Macbook Pro 2017 buy or wait??

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fish

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So after 7 years, my 2011 MacBook Pro has finally given up the horse and the battery has completely died.
The machine no longer picks it up. Not surprised seeing as it was sitting on 1100 battery cycles.

But this has now presented a problem. I want to get a new MacBook Pro. I have my eye on the 2017 MacBook Pro 15" 256GB. I want the 16GB and Quad core as it will be my next 5-7yr laptop. I have family coming from the US first week June. And this presents my problem do I get buy it in USA and ship it with them or wait the few weeks until the 2018 version comes out. I can get it for $2200 (R28k) vs R40k locally.

I know the new ones will only really be the spec bump and moving to the new Intel Chips. So not sure the change will be that drastic?

Looking for some advice. I could always sell it locally after a month or two and then get the newer one if its a massive change.
 
fish said:
So after 7 years, my 2011 MacBook Pro has finally given up the horse and the battery has completely died.
The machine no longer picks it up. Not surprised seeing as it was sitting on 1100 battery cycles.

But this has now presented a problem. I want to get a new MacBook Pro. I have my eye on the 2017 MacBook Pro 15" 256GB. I want the 16GB and Quad core as it will be my next 5-7yr laptop. I have family coming from the US first week June. And this presents my problem do I get buy it in USA and ship it with them or wait the few weeks until the 2018 version comes out. I can get it for $2200 (R28k) vs R40k locally.

I know the new ones will only really be the spec bump and moving to the new Intel Chips. So not sure the change will be that drastic?

I have recently been seeing a lot of people complain about the new MacBook Pro's keyboard causing issues. Something you need to be aware of. Apparently the new butterfly design is not the best and can stop working, get "stuck" or repeat letters. This might be an issue if you want to repair locally via Core.

Looking for some advice. I could always sell it locally after a month or two and then get the newer one if its a massive change.
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If you don't want to pay import taxes, your family needs to remove it from the packaging and put it in a laptop bag and walk in as if it's their own laptop. Otherwise you (they) are going to be nailed when they walk in, and be liable to pay the tax.

There is never a "right" time to buy. Anything you buy will be old in a couple of months. You need to bite the bullet sometime.
 
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Ya I would get them to take it out the packaging. Will order a sleeve with the laptop.
Agree never a good time. But 2 weeks before WWDC is the worst time..
 
fish said:
Ya I would get them to take it out the packaging. Will order a sleeve with the laptop.
Agree never a good time. But 2 weeks before WWDC is the worst time..
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Very true, I'm hoping for a glimpse of the new MacPro ( I can dream )

Are you aware of the keyboard issues on the new MacBook Pro's? Apparently the butterfly design is not very good. It gets stuck, repeats letters or just stops working. Not sure if Core will cover repairs if bought overseas.
 
Also, if the device is not declared at customs, I'm not sure if Core will repair it....
 
It will have a genuine Apple serial number so Core will support it.
Back in 2014 I bought my first Mac, a late 2013 iMac just 2 weeks before new iMac's got announced, for a couple of minuts I wanted to kick myself, until I saw the prices of the new ones and that late 2013 iMac still serves me well today. So unless you want the latest and greatest, then go for it while you have the opertunity to buy it oversees at a good price.

Consider spending a bit more and get at least 512 GB storage, if you plan to keep it for a couple of years then the more storage the better.
I doubt anything will physically change if there's even a 2018 MacBook Pro refresh, maybe a slight internal spec bump, but the outside design will stay the same, so same unpopular keyboard etc.

Also keep US sales tax in mind, that price you see on the Apple Store website excludes sales tax, so just take that in to account as well.
 
fish said:
. I have family coming from the US first week June. And this presents my problem do I get buy it in USA and ship it with them or wait the few weeks until the 2018 version comes out. I can get it for $2200 (R28k) vs R40k locally.
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After sales tax and customs, that $2200 will be closer to the local price. Not worth importing, even if brought in by a friend.

fish said:
Ya I would get them to take it out the packaging. Will order a sleeve with the laptop.
Click to expand...

You need to declare laptops when leaving SA. If you come back in with a laptop, even opened and it was not with you when leaving, customs will charge you.
 
genetic said:
You need to declare laptops when leaving SA. If you come back in with a laptop, even opened and it was not with you when leaving, customs will charge you.
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I've never declared a laptop, or anything else when leaving SA. Can you imagine the chaos at the airports if people actually did. :eek:
 
SauRoNZA said:
Macbooks have an international warranty.

iPhones however do not.
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I've been told that both do.

