Friend of mine has given me a 2015 MacBook Pro 13 with bad logic board, I have purchased i7 16gb logic board on eBay and 30minutes later I was up and running. Now it runs like a champ, best $70 I have ever spent 👍
This is the kind of review I’ve been looking for. The rest go on and on about video edits blah blah blah, but I love the way you go into proper detail❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
I like to tinker with older hardware too, and I had a mid-2012 MacBook Pro 13 for a while. What I enjoyed most was upgrading it, replacing the HDD with a SATA SSD, doubling the RAM to 16GB, renewing the thermal paste on the CPU, stuff like that. It was a surprisingly capable computer, but I finally sold it when Apple released the M series computers. To be honest, I occasionally miss it because the new Macs are not upgrade friendly (to put it mildly).
I'm planning to upgrade the internal SSD on my mid-2014 MacBook Pro. Can't do this on the newer models as internal components are soldered onto the logic board.
I am a long-time Windows and Linux user. A few months ago on a whim I acquired a base model 2015 MacBook Pro with Monterrey and my experience mirrors yours. It is an excellent notebook for day to day use. I use the Photos app and LightRoom (not the Classic version). LightRoom does "chug" at times. I minimize this by not having any other apps open. I also use MacOS's monitoring app as well. I have also tested Mint Linux and it works very well. That will probably be my upgrade path for this laptop once Apple's support ends. BTW I also plan to buy a M1 or M2 Macbook since I am now "hooked" on MacOS.
Nice and thanks for sharing. Yes, they are nice machines for the price especially if you can find one for the $127 which I found. Yes, the work great with Linux also and that is something I might do a video on one day. Thank you.
My MacBook Pro 2014 rocks! Spend a total of $227.51 i7, 16GB ram, New 1TB drive Blazing speed. I can play Iris Pro 5200 games, which is a lot if games. Of course real high power games require a gaming rig. But for the majority of stuff.. It rocks.. FYI Not all SSD work on macs. This brand worked on my Mac. FX660 1TB M.2 SSD, PCIe Gen 4x4 Dynamic SLC Cache - Speeds up to 4800MB/s M.2 2280 NVMe Internal SSD.
Old machines still work😊. I changed my mechanical hard drive to a 2TB SSD on my 2013 21.5 iMac & added the extra 8gb RAM (16gb total) after watching one of your videos earlier this year. That Mac is running just great. Like new almost. Some feature limitations like Catalina is it’s last OS, no Thunderbolt3/4 ports, but I could still use all the apps it supports, iMovie & LogicPro work just fine. I can boot off of Thunderbolt3/4 enclosures too. I do have to use USB-C to A cable though. No biggy. I would do the OpenCore legacy patch thing with it but, I do have the 2020 27” & an M1 Max 16” MacBook Pro so I use those with the latest macOS’s & boot from Thunderbolt3/4 external drives anyways. OCLP patchers would work though on that MacBook. I didn’t know about your iMovie series from awhile ago. Those are great too. Thanks for sharing. You have great content here on your channel Craig. Your channel rocks. You give honest advice, suggestions & tips with facts of the matter at hand. P.S. I run Windows10 thru Bootcamp on that iMac mentioned above. I’ve never used Windows before until this year. Even that works fine on my old Mac.
Thanks for all the info and for watching. I appreciate the nice words too. Yes, the older Macs run great and can run Windows too which is nice. I might do a video on OpenCore eventually but there are some good videos out there already. Thanks again for the info and the feedback and I appreciate it for sure.
For a long time due to budget, I used two 2011 macbook pros. The graphics card went on first one, so I got another one, and transferred the ram and ssd into it. Only the other day I booted it up and it still works fine apart from grotty speakers. Since opting for an M1 there little point returning to these machines. I'm wait till mac studio falls to silly price and aquire one.
Yes, you need to like the older systems or use them for travel to buy one (or a very small budget). But, if you do they still work pretty good which is incredible after 10 years.
I have 2015 Macbook Air and it is way better than our Microsoft Surface and Dell laptops. Both Surface and Dell are heating up a lot and loud fan noise.
