updated any further. It runs super slow as well. Just replaced the battery in it. My other 2008 motherboard fried. I have a 2012 macbook pro that is starting show issues. Depending on your daily usage, I use mine heavily as I work online from home, they don't seem to last more than 5 years for me.

 

[earfulofmagic]

You can buy refurbished products from Apple to mitigate some cost of buying brand new, if you don't have access to other discounts (and don't mind refurbished models): https://www.apple.com/shop/browse/home/specialdeals/mac

For slowness, upgrading your drive to an SSD can really improve performance, but you're subject to whatever local computer repair shops are nearest you. I worked in IT at a college. Our hardware shop's first line of defense for slow/aging laptops was swapping their HDD for an SSD, which extended life for many a MBP. (Also used liberally in routine upgrades, but in particular it makes a difference for slowness.)

Of course, there's a lot to be said for buying brand new, latest and greatest, and instant gratification.

 

[powellrj]

DSs is 8 years old and about shot, but he used it all through college and was really hard on it.

 

[Pawpsicle]

Mine is 7 years old and is now what I refer to as a "mobile desktop." The trackpad started acting up and moving the cursor on its own so I have to use a mouse. Then the top row of letter keys quit working (lot of vowels up there), so I have to cart around a keyboard. I need a new one but they are soooo expensive. I got spoiled because school paid for the majority of my current one (cost me about $400) so it's tough to get over spending thousands on a new one.

 

[DisneyMandC]

Bought mine July 2011. It's slowed down some, but to be honest I am the absolute worst at things like updating, backing up, and deleting unnecessary files. So I put most of the blame squarely on myself. Battery is still fine. Still works significantly better at this age than the PCs I've had (those didn't work at all after 4 years). I plan on getting a couple more years out of it.

 

[hedg12]

My Macbook pro from 2009 is still doing OK, but just OK. I put in a 256 Gb ssd & did a clean install of El Capitan (the latest it will run) and it was almost unusable - it would get hot and lock up if I had more than 1 browser window open and forget about running a virtual machine...
I went back to Yosemite and it runs better. Still gets pretty warm, but it's usable.

 

[shamrock30]

Mine is a 17" Macbook Pro with an antiglare screen. I bought it 5 years ago as a refurb, so it's really about 6 years old. I spilled a drink on/in it last year, and I liked it enough to spend $600 to repair it. That means a lot of it's insides are new, LOL, so hopefully it will last a while longer.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Is it absolutely necessary that it be new? Im think that with all the new hardway debuted today maybe you'll be able to get a good deal on a slightly used MacBook once the newest generation has been on the market for a bit!

 

[DawnM]

You can buy refurbished products from Apple to mitigate some cost of buying brand new, if you don't have access to other discounts (and don't mind refurbished models): https://www.apple.com/shop/browse/home/specialdeals/mac

For slowness, upgrading your drive to an SSD can really improve performance, but you're subject to whatever local computer repair shops are nearest you. I worked in IT at a college. Our hardware shop's first line of defense for slow/aging laptops was swapping their HDD for an SSD, which extended life for many a MBP. (Also used liberally in routine upgrades, but in particular it makes a difference for slowness.)

Of course, there's a lot to be said for buying brand new, latest and greatest, and instant gratification.

I have no idea what SSD or MBP are, so it isnt' about instant gratification, it is about NOT being an IT person.

 

[hedg12]

I have no idea what SSD or MBP are, so it isnt' about instant gratification, it is about NOT being an IT person.

MBP = MacBook Pro, SSD = solid state drive. I agree with your post though, upgrading hardware and doing this kind of IT stuff isn't something that most people are inclined to do. If I hadn't done that to mine I probably would have replaced it 2-3 years ago.

 

[earfulofmagic]

I have no idea what SSD or MBP are, so it isnt' about instant gratification, it is about NOT being an IT person.

MBP = MacBook Pro, SSD = solid state drive. I agree with your post though, upgrading hardware and doing this kind of IT stuff isn't something that most people are inclined to do. If I hadn't done that to mine I probably would have replaced it 2-3 years ago.

Yeaaaah, I'm just mentioning an alternative that's not as costly as buying a new macbook outright (and which you don't need to do yourself)...

As for buying brand new/instant gratification, I was trying to point out that because buying new is simpler than the process of upgrading a macbook's hardware, they're equally good options imo.

 

[DawnM]

MBP = MacBook Pro, SSD = solid state drive. I agree with your post though, upgrading hardware and doing this kind of IT stuff isn't something that most people are inclined to do. If I hadn't done that to mine I probably would have replaced it 2-3 years ago.

I have been told it is easy to do on my macbook since it is a 2009 and not the newer ones that are unibody. But i don't know how.