Buying used MBP, what to look out for

Hey guys, I'm thinking of picking up a used older Macbook Pro, probably a Core 2 Duo when they started to have SATA 3.0 GB/s.

What do I need to look out for so that I don't get a lemon? What utilities would you run?

For instance, you can tell that an old G5 has a bad logic board if the fans roar when putting it to sleep.

 

All the G5's have bad logic boards

They will eventually fail due to design flaws =/

 

I bought and sold a number of these. If you're dead set on getting C2D, then make sure it's cheap. You'll be out of warranty and you'll be carrying around a lot of weight for equivalent power in an Air and (almost as fast E-350 w/SSD).

I'd go for a 2010 model because warranties are transferable and you'll at least have peace of mind that the seller isn't giving you some undisclosed problem. BTW, I had an SD port fail. Ordinarily, a $10 fix. However, MBPs are one piece. The bad SD port meant that the entire logic board had to be replaced. $900+ but thank the good lord I was covered under warranty.

 

The C2D are going cheap and the right ones will have SATA 3.0. That and the larger screen is all I'm after, I'm trying to help someone out with a CD Macbook get a little more screen real estate and go a little faster on their budget.

Any known tricks or signs to see if they are bad? Sleep it, etc? Any tools or utilities you would run to make sure it is all good?

 

make sure it doesn't have the nVidia GPU that had all the problems.

MacBook Pro owners to benefit from Nvidia settlement | MacFixIt - CNET Reviews

Don't buy it if it has the GPU in this article inside of it.

 

Yep! No MBP with silver keys; black keys only!

 

Which means they will need to look for at least a mid-2009 Core 2 Duo model. One option you should check out, and I am starting to sound like broken record now, is Microcenter. They are selling the 13" baseline Core i5 model (which runs circles around any Core 2 Duo MBP) for $999. I was looking online and most people seem to be charging $750-$850 for a good condition 13", maybe 15" Core 2 Duo MBP. Wouldn't it make sense to save up a little more money and get something new? I know you said that you are after a larger display but I think the benefits of the hardware in the 2011 model outweigh paying only $150 less and getting hardware that is two generations old and may or may not be supported in the release of OS X after Lion (Apple is already phasing out the Core Duo processors as Lion doesn't support them).

 

try the apple refurb store, I think you can get a MBA for like 900$ with full warranty.

edit:
870$ 11inch http://store.apple.com/ca/product/FC505LL/A?mco=MjEwNTg3NDQ
1120$ MBA 13 http://store.apple.com/ca/product/FC234LL/A?mco=MjEwNTY5NDM
950$ 13MBP http://store.apple.com/ca/product/FC374LL/A?mco=MjEwNzU2Nzc

oops... this are in Canadian dollars I'm sure it cheaper in the US.

 

technically you could say that about any electronics... it will eventually die due to design flaws. It might be the best way they could have designed it, but if it fails, its flawed.

 

One thing I would check on a Mac is the battery cycles. If it's low, it doesn't mean squat (other than it may have had a new battery added) but if it's high, just know that you're going to have to buy a new battery soon at the least. I would say anything over 1000 cycles, I'd be uncomfortable buying unless I got a great deal, enough off to buy a new battery for instance!

 

A few things to look for:
- discoloured, distorted, or cracked plastics. Distorted plastics indicate cooling issues.
- battery swelling, which is indicative of failure (you can also check battery cycles and charge using Coconutbattery)
- check the screen for dead pixels, light leakage around the borders
- you can also use a program like TechTool Deluxe to run tests on the hard drive, GPU, RAM, etc.
- test the power supply to make sure that it works. Check the ends of each wire to make sure that they haven't been twisted too much.
- turn it on and listen to the fan; make sure that its spinning freely without any issues and that the computer isn't overheating (use iStat to check temperatures)

 

Are the cycles counted somewhere? Where would that be?

 

you can press Apple Menu, hold down Option key and select the new top option that says System Profiler... under Power info there will be battery info, including cycle count.

 

What is wrong with silver keys?

I have to say that I can't use my MBP in my lap as the thing does get hot, with temps in the 60-70s (5200 rpm fans right now)

 

Isn't 300 cycles like pushing it? I had one battery that had 287 cycles and I would get service battery indicator; I don't know if it was apple's way of telling me to buy a battery (a scam..) but the new non-apple battery that I got hasn't showed the indicator again, though I get about the same life (1.5 - 2 hours ) that I got with my older battery when the newer one supposedly has 5600 maHz of power.