Still using my 2014, l wasn’t even aware the operating system (Big Sur) was out of date. The only thing I’ve noticed that while the computer still works with my Canon printer, something changed and it will not work the scanner anymore.
thank you for the video, I will buy MBP 2014 for $223.88 😅, my needs are for office, canva, video editing, presentation, zoom, coding. is it worth it for me to buy?
These are not the best for video editing but can do it in a pinch. I'm not sure if you would be happy. They work fine for day to day stuff like email, web browsing etc. You might look at the used M1 macbook air for around $499 etc. if video editing is what you want to do. Those aren't perfect either but will be easier to edit on. If you are only doing 1080P editing then the 2015 will work ok.
Hi there! Thanks for the video. I would like to ask you something. I’m from Mexico, and I want to use this MacBook for office work, I mean for word, excel and gmail/drive apps. Would you recommend it for that??? I’m kind of worried about the macOS version, so I need to know if it’s gonna be able to use this programs 😅 thanks!!
As far as compatibility you can look up if the programs you want to use will work on this system. This system's OS can go up to Big Sur with the OS (or you can use something like open core but that is an entire different process). But if the programs you want to use are compatible with Big Sur then you can use this. Just keep in mind it's not as fast as the M1's obviously but they still work ok for sure.
Amigo, tmb soy de México. Me ofrecieron una MacBook Pro Mid 2014 por solo 3500 pesos. Que tal, la compraste? Me la recomiendas? Yo tmb la quiero para cosas básicas. Safari, pasarle fotos de mi iPhone, conectarle mi Apple Watch, etc.
Would you recommend it fir school work? I attend my classes via zoom call and do my assignments online. I saw this macbook pro on amazon for $350 but i also saw a 2018 macbook air for 300 in a local shop. So im undecided on which would be best
To be honest you might want to get something like the M1 Air for $750 if for school. These older system do work great but could have issues loading the current versions of the software unless you use something like Open Core to load the newest OS. But it could work I would suppose.
No not a great laptop in 2014. Capable of 1080p editing if needed but it's a very old and inexpensive laptop for basic stuff so not great choice if main job is editing.
@@craigneidel what would you suggest without breaking the bank? I’m am trying to move from iPad to laptop for editing but I’m looking for something not way 2 new but not way 2 old
I would get the M1 Air for like $650 on sale and that would be so much better for basic editing. The 2014 can do 1080p but it's just the age of the OS etc. Even a newer laptop like 2018 or 2019 would be better but they had some keyboard issues during that time so you need to make sure that isn't an issue.
@@craigneidel another thing, these MacBooks becomes really slow when the battery gets old, a new cheap battery and they can go back running 6 x as fast as on the abused batteries.
Bro i have the same macbook pro 13inch 2014 its battery sucks. Get new battery is make sense in 2023? Or i have to purchase a new macbook? This 2014 mac is enough to do my job.
Tough choice. I guess it depends on the cost of the battery. If you can use it for your job just upgrade battery then. I normally tell people for work to get at least an M1 but if you don't need that then why spend the cash.
It can but I think at only 30 Hz - here is an article - discussions.apple.com/thread/250521169#:~:text=Details%3A*This%20model%20supports,at%2024%20Hz%20via%20HDMI.
Even the MacBook Air less powerful can do nearly 95% of what people use daily. MacBook Pro is overkill. I have and use both MacBook Air and Pro 2014-2015 8GB, 16GB , 256Gb, 512Gb. I use heavily for everything and everything works. I came from long time user non Mac machine running Linux. Linux and MacOS both base on Unix so any used MacBook can run Linux and even Window. The best of both world. There are NO computers out there that can last this long and still this good physically and functionally. MacBook is it!!!!! Used MacBook vs used non MacBook for the same price and same feature. Which one would you buy? I take the MacBook all day long.
I do like MacBooks but I also see that some people could use the MacBook Pro that does video editing like I do or other stuff. Time can be money and the quicker I can get things done the more stuff I can create.
