Used MacBook Pro Retina Late 2012 [790€/$890] Mint Condition - Good Deal?

Hello guys,

since I am completely new to the macbook world and I want to buy one, I would like to know if this deal I found for a used MBP Retina late 2012 is good.

It's 790 euro / 890$. I reckon I can drop it to 750.

It's in excellent condition, it was always in a leather case, the seller has only positive feedback.

It has 547 cycle count, battery condition: Normal.

He says it has a runtime of 6-7 hours under full load.

Will I notice a great difference in performance between the late 2012 and an early 2015? (Not that I can afford a 2015 but just would like to know )

Just FYI so that you know the prices here: a new MBP Retina 13 is 1600 euro (128gb). Usually used ones go for around ~1000. That's why I think this good be a good deal.

What do you think?

 

Downside is likely no warranty. And Apple laptops are higher cost to repair than most PC laptops. And harder to get independent repairs done with. AppleCare and lots of it is valuable to you as an owner. Be mindful of this.

 

Agree with Kent, once AppleCare is off its more of an issue. also to note models prior to 2014 with dGPU were prone to motherboard failures ESPECIALLY the ones with the AMD graphics in 2012, those I would plain avoid at all costs as it is hit or miss if Apple will replace the motherboards ( $1300CDN) even under warranty let alone off warranty.

 

I'd keep the money you save to one side for repairs, if warranty is not possible. When my Macbook suffered logic board failure it cost me near enough 400€ to buy a replacement motherboard and have somebody fit it. It wasn't too easy to find somebody to repair it, or even buy the used board. It's a fair saving but as the others have said, definitely find some sort of warranty or insurance for it that covers motherboard failure. If you do get it, it's well worth opening it up and making sure it's not full of dust - most people only clean the outside. Dust will make it run substantially hotter and I believe contributed to the failure of my own motherboard.

 

Won't happen. No accidental damage warranty or any kind of non Apple can't wiggle out of it warranty. To get that, you must buy business class PC laptops. Reality.

 

Retina MBP only had NVIDIA GPUs until 2015. The ones with the extended repair program for AMD GPUs were the 2011 classic models.

 

I had no idea nVidia dGPU systems also had problems, I thought it was just exclusive to the AMD non-retina models.

 

lots of the NVidia ( 650m ) as well in the first couple itineration . The OP's Late 2012 rMBP model is square in the crosshairs and if it goes down Apple will do nothing after Feb 2016 ( or 3 years from original sale which could be a month or two from now )

The models that drop like flys ( largest percentage ) for certain are: the Retina mid 2012 and early 2013, as
well as the classic 17" Late 2011 model. we have a few multi hundred and even thousand page threads over at support.apple.com if your bored.

here are the admitted models affected and information on repairing them until Feb 2016 there is a good chance 4 more models will be added to that list but they keep dragging it out as it seemed to take quite awhile to get thermals dealt with for a dGPU
http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro-videoissues/

I have found in some countries, Apple has been denying repair and charging customers for board replacements even for those listed models for seemingly unrelated issues.

 

I'm also considering one of these. But my one has a few days of warranty left. What can I 'look' out for to predict what will go wrong with the 650m?

 

Thank you all for your replies, I didn't buy it after all since the seller sold it even after I told him to keep it and I would send the money after I would get off work the same day.

I guess it's for the best, after reading all your comments it really made me think to stay away from used MBs. It's a risky game.

I think I should save some more money for 1-2 months and buy a current 2015 or early 2016 model. I understand that the Apple warranty is something that I should definitely have for worst case scenario.

Thank you all for the time you took to post

 

Pink lines and other graphical distortion on your screen when the discreet GPU is engaged.

I have one of the affected 2011 models, but have yet to experience any GPU-related issues with it. It's now been relegated to a web surfing machine and only occasionally used to render movies in iMovie. To be completely honest, I actually want the thing to fail so I'll have an excuse to tell my wife that I need to upgrade LOL.

 

Hmm this is very tempting for me. If Apple will warranty repairing it until Feb. 2016, then that gives me a while to try and trigger it (ha- not that it's possible?).

Any ideas on how battery life would be on this using bootcamp in Windows?

 

Terrible because BootCamp doesn't support switchable graphics so the discreet GPU remains on at all times. You would be looking at 2-3 hours tops depending on what you're doing and how old the battery is.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

There is 100% no way that battery is pulling 6 hours full load. Maybe on 25% brightness and light load. Full load on a laptop that old, you're talking 3 hours or so. I know, because I have that same model with better battery stats then what that seller is offering. Mine is a 15 with an i7 though.

And yes, there is a GREAT difference in performance between the 2012 and 2015 models. Especially in SSD speed, but also to some extent in all other areas as well.