MacBook Pro M1 Max Vs MacBook Pro M2 Pro

• 

  Hybroid on 06/02/2023 - 13:54

  +1

  You will likely appreciate the increased RAM more than the CPU power.

  You may have access to the Apple Edu discount program as a student.

  Apple products do not decrease in price generally like others.

  Consider if you really need a $4,000 machine for coding.

  • 

    frank1 on 06/02/2023 - 13:59

    thanks. You mean go for m1 max?
    I could not find m1 max or any m1 pro in apple educational store for some reason.

    • 

      Hybroid on 06/02/2023 - 14:01

      I really don't think you need a Max CPU. But I'm sure you can assess that for your use case better.

      • 

        frank1 on 06/02/2023 - 14:03

        I need 16 inch, and 16gb RAM atleast and most of those are 3000$+ so just thought of going 1000+, and I don't upgrade frequently so do not want to be outdated very soon so want to buy something in higher end that will be good for atleast 3-4 years (when you have spent 4000$).
        If not that then which one do you think will be better for me?
        Since m2 pro is already released I don't want to go with m1 pro only anymore.

• 

  AaronR on 06/02/2023 - 14:28

  +1

  The M1 Max 32Core + 32GB + 1TB is $4029 on the Apple Refurb Store - the refurb stock comes with brand new casing, battery and full retail warranty.

  You can get an additional 5% at Redeem Your Gift Card and if the above sells out they list new models quite regularly. You can monitor listings at Refurb Tracker

  Not sure you will see much difference between the CPU/GPU combo… but the 32GB is totally worth it. I ended up with 64GB to future proof my Chrome habits but could have easily been fine with 32GB.

  • 

    jmys01 on 06/02/2023 - 15:38

    +1

    Refurbished MacBooks do not come with a new battery or outer casing as standard. That's only for refurbished iOS devices. The parts in refurbished macs are replaced with new parts on an 'as needed' basis. See here for more details: https://www.apple.com/au/shop/refurbished/about

• 

  misterpotatomato on 06/02/2023 - 16:31

  +1

  I've got the M1 Max 16" laptop. If I were buying a laptop today, I'd probably go the M2 Max. I use the device to make money, with coding and content creation, so I figure it's worth investing in (as opposed to something like a gaming console that can't make me money (unless I become a streamer)).

  A lot of people will be like "bruh mac's are expensive buy a different laptop" and I can honestly say, I have wasted so much money on non-Apple laptops. I had a MSI Creator laptop with crazy chasis flex, an Asus Zephyrus on 7nm AMD silicon that was noisy and had a pretty bad keyboard. The second I unplugged either of these devices I'd only get a few hours of reduced performance. Unplugging the Macbook doesn't seem to affect performance, which in itself, is pretty cool.

  In my opinion, the touchpad, keyboard, and display are best-in-class, and they charge best-in-class pricing. For me, having a high-performing device that I replace less works out to be more cost-efficient in the long run. Now with some more port options like magsafe, SDXC reader and HDMI port, it's hard to recommend a different laptop if you have the money.

  1) M2 pro, 12 core, 16 GB RAM, 1 TB, 16 inches is selling for 4000$ in the edu store, and the M1 max 32 core, 32GB RAM, 1TB is selling for around 4250$ in normal market; which one should I go for? it is just 250$ difference for 16gb+. But, in reviews, some are saying m2 pro, the chip itself is superior or improved, so better etc., is it true (even with +16gb RAM for m1 max)?

  For a 16", 32GB, 1TB 16" Macbook, if you have access to Apple AOC, it's $4,913.70. It's huge money for a laptop, but, you'd probably get quite a few years out of it if you treated it well. It doesn't seem like it's a huge difference from the M1 Max performance though, so if you can get a M1 laptop for a good price, maybe that's worth a look (https://nanoreview.net/en/cpu-compare/apple-m2-max-vs-apple-…)

  • 2) Does anyone know about ongoing discounts or gift card discounts I can use with the apple store? Or cashback? I was planning to use a nab bank credit card for cashback, but it seems like it will be too much hassle. Any others? or ideas to save some?
    But, I have seen a maximum discount (even on big sales) for apple products is 10%, and I am already getting that from educational stores anyways. *

  Educational pricing is as good as it gets direct from Apple, as far as I know. You can get 5% off via gift cards.

  • 3) M2 pro 16 inches was released just three days ago. Should I buy it now (i can wait up to a month), or should I wait a bit? I do not follow apple product price trends. So, what was it like when they release the product in the past? If it is just like a 50$ discount in the next three months, does not worth waiting… *

  I don't think Apple discounts these devices, sometimes JB etc have specials. But they would only bring it near to educational pricing I think.

  Hope that helps

  • 

    frank1 on 07/02/2023 - 00:06

    Thanks you very much for the detailed answered.
    I agree with most of your point.
    But, I think m2 max would be little bit overkill for my need and very expensive as well.

    and going for 32gb m2 pro seems to be good option but it is almost $5150 which seems almost 1100 than 16gb one so maybe 16gb maybe good enough for me. I understand these apple devices are non customisable (apple's greed) but i think 16gb RAM should be enough for now. I am rather thinking of going for 512gb hard disk m2 pro, 16gb which is $300 less.
    If i need 32gb then why not m1 pro max then?

    2) So, for 5% i need to use same method as above? which gift card?

    3) yes JB, last year max was 10%, or 15% in selected devices. So, even I feel it won't come below the educational store price.

    thank you.

    • 

      misterpotatomato on 07/02/2023 - 01:01

      I have the 1TB, and given how good the laptop is, I'm actually regretting not getting the 2TB because I want to run parallels so it doubles as a windows laptop. I wouldn't get 512GB…. you'd be surprised how fast stuff can add up as a developer. NPM caches can get pretty big, not to mention virtual machines, etc. You may not need those today, but you might need them throughout the life of the laptop itself.

      Also, this is $4,338.40 - https://www.apple.com/au_edu_5000447/shop/buy-mac/macbook-pr….

      It has:

      • M2 Pro
      • 32GB RAM
      • 1TB SSD

      in the 16" body. It also seems like you can get 5% off via https://shop.redeemyourgiftcard.com.au/cards/apple-store-gif…, but I've not used this store, and I encourage you to do your own research before giving thousands of your dollars to a gift card business.

      If $4,338 isn't over-budget, that sounds like its your machine to me.

• 

  tc423 on 07/02/2023 - 17:24

  I am returning a 14-inch M2 Max Macbook Pro. Chose 14in for better portability but there are some issues with the external display and fan noise.

  • 

    frank1 on 07/02/2023 - 23:33

    you mean don't buy 16 but rather go for 14 inch?
    I have a external monitor but I think 16 inch will be much better for coding as I feel retina display has less strain on eyes….yes carrying it is a problem but I think i use it most of the time in the home office…