Friend of mine has given me a 2015 MacBook Pro 13 with bad logic board, I have purchased i7 16gb logic board on eBay and 30minutes later I was up and running. Now it runs like a champ, best $70 I have ever spent 👍
Nice deal for sure and thanks for posting.
install os sonoma on it and it will work really well
How can i buy logic board and how to change it?
This is the kind of review I’ve been looking for. The rest go on and on about video edits blah blah blah, but I love the way you go into proper detail❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Thank you for the feedback and for watching. I appreciate that for sure.
I like to tinker with older hardware too, and I had a mid-2012 MacBook Pro 13 for a while. What I enjoyed most was upgrading it, replacing the HDD with a SATA SSD, doubling the RAM to 16GB, renewing the thermal paste on the CPU, stuff like that. It was a surprisingly capable computer, but I finally sold it when Apple released the M series computers. To be honest, I occasionally miss it because the new Macs are not upgrade friendly (to put it mildly).
Yes, you can really upgrade these things. I do miss that for sure and hate it when things are glued together and can't be changed out.
I'm planning to upgrade the internal SSD on my mid-2014 MacBook Pro. Can't do this on the newer models as internal components are soldered onto the logic board.
@@grimreality451 Yep, that's the tradeoff for the efficiency and power of the M1 chips. RAM should be easy to upgrade on your model too.
I am a long-time Windows and Linux user. A few months ago on a whim I acquired a base model 2015 MacBook Pro with Monterrey and my experience mirrors yours. It is an excellent notebook for day to day use. I use the Photos app and LightRoom (not the Classic version). LightRoom does "chug" at times. I minimize this by not having any other apps open. I also use MacOS's monitoring app as well. I have also tested Mint Linux and it works very well. That will probably be my upgrade path for this laptop once Apple's support ends. BTW I also plan to buy a M1 or M2 Macbook since I am now "hooked" on MacOS.
Nice and thanks for sharing. Yes, they are nice machines for the price especially if you can find one for the $127 which I found. Yes, the work great with Linux also and that is something I might do a video on one day. Thank you.
My MacBook Pro 2014 rocks! Spend a total of $227.51 i7, 16GB ram, New 1TB drive Blazing speed. I can play Iris Pro 5200 games, which is a lot if games. Of course real high power games require a gaming rig. But for the majority of stuff.. It rocks.. FYI Not all SSD work on macs. This brand worked on my Mac. FX660 1TB M.2 SSD, PCIe Gen 4x4 Dynamic SLC Cache - Speeds up to 4800MB/s M.2 2280 NVMe Internal SSD.
Nice, yes if it's working good then no need to upgrade and give Apple any more of your money. Thanks for watching.
Old machines still work😊.
I changed my mechanical hard drive to a 2TB SSD on my 2013 21.5 iMac & added the extra 8gb RAM (16gb total) after watching one of your videos earlier this year.
That Mac is running just great. Like new almost.
Some feature limitations like Catalina is it’s last OS, no Thunderbolt3/4 ports, but I could still use all the apps it supports, iMovie & LogicPro work just fine.
I can boot off of Thunderbolt3/4 enclosures too.
I do have to use USB-C to A cable though.
No biggy.
I would do the OpenCore legacy patch thing with it but,
I do have the 2020 27” & an M1 Max 16” MacBook Pro so I use those with the latest macOS’s & boot from Thunderbolt3/4 external drives anyways.
OCLP patchers would work though on that MacBook.
I didn’t know about your iMovie series from awhile ago.
Those are great too.
Thanks for sharing.
You have great content here on your channel Craig.
Your channel rocks.
You give honest advice, suggestions & tips with facts of the matter at hand.
P.S. I run Windows10 thru Bootcamp on that iMac mentioned above.
I’ve never used Windows before until this year.
Even that works fine on my old Mac.
Thanks for all the info and for watching. I appreciate the nice words too. Yes, the older Macs run great and can run Windows too which is nice. I might do a video on OpenCore eventually but there are some good videos out there already. Thanks again for the info and the feedback and I appreciate it for sure.
Hi Craig. Great video. Since Apple stop providing security updates in December 2023, would you see if we can install Linux OS, Mint, Ubuntu or Pop OS.
