My last laptop was a MacBook Air that was about 5 years old. When the display developed some lines in it after being dropped I decided rather to have the display replaced for $$$ just put that money toward a new one.
One little thing that bothered me with it was it only had 2 ports and they both were USB-C on the left side, nothing on the right. From where I generally sit the outlet is on the right so the charge cable often laid across my lap.

I decided on a base model 14" MacBook Pro with M4 chip and 16GB of memory. On the right it has 3 ports; USB-C, HDMI, and memory card slot. On the left are 2 more USB-C and a magnetic charger port. Naturally a 5 year newer pro runs faster than that Air, I like having the extra ports and memory slot to easily transfer images, and while it's a little heavier it just feels more substantial. Also it has only become a little warm a few times while my Air would become pretty hot sometimes. The battery seems to last a lot longer than the Air's ever did.

^^^^^^^
Re: “my Air would become pretty hot sometimes. The battery seems to last a lot longer than the Air's ever did.”

Yeah. A five year old MacBook Air is nowhere near as good as a current MacBook Air.

I’m on my second MacBook Pro. I was an PC guy for years before I saw the light. Now I have iPhones, iPads, Mac Mini, Mac Desktop, Earbuds, Headphones and all of the accessories. It all just works and works for a long time. Good luck wandering through the field.

The only thing I'd add if you do end up going with a refurb is make sure you get an Apple Silicon model (M1, M2, etc.) instead of an Intel model. Not sure if they're being offered any more, but the Intel chips get extremely warm, eat battery, and almost at the end of the line in regards to support.

quote:

Originally posted by DanH:
The only thing I'd add if you do end up going with a refurb is make sure you get an Apple Silicon model (M1, M2, etc.) instead of an Intel model. Not sure if they're being offered any more, but the Intel chips get extremely warm, eat battery, and almost at the end of the line in regards to support.

I don’t think they even sell them anymore. To my knowledge Walmart is the only place to still buy an M1 chip model, maybe they made a deal with them to sell off remaining units. As you said as a 2020 model that’s probably nearing its end of support. I’d try to stick to last years M3 model or the new M4.

Thanks for all the help. She decided on a MacBook Air, M4, 16GB, 512GB SSD, Midnight Blue

We did look at the refurbs and , yes, it's apparent Apple takes greater care with their renewed machines, but it's her first new laptop in about twenty years and she wanted something new. We took delivery of it today. She's setting it up now. We visited the Apple Store on Saturday and the uhh "Genius" or whatever they call their salesman was courteous and patient with all her questions.

My wife is generous with her family and friends but was raised by parents who eschewed materialism, so, she denies herself many things. All purchases are considered carefully. It does my heart good to see her enjoying her new laptop.

Thanks again

That’s exactly the right choice. Latest Apple silicon chip; the Air has everything she needs; enough memory and big enough SSD.
Get AppleCare and back up everything to iCloud.
I keep my data on iCloud, makes it quick and seamless to open a file on the Mac or iPad. Don’t recall if the Mrs. Has an iPhone, but the seamless interaction of Apple devices can’t be beat.

Thank you. Yes, she's an iPhone user, which was one of the deciding factors.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
Thanks for all the help. She decided on a MacBook Air, M4, 16GB, 512GB SSD, Midnight Blue

We did look at the refurbs and , yes, it's apparent Apple takes greater care with their renewed machines, but it's her first new laptop in about twenty years and she wanted something new. We took delivery of it today. She's setting it up now. We visited the Apple Store on Saturday and the uhh "Genius" or whatever they call their salesman was courteous and patient with all her questions.

My wife is generous with her family and friends but was raised by parents who eschewed materialism, so, she denies herself many things. All purchases are considered carefully. It does my heart good to see her enjoying her new laptop.

Thanks again

THAT'S AWESOME! She sounds just like my wife . I'm glad she got a Macbook, I think she'll really enjoy it.

Piggybacking on this thread, my wife is due for an upgrade from her decade-ish old MacBook.
Any significant benefit to buying directly from Apple vs Costco?

I just got a new 14" MacBook Pro (M4 Pro chip) w/ 24/512GB. I'm replacing a 2013 MBP that still runs and looks great, but can no longer update to the latest OS. They last a long time and are worth the $$.

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:

Piggybacking on this thread, my wife is due for an upgrade from her decade-ish old MacBook. Any significant benefit to buying directly from Apple vs Costco?

Costco does not sell Apple re-furbs; they are only available on the Apple website. Second day delivery is free.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:

Piggybacking on this thread, my wife is due for an upgrade from her decade-ish old MacBook. Any significant benefit to buying directly from Apple vs Costco?

Costco does not sell Apple re-furbs; they are only available on the Apple website. Second day delivery is free.

Understood
Was thinking new v new, apple direct vs costco

Whichever model you choose, research how much it will cost to send it back to apple for battery replacement when the time comes. When my MacBook Pro battery died, Apple customer service quoted me $450 for the battery service for my model. That was outrageous. To their credit, after I pitched a fit, they transferred me to a supervisor that sent me a FedEx 2 day label. They installed a new battery and I had it back in 5 days. They didn't charge me one penny. I'm sure my case was the exception.

That’s a great model Para and color, I think she’ll be happy for years with it.

P250UA5, buying strictly new, I don’t think there is a big difference at all. Look for the best deal. Best Buy and Amazon should be in the mix too. If you or the wife are taking classes or are teachers (even homeschool), or have kids in college, Apples back to school sale is in full swing with not only a student discount but is also eligible for an particular Apple accessory valued up to $200. There is a list of the available products on the website. For example a base model MacBook Air at $150 off plus a free pair of Apple EarPod Pro 2 is a pretty great deal.

You can also apply AppleCare+ coverage for any new product regardless of where you buy it within 60 days of purchase.

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:

Piggybacking on this thread, my wife is due for an upgrade from her decade-ish old MacBook. Any significant benefit to buying directly from Apple vs Costco?

Costco does not sell Apple re-furbs; they are only available on the Apple website. Second day delivery is free.

Understood
Was thinking new v new, apple direct vs costco

Costco gives a second year of warranty and you get your membership rebate as well.

Who do our Mac users favor for a Bluetooth mouse? I see Apple has a couple but I'm not so sure about the ergonomics, and I don't see a scroll wheel.

I'm not crazy about the Apple Magic Mouse for some reason, much preferring a touchpad. On the rare occasions I do use a mouse, it's a Logitech scroll-wheel mouse.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
Who do our Mac users favor for a Bluetooth mouse? I see Apple has a couple but I'm not so sure about the ergonomics, and I don't see a scroll wheel.

The surface is a scroll wheel and it does up down left and right.

Not sure about their Bluetooth options, but I've been pleased with pretty much anything Logitech. It's all we buy at work.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: P250UA5,