 

The issue with the silver keyboard key MBP models is that they feature only up to the Core Duo processors. It wasn't until 2009 when they introduced the unibody design and the use of the Core 2 Duo processor. Apple is making the minimum requirement for OS X Lion a Core 2 Duo processor now since the OS is entirely 64-bit.

 

actually the first Core 2 Duo MBPs were still the old design with the silver keys... the problem though is most of these were Geforce 8600 models which are known to have major GPU issues and had a recall for replacements. I'd stay away from any of these pre-unibody models, Core 2 Duo or not.

 

I'm thinking about buying a used mpb with apple care.

What do I need if I were to have a problem with the laptop and use the apple care?

The seller said he has the system recover disc, and apple care, but no other docs/box. Would this be enough if the system itself still looks clean and battery cycles are relatively low?

Also idk if this was brought up in a different thread, but do I need to do anything to transfer apple care? or can I take it to apple and have them fix problems if they arise. Also is battery covered under apple care?

 

That's right. I keep forgetting that there was one C2D design before the 2009 unibody movement. Its funny that Apple has been using the same MBP design for 3 generations now but it still looks damn good (and modern).

 

I have a 8600GT model and I haven't had issues, but perhaps that could be that the seller said that the laptop went in for logic board repair in 2009. Heck, I have had my vaio crash sometimes because of internet video while it has happened once or twice on the macbook.

The warranty is tied to the serial on your device.

 

Thanks, he provided me with the documents and invoice for apple care when he purchased online. Hopefully I never have to use it

 

The 2009 Core 2 Duo MBPs are a really good value buy if you're not going to be doing a lot of encoding/gaming. You can find them cheaply and with Apple Care. Their selling price has dropped considerably since the 2010 Core i5 and 2011 Core i7 machines came out, but they can take 8GB of RAM and handle pretty much all tasks you throw at them.

I bought my mother a 2009 2.66Ghz C2D with Apple Care until August 2012 a few months ago for $900. Came with the box and all accessories and was in perfect shape. It runs great and she's been thrilled with it. She's not a hardcore user, but she does play The Sims 3 and things like that with no problems.

Likewise, my girlfriend picked up a 2009 Antiglare 2.66Ghz MBP from eBay for $1000, with Apple Care until September 2012, all accessories and the box. She uses Photoshop and iWeb quite a bit, along with some of the CS5 apps, and hasn't had a problem at all.

Bottom line is most people will not use brand new MBPs to their full potential. I know everyone is always after the latest and greatest, but there are tons of scenarios where buying a used slightly older MBP makes a lot of sense.

Things to check when buying used:

- Test all the keys, open a text edit doc and go through every single one. Make sure there's no crunch or any signs of liquid spill
- Pop in a DVD to make sure the SuperDrive works
- Connect to the internet and test some pages
- Run the diagnostic off the install disc and make sure everything checks out
- Check for missing screws from the bottom plate

Good luck.

 

Isn't a mac cultist being about buying the brand new thing? I mean why get an ipad when you can get Ipad 2 or get arrandale when you can get sandy bridge.

 

Yes and no. There are many members of the Cult of Mac that are still rocking PowerPC rigs and have no plans on upgrading to a new primary unit anytime soon. Many true Mac cultists will hang onto their Macs until the day they die and just won't run anymore. Even then there are other options. For example, there is a place in Cincinnati that focuses on out-of-warranty Mac repair. I have gone in there once and come across people carrying in a clamshell iBook with the orange plastic, a white PowerPC G4 eMac, a PowerPC G5 Mac desktop (whatever those were called), Titanium PowerBook G4s, and so on. Only a few people in there had Intel powered Macs.

So being a member of the Cult of Mac might require buying the new thing but, once it is purchased, you hold onto it for the rest of your life and have a funeral service whenever it finally gives in.

I think iDevices are a completely different matter since they don't cost near as much as a Mac especially whenever you can buy a new iPad three years in a row and that will add up to the cost of a 15" baseline MBP. That same Mac is also over 5 times as expensive as an iPod touch. Keeping up with new iDevice release, aside from the iPhone as you have to deal with contract canceling fees, is still expensive but it is a lot less than buying a new Mac every year, every two years, or even every 3-5 years.