You should be able to install Linux on these older machines. There is some good info if you do a search on Google or UA-cam.
Very helpful video!! Thank you!!
Thank you for the feedback.
I upgraded to Sonoma on my 2014 with opencore. i7 16gb ram, runs so freaking smooth!
Yes, they still have some life left in them.
Please make a video on how to use legacy open core
Oh I saw this. There are a bunch of good videos on UA-cam for that.
Getting ready to install a 1tb SSD 2.5 in my Late 2013 with 32gb ram, now I am learning how to make a Thumb drive to use to install system Great Info
Thanks for watching and good luck with everything.
For a long time due to budget, I used two 2011 macbook pros. The graphics card went on first one, so I got another one, and transferred the ram and ssd into it. Only the other day I booted it up and it still works fine apart from grotty speakers. Since opting for an M1 there little point returning to these machines. I'm wait till mac studio falls to silly price and aquire one.
Yes, you need to like the older systems or use them for travel to buy one (or a very small budget). But, if you do they still work pretty good which is incredible after 10 years.
Thanks for this video 😊
Thanks for watching.
I have 2015 Macbook Air and it is way better than our Microsoft Surface and Dell laptops. Both Surface and Dell are heating up a lot and loud fan noise.
I have a base model 2014 Macbook Air that I purchased new and I agree with you. Great Video!
The 2015 MacBook's are great systems for sure and still run great.
Still using my 2014, l wasn’t even aware the operating system (Big Sur) was out of date. The only thing I’ve noticed that while the computer still works with my Canon printer, something changed and it will not work the scanner anymore.
Nice, yes keep the computer as long as you can and only buy one when you need to.
These macs are bacically the best budget machines out there.
They are great for the money.
thank you for the video, I will buy MBP 2014 for $223.88 😅, my needs are for office, canva, video editing, presentation, zoom, coding. is it worth it for me to buy?
These are not the best for video editing but can do it in a pinch. I'm not sure if you would be happy. They work fine for day to day stuff like email, web browsing etc. You might look at the used M1 macbook air for around $499 etc. if video editing is what you want to do. Those aren't perfect either but will be easier to edit on. If you are only doing 1080P editing then the 2015 will work ok.
Hi there! Thanks for the video. I would like to ask you something. I’m from Mexico, and I want to use this MacBook for office work, I mean for word, excel and gmail/drive apps. Would you recommend it for that??? I’m kind of worried about the macOS version, so I need to know if it’s gonna be able to use this programs 😅 thanks!!
As far as compatibility you can look up if the programs you want to use will work on this system. This system's OS can go up to Big Sur with the OS (or you can use something like open core but that is an entire different process). But if the programs you want to use are compatible with Big Sur then you can use this. Just keep in mind it's not as fast as the M1's obviously but they still work ok for sure.
@@craigneidel thank you!!!
Welcome and thanks for watching the channel.
Amigo, tmb soy de México. Me ofrecieron una MacBook Pro Mid 2014 por solo 3500 pesos. Que tal, la compraste? Me la recomiendas? Yo tmb la quiero para cosas básicas. Safari, pasarle fotos de mi iPhone, conectarle mi Apple Watch, etc.
I was wondering how the battery holds up?
Does it last 3 or more hours?
I'm planning to use it for research and writing stories.
Mine is pretty good but all will be different depending on prior use. Should be easy to change out though.
Hi there, I have this model and I would like to by a 32 inch monitor. What would recommend 4k or WQHD and why ? Thanks
It's a personal choice. Hard to say but you can get 4k if same price then you have options.
I have the same computer and I want to ask that do I need to upgrade this computer to Big Sur?(now the system is Catalina)😁
You should upgrade it to the newest version that you can on any system so you have more recent security updates. Thanks for watching.
@@craigneidelok，thanks
Welcome and thanks again.
Would you recommend it fir school work? I attend my classes via zoom call and do my assignments online. I saw this macbook pro on amazon for $350 but i also saw a 2018 macbook air for 300 in a local shop. So im undecided on which would be best
To be honest you might want to get something like the M1 Air for $750 if for school. These older system do work great but could have issues loading the current versions of the software unless you use something like Open Core to load the newest OS. But it could work I would suppose.
