Ironically if you didn’t need the GPU you probably could have disabled it via command line and could still be using it. Apart from the flawed GPU (and battery) design, those MacBooks are fantastic little workhorses.
Remove the GPU and do the bake technique. It works and will give your 2010 a few more years of service life. I have "fixed" about ten GPU cards this way.
Yeah Bro, Same here. Had to buy yesterday a new MacBook Pro 2021 because I need a netter performance for programmes but I‘m scared to Open the Box because it feels like betraying my beloved mac pro 2014…
I am the same way with my computer, but it's a windows desktop, but I picked amazing parts for the time which was 2012. It has a 8 core AMD FX-8350 which is still running great today. I have 16 GB of DDR3 ram & I'm thinking of upgrading to 32 GB for more intensive work loads, like video rendering & game design. When I do "expire" it, I plan on turning it into a server & I could have up to 64 GB of ram plus the 8 core CPU will be more than enough for even modern applications. I could run everything I would ever need on it. I have a UA-cam channel which quite a few subs (this is my anonymous channel), but I do everything I could possibly need on that old machine & I have no realistic need for an update. Maybe faster storage & a better GPU, but the CPU is more than enough. Its amazing how long an old CPU can last, hardware is truly amazing these days. But GPU's become outdated fairly quickly still, I feel lile graphics are the new thing whcih are moving fast, especially with crypto mining.
I had a 2014 15-inch MBP, best computer I've owned in my 41 years on this planet. Just due to the nature of my job as a developer I finally had to upgrade to a newer model, mostly because I now have to run much more intensive tools than I used to, so I handed it down to a best friend and they absolutely love it, it still handles almost everything one would want to do on a Mac with ease (of course not much for gaming or really intense tasks, but great for everything else). I was genuinely sad to get rid of it despite having a nice shiny new machine. I quite literally never had any problems with it. It ran like a champ for 7 years straight under very intensive conditions and never once complained. I know it's weird but whenever I visit my friend and see that machine sitting around somewhere it still makes me smile. I kinda want it back now, haha. Mostly kidding, I would never try to take back something I gave to someone, but even with the latest and greatest I still miss that old thing! I hope it lasts another 5+ years!
Just put a third battery into mine, and upgraded the storage. Last year I even applied new thermal paste. Does everything I need a laptop to do (I have an iMac for more intensive work.) Feeling pretty confidant that I can get at least 10 years out of the thing!
dell laptop 2005 here. the secret is to never use the original dell power suppliy but to transplant the verification chip from the original into something normal like a toshiba supply. the original power supplies used to get extremely hot and burn up LOL
I got this old late 2013 iMac from the basement in the house nobody uses i used the Big Sur usb patcher to update the unsupported Mac and ran boom3d I also bought the newer magic keyboard and mouse the joy I felt from doing that was immeasurable
I have an 2010 MacBook that my old brother bought last year. I had some issues cause he forgot the password and the battery was screwed up but it still work smoother then my hp laptop.
I just bought an used early 2011 MBP to start light programming in it for college and experience on Macs that I never had even though I have a decent medium Desktop, it wasn't really just for fun, but rather I was amazed at the still usefulness these things have so many years later.
i love that you're a mac channel that focuses on upgradability and reusability, something that apple blatantly hates and they do everything in their power to stay away from it. i wish more apple channel is like this.
I have to disagree that apple "blatantly hates reusability". That's just a million miles from the truth. The simple fact that Macs are the brand of computer that CAN be used 10+ years later no problem disproves that outright, they don't build computers that utterly die in 3-5 years, they've always built computers with hardware longevity and reusability in mind, and they promote refurbished machines themselves! The "Upgradability" point however is just one that consumers don't understand the engineering necessity behind. It comes down to 2 issues: Points of failure, and speed. More removable parts means more points of failure, removing them makes things more reliable, period.... and Speed: you don't need to upgrade your freaking RAM!!! SOC ram is way faster than anything you could hope to install in a socket, and Apple has matched the ram specs to the processor, which you absolutely won't with aftermarket ram!! Ever upgraded a laptops ram only to have it run slower? Happens all the time because people don't pay attention to RAM speeds when upgrading! People also used to (and still do) complain that Apple overcharges for RAM, but if you've ever looked at the speed and CAS latency of the RAM apple chooses, it's on par with the same spec'd ram that's available for upgrades... you' just never thought to pay for that "$250 32gb ram" because you got the same "32gb" for only $45 and didn't bother checking the freaking specs... Similarly, You absolutely don't need to upgrade SSD's anymore. If your SSD isn't big enough, GET A THUNDERBOLT EXTERNAL DRIVE!!! THEY'RE WAY FASTER!!!! 10 years ago internal drives absolutely trumped the speed any external drive could hope to provide, that's not the case anymore with Thunderbolt/USB3/4. External drives have PCI speeds, aka as fast as internal, and basically as fast as RAM now so you can just use it for swap instead of getting more RAM.... There's literally no need to "upgrade" anything internally anymore when the IO speeds are fast enough to support external storage at the same or better speed.
@@TheChrisSimpson There is still a market for upgradeability. Look up the framework laptop. The whole device is incredibly modular yet robust and includes guides on how to upgrade the computer and what to upgrade specific parts with, which you can get to through scanning the QR codes inside of your laptop or through their website. Also, upgrading devices with worse parts is something you would have to be incredibly tech illiterate to do, it's like throwing in a tractor engine into your car because it was "cheaper" while completely ignoring the thousands of labels saying, "FOR TRACTOR USAGE". Also ironically, the most reliable mac computers tend to be the ones with easily removable and swappable parts (Such as removable battery or RAM upgrades). Maybe it has to do with them being upgradeable and maintainable, something which modern flexgate-ridden macbooks and static metal cubes do not have. And yes, apple hates reusability. Louis Rossmann has been in the macbook repair business for decades and he has only seen apple try to clamp down on reusability to force people to buy new devices.
@@TheChrisSimpson the issue with not having user accessible storage is 2 fold ssds have a finite lifespan with soldered ssds it makes it near impossible to replace if the drive fails and while the lifespan of ram modules is significantly longer the same issues apply. having replaceable and upgradable components is a massive benefit for the longevity of machines be it gpus cpus ram or storage. as well as apple locking down other components on the board making refurbishment and maintenance on the machines signifigantly harder than their older machines. i say this as someone who has used apple products going back to the first gen power pc classic mac os workstations
@@TheChrisSimpson I agree. I've only once in over 20 years of using Macs had RAM fail. On the logic board, there's no opening up and reseating it just to see if that helps. Not saying it can't/won't happen, but that's jut my own experience. From a Duo270c to an iMac G3 and G5 to Intel and now to M series. Had a bunch of old ones at one point too (SE, Mac II, UMAX and others).
It’s Sept, 2020 and I’m still using a 27” iMac I bought in September, 2011. All I’ve done to it is upgraded the ram and replaced the 1TB mechanical drive w a 2 TB SSD drive. Still runs fine.
@@djplayerproductions I recently took my iMac 21.5 mid-2011 to an Apple Certified repair technician recommended by the Apple store which ran a diagnostics test [free] and said my hard drive wore out. The tech installed a Seagate 1 TB SATA hard drive to replace my 500 GB SATA hard drive. An SSD hard drive would have doubled the cost and rendered my optic drive useless. Yes. I still want my optic drive for playing DVD's and CD's. I'm using my restored iMac today and she's running at lightning speed. Years ago, I personally upgraded my 8 GB RAM with 12 GB RAM. It was easy to do. The access panel for RAM is on the underside of the iMac. Take two screws out and the memory cards are right there. Apple has a tutorial for replacing/upgrading RAM. The total cost to replace my hard drive was $330, a lot cheaper than a new iMac that wouldn't arrive until the end of December. The new iMac doesn't have the access panel for upgrading RAM. It also doesn't have an optic drive. You have to buy it separately. Maybe my vintage iMac will only last a year but the tech said it was "like new" inside, so I'm expecting at least three years. From Sierra, my OS was upgraded to High Sierra.
@@camilaandreaportugallangho3278 I recently took my iMac 21.5 mid-2011 to an Apple Certified repair technician recommended by the Apple store which ran a diagnostics test [free] and said my hard drive wore out. The tech installed a Seagate 1 TB SATA hard drive to replace my 500 GB SATA hard drive. An SSD hard drive would have doubled the cost and rendered my optic drive useless. Yes. I still want my optic drive for playing DVD's and CD's. I'm using my restored iMac today and she's running at lightning speed. Years ago, I personally upgraded my 8 GB RAM with 12 GB RAM. It was easy to do. The access panel for RAM is on the underside of the iMac. Take two screws out and the memory cards are right there. Apple has a tutorial for replacing/upgrading RAM. The total cost to replace my hard drive was $330, a lot cheaper than a new iMac that wouldn't arrive until the end of December. The new iMac doesn't have the access panel for upgrading RAM. It also doesn't have an optic drive. You have to buy it separately. Maybe my vintage iMac will only last a year but the tech said it was "like new" inside, so I'm expecting at least three years. From Sierra, my OS was upgraded to High Sierra.
I have a 2011 MacBook Pro which I do everything on. The keyboard is now failing with a few keys not functional but apart from that it’s in excellent condition. I’ve now bought a new 2020 Air as a backup and I just hope it lasts as long.
How is it in terms of user upgradability? SSD/RAM/battery still glued/soldered in? I've taken back both my '16 and '19 MB Pro's while I still could as I was appalled with both of them. Heard good things about the 2020's though, but I'm still gun shy after my last 2 experiences so I went to ebay and bought the nicest 2012 i7 I could find, topped off the ram and put a 1gb ssd in. Also got a nice desktop PC for more gpu-intensive applications, but quite frankly I never use it unless I'm playing a video game as the 2012 MBP is great for just browsing the web, writing papers, etc.
@@mfallen4277 I haven’t upgraded anything. The closest I got to opening it up was when I dropped it 4 years ago and it could’ve opened itself up lol. Surprisingly it’s resilient. The screen went pink for a few hours afterwards and then went back to normal by it self. My only issue is an intermittent keyboard problem with 3 (sometimes 4) keys not responding and that I can’t upgrade to the latest OS, so many of my applications are running very slow on it. But if this channel is correct both issues can be fixed easily. Buying it 9 years ago is easily one of the best investments I have made.
I have a 2011 17 inch mbp and it stills works like new. it had that gpu issue and I got it repaired for free from apple a little while back and it works like butter. I like the large screen for day trading stocks. I wish they still make 17 inches.
@@EpiCuber7 bro as of now 8 gb is fine. If you use your mac for normal web browsing, office, photo editing kind of things, go with 8gb. 16 gb is a thing mainly because of gaming...
@@mb90821 im a little late to the party ut 16GB is probably never gonna be used by 95% of ppl. and macos smartly uses the very fasst ssds if its needed. there is little to no need for the 16 gb
@@sholmes_ttyy Yeah as of today 8gb is “ok” but if you’re trying to get a computer that will last, you’ll need 16gb minimum. 8gb of RAM is borderline obsolete today and will soon be considered obsolete for anything outside of web apps. You cant upgrade your RAM, so make sure you buy it with the RAM upgraded or you’ll be buying another $1200 computer in a couple years
Just did a clean install on my 2009 27" for my grandmother. It's been laying dormant for 4 years and I was so surprised with how well it runs. For what she'll use it for it's absolutely perfect and I feel like it's better to use that rather than buying a brand new budget machine.
Literally, my siblings destroyed my old 2012 Sony Vaio screen and bought a new device. When I needed to repair my new device because of water damage, I booted up my old Sony Vaio and connected it to an old Samsung Montitor. It runs perfectly I'm thanking of starting to using it and keeping my new Asus laptop just for hardcore use cases after it gets repaired, so İ keep as new as possible
Great video Luke, have you heard of Matt Talks Tech? He does a fantastic guide to upgrade older Mac OS from all Macs in 2008 to 2012 to Catalina on his channel. He is a Mac lover like you, be great to see you both do a video together, he is like a European & England counterpart to you. I am going to do your upgrades here Luke and use Matt's guide to install Catalina
This video convinced me to stick with my 2012 Mac Mini and see how many more years I can stretch it. The new Macbooks are tempting me, but honestly the 10 year old Mini still works 100% fine for my needs.
