Just because you never figured out how to use it doesn’t make the Touchbar “stupid”. Some of us really love and use the Touchbar. The current M1 was designed to replace low end Intel offerings, not higher end quad core machines or Xeons.
Those users will likely upgrade once Apple has a proper M1X or whatever based Mac. I’d also like to think that hard core professionals are still using Intel based Macs with more RAM and discrete graphics. For regular day to day use that many folks need a Mac for, the MacBook Air is a better value. ** If you are doing sustained heavy duty work where thermal throttling is an issue, the MBP has a fan and thus generally won’t thermal throttle. Same ports, same computer, no stupid Touch Bar, and less expensive. The M1 based MacBook Pro is a poor value** regardless if new or refurbished.
If the gently used model still has its 1 year warranty, you can even buy AppleCare+ for peace of mind. I find that you can easily get a gently used model for even less. If you want a Mac, but don’t want to pay that much, the Mac mini is the best choice. This will cost you a little less than 2000 dollars. Choose the model with the fastest processor, at least 1 TB or storage and a minimum of 16 GB of memory (preferably more). Refurbished Macs are generally not a great deal. The Mac mini has no screen, so you need to buy a screen separately. AppleCare+ coverage can be purchased as well. However, keep in mind that third-party resellers may offer better deals over time, so be sure to monitor our deals roundup.Īpple's refurbished Macs are covered by a one-year limited warranty and have a 14-day return policy. In our view, a refurbished MacBook Pro is virtually indistinguishable from a brand new model, so this represents a good opportunity for savings. This configuration includes the 8-core M1 chip with 8GB of unified memory and 256GB of SSD storage in Silver or Space Gray.Īpple says refurbished MacBook Pro models are thoroughly inspected, tested, cleaned, and repackaged with a USB-C power adapter and USB-C cable in the box. As usual, the refurbished models are discounted by approximately 15 percent compared to the equivalent brand new models.Īpple's online refurbished store has the base model 13-inch MacBook Pro with the M1 chip available for $1,099 in the United States, for example, compared to Apple's regular price of $1,299 for this model. Apple today began selling certified refurbished models of the 13-inch MacBook Pro with the M1 chip in the United States and Canada for the first time since the notebook was released in November 2020.