Ok so overall this will be a great laptop to start editing my UA-cam videos on?
No not a great laptop in 2014. Capable of 1080p editing if needed but it's a very old and inexpensive laptop for basic stuff so not great choice if main job is editing.
@@craigneidel what would you suggest without breaking the bank? I’m am trying to move from iPad to laptop for editing but I’m looking for something not way 2 new but not way 2 old
I would get the M1 Air for like $650 on sale and that would be so much better for basic editing. The 2014 can do 1080p but it's just the age of the OS etc. Even a newer laptop like 2018 or 2019 would be better but they had some keyboard issues during that time so you need to make sure that isn't an issue.
planning to buy one but not sure if I can use AirPlay ? I aim is sharing movies etc to my apple tv but not quite sure if it would work ?
I would do a search on the OS version you plan on using and the model you get and it should have articles on if it's possible.
Is it good for music production
For basic or hobby work. If your doing it for money I would get m2 or m2 MacBook.
With the right settings it actually runs the newest photoshop and illustrator supricingly well (anything AI, gets a bit slow, but otherwise).
Thanks for the update on that and good luck with everything. These are still nice machines.
@@craigneidel another thing, these MacBooks becomes really slow when the battery gets old, a new cheap battery and they can go back running 6 x as fast as on the abused batteries.
Thanks for the info and watching the video.
still have mine but using m1 mbp 2021
The M1 is a great machine too for sure.
Bro i have the same macbook pro 13inch 2014 its battery sucks. Get new battery is make sense in 2023? Or i have to purchase a new macbook? This 2014 mac is enough to do my job.
Tough choice. I guess it depends on the cost of the battery. If you can use it for your job just upgrade battery then. I normally tell people for work to get at least an M1 but if you don't need that then why spend the cash.
@@craigneidel i repaired mine with ifixit. not difficult to do either.
Nice, yes that is the best way if you have the tools.
Can this run 4k on an external monitor
It can but I think at only 30 Hz - here is an article - discussions.apple.com/thread/250521169#:~:text=Details%3A*This%20model%20supports,at%2024%20Hz%20via%20HDMI.
Is it best for medical university student
No, I would say if you are going into Medical school get something like a M1 MacBook Air or better. You might need to use some of the newest Apps etc.
Is $140 CAD a good price for this model?
Not bad as they are getting older. You won't find it for too much cheaper.
Hi, will you kindly help me. I’m struggling to get a micro soft word for my 2014 MacBook Pro..What can I use to type my assignments?😭🙏🏻
Use pages that is built into the Mac. You should be able to download it for free.
@@craigneidel Hi, thanks a lot for the suggestion, I’ll try it and revert back. Hope it works😭
Good luck with things.
What about i want take and do video editing?
It can do it in a pinch but not the best due to age
13:18 pls sir I don't understand, pls I'm afraid to buy it.
Nice
Thanks for watching.
Even the MacBook Air less powerful can do nearly 95% of what people use daily. MacBook Pro is overkill.
I have and use both MacBook Air and Pro 2014-2015 8GB, 16GB , 256Gb, 512Gb. I use heavily for everything and everything works. I came from long time user non Mac machine running Linux. Linux and MacOS both base on Unix so any used MacBook can run Linux and even Window. The best of both world. There are NO computers out there that can last this long and still this good physically and functionally. MacBook is it!!!!!
Used MacBook vs used non MacBook for the same price and same feature. Which one would you buy?
I take the MacBook all day long.
I do like MacBooks but I also see that some people could use the MacBook Pro that does video editing like I do or other stuff. Time can be money and the quicker I can get things done the more stuff I can create.
Can i run Python on the macbook?
Thanks - www.makeuseof.com/how-to-install-python-on-mac/
ive bought it for 250 dollars in my country it is the cheapest price i could get here unfortunately
Yes they are a bit cheaper in USA.
Pleaseeee 🙏🙏
Please what....