@@trjones1 it came with an ssd? wow. yeah I think you can get 16gb of ram in there too if you really wanted, my 2011 runs 32. much cheaper than an m1 and just as good
Recently did the same. But my bottom ram slot has the issue where, if you bump the bottom case a little too hard, the MacBook will give the 3 beeps. So only 8gb RAM for me.
I'm typing this on my 2008 MacBook Pro, which I use to edit and upload almost all of my videos. I'm still using Mac OS X El Capitan, rather than doing the workarounds to upgrade it to a newer version of Mac OS, but I did max it out with 6 GB of RAM and replace the hard drive with an SSD, which made a huge improvement in performance.
I recently got my grandpa’s old iMac from late 2009. Intel Core 2 Duo, 6GB RAM, 512 GB. It’s running High Sierra, my mind is still blown with how well it still works!
My mom is still using a 2007 iMac I gave her and I'm using my 2014 MacBook Pro as well. I'm shocked, SHOCKED! Well, I'm not that shocked...they're still going strong.
I'm happy your addressing this. I have been telling my clients for years now older does not mean it's not usable. I do the same simple upgrades like this for their old tech, and they are amazed with the finished product. So i'm glad i'm not the only one out there doing this.
Thank you! Is there a general rule of thumb to know what is worth upgrading? I have a hp laptop and desktop that are both 9 years old. Both dual core. Is more RAM and a SSD worth the upgrade with that old of processor? Or should I get one of these 2009 MacBook or iMac and upgrade those? I've watched a couple of these Mac upgrade videos and they seem to be able to edit hd video in final cut with dual core.
I have a late 2012 imac, updgraded to a 1TB SSD and 16 GB ram and it works for even the more consuming things you mentioned, i do 3D models and renders and use the adobe suite without problems.
The big advantage to iMacs, Mac Pro, and the like are that they have a discrete gpu which helps a lot, even if they’re older. They still help a ton. If you already have them, perfect. If you’re looking to get something today. For the price, generally a PC with a discrete gpu will get you more bang for buck. But the prices are so variable on the used market, people selling their computers for $50 cuz they just want to get rid of them. The SSD and ram upgrade could be only $50 or $100. Hard to say which is better *because* the price is so variable.
Newer mac's, especially the M1's are an interesting thought. From what I'm getting at Macs last so long because, they usually have longer support on the software side and parts can easily be swapped out for more modern components. But this same notion is no longer going to be the case, 10 years from here. First off, mac's are becoming more and more unrepairable so if something breaks the whole system is gone. Also speeding up an old computer usually comes in the form of upgrading the HDD to an SSD in terms of responsiveness. But obviously you can't do that in the future since everything will have an SSD already. The drive speeds are so fast, even if there was a SSD two to three times as fast 10 years from now, it likely won't be a tangible difference for day to day use. I have a theory that the rate technology improves, is greater than the rate our basic computer needs evolve, hence with each successive release of mac it can in theory (if nothing breaks) last longer and longer without getting outdated. But that's the key word, in theory. I think the M1 has to potential to last a decade without the need to replace anything, but if something goes wrong (cracked screen, failed SSD) the whole thing is gone and may only last a few years. Previous generations has the benefit of adding new parts and repairability, but recent macs have the benefit of mature technology. TLDR no one will know if an M1 will age as well as a decade old Mac, although I would love it too as I am currently typing on one. As another commentor commented, using a decade old mac just seems so satisfying.
This is not true actually. Mac's don't have very good software support at all (iPhones and iPads do, however). Just take a look at the oldest supported Mac for Big Sur, it's from 2013. Meanwhile, that Mac (and many older Macs) can still run the latest Linux and Windows. I also think that the M1 Mac's wont last very long because, as you say, the SSDs can't be swapped. Especially the 8GB RAM models seem to get a lot of writes on the SSD.
@@fredfranssen5384 I mean 8 years, How long did you expect software to be supported? That's plenty for me. I think the iPhone had 6 years for reference, so Mac's are still a solid 2 years longer if that is the metric And just because you can load the latest operating system it doesn't mean you should, might end up running slower loading the latest version. You are right about the swap though, it certainly is higher on the M1 models than Intel because of unified memory. I do have the 16GB varient so I shouldn't have anything to worry about. Swap for day to day usage is virtually zero for me.
@@jesselam5867 Since the cutoff is arbtirary (as you can see, with a simple patch tool the newer software can run), I would say that 8 years is not long at all for computers. On iOS, it's clear that some models were just getting too slow for the latest software, like the iPhone 6. The first line of i7 processors, however, launched in 2008 and a PC with that processor is fine for simple tasks. A Mac with such a processor would be fine as well, I'm sure, if it would have gotten the latest software for longer.
I also have a M1 Mac and I understand the problems with lack of upgrades and difficulty of repairs, and Apple is pushing that all the way up to the iPhone and iPad, that are becoming increasingly harder to repair. It is something to worry, but as someone who uses a Mac professionally, having a 10 year old Mac is not an option. I also hope that these M1s last, but we just have to wait and see if their technologies are just as good at keeping up with the times.
Macs have a bad backwards compatibility compared to Windows and linux. In most cases when you update the OS, you're going to have to repurchase a lot of software even when it's not a change of processor architecture. Also if you think Apple builds quality, check Louis Rossmans youtube channel.
I'm still using my 2013 Mac Pro desktop. I've upgraded the RAM to 64Gb, but there's nothing it can't handle and it's a beautiful piece of equipment. Alongside my G4 Cube, it's one of my favourite industrial designs.
I bought my first iMac on December 2011 (27 inch), hoped it would last 5 years at least, 2021 and still working great. And I use it for photography editing among other things. This week I'm going from 12 gb of ram to 16, and hopefully next month I'll be replacing the drive for a SSD. Amazing machines 🙌
@Andre Elisii. I have the same computer from late 2015 and I love it. The drive is getting full now and probably needs to be replaced. Other than that I love it can would find it hard to go to a smaller screen. Any tips on your hard drive replacement are welcome. (I think I may also get a newer one tho possibly a used or refurbished.)
@@MiguelMorales-ll6sy Miguel, I have the same mid 2010 iMac and thought (and read) it could only be updated as far as High Sierra, which is what I have. How did you get Monterey to be installed on yours?
Yes! My 2008 iMac lasted until a year ago, I left it on almost the entire time I owned it. I swear I rarely turned it off. The display went out so I replaced it with a late 2009. I was bummed but it was easier to replace it. I didn't give a single thought to getting a new one. It was a solid computer for 10+ years. I use to go through a PC every 2 years until I bought the 2008!
How did you manage to go through a PC every 2 years? 2008 isn't even old. That poor thing was probably filled to the brim with dust if you never turned it off. It would probably be working today if you had taken it apart from time to time to blow out the dust.
@@angellrodriguezmontes8556 It isn't old enough that it wouldn't be reasonable for it to still be humming away today with the bare minimum of preventative maintenance, unless it had a batch of really crappy capacitors.
@@nynyseymore8027 Looks like it, although that wouldn't matter. You would just need to find a random generic bluetooth dongle that Apple bothered to write drivers for.
your both lucky the g5's especially were lemons. their power supplies and mainboards failed fir many people. i had two die and suffer the fans on full, stop booting issues. when they worked they were brilliant but they had issues. no amount of resetting of the device got them working again. they had design flaws.
@@reel_images I bought a Powermac g5 to mod for standard pc parts. and its water cooler, which uses glycol car coolant, took a massive crap on everything. kinda sucked cause it was a top trim. dual 2.0 cpus. 8 gb ram. ram still works tho. but yea. everything else is dead.
@@reel_images Dell had the same problem in that era, bad capacitors. I used to have stacks of Optiplex GX series Dells with bad power supplies and mainboards. I think the G5 Powermacs were better than the iMacs in that regard. I have a working G5 iMac, after having replaced the PSU. My friend took that for Garageband long ago though and barely ever uses it. Any random computer that doesn't have straight-up faulty parts should last pretty much forever with minimal maintenance.
I still have my iMac from 2009. It hasn’t had any upgrades, and it still runs great! I sometimes use it for basic tasks and even some video editing if my other computers are in use. It’s not zippy when video editing by any stretch. But it works. It doesn’t seem to have any issues with getting bogged down over time like my equivalent windows computers did.
CrxzyNickk Hi, Luke Miani mentioned in this video something he used to upgrade the OS to more recent than High-Sierra. I have a 2011 MBP. What do I need to install a more up to date OS? I could not understand what Luke said (even with repeated listenings) and it is not in the links and notes "below".
I'm still using an iPad 1st generation including watching this video. It's a life saver to revive and jailbreak old tech. Thinking of someday using an old Mac Book air to replace my Delll Precision 690.
Clear the cache and use Macbooster 3. For some reason I get the baseball of death each boot unless I clear everything. Also try to have at least 25% of you SSD free and use external drives to save projects as they can eat a lot of space, especially AF.
@@MoviesRemastered No, I think you meant Mackeeper, clean my Mac is from Macpaw’s company and it is not a malware haha What’s the positive side of Macbooster ?
I currently still own my mid 2010 Macbook Pro 15" with 8G ram, 512G SSD that I bought back in Jan 2011. My mind is blown that it is still going considering the amount of heavy tasks I do. I had one repair at 2.5 years in that was covered by the warranty and that's it. When I first got the macbook I used it mainly for HD video editing (ran a videography business and shot short films) and then these last 6 years I've transitioned over to 2D animation. I did have to change up the structure/workflow a few years ago because FCP7 and Toon Boom Animate crash alot on a newer operating system Sierra (last OS that supports FCP7 as well). So my SSD has two OS's. Sierra (for web browsing and itunes) and Mountain Lion for FCP and Toon Boom. I have fan control as well so I have the fans going almost at full blast when using FCP/TB. My 2016 iPhone needed the newer itunes that wasn't supported on Mountain Lion. Just recently I've been working on making a 2D game using GameMaker Studio 2 and it's really really pushing it hard hahaha I'm going to see if I can make it last another 1-2 years but damn I've never owned a computer for longer than 1 or 2 years before this. This is my first apple computer as well, I was using PC's before this. I only had 1 friend in my home town that had apple computers and his iMac lasted for 12 years.
I’d argue that this is no longer the case, with soldered on RAM, etc, the latest Macs are no longer be serviceable, barring user upgrades a decade later.
I am The one why not? Mine is from 2012 and I think I’m going to use for some more years. I hate this society where everyone throws perfectly fine products out just to use the latest one.
I recently was using an early 2006 MacBook as my backup work laptop while my 2012 MacBook Pro was being fixed. Both MacBooks are pretty old at this point, but the 2006 Mac has really held up well. It’s not terrible, obviously it’s slow and loud but I can type documents in word, send emails and browse the web which is all I need from a portable work computer. Very impressed, and I’m only realising now that the 2012 Pro is also getting pretty old. I hadn’t even ever thought about upgrading because of its age. It has worked perfectly without any problems up until now.
Fully agree and makes me regret some of the quick buy-sell-buy that I did with some Macs; I probably could have kept them and gotten more worth out of using them for years than what I made on eBay
I thought that my mid 2010 macbook pro had reached his end of live in 2019, he already had 8gb of ram, but then I came across a cheap 240gb ssd and installed. BIG difference! If you can do only SSD or RAM, get the SSD first no doubt.
Even tho your RAM is not enough, it can cache to SSD, and since the SSD is very fast it compensates the low amount of RAM. So definitely SSD upgrade is priority over RAM.
10 years ago I was still using a Cube from 10 years earlier... Perfectly usable back then. Today the Cube is still alive, but you could say it's past its expiration date now.