With an Imac I wouldn't bother with a drive larger than 256gb, thunderbolt is so fast that an external Ssd drive will be just as fast as an internal for non os data and then you aren't forced to pay Apples ludicrous ssd upgrade prices.
 
genetic said:
You need to declare laptops when leaving SA. If you come back in with a laptop, even opened and it was not with you when leaving, customs will charge you.
Click to expand...

But these people are coming from the US, so they can declare it as theirs when they come in and don't leave with it.
 
The only times when I had to declare laptops when leaving SA was when I carried more than 1, since returning with 3 laptops on you is asking for customs trouble, but I never declared when carrying only 1.
 
I would venture to guess that the sooner you buy a new MacBook Pro, the better. My tongue-in-cheek reasoning, is that at the current rate that Apple are removing features/hardware from their new lineups....the next MBP may well not have a keyboard, you will have to buy a Bluetooth keyboard to use with your keyboard-less MBP, and for sure the 3.5mm headphone jack will also disappear from the MBP, like what happened to their iPhone.

First the CD drive goes (I can live without it), but then removable battery goes, and gets glued inside :mad:, not forgetting the external battery LED level indicator, then the magnetic power adapter goes, then USB ports, HDMI ports, SD card slot, thunderbolt ports etc all go in one foul swoop.....what next for them to remove to make it even thinner ? surely the keyboard :crylaugh:
 
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Just don't break it.

[video=youtube_share;9-NU7yOSElE]https://youtu.be/9-NU7yOSElE[/video]
 
Sorry to hear about your 2011 machine, those machines were quality machines that kept on giving - the Macbooks and the iMacs.

I currently am working on a 2017 version of the iMac, and I can tell you that there is something seriously wrong with what is under the hood on these machines. We work in Illustrator and these machines have a hell of a time keeping up with the artwork we do. In fact, that 2011 Macbook handled some of the files better than the latest iMacs... do not ask me why. I don't know.

What I am trying to get at is that maybe it is better to hold out for the 2018 edition.
 
kolaval said:
Just don't break it.

[video=youtube_share;9-NU7yOSElE]https://youtu.be/9-NU7yOSElE[/video]
Click to expand...

Ja, I've been watching him and Louise Rossman, and my like for Apple products is seriously being degraded by their obstinate need to literally squeeze money out of every aspect of their products, aside from the premium they charge on tech that is technically old.

Great OS, easy to use and consistency is incredible. But the fact that they definitely see their "users" only as consumers is going to cost them in the long run, and this time Mr Jobs can't come back to get their overpaid bums out of the fire.
 
johncgalloway said:
Ja, I've been watching him and Louise Rossman, and my like for Apple products is seriously being degraded by their obstinate need to literally squeeze money out of every aspect of their products, aside from the premium they charge on tech that is technically old.
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Just a note: Be careful when watching Louis Rossmann and Linus' stuff regarding Apple products. They're really out there in terms of trying to get views. Louis especially is one of a breed of rare people that will fix something on the component level, so his annoyance is understandable.
While there is some truth behind the problems, the realities are more complex. It's like if something important breaks on your high-end car. Your dealer isn't going to fix it - they'll just replace it. Apple devices are smaller and more compact and the glue and solder everything onto the motherboard now because in the end it serves the larger community because there are fewer chip pins to go wonky and everything is far more solid (for the most part). Which is why they push AppleCare/iCare+

This doesn't serve the enthusiast market, but Apple haven't been serving us for a while now (still rocking my 2012 Mac Mini), but if you really want the OS and not pay the high cost of the hardware you can go the Hackintosh route.

johncgalloway said:
Great OS, easy to use and consistency is incredible. But the fact that they definitely see their "users" only as consumers is going to cost them in the long run, and this time Mr Jobs can't come back to get their overpaid bums out of the fire.
Click to expand...

This is a common grumble, but since Tim's taken over, they're closer to being a Trillion-dollar company than ever, and they're making money like crazy despite people predicting doom and gloom every year. Apple is so far out of the danger-zone, they could produce complete duds for 15 years in a row and still be cash-flush.The "it was better under Jobs" story is super old by now and has rose-tinted hindsight.
 
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