
Ask HN: Is MacBook Pro worth it nowadays, for a developer? - ashishvijay_
I&#x27;ve seen most of the developers are using MacBook as thier primary tool. What&#x27;s the main advantage for that? Is that only a premium product show off or does it have worth features in it? A passionate Debian lover!
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emsy
I have a 2013 15" MBP. It's holding up really good till now, only the
performance and the battery are affected negatively, but still not enough to
warrant an upgrade. It's the first laptop I _didn 't_ need to replace after
two years. The biggest upside is the trackpad, which I use extensively. The
display is very good if you can deal with glaring. It's more durable than most
plastic junk that I used before. I can't recommend the new Macbooks, since
there are in total too many downsides: Keyboard, lack of Escape key, no
magsafe, price policy, T2 and dongle lifestyle.

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geophile
I have a mid-2015 MBP 15, which is great, but is a bit beat up (dropped it too
many times). I use MacOS for consumer stuff, and a Linux VM for development.

I'd like to replace the machine, but I'm stuck. The newer MBPs are a non-
starter, due to the keyboard and touchpad. The Purism Librem 15 is expensive
and doesn't put out 4k@60 to an external monitor. The System76 Galaga Pro
hardware is not great (touchpad, battery life, general fit and finish). Not
interested in running Windows at all, even just to host a VM. Razer looks like
great hardware but doesn't support Linux.

Any suggestions?

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heyjudy
mid-2012 A1278 or Lenovo T480 hackintosh.

Modern MBP's:

\- glued-in batteries

\- nonservicable RAM

\- nonservicable SSD

\- lack of peripheral ports

\- terrible keyboard

\- thin and fragile

\- very expensive

\- USB-C charging is a step-backwards from MagSafe

\- prone to more defects and breakage, and more difficult to repair at the
component level, per Louis Rossmann

A1278:

\+ older, better keyboard

\+ unofficial 16 GiB of third-party RAM

\+ 2 SSD's with optical drive removed

\+ plenty of ports

\+ user-servicable battery

\+ MagSafe support

\+ relatively lower cost

~ 13" non-Retina display

\- thicker

\- slower CPU

\- slower integrated graphics / GPU

Lenovos:

\+ have water-resistant keyboards with drains

\+ generally excellent keyboard from IBM lineage

\+ 7-10+ hour runtime with both front and rear batteries

\+ more normal repair and expansion options

\+ semi-rugged

~ moderate cost

\- Hackintosh isn't supported nor 100% work-alike

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makecheck
I still have a 2013 Pro that I probably would have updated if not for the new
Pro’s keyboard problems and Touch Bar. I will honestly never buy another Pro
unless they get rid of Touch Bar and make serious keyboard changes (reverting
100% to the previous keyboard would be fine). I might buy an Air if 2019 goes
by and the next “Pro” is another fiasco.

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dazfuller
I had a mid 2015 MacBook which did me well for years, but I've just switched
to a surface pro 6 with a Linux VM running in Azure.

Still have the MacBook at the moment though, only device in the house with a
dvd drive

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andymoe
Only if you’re a Mac person. If you’re comfortable with Linux Lenovo x1 is a
great machine. I’m deep on the Mac bandwagon though and my next machine will
probably be the new air and not a mbp

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idclip
A 2015 one sure

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ashishvijay_
It's 2019, does getting an older version seems a good idea?

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idclip
I think you should go for it. I have a 2015 model, and it’s a tad jittery! My
friend’s 2018 kicks it ass and I’m a bit envious! But I still love my 2015.

If you have the 2000, it’s a great little machine. You have my blessing.

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socaller
No way,

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ashishvijay_
Oh! Why? Does the quality seems low? Or are they treating the same way as
iPhone, high price less upgrades?