Just got a M1 MacBook Air, wonder how long that can last versus Apple’s older machines. Obvious problem is that if basically anything fails it is much harder or even impossible to replace/fix the components.
there are literally no moving parts on the macbook air, so they should last as long as their ssd lasts, which wont be anything less then a decade considering ssd life expectancy in general.
I have an IMac from 2009 and I have used it for practically everyday. Last 1,5 year even more extensively. Best Buy I ever did. In all these years the only things were 3 times reset the ram due to a full harddrive. 1 time spinning fans (I fixed this, but forget how to, fancontrol), and a glitch of the screen, but that disappeared. All things I fixed with starting up with function key’s. The only disadvantage is that I have no reason to buy a newer one. Lately tho a lot of software can’t be updated and new software does not run anymore. I still run Mavericks. I used Snow Leopard witch was the best with frontrow and playing video with a tab on the spacebar.
An apparent quirk of the Mid-2010 MBP's is that the 13" Core2Duo model can handle up to 16Gb of RAM. Weird, but true (running at least OSX 7.5.5 and the EFI update). I recently added a 1Tb SSD and maxed out the RAM with no ill-effect and I look forward to using my 10-year old machine for at least 2 or 3 more years. I believe I could've put in a 2Tb SSD and replace the optical drive with another 2Tb SSD - but that's ...too much.
I had used my last Mac which was a 17 inch 2010 MacBook Pro (purchased in April 2010) until it suddenly died in August 2019 for well over 9 years. It was such a solid machine with an excellent build quality. Travelled with it on so many flights, so many miles. Was my work horse. Loved it!
@@sloppynyuszi they don't really need it, it's just a marketing strategy, every brand say "Hey look, i have more ram, i'm better, buy me" Sorry if my english is Bad, i'm from a third world country from South America xd
@@sloppynyuszi its called Android. Android is MUCH more resource heavy than iOS. It's not a bad thing that these phones have that much amount of ram, tho
Sloppy Toons They don’t need it but it’s definitely a good thing to have. Android is just so bogged down that they need to have so much brute power. iOS could probably still function on 512 megabytes LOL.
I was looking for something to write on when I'm not at my desk. I started looking at dedicated word processors and the like. Stumbled across your channel. Had no idea you could buy such a great, reliable little machine for so little money. Just bought a 2012 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody with 16GB RAM and 240GB SSD for $155 plus $12 shipping. Looks virtually new. Just amazing.
good price, the 2012 model is also a lot more futureproof than the 2008-2010 models. I got in about 2013 a 2nd hand 2010 15" MacBook Pro, used it till today excessively (multiple DIY repairs and battery swaps), but i ordered not long ago a 2021 16" MacBook Pro... its coming right now and i cant wait to see the difference between a "slow" 2010 which cant even playback youtube properly in 1080p 60 fps to the 2021 model which can playback multiple 4k streams simultaniously haha Definately a huge overkill for my needs (basic stuff, office, astrophotography, photo editing) but i hope this machine also lasts 5-10 years and serve me well as the 2010 model did.
@@harrison00xXx Thank you for your nice reply. I'm also in the market for an "on the go" Mac. What in your opinion would be the best "light" Macbook? One of the Airs?
@@therealgaragegirls well if we consider only the actual aviable models... The Air as cheapest option, also the slowest (doesnt mean its really slow....) Biggest downside of the actual Air: big bezels, THE reason i didnt go for the 13" Air If you want still good portability but more power and/or battery runtime for on the go.... probably the 14" but NOT with a M1 Max, only in M1 Pro variants! Probably there you get the most for your money if you are fine with the base version and really cant withstand the 16"´s size/weight. Otherwise i would suggest the 16" base model if its in your budget, probably with 1TB SSD at least if... once more, its in your budget. I couldnt afford the 1TB, or better didnt want to anymore, the 2400€ for the 16" MBP was already like 1400€ over budget Since i came already from a 15" MBP and i didnt want to go smaller, there was no way around the 16" (in fact its smaller and lighter despite having nearly 1" more screen!) Probably you try them in any shop before buying one if you cant really imagine how heavy/big they are? I personally think the 16" model is PERFECT. Ofc not the most mobile one, but useful big screen, 14" is "netbook-like" compared to side by side... Also, i really love the design with the big spot for the speakers on 16" (and 15" models), whereas on the 14" where the notebook edge is nearly directly at the keyboards side... its easily looking bad, 16" looks much better too.
I have a 2009 cheese grater that I did extensive upgrades. Love this machine, runs like a champ! My next task is going from 6 cores to 12. Awesome longevity.
Just watched this on my new early 2009 iMac, which I hope is going to replace the late 2006 one I was using until yesterday. So great to be able to use 10.11.6 instead of 10.6.8, and the 24" display is great! As a special bonus, my new old computer also doubles up as a room heater, maybe a cooker :)
@@JamesAutoDude Not where I live. And I see far fewer early 2009s and earlier iMacs with dead GPUs than I do late 2009 and later. What's special about 2012 models?
I spent a month watching UA-cam videos and installed a 500 MB SSD and 8 GB memory in my 2011 MacBook Pro. I'm watching this video and processing another in Camtasia. I love this machine.
For video editing you are right indeed. But for Photoshop or Lightroom in a half-professional use they remain great. For sound production also as far as sound quality is based on a a good recording quality. Too many producers now base their sound on too many plugins. Logic is a good platform. I was surprised that you didn't change the battery on the mbp and put a second ssd instead of the optic bay. Options that are quite common and helped made these machines popular and reliable.
I still have my 2013 iMac and it still looks and runs like a dream. It has 16 GB of memory and a 1 TB hard drive, which is plenty for me. I have absolutely no plans to replace it any time soon. For anyone who wants a great desktop computer, but doesn't want to spend a fortune, I ALWAYS recommend going with an older model iMac (as long as it's in great condition, of course). These things last forever and you will more than get your money's worth. I did just splurge and bought myself a brand new 2020 MacBook Pro to replace my 2016 model, which I'm sure will last me for years as well. I'm giving my older MacBook to my parents, which I am sure will serve them very well.
Mine is still going strong as well! It more than meets my needs and I have no plans or desire to upgrade any time soon either. I did buy a new MacBook Pro last year, but my 2013 iMac is going to be with me for quite a while to come!
I was using that MacBook Pro as my daily driver until earlier this year. I replaced the hard drive with a 1TB SSD, maxed out the ram, and I've replace the battery three times.
I am a digital immigrant=granny! but I love fixing things and you make it look SOOO easy. You have inspired me-especially since my iMac just had a serious fall and is looking her age!
I’ve used my MacBook from 2005 until last year (2021). It didn’t stop working , the only problem was that I couldn’t update to a new OS anymore. I was always super happy with that macbook :)
Wow! I still have my old MacBook from 2009 I think, it rather died on me in 2018, I had it fixed by an independent repair fellow who could fix Macs, just long enough to move ALL my data now to a MacBook Air that I bought then. So I am 4 1/2 yrs on my MacBook Air. It was not the latest MacBook Air it's just the machine I liked at that time: the most similar to the old MacBook
I have a late 2009 27inch iMac and the screen pops off because it’s held in by magnets and then you’re in! a hinge for the display and then you can replace anything, replaced my hd and it was so easy it’s crazy
Thank you for the excellent video. I watched it when it first came out and it's accurate two years later. It's January 2023 when I write this. My 15" mid 2015 laptop is working fine. I upgraded it to a 1TB SSD from its OEM 256GB SSD which gave it a significant speed increase and radically obviated the continuous hassle with storage management. Apple repaired the delaminating screen under Apple care. I had Apple change the battery for $200 when the capacity loss got annoying. The 2015 is not going anyplace. The keyboard on it (best keyboard I've ever used - YMMV) is so quiet I can sit up in bed and write without waking my wife. Not true of my 2021 MBP. I just (last fall) upgraded my wife's 2015 iMac to a 1TB SSD. Your video's and others showing the process were a big help and gave me the confidence to deal with the glued on screen. The upgrade went like clockwork. The speed increase wasn't as great as it was on the laptop, but it got the perceived performance back to better than new which got me lots of Good Hubby Points. I did buy a new 16" Mac-PRO laptop with 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD (I'll never again make the mistake of buying a small SSD - the storage management hassle never ends and the new machines can't be upgraded.) I expect my 16" 2021 to last for at least a decade.
I love my 2011, 21.5" all in one desk top Mac. It runs beautifully. It does run out of memory sometimes. But I just ordered 4 GB modules, so I will have 8 total. Thanks for the video.
Depending on the model code of the 2010 MBP you can upgrade to 16gb ram. I forget the model numbers that accept the 16gb ram, but m=I did that upgrade to mine and the ssd and it was awesome!
Another factor you're overlooking is that these macs are made out of cast aluminium. The build quality of that is much higher compared to the plastic casings of older laptops which would break apart over time.
@@NNokia-jz6jb I'm pretty sure OP was thinking of the laptops. Which are amazing. I've just discovered how good they are with Linux--I think I prefer them to Thinkpads for my, not computationally intensive, uses.
@@michaelwright2986 Ah.. I see. And OSX (based on BSD) and Linux share the same parent: UNIX. And my 27 inch, 2011 imac died. The famous videocard problem. :(
@@NNokia-jz6jb I'm sorry to hear of your loss. But it shows that desktop machines don't have to be rugged to have a long life. My first computer was a luggable, a KayPro with a case of 1/16" aluminium sheet. It was built, and survived travel between New Zealand and the UK (as checked baggage). Whereas my first PC clone had a case of the thinnest grade tin, but worked fine until it was obsolete (about 18 months, IIRC).
I use my old MacBook Air (2014) as my kitchen Computer. Reset it once and cleaned everything from it. Use it to look at (cooking) videos and check e-Mails while in the kitchen. The battery is still superbe and lasts a whole day. Only thing I did was to install Chrome as it runs smoother and replace the charging cable once. If you keep your Mac "clean" it will basically run forever and with that build quality it still feels premium. 10 year anniversary coming up.
I have used my 13.3" MBP from 2012 daily ever since. I did upgrade the RAM and switch to SSD, but it's still a very good machine. It's gotten me through university, so in a way it has been my best investment ever.
@Vangelina Barrow i replaced the hard drive with a solid state drive and it completely fixed my slow and glitchy 2011 mbp. It was so slow it was unusable and now it runs like new.
Running a 2009 27" Imac here. Rather happy my machine has been running along, but I've often wondered about opening it up as the case back has been feeling warmer than expected. And tbh, the optical drive hasn't been used on this machine in...years. I've been wondering what an SSD drive would do to the performance, good to know. I am running High Sierra FYI and seems to be cruising along. Upgraded the ram to 12GB around 6-7 years ago, and that was an amazing improvement. My biggest concern as of late is frankly, backing files up and update to SSD to speed boot up times and performance, but with the picture and video files from automotive adventures, I need 1-2 TB, a 128GB isn't going to cut it lol
Many thanks Luke Was ready to ditch my iMac 2009 and my Mac book pro 2010 But since watching your video decided to go ahead and give it a try and upgrade these old Mac's The way I see it really got nothing to lose and for a few bucks maybe can prolong the use of these Mac's for a few years more for use as simple devices Thanks again
@Monica Wood Honestly, as a guy with ZERO computer abilities, I installed a couple of $50 RAM sticks, and upgraded the harddrive to a 3TB. Software is free. All up would be way less than $200 and doable in less than an hour with no skills except UA-cam and a screwdriver set. Working like a 11 year-old charm.
I was gifted an early 2011 MacBook Pro 17” It was way to slow to work with. So I switched the HDD for an SSD an upgraded the RAM. It works like a dream now.
@@thor.mukbangExactly, the new iMac that just came out a few weeks ago is powerful enough to last 5+ years as someone’s primary machine and probably another 5 years for a light user / students computer.
I was really hesitant to get the 16” but I need bootcamp to run some of my rendering programs so unfortunately I can’t hold out until the ARM ones come out
Thanks Luke! This is the way to truly save energy! Extending the lifetime of hardware by upgrading delays the need to replace them and saves the energy of producing a new device. I did exactly what you describe in your excellent video and as a step further one may use e.g. Zorin OS instead of MacOS which runs excellent on older HW. I use it on a white MacBoock and also on an old Lenovo T430 and it is great and Teams and Zoom is usable w/o problems with sound and camera.
I would have agreed with this, right up to a couple of days ago when my main work machine, a six year-old 27in iMac 5K, suddenly started behaving weirdly. It's showing all the signs of HD corruption. Damn it! You buy a thing, leave it running 24/7 for six years, and suddenly it's a 'problem'...
Mid-2012 macbook pro (non retina) After 8 year of having this thing it still goes strong. I did recently get a new M1 Pro 14 since I need to do video editing on the go, but my old macbook pro is still breathing. If anything it just needs a new battery replacement and some dusting.
I use a home-built Windows PC, but I do admire how Macs last for a very long time. I remember my previous school still using those PowerBooks to display time and information in the school TVs!
Target display mode is a godsend. Even when the internals are completely out of date in the next 10 years, that display will still be totally functional
@@justdecember financially prudent = broke....lol I assume u also use the original iPhone since you are so prudent with you money. Because a prudent person won't spend the equivalent of a desktop or laptop on a phone.
I recently purchased a mid-2011 iMac with 27" screen for £134. Being an A1312 model, It has a 2.7 i5 CPU, 512Gb AMD 6770 Graphics, 1Tb HDD and upgraded 12 Gb RAM. It was pretty much scratch free clean, quiet and relatively dust free inside [I know, I opened it up] Even the Superdrive works nicely. And the screen has not a trace of yellowing anywhere around the edge. I only bought it because I was fixing my niece's 27" iMac that needed a PSU, and I stumbled across this one on ebay. It was local to me and I kind of liked the iMac after working on one. Seemed too nice to miss. And I'm really surprised at how alright it goes. I fancy I'll be putting an SSD or two it. Say a 128Gb for the system and 1Tb for the data.. And maybe go from High Sierra to something more recent once i check out those available patches.
My heart was broken when you said "this macs doesnt work for animation, 3d rendering or editing video" cuz that's exactly what i do with mine cuz i'm poor :(
My 2012 iMac is running strong, rocking 32 gb of RAM these days. Does just fine for web browsing with dozens of tabs open, although it's a bit slow for video editing. My 2008 unibody MacBook started running like crap though, and the battery only lasts a few years before it puffs up.
I've got a 2008 aluminium MacBook. Around 2015 I replaced the battery, maxxed out the Ram, and replaced the HD by an SSD, then used it daily until 2020. I only replaced it when the second PSU cable began to fracture (although a friend fixed it with "Sugru"). I still use it to drive a projector for a sing-along band I play with. An alternative option is to install one of the many Linux distributions on it. I did that for my wife's polycarbonate MacBook, and it gave it a new lease of life. As long and you don't need Mac specific software, Linux is ok for web-browsing (Firefox), email (Thunderbird) and word processing (LibreOffice).
I love this type of video. The 2010 MBP was my very first laptop. It's fun to see Tech UA-camrs that focus on older tech, and helping people who don't always want to buy new products.
Same here, or similar (had a 2009 15" machine for a few years in school and after, fell apart and I got a 2nd hand 2010 15" then) I really loved this MacBooks and the 2010 still working (after 3 DIY repairs and 3 battery swaps I also did myself), but since I upgraded to a 16" 2021 M1 Pro... well, as much I liked this machine especially on the go, the 2021 16" is A WHOLE DIFFERENT LEVEL. Ofc its more like a oversized, overpowered iPhone/iPad somehow, but as much I tried to push its limits (software support wise)... I didn't really get into issues except very few, specialized programs which I need like a stacker program for astro images. Btw the 2009 MBPs logic board also is still in working condition built into an old 24" 16:10 LCD screen as trashcan "iMac". Can barely handle 1080p UA-cam, but that's just fine for this type of machine
I agree. I also believe the presenter’s voice quality, melodic intonation and resonance is far more important than the content. Since everyone is a genius on youtube, content is becoming less and less important. I predict that in 10 year’s time the known Universe will shrink into a fist sized ball of pleasure. Sorry, I meant indifference.
I was surprised when he said it only supported 8GB. Btw, is it worth upgrading from 8GB to 16GB on these machines? I already have an SSD on my base 2.4 C2D 13.
I've got a mid 2010 iMac and a late 2011 mbpro both upgraded to Catalina (the iMac is the base model with the hd 4760) both are still going strong from daily use in the past few years I have owned them and I hope there are many years to come
@@Latashamorriscom I used dosdude1's catalina patcher, It was very stable and it is completley free. There are plenty of videos on youtube explaining how to do this
My mid-2010 iMac‘s gpu died last night. I used that computer everyday for 11 years and even more so these past 12 months. Incredible.
Ironically if you didn’t need the GPU you probably could have disabled it via command line and could still be using it. Apart from the flawed GPU (and battery) design, those MacBooks are fantastic little workhorses.
Remove the GPU and do the bake technique. It works and will give your 2010 a few more years of service life. I have "fixed" about ten GPU cards this way.
Rip gpu bro
@@mbigbit4537 2011 model not 2010?
@@mbigbit4537 I have the 2011 model and I used the Zapper to disable the GPU a couple of days ago. 6 years thrown in a press and now it's working A1!
2014 Macbook Pro here, running perfectly, taken me through both High School and College. At this point it has much sentimental value to me.
Yeah Bro, Same here. Had to buy yesterday a new MacBook Pro 2021 because I need a netter performance for programmes but I‘m scared to Open the Box because it feels like betraying my beloved mac pro 2014…
I am the same way with my computer, but it's a windows desktop, but I picked amazing parts for the time which was 2012.
It has a 8 core AMD FX-8350 which is still running great today. I have 16 GB of DDR3 ram & I'm thinking of upgrading to 32 GB for more intensive work loads, like video rendering & game design.
When I do "expire" it, I plan on turning it into a server & I could have up to 64 GB of ram plus the 8 core CPU will be more than enough for even modern applications. I could run everything I would ever need on it. I have a UA-cam channel which quite a few subs (this is my anonymous channel), but I do everything I could possibly need on that old machine & I have no realistic need for an update. Maybe faster storage & a better GPU, but the CPU is more than enough. Its amazing how long an old CPU can last, hardware is truly amazing these days.
But GPU's become outdated fairly quickly still, I feel lile graphics are the new thing whcih are moving fast, especially with crypto mining.
I had a 2014 15-inch MBP, best computer I've owned in my 41 years on this planet. Just due to the nature of my job as a developer I finally had to upgrade to a newer model, mostly because I now have to run much more intensive tools than I used to, so I handed it down to a best friend and they absolutely love it, it still handles almost everything one would want to do on a Mac with ease (of course not much for gaming or really intense tasks, but great for everything else).
I was genuinely sad to get rid of it despite having a nice shiny new machine. I quite literally never had any problems with it. It ran like a champ for 7 years straight under very intensive conditions and never once complained. I know it's weird but whenever I visit my friend and see that machine sitting around somewhere it still makes me smile.
I kinda want it back now, haha. Mostly kidding, I would never try to take back something I gave to someone, but even with the latest and greatest I still miss that old thing! I hope it lasts another 5+ years!
Just put a third battery into mine, and upgraded the storage. Last year I even applied new thermal paste. Does everything I need a laptop to do (I have an iMac for more intensive work.) Feeling pretty confidant that I can get at least 10 years out of the thing!
dell laptop 2005 here. the secret is to never use the original dell power suppliy but to transplant the verification chip from the original into something normal like a toshiba supply.
the original power supplies used to get extremely hot and burn up LOL
Having an old machine still functioning just for fun is an inexplicable form of pleasure too
I got this old late 2013 iMac from the basement in the house nobody uses i used the Big Sur usb patcher to update the unsupported Mac and ran boom3d I also bought the newer magic keyboard and mouse the joy I felt from doing that was immeasurable
I have an 2010 MacBook that my old brother bought last year. I had some issues cause he forgot the password and the battery was screwed up but it still work smoother then my hp laptop.
I just bought an used early 2011 MBP to start light programming in it for college and experience on Macs that I never had even though I have a decent medium Desktop, it wasn't really just for fun, but rather I was amazed at the still usefulness these things have so many years later.
I think my 2004 G4 still works!
@@ultra.4936 how did u get big sur on an unsupported mac?
i love that you're a mac channel that focuses on upgradability and reusability, something that apple blatantly hates and they do everything in their power to stay away from it. i wish more apple channel is like this.
I have to disagree that apple "blatantly hates reusability". That's just a million miles from the truth. The simple fact that Macs are the brand of computer that CAN be used 10+ years later no problem disproves that outright, they don't build computers that utterly die in 3-5 years, they've always built computers with hardware longevity and reusability in mind, and they promote refurbished machines themselves!
The "Upgradability" point however is just one that consumers don't understand the engineering necessity behind. It comes down to 2 issues: Points of failure, and speed.
More removable parts means more points of failure, removing them makes things more reliable, period....
and Speed: you don't need to upgrade your freaking RAM!!! SOC ram is way faster than anything you could hope to install in a socket, and Apple has matched the ram specs to the processor, which you absolutely won't with aftermarket ram!!
Ever upgraded a laptops ram only to have it run slower? Happens all the time because people don't pay attention to RAM speeds when upgrading! People also used to (and still do) complain that Apple overcharges for RAM, but if you've ever looked at the speed and CAS latency of the RAM apple chooses, it's on par with the same spec'd ram that's available for upgrades... you' just never thought to pay for that "$250 32gb ram" because you got the same "32gb" for only $45 and didn't bother checking the freaking specs...
Similarly, You absolutely don't need to upgrade SSD's anymore. If your SSD isn't big enough, GET A THUNDERBOLT EXTERNAL DRIVE!!! THEY'RE WAY FASTER!!!!
10 years ago internal drives absolutely trumped the speed any external drive could hope to provide, that's not the case anymore with Thunderbolt/USB3/4. External drives have PCI speeds, aka as fast as internal, and basically as fast as RAM now so you can just use it for swap instead of getting more RAM.... There's literally no need to "upgrade" anything internally anymore when the IO speeds are fast enough to support external storage at the same or better speed.
@@TheChrisSimpson There is still a market for upgradeability. Look up the framework laptop. The whole device is incredibly modular yet robust and includes guides on how to upgrade the computer and what to upgrade specific parts with, which you can get to through scanning the QR codes inside of your laptop or through their website.
Also, upgrading devices with worse parts is something you would have to be incredibly tech illiterate to do, it's like throwing in a tractor engine into your car because it was "cheaper" while completely ignoring the thousands of labels saying, "FOR TRACTOR USAGE". Also ironically, the most reliable mac computers tend to be the ones with easily removable and swappable parts (Such as removable battery or RAM upgrades). Maybe it has to do with them being upgradeable and maintainable, something which modern flexgate-ridden macbooks and static metal cubes do not have.
And yes, apple hates reusability. Louis Rossmann has been in the macbook repair business for decades and he has only seen apple try to clamp down on reusability to force people to buy new devices.
@@TheChrisSimpson the issue with not having user accessible storage is 2 fold ssds have a finite lifespan with soldered ssds it makes it near impossible to replace if the drive fails and while the lifespan of ram modules is significantly longer the same issues apply. having replaceable and upgradable components is a massive benefit for the longevity of machines be it gpus cpus ram or storage. as well as apple locking down other components on the board making refurbishment and maintenance on the machines signifigantly harder than their older machines. i say this as someone who has used apple products going back to the first gen power pc classic mac os workstations
@@TheChrisSimpson CRAZY meatriding
@@TheChrisSimpson I agree. I've only once in over 20 years of using Macs had RAM fail. On the logic board, there's no opening up and reseating it just to see if that helps. Not saying it can't/won't happen, but that's jut my own experience. From a Duo270c to an iMac G3 and G5 to Intel and now to M series. Had a bunch of old ones at one point too (SE, Mac II, UMAX and others).
It’s Sept, 2020 and I’m still using a 27” iMac I bought in September, 2011. All I’ve done to it is upgraded the ram and replaced the 1TB mechanical drive w a 2 TB SSD drive. Still runs fine.
Could you give me further instructions? I would like to do the same
LOL...I Still run a Lenovo A720 27 inch All-in-One from 2012 with win10.Works fine long lasting usable PC'S not just an apple imac phenomenon.
@@camilaandreaportugallangho3278 I would like to know also.
@@djplayerproductions I recently took my iMac 21.5 mid-2011 to an Apple Certified repair technician recommended by the Apple store which ran a diagnostics test [free] and said my hard drive wore out. The tech installed a Seagate 1 TB SATA hard drive to replace my 500 GB SATA hard drive. An SSD hard drive would have doubled the cost and rendered my optic drive useless. Yes. I still want my optic drive for playing DVD's and CD's. I'm using my restored iMac today and she's running at lightning speed. Years ago, I personally upgraded my 8 GB RAM with 12 GB RAM. It was easy to do. The access panel for RAM is on the underside of the iMac. Take two screws out and the memory cards are right there. Apple has a tutorial for replacing/upgrading RAM. The total cost to replace my hard drive was $330, a lot cheaper than a new iMac that wouldn't arrive until the end of December. The new iMac doesn't have the access panel for upgrading RAM. It also doesn't have an optic drive. You have to buy it separately. Maybe my vintage iMac will only last a year but the tech said it was "like new" inside, so I'm expecting at least three years. From Sierra, my OS was upgraded to High Sierra.
@@camilaandreaportugallangho3278 I recently took my iMac 21.5 mid-2011 to an Apple Certified repair technician recommended by the Apple store which ran a diagnostics test [free] and said my hard drive wore out. The tech installed a Seagate 1 TB SATA hard drive to replace my 500 GB SATA hard drive. An SSD hard drive would have doubled the cost and rendered my optic drive useless. Yes. I still want my optic drive for playing DVD's and CD's. I'm using my restored iMac today and she's running at lightning speed. Years ago, I personally upgraded my 8 GB RAM with 12 GB RAM. It was easy to do. The access panel for RAM is on the underside of the iMac. Take two screws out and the memory cards are right there. Apple has a tutorial for replacing/upgrading RAM. The total cost to replace my hard drive was $330, a lot cheaper than a new iMac that wouldn't arrive until the end of December. The new iMac doesn't have the access panel for upgrading RAM. It also doesn't have an optic drive. You have to buy it separately. Maybe my vintage iMac will only last a year but the tech said it was "like new" inside, so I'm expecting at least three years. From Sierra, my OS was upgraded to High Sierra.
I have a 2011 MacBook Pro which I do everything on. The keyboard is now failing with a few keys not functional but apart from that it’s in excellent condition. I’ve now bought a new 2020 Air as a backup and I just hope it lasts as long.
How is it in terms of user upgradability? SSD/RAM/battery still glued/soldered in? I've taken back both my '16 and '19 MB Pro's while I still could as I was appalled with both of them. Heard good things about the 2020's though, but I'm still gun shy after my last 2 experiences so I went to ebay and bought the nicest 2012 i7 I could find, topped off the ram and put a 1gb ssd in. Also got a nice desktop PC for more gpu-intensive applications, but quite frankly I never use it unless I'm playing a video game as the 2012 MBP is great for just browsing the web, writing papers, etc.
@@mfallen4277 1GB SSD? 19-inch MBP? bruh fix your comment.
@@mfallen4277 I haven’t upgraded anything. The closest I got to opening it up was when I dropped it 4 years ago and it could’ve opened itself up lol. Surprisingly it’s resilient. The screen went pink for a few hours afterwards and then went back to normal by it self. My only issue is an intermittent keyboard problem with 3 (sometimes 4) keys not responding and that I can’t upgrade to the latest OS, so many of my applications are running very slow on it. But if this channel is correct both issues can be fixed easily. Buying it 9 years ago is easily one of the best investments I have made.
Same here! Except mine is a 2010 and the keyboard is fine...
I have a 2011 17 inch mbp and it stills works like new. it had that gpu issue and I got it repaired for free from apple a little while back and it works like butter. I like the large screen for day trading stocks. I wish they still make 17 inches.
I'm still surviving my web development bootcamp with a 2010 mac mini. The ssd addition and 16 GB of ram were a huge improvement.
Do you think it would have lasted for much less time with only 8GB? (Context - trying to choose if I should get 16GB with M1 Air)
@@EpiCuber7 bro as of now 8 gb is fine. If you use your mac for normal web browsing, office, photo editing kind of things, go with 8gb. 16 gb is a thing mainly because of gaming...
@@mb90821 im a little late to the party ut 16GB is probably never gonna be used by 95% of ppl. and macos smartly uses the very fasst ssds if its needed. there is little to no need for the 16 gb
Android 9,10,11,12,13: give me RAM
@@sholmes_ttyy
Yeah as of today 8gb is “ok” but if you’re trying to get a computer that will last, you’ll need 16gb minimum. 8gb of RAM is borderline obsolete today and will soon be considered obsolete for anything outside of web apps. You cant upgrade your RAM, so make sure you buy it with the RAM upgraded or you’ll be buying another $1200 computer in a couple years
Just did a clean install on my 2009 27" for my grandmother. It's been laying dormant for 4 years and I was so surprised with how well it runs. For what she'll use it for it's absolutely perfect and I feel like it's better to use that rather than buying a brand new budget machine.
Yep. Just prevented ewaste and probably saved money. Not to mention, it’s probably built beautifully.
Literally, my siblings destroyed my old 2012 Sony Vaio screen and bought a new device. When I needed to repair my new device because of water damage, I booted up my old Sony Vaio and connected it to an old Samsung Montitor. It runs perfectly I'm thanking of starting to using it and keeping my new Asus laptop just for hardcore use cases after it gets repaired, so İ keep as new as possible
Great video Luke, have you heard of Matt Talks Tech? He does a fantastic guide to upgrade older Mac OS from all Macs in 2008 to 2012 to Catalina on his channel. He is a Mac lover like you, be great to see you both do a video together, he is like a European & England counterpart to you.
I am going to do your upgrades here Luke and use Matt's guide to install Catalina
I'm watching this on my 2009 iMac. Planning to upgrade hope its as easy as the video.
easier !
I have the items in my Amazon cart already. lol Wish Me luck.
Hey I want to join this club soon but I'm just watching videos to learn first.
Same here!
Theonly One what are your specs?
I’m still using my 2008 20’ iMac and my 2009 15’ Macbook Pro and they’re running pretty well!
I also still use my 2008 iMac
No HDD failure or you switched to SSD?
Emmanuel Nwosu I still used it with the original 7200rpm (and it performed pretty well) until last year when I upgraded the RAM and put an SSD
@@jhbergallo Wow that's so nice
Watching this video on a 2014 MBP
This video convinced me to stick with my 2012 Mac Mini and see how many more years I can stretch it. The new Macbooks are tempting me, but honestly the 10 year old Mini still works 100% fine for my needs.
consider installing an ssd and maxing out the ram, also use the opencore patcher to install ventura
@@jaxcyl1-t4b Haha, yeah I did that as soon as I bought it. Probably why it's still running well.
@@trjones1 it came with an ssd? wow. yeah I think you can get 16gb of ram in there too if you really wanted, my 2011 runs 32. much cheaper than an m1 and just as good
@@jaxcyl1-t4b opencore has been a lifesaver!
Im still using a Unibody MacBook Pro 2012. With 16 GB of Ram and a SSD. And it run perfect!
same. lol, if you dont do video edit, or games. its no issue.
Robert Baker nice! My old Mac can run Final Cut Pro X also. Not perfect but ok.
@@giantg.6869 everything can
Recently did the same. But my bottom ram slot has the issue where, if you bump the bottom case a little too hard, the MacBook will give the 3 beeps. So only 8gb RAM for me.
I'm using a macbook pro 2013 with 8gb of ram and it lags occasionally.
i used a 2010 imac just until last month. couldnt believe a computer could last that long
that’s what she said.. yeah she calls me a computer because she plays me
Still rocking that 2009 27”, now bought 16” mb for university!
Lorenzo Cox Gandia I’m also about to buy a mpb 16’ for university! How do you like it, and which model did you get?
Felix Renard Well, knowing Macs last forever, i went all out, here are the specs:
I9 2.3ghz
32gb Ram
5600m
1tb
4574€
I have a 2007 windows notebook. It’s running window 10 now!
Watching this on my decade old 2010 macbook pro. Still running strong after 10 years. i love my mac!
Same here bro I'm on mine too... true warriors Macs lol
I'm typing this on my 2008 MacBook Pro, which I use to edit and upload almost all of my videos. I'm still using Mac OS X El Capitan, rather than doing the workarounds to upgrade it to a newer version of Mac OS, but I did max it out with 6 GB of RAM and replace the hard drive with an SSD, which made a huge improvement in performance.
I recently got a MacBook Air mid 2012 which I'm typing this on still getting used to Mac OS as this is my first Mac
I recently got my grandpa’s old iMac from late 2009. Intel Core 2 Duo, 6GB RAM, 512 GB. It’s running High Sierra, my mind is still blown with how well it still works!
I runing a 10 years old 2012 imac
install Monterey
I just bought that laptop on eBay!!
My parents are still using a 2010 MacBook Pro and I’m still using my 2014 MacBook Pro, they both run great!
My mom is still using a 2007 iMac I gave her and I'm using my 2014 MacBook Pro as well. I'm shocked, SHOCKED! Well, I'm not that shocked...they're still going strong.
@@Peanutdenver I can't believe this is really amazing😲😲😲
@@samirkaram8625 Yeah this is true lol My mainly Logic production Mac is an iMac early 2008 (12 years) still as good as new !
How about now? Getting a 2015 mbp 13 8gb soon.
I'm happy your addressing this. I have been telling my clients for years now older does not mean it's not usable. I do the same simple upgrades like this for their old tech, and they are amazed with the finished product. So i'm glad i'm not the only one out there doing this.
Thank you! Is there a general rule of thumb to know what is worth upgrading?
I have a hp laptop and desktop that are both 9 years old. Both dual core.
Is more RAM and a SSD worth the upgrade with that old of processor?
Or should I get one of these 2009 MacBook or iMac and upgrade those?
I've watched a couple of these Mac upgrade videos and they seem to be able to edit hd video in final cut with dual core.
@@haveaniceday7950 yes the ssd is a must and ram but I would focus on ssd and ram 8gb is good enough
Good on you for doing that!
It’s nice of you to save your customers money like that.
I have a late 2012 imac, updgraded to a 1TB SSD and 16 GB ram and it works for even the more consuming things you mentioned, i do 3D models and renders and use the adobe suite without problems.
The big advantage to iMacs, Mac Pro, and the like are that they have a discrete gpu which helps a lot, even if they’re older. They still help a ton.
If you already have them, perfect. If you’re looking to get something today. For the price, generally a PC with a discrete gpu will get you more bang for buck. But the prices are so variable on the used market, people selling their computers for $50 cuz they just want to get rid of them. The SSD and ram upgrade could be only $50 or $100. Hard to say which is better *because* the price is so variable.
That’s amazing!
Would this work on a laptop too?
@@1superlillianyes, i have a macbook pro 13 2012 for collection, just upgraded 4gb to 16gb and hdd to ssd sata 3, now it works much better
Newer mac's, especially the M1's are an interesting thought. From what I'm getting at Macs last so long because, they usually have longer support on the software side and parts can easily be swapped out for more modern components. But this same notion is no longer going to be the case, 10 years from here.
First off, mac's are becoming more and more unrepairable so if something breaks the whole system is gone. Also speeding up an old computer usually comes in the form of upgrading the HDD to an SSD in terms of responsiveness. But obviously you can't do that in the future since everything will have an SSD already. The drive speeds are so fast, even if there was a SSD two to three times as fast 10 years from now, it likely won't be a tangible difference for day to day use.
I have a theory that the rate technology improves, is greater than the rate our basic computer needs evolve, hence with each successive release of mac it can in theory (if nothing breaks) last longer and longer without getting outdated. But that's the key word, in theory. I think the M1 has to potential to last a decade without the need to replace anything, but if something goes wrong (cracked screen, failed SSD) the whole thing is gone and may only last a few years.
Previous generations has the benefit of adding new parts and repairability, but recent macs have the benefit of mature technology. TLDR no one will know if an M1 will age as well as a decade old Mac, although I would love it too as I am currently typing on one. As another commentor commented, using a decade old mac just seems so satisfying.
This is not true actually. Mac's don't have very good software support at all (iPhones and iPads do, however). Just take a look at the oldest supported Mac for Big Sur, it's from 2013. Meanwhile, that Mac (and many older Macs) can still run the latest Linux and Windows.
I also think that the M1 Mac's wont last very long because, as you say, the SSDs can't be swapped. Especially the 8GB RAM models seem to get a lot of writes on the SSD.
@@fredfranssen5384 I mean 8 years, How long did you expect software to be supported? That's plenty for me. I think the iPhone had 6 years for reference, so Mac's are still a solid 2 years longer if that is the metric And just because you can load the latest operating system it doesn't mean you should, might end up running slower loading the latest version.
You are right about the swap though, it certainly is higher on the M1 models than Intel because of unified memory. I do have the 16GB varient so I shouldn't have anything to worry about. Swap for day to day usage is virtually zero for me.
@@jesselam5867 Since the cutoff is arbtirary (as you can see, with a simple patch tool the newer software can run), I would say that 8 years is not long at all for computers. On iOS, it's clear that some models were just getting too slow for the latest software, like the iPhone 6.
The first line of i7 processors, however, launched in 2008 and a PC with that processor is fine for simple tasks. A Mac with such a processor would be fine as well, I'm sure, if it would have gotten the latest software for longer.
I also have a M1 Mac and I understand the problems with lack of upgrades and difficulty of repairs, and Apple is pushing that all the way up to the iPhone and iPad, that are becoming increasingly harder to repair. It is something to worry, but as someone who uses a Mac professionally, having a 10 year old Mac is not an option. I also hope that these M1s last, but we just have to wait and see if their technologies are just as good at keeping up with the times.
Macs have a bad backwards compatibility compared to Windows and linux. In most cases when you update the OS, you're going to have to repurchase a lot of software even when it's not a change of processor architecture. Also if you think Apple builds quality, check Louis Rossmans youtube channel.
My grandpa had an iMac g3 for over 10 years, absolutely loved it... he got me on the apple train 😁
I'm running a -luxo' G4 iMac from 2004, slow but it still goes. 10.5.8.
Same. Ive had mine for ten years and it’s in gray shape!!
My 2010 macbook pro died for the last time in Jan 2020. RIP, you were a good one 😭
I'm still using my 2013 Mac Pro desktop. I've upgraded the RAM to 64Gb, but there's nothing it can't handle and it's a beautiful piece of equipment. Alongside my G4 Cube, it's one of my favourite industrial designs.
I bought my first iMac on December 2011 (27 inch), hoped it would last 5 years at least, 2021 and still working great. And I use it for photography editing among other things.
This week I'm going from 12 gb of ram to 16, and hopefully next month I'll be replacing the drive for a SSD.
Amazing machines 🙌
replace the SSD first, you'll see more benefits! :) Keep the ram for later :D
My 2011 27” iMac recently got bit by the gpu failure bug. Hoping I can get it fixed and going again soon
I am running Mac OS Monteray on a mid 2010 27" imac how about you ?
@Andre Elisii. I have the same computer from late 2015 and I love it. The drive is getting full now and probably needs to be replaced. Other than that I love it can would find it hard to go to a smaller screen. Any tips on your hard drive replacement are welcome. (I think I may also get a newer one tho possibly a used or refurbished.)
@@MiguelMorales-ll6sy Miguel, I have the same mid 2010 iMac and thought (and read) it could only be updated as far as High Sierra, which is what I have. How did you get Monterey to be installed on yours?
Yes! My 2008 iMac lasted until a year ago, I left it on almost the entire time I owned it. I swear I rarely turned it off. The display went out so I replaced it with a late 2009. I was bummed but it was easier to replace it. I didn't give a single thought to getting a new one. It was a solid computer for 10+ years. I use to go through a PC every 2 years until I bought the 2008!
How did you manage to go through a PC every 2 years?
2008 isn't even old. That poor thing was probably filled to the brim with dust if you never turned it off. It would probably be working today if you had taken it apart from time to time to blow out the dust.
@@xb0xisbetter Wtf a 13 year old computer isn’t old?!?
@@angellrodriguezmontes8556 It isn't old enough that it wouldn't be reasonable for it to still be humming away today with the bare minimum of preventative maintenance, unless it had a batch of really crappy capacitors.
The 2008 could it do Bluetooth
@@nynyseymore8027 Looks like it, although that wouldn't matter. You would just need to find a random generic bluetooth dongle that Apple bothered to write drivers for.
I'm still rocking 2009 iMac i7. Upgraded to 16G RAM and replaced drive with OWC SSD. Works great.
Hope your financial situation improves...lol
I did until the iMac Pro released. I’m hoping this one lasts twice as long.
My dad still uses his late 2012 Slim Unibody iMac even after the M1 transfer. Its just insane how well built these things were
Luke: We're not sucking up storage, so you can be happy with a 128 GB SSD
Me: You underestimate my lack of storage management
I know, right? if you're going to open the case at least replace the drive with 500GB or 1TB SSD
I feel this in my soul. I still have a 1TB mechanical hd in my iMac and I’m pushing it.
No sh!t.
I have a 2012 15 inch unibody mbp as my main Mashine and I put in a 480 gig ssd and it’s almost full
my phone has bigger storage
My dad used a 2006 Windows PC until this year.
Not because it still worked though, just because he said it still worked...
My G4 from the 1990s is still a musical & illustrious powerhouse!
I still have myG5 Power Mac for SD video editing FCP4.5
your both lucky the g5's especially were lemons. their power supplies and mainboards failed fir many people. i had two die and suffer the fans on full, stop booting issues. when they worked they were brilliant but they had issues. no amount of resetting of the device got them working again. they had design flaws.
@@beadlesastout I'm surprised, I honestly didn't k know that. I had a 1.8 dual PPC G5. 8Gh Ram, I still have it, like your Mac would just die?
@@reel_images I bought a Powermac g5 to mod for standard pc parts. and its water cooler, which uses glycol car coolant, took a massive crap on everything. kinda sucked cause it was a top trim. dual 2.0 cpus. 8 gb ram. ram still works tho. but yea. everything else is dead.
@@reel_images Dell had the same problem in that era, bad capacitors. I used to have stacks of Optiplex GX series Dells with bad power supplies and mainboards. I think the G5 Powermacs were better than the iMacs in that regard. I have a working G5 iMac, after having replaced the PSU. My friend took that for Garageband long ago though and barely ever uses it.
Any random computer that doesn't have straight-up faulty parts should last pretty much forever with minimal maintenance.
I still have my iMac from 2009. It hasn’t had any upgrades, and it still runs great! I sometimes use it for basic tasks and even some video editing if my other computers are in use. It’s not zippy when video editing by any stretch. But it works. It doesn’t seem to have any issues with getting bogged down over time like my equivalent windows computers did.
I still use my 2012 MacBook and I installed Catalina on it. It works great! I connect my iPad on to obs and stream with it.
CrxzyNickk Hi, Luke Miani mentioned in this video something he used to upgrade the OS to more recent than High-Sierra. I have a 2011 MBP. What do I need to install a more up to date OS? I could not understand what Luke said (even with repeated listenings) and it is not in the links and notes "below".
Im still using my 2012 13 inch, its amazing how an ssd can revive an old laptop.
I'm still using an iPad 1st generation including watching this video. It's a life saver to revive and jailbreak old tech. Thinking of someday using an old Mac Book air to replace my Delll Precision 690.
Using safari? I cannot get UA-cam to work on my iPad 2 on 6.1.3
Great video. I have a 2010 MacBook Pro. Better built than the current MacBook Pro versions. Great tips, guides to upgrade iMacs. Great job.
I'm using a maxed out 2011 iMac for premiere pro and after effects and it runs great. I love these older machines.
Great video!
I’m using a 2011 with full RAM and an SSD but it chokes on premiere and after effects. Any tips?
Clear the cache and use Macbooster 3. For some reason I get the baseball of death each boot unless I clear everything. Also try to have at least 25% of you SSD free and use external drives to save projects as they can eat a lot of space, especially AF.
@@MoviesRemastered I don't know MacBooster, but it seems less complete than CleanMyMac X am I right ?
@@humppa5 isn't cleanmymac malware? I dobt trust that app at all.
@@MoviesRemastered No, I think you meant Mackeeper, clean my Mac is from Macpaw’s company and it is not a malware haha
What’s the positive side of Macbooster ?
I currently still own my mid 2010 Macbook Pro 15" with 8G ram, 512G SSD that I bought back in Jan 2011. My mind is blown that it is still going considering the amount of heavy tasks I do. I had one repair at 2.5 years in that was covered by the warranty and that's it. When I first got the macbook I used it mainly for HD video editing (ran a videography business and shot short films) and then these last 6 years I've transitioned over to 2D animation. I did have to change up the structure/workflow a few years ago because FCP7 and Toon Boom Animate crash alot on a newer operating system Sierra (last OS that supports FCP7 as well). So my SSD has two OS's. Sierra (for web browsing and itunes) and Mountain Lion for FCP and Toon Boom. I have fan control as well so I have the fans going almost at full blast when using FCP/TB. My 2016 iPhone needed the newer itunes that wasn't supported on Mountain Lion. Just recently I've been working on making a 2D game using GameMaker Studio 2 and it's really really pushing it hard hahaha I'm going to see if I can make it last another 1-2 years but damn I've never owned a computer for longer than 1 or 2 years before this. This is my first apple computer as well, I was using PC's before this. I only had 1 friend in my home town that had apple computers and his iMac lasted for 12 years.
the 2010 MacBook actually supports up to 16gb of ram. I'm running 12 gigs in my mid-2010 polycarbonate MacBook
@@drew2faded Really? when I updated it back in the day I looked online only to find 8Gs is the max.
So I guess you are in financial difficulties and need to keep it as long as possible...lol
I’d argue that this is no longer the case, with soldered on RAM, etc, the latest Macs are no longer be serviceable, barring user upgrades a decade later.
You can still replace the HDD on many iMacs and MacBooks, ones that are supported too
People don’t need to get a iMac for 10 years 6 at most
I am The one why not? Mine is from 2012 and I think I’m going to use for some more years. I hate this society where everyone throws perfectly fine products out just to use the latest one.
Christian Jakob because it’s old and it can be better so why not?
I agree about RAM. Fortunately you can still upgrade the new iMac that just came out
I recently was using an early 2006 MacBook as my backup work laptop while my 2012 MacBook Pro was being fixed. Both MacBooks are pretty old at this point, but the 2006 Mac has really held up well. It’s not terrible, obviously it’s slow and loud but I can type documents in word, send emails and browse the web which is all I need from a portable work computer. Very impressed, and I’m only realising now that the 2012 Pro is also getting pretty old. I hadn’t even ever thought about upgrading because of its age. It has worked perfectly without any problems up until now.
my 2007 iMac is still running like a champ 🍏
Mine just works fine but I can't do much on it...
😢😢😢😢😢
Mine too
@@harshitbalaji1019 ssd upgrade is a must
"Last forever"
"How to make them last even longer"
... longer than... forever??
lol
How to count past Infinity - VSauce
@@goodcrossing Infinity + 1
@@hawjtsim BRILLIANT!
Steve Jobs, wherever he is, is obviously still working.
I have a 2009 iMac, 3.06ghz Core 2 Duo, 4GB, 500GB SSD. Works as a good home server.
Fully agree and makes me regret some of the quick buy-sell-buy that I did with some Macs; I probably could have kept them and gotten more worth out of using them for years than what I made on eBay
I thought that my mid 2010 macbook pro had reached his end of live in 2019, he already had 8gb of ram, but then I came across a cheap 240gb ssd and installed. BIG difference! If you can do only SSD or RAM, get the SSD first no doubt.
Even tho your RAM is not enough, it can cache to SSD, and since the SSD is very fast it compensates the low amount of RAM. So definitely SSD upgrade is priority over RAM.
10 years ago I was still using a Cube from 10 years earlier... Perfectly usable back then.
Today the Cube is still alive, but you could say it's past its expiration date now.
A cube in working condition is worth a fortune now.
Just got a M1 MacBook Air, wonder how long that can last versus Apple’s older machines. Obvious problem is that if basically anything fails it is much harder or even impossible to replace/fix the components.
there are literally no moving parts on the macbook air, so they should last as long as their ssd lasts, which wont be anything less then a decade considering ssd life expectancy in general.
@@pikachu5647 Still not bad!
@@pikachu5647 battery will die a lot sooner than the ssd though
@@sweetlol2390 battery is replaceable and inexpensive considering the price of the laptop.
@@pikachu5647 alright, go and add at least 140€ to your macbook price if you want to use it over some years lol
I have an IMac from 2009 and I have used it for practically everyday. Last 1,5 year even more extensively. Best Buy I ever did. In all these years the only things were 3 times reset the ram due to a full harddrive. 1 time spinning fans (I fixed this, but forget how to, fancontrol), and a glitch of the screen, but that disappeared. All things I fixed with starting up with function key’s. The only disadvantage is that I have no reason to buy a newer one. Lately tho a lot of software can’t be updated and new software does not run anymore. I still run Mavericks. I used Snow Leopard witch was the best with frontrow and playing video with a tab on the spacebar.
An apparent quirk of the Mid-2010 MBP's is that the 13" Core2Duo model can handle up to 16Gb of RAM. Weird, but true (running at least OSX 7.5.5 and the EFI update).
I recently added a 1Tb SSD and maxed out the RAM with no ill-effect and I look forward to using my 10-year old machine for at least 2 or 3 more years. I believe I could've put in a 2Tb SSD and replace the optical drive with another 2Tb SSD - but that's ...too much.
I had used my last Mac which was a 17 inch 2010 MacBook Pro (purchased in April 2010) until it suddenly died in August 2019 for well over 9 years. It was such a solid machine with an excellent build quality. Travelled with it on so many flights, so many miles. Was my work horse. Loved it!
When ram was measured in MB, now phones have more ram then my Macbook Air. *_s i g h_*
Android phones now have the same RAM as my MacBook Pro 16. What are people doing with their phones that they need this?
@@sloppynyuszi they don't really need it, it's just a marketing strategy, every brand say "Hey look, i have more ram, i'm better, buy me"
Sorry if my english is Bad, i'm from a third world country from South America xd
@@sloppynyuszi its called Android. Android is MUCH more resource heavy than iOS. It's not a bad thing that these phones have that much amount of ram, tho
Sloppy Toons They don’t need it but it’s definitely a good thing to have. Android is just so bogged down that they need to have so much brute power. iOS could probably still function on 512 megabytes LOL.
@@uzernaim1648 It's really not. Sure, it's a little more resource heavy, but not really.
I was looking for something to write on when I'm not at my desk. I started looking at dedicated word processors and the like. Stumbled across your channel. Had no idea you could buy such a great, reliable little machine for so little money. Just bought a 2012 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody with 16GB RAM and 240GB SSD for $155 plus $12 shipping. Looks virtually new. Just amazing.
good price, the 2012 model is also a lot more futureproof than the 2008-2010 models.
I got in about 2013 a 2nd hand 2010 15" MacBook Pro, used it till today excessively (multiple DIY repairs and battery swaps), but i ordered not long ago a 2021 16" MacBook Pro... its coming right now and i cant wait to see the difference between a "slow" 2010 which cant even playback youtube properly in 1080p 60 fps to the 2021 model which can playback multiple 4k streams simultaniously haha
Definately a huge overkill for my needs (basic stuff, office, astrophotography, photo editing) but i hope this machine also lasts 5-10 years and serve me well as the 2010 model did.
@@harrison00xXx Thank you for your nice reply. I'm also in the market for an "on the go" Mac. What in your opinion would be the best "light" Macbook? One of the Airs?
@@therealgaragegirls well if we consider only the actual aviable models...
The Air as cheapest option, also the slowest (doesnt mean its really slow....)
Biggest downside of the actual Air: big bezels, THE reason i didnt go for the 13" Air
If you want still good portability but more power and/or battery runtime for on the go.... probably the 14" but NOT with a M1 Max, only in M1 Pro variants! Probably there you get the most for your money if you are fine with the base version and really cant withstand the 16"´s size/weight.
Otherwise i would suggest the 16" base model if its in your budget, probably with 1TB SSD at least if... once more, its in your budget. I couldnt afford the 1TB, or better didnt want to anymore, the 2400€ for the 16" MBP was already like 1400€ over budget
Since i came already from a 15" MBP and i didnt want to go smaller, there was no way around the 16" (in fact its smaller and lighter despite having nearly 1" more screen!)
Probably you try them in any shop before buying one if you cant really imagine how heavy/big they are? I personally think the 16" model is PERFECT. Ofc not the most mobile one, but useful big screen, 14" is "netbook-like" compared to side by side...
Also, i really love the design with the big spot for the speakers on 16" (and 15" models), whereas on the 14" where the notebook edge is nearly directly at the keyboards side... its easily looking bad, 16" looks much better too.
I have a 2009 cheese grater that I did extensive upgrades. Love this machine, runs like a champ! My next task is going from 6 cores to 12. Awesome longevity.
Just watched this on my new early 2009 iMac, which I hope is going to replace the late 2006 one I was using until yesterday. So great to be able to use 10.11.6 instead of 10.6.8, and the 24" display is great! As a special bonus, my new old computer also doubles up as a room heater, maybe a cooker :)
I could never live with a 24". Just upgraded to 49".
You should've gotten a 2012. About the same cost as a 2009....
@@JamesAutoDude Not where I live. And I see far fewer early 2009s and earlier iMacs with dead GPUs than I do late 2009 and later. What's special about 2012 models?
@@mike969696 simply because a 2009 will be obsolete before a 2012 🤷♂️ eventually apple will force you to upgrade
@@JamesAutoDude If there's any reason to go for a 2012 in particular, please share it.
I spent a month watching UA-cam videos and installed a 500 MB SSD and 8 GB memory in my 2011 MacBook Pro. I'm watching this video and processing another in Camtasia. I love this machine.
For video editing you are right indeed. But for Photoshop or Lightroom in a half-professional use they remain great. For sound production also as far as sound quality is based on a a good recording quality. Too many producers now base their sound on too many plugins. Logic is a good platform. I was surprised that you didn't change the battery on the mbp and put a second ssd instead of the optic bay. Options that are quite common and helped made these machines popular and reliable.
I still have my 2013 iMac and it still looks and runs like a dream. It has 16 GB of memory and a 1 TB hard drive, which is plenty for me. I have absolutely no plans to replace it any time soon. For anyone who wants a great desktop computer, but doesn't want to spend a fortune, I ALWAYS recommend going with an older model iMac (as long as it's in great condition, of course). These things last forever and you will more than get your money's worth. I did just splurge and bought myself a brand new 2020 MacBook Pro to replace my 2016 model, which I'm sure will last me for years as well. I'm giving my older MacBook to my parents, which I am sure will serve them very well.
I have a 2013 and I'm loving it. They are amazing machines. I'm in no hurry to upgrade
Mine is still going strong as well! It more than meets my needs and I have no plans or desire to upgrade any time soon either. I did buy a new MacBook Pro last year, but my 2013 iMac is going to be with me for quite a while to come!
I was using that MacBook Pro as my daily driver until earlier this year. I replaced the hard drive with a 1TB SSD, maxed out the ram, and I've replace the battery three times.
I am a digital immigrant=granny! but I love fixing things and you make it look SOOO
easy. You have inspired me-especially since my iMac just had a serious fall and is looking her age!
I’ve used my MacBook from 2005 until last year (2021). It didn’t stop working , the only problem was that I couldn’t update to a new OS anymore. I was always super happy with that macbook :)
Nice
@@lukacrnomarkovic8172 yes, you’re right! It’s 2006, not 2005!
Wow! I still have my old MacBook from 2009 I think, it rather died on me in 2018, I had it fixed by an independent repair fellow who could fix Macs, just long enough to move ALL my data now to a MacBook Air that I bought then. So I am 4 1/2 yrs on my MacBook Air. It was not the latest MacBook Air it's just the machine I liked at that time: the most similar to the old MacBook
Oh my god 2010 was a decade ago...
Literally.
No shit.
When youtube was at its peak
PS2 and Xbox 360 days
did you just use internet explorer to check the date?
I had a 2013 Mbp 13" that I gave to my sister and it's still going strong! Meanwhile the 2015 Mbp I'm writing this with has no issue as well!
What makes me sad is that Today’s Macs 10 years from now cant be upgraded like this 😭
I have a late 2009 27inch iMac and the screen pops off because it’s held in by magnets and then you’re in! a hinge for the display and then you can replace anything, replaced my hd and it was so easy it’s crazy
It's not even todays Macs, any mac after later 2011 (so the 2012 model) is like that so the macs from 8-9 years cant even be replaced like this lmfao.
they had to made money and you want to go faster... just sdd and the cpu alone would rending video 10 times faster..
yep we need to just work on building hackintoshes. The only way to work around these people taking advantage of us.
Buy a more spec’d out MacBook Pro even if you don’t need all that power and they’ll easily last 10 years again
Thank you for the excellent video. I watched it when it first came out and it's accurate two years later. It's January 2023 when I write this. My 15" mid 2015 laptop is working fine. I upgraded it to a 1TB SSD from its OEM 256GB SSD which gave it a significant speed increase and radically obviated the continuous hassle with storage management. Apple repaired the delaminating screen under Apple care. I had Apple change the battery for $200 when the capacity loss got annoying. The 2015 is not going anyplace. The keyboard on it (best keyboard I've ever used - YMMV) is so quiet I can sit up in bed and write without waking my wife. Not true of my 2021 MBP.
I just (last fall) upgraded my wife's 2015 iMac to a 1TB SSD. Your video's and others showing the process were a big help and gave me the confidence to deal with the glued on screen. The upgrade went like clockwork. The speed increase wasn't as great as it was on the laptop, but it got the perceived performance back to better than new which got me lots of Good Hubby Points. I did buy a new 16" Mac-PRO laptop with 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD (I'll never again make the mistake of buying a small SSD - the storage management hassle never ends and the new machines can't be upgraded.) I expect my 16" 2021 to last for at least a decade.
I love my 2011, 21.5" all in one desk top Mac. It runs beautifully.
It does run out of memory sometimes. But I just ordered 4 GB modules, so I will have 8 total. Thanks for the video.
if it doesnt already have one, put an ssd for extra powah
Depending on the model code of the 2010 MBP you can upgrade to 16gb ram. I forget the model numbers that accept the 16gb ram, but m=I did that upgrade to mine and the ssd and it was awesome!
I'm on a 5 year old MacBook pro ...still running like a gem.
7 here!!
A mid 2010 Mbp here! Still runs.
5 years old is a NEW machine (get out of here) lol
@@marcellinocuoco6409 same, put an ssd inside and upgraded the Ram. Nothing I can complain about
Good video. Nice to find out I'm not alone in keeping a ten year old mac going. Though mine is a 2008...
is it Luke's tone or something, everytime I watch this I feel like I'm watching something very important.
It’s the eyebrows. They express seriousness
Sloppy Toons hypnotic brows
The Elon Musk of Apple bro
@@NeytAkyide hahah Exactly!!
@Ethan Lear I WILL! Thanks :)
Another factor you're overlooking is that these macs are made out of cast aluminium. The build quality of that is much higher compared to the plastic casings of older laptops which would break apart over time.
The imac?? The imac is just a aluminium shell. Looks solid, is not solid.
@@NNokia-jz6jb I'm pretty sure OP was thinking of the laptops. Which are amazing. I've just discovered how good they are with Linux--I think I prefer them to Thinkpads for my, not computationally intensive, uses.
@@michaelwright2986 Ah.. I see.
And OSX (based on BSD) and Linux share the same parent: UNIX.
And my 27 inch, 2011 imac died. The famous videocard problem. :(
@@NNokia-jz6jb I'm sorry to hear of your loss. But it shows that desktop machines don't have to be rugged to have a long life. My first computer was a luggable, a KayPro with a case of 1/16" aluminium sheet. It was built, and survived travel between New Zealand and the UK (as checked baggage). Whereas my first PC clone had a case of the thinnest grade tin, but worked fine until it was obsolete (about 18 months, IIRC).
@@michaelwright2986 I remember Tandon 286 desktop. Absurd thick and heavy metal casing.
I use a 2010 iMac as my desktop Mac, and also used a 2009 13” pro up until November of last year. Great machines all around.
Hope your finances get better so you can afford something from at least the 2000 teens...lol
I use my old MacBook Air (2014) as my kitchen Computer. Reset it once and cleaned everything from it. Use it to look at (cooking) videos and check e-Mails while in the kitchen. The battery is still superbe and lasts a whole day. Only thing I did was to install Chrome as it runs smoother and replace the charging cable once. If you keep your Mac "clean" it will basically run forever and with that build quality it still feels premium. 10 year anniversary coming up.
I have used my 13.3" MBP from 2012 daily ever since. I did upgrade the RAM and switch to SSD, but it's still a very good machine. It's gotten me through university, so in a way it has been my best investment ever.
I'm still using my Mac since 2012 and it continues to go strong!
Me too
Same here 👍
Me too!
Me too and it still does every thing I need it too no problems
@Vangelina Barrow i replaced the hard drive with a solid state drive and it completely fixed my slow and glitchy 2011 mbp. It was so slow it was unusable and now it runs like new.
I use a 2010 iMac 21.5 and with Catalina and it runs great.
Are you using a patcher? No idea what the 2010s support as max
Xalataf high sierra
I’m using a patcher tool. It runs great.
ua-cam.com/video/wxFzZWqoCng/v-deo.html
Really? I'm on late 2012 base 21" iMac which officially supports Catalina and it's driving me insane.
I have an early 2011 MBP with 1TB of storage. It's still going strong! I use it for music production and mixing.
Running a 2009 27" Imac here. Rather happy my machine has been running along, but I've often wondered about opening it up as the case back has been feeling warmer than expected. And tbh, the optical drive hasn't been used on this machine in...years. I've been wondering what an SSD drive would do to the performance, good to know. I am running High Sierra FYI and seems to be cruising along. Upgraded the ram to 12GB around 6-7 years ago, and that was an amazing improvement. My biggest concern as of late is frankly, backing files up and update to SSD to speed boot up times and performance, but with the picture and video files from automotive adventures, I need 1-2 TB, a 128GB isn't going to cut it lol
Many thanks Luke
Was ready to ditch my iMac 2009 and my Mac book pro 2010
But since watching your video decided to go ahead and give it a try and upgrade these old Mac's
The way I see it really got nothing to lose and for a few bucks maybe can prolong the use of these Mac's for a few years more for use as simple devices
Thanks again
Watching this on my beloved 2009 27 inch Mac. Still rolling along.
@Monica Wood Honestly, as a guy with ZERO computer abilities, I installed a couple of $50 RAM sticks, and upgraded the harddrive to a 3TB. Software is free. All up would be way less than $200 and doable in less than an hour with no skills except UA-cam and a screwdriver set. Working like a 11 year-old charm.
I was gifted an early 2011 MacBook Pro 17”
It was way to slow to work with. So I switched the HDD for an SSD an upgraded the RAM. It works like a dream now.
I was thinking that because of this Apple is probably going to have to extend intel support for 6-8 years.
@@thor.mukbangExactly, the new iMac that just came out a few weeks ago is powerful enough to last 5+ years as someone’s primary machine and probably another 5 years for a light user / students computer.
Or like ppc mac
Usually Roaming Rob im still using 2011 imac, its still running alright
I was really hesitant to get the 16” but I need bootcamp to run some of my rendering programs so unfortunately I can’t hold out until the ARM ones come out
@@sleeth11 Yeah but what are you going to do down the road? Just have a windows machine for some tasks and a Mac for others?
Thanks Luke! This is the way to truly save energy! Extending the lifetime of hardware by upgrading delays the need to replace them and saves the energy of producing a new device.
I did exactly what you describe in your excellent video and as a step further one may use e.g. Zorin OS instead of MacOS which runs excellent on older HW. I use it on a white MacBoock and also on an old Lenovo T430 and it is great and Teams and Zoom is usable w/o problems with sound and camera.
I would have agreed with this, right up to a couple of days ago when my main work machine, a six year-old 27in iMac 5K, suddenly started behaving weirdly. It's showing all the signs of HD corruption. Damn it! You buy a thing, leave it running 24/7 for six years, and suddenly it's a 'problem'...
Omg, I am in the same situation. By HD corruption do you mean the mac randomly resets because of the heavy tasks?
Mid-2012 macbook pro (non retina)
After 8 year of having this thing it still goes strong. I did recently get a new M1 Pro 14 since I need to do video editing on the go, but my old macbook pro is still breathing. If anything it just needs a new battery replacement and some dusting.
My 2009 old iMac still running cool and smooth, 12gb of Ram and 1tb SSD, just having trouble upgrading the OSX due the the old graphics.
I'm still using my 27inch 2011 iMac, and it's still a beast. It's awesome.
I’m still using my 17” late 2006 MacBook Pro for person tasks
Logan Schutz same here, though you beat me by one year.
What for? How is it still alive?
@@richvanatte3947 Nice man! 😄
@@lt.bananas6 mostly UA-cam and all my school work. I don't how it's still alive.🤔
Hope your financial situation improves...lol
I use a home-built Windows PC, but I do admire how Macs last for a very long time.
I remember my previous school still using those PowerBooks to display time and information in the school TVs!
mad respect for mentioning the exposed psu, that shits lowkey a hazard so mad respect for mentioning it
Why are you mad?
@@stuflikethis huh? im not mad?
I’m still using an iMac 2009 for programming as a second “display”, pretty good machines. Great video Luke ⚡️
Hard times financially?
R K If it works well then why not?
Target display mode is a godsend. Even when the internals are completely out of date in the next 10 years, that display will still be totally functional
R K or financially prudent, just because you can doesn’t mean you should.
@@justdecember financially prudent = broke....lol I assume u also use the original iPhone since you are so prudent with you money. Because a prudent person won't spend the equivalent of a desktop or laptop on a phone.
I use my 2010 MacBook to rip cds, that’s all it’s good for till I get an external drive
PurpleFlush nice
You can easily replace the HDD with an SSD on that model. That should make it waaaay faster
You still use cd’s??
poloboogie I still use them
@@poloboogie they still come w/ textbooks
I recently purchased a mid-2011 iMac with 27" screen for £134. Being an A1312 model, It has a 2.7 i5 CPU, 512Gb AMD 6770 Graphics, 1Tb HDD and upgraded 12 Gb RAM. It was pretty much scratch free clean, quiet and relatively dust free inside [I know, I opened it up] Even the Superdrive works nicely. And the screen has not a trace of yellowing anywhere around the edge. I only bought it because I was fixing my niece's 27" iMac that needed a PSU, and I stumbled across this one on ebay. It was local to me and I kind of liked the iMac after working on one. Seemed too nice to miss. And I'm really surprised at how alright it goes. I fancy I'll be putting an SSD or two it. Say a 128Gb for the system and 1Tb for the data.. And maybe go from High Sierra to something more recent once i check out those available patches.
Luke, you changed the way I used to spend money on Apple. Thank you for this Channel.
My heart was broken when you said "this macs doesnt work for animation, 3d rendering or editing video" cuz that's exactly what i do with mine cuz i'm poor :(
he meant on a studio level, unless you plan on editing entire movies and rendering full cartoon episodes you'll be fine
My 2012 iMac is running strong, rocking 32 gb of RAM these days. Does just fine for web browsing with dozens of tabs open, although it's a bit slow for video editing. My 2008 unibody MacBook started running like crap though, and the battery only lasts a few years before it puffs up.
I've got a 2008 aluminium MacBook. Around 2015 I replaced the battery, maxxed out the Ram, and replaced the HD by an SSD, then used it daily until 2020. I only replaced it when the second PSU cable began to fracture (although a friend fixed it with "Sugru"). I still use it to drive a projector for a sing-along band I play with. An alternative option is to install one of the many Linux distributions on it. I did that for my wife's polycarbonate MacBook, and it gave it a new lease of life. As long and you don't need Mac specific software, Linux is ok for web-browsing (Firefox), email (Thunderbird) and word processing (LibreOffice).
I love this type of video. The 2010 MBP was my very first laptop. It's fun to see Tech UA-camrs that focus on older tech, and helping people who don't always want to buy new products.
Same here, or similar (had a 2009 15" machine for a few years in school and after, fell apart and I got a 2nd hand 2010 15" then)
I really loved this MacBooks and the 2010 still working (after 3 DIY repairs and 3 battery swaps I also did myself), but since I upgraded to a 16" 2021 M1 Pro... well, as much I liked this machine especially on the go, the 2021 16" is A WHOLE DIFFERENT LEVEL. Ofc its more like a oversized, overpowered iPhone/iPad somehow, but as much I tried to push its limits (software support wise)... I didn't really get into issues except very few, specialized programs which I need like a stacker program for astro images.
Btw the 2009 MBPs logic board also is still in working condition built into an old 24" 16:10 LCD screen as trashcan "iMac". Can barely handle 1080p UA-cam, but that's just fine for this type of machine
Luke is getting better at intonation and inflection his voice. Good job! Really enjoyed the video.
I agree. I also believe the presenter’s voice quality, melodic intonation and resonance is far more important than the content. Since everyone is a genius on youtube, content is becoming less and less important. I predict that in 10 year’s time the known Universe will shrink into a fist sized ball of pleasure. Sorry, I meant indifference.
I'm still using a 2009 iMac. When I bought it, it had been upgraded and had an SSD and 32gig ram.
You said that the 2010 Core 2 Duo MBP only supports 8GB RAM, but I have 16 in mine and it works fine.
me 2
Blackmagic
I was surprised when he said it only supported 8GB. Btw, is it worth upgrading from 8GB to 16GB on these machines? I already have an SSD on my base 2.4 C2D 13.
@@TazExprez mine only had 4gb.
@@TazExprez my Hackintosh got 32GB :D
I've got a mid 2010 iMac and a late 2011 mbpro both upgraded to Catalina (the iMac is the base model with the hd 4760) both are still going strong from daily use in the past few years I have owned them and I hope there are many years to come
How did you upgrade to Catalina? I have a mid 2010 and only able to upgrade to high sierra.
@@Latashamorriscom I used dosdude1's catalina patcher, It was very stable and it is completley free. There are plenty of videos on youtube explaining how to do this
@@ewanmacquire-plows7095 Thank you