This looks like a fine deal. I currently have a MacBook Air M2 with 8GB RAM, and I’m considering trading it in for a 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M5 chip, 512GB storage, and 16GB RAM.
Do not know if it will gets even cheaper during financial year… but this deals probably will make this model sold out before that.
I still havent filled up the 256gb of my old MBA as you can good drive sync or Microsoft Cloud ect… its cheap or free and survives the loss of a laptop!
The 1TB isn't on special, whereas this one is. Normally it's only a $200 difference for the additional storage.
The $700 price difference is due to them discontinuing the 512gb spec, so the price here is a clearance price, whereas the 1tb is just the standard price.
This was the clearance price at officeworks in March. Not saying it's bad though
MBA EDU New for the exact same spec's as the MBP 10‑core CPU, 8‑core GPU, 16‑core NPU $1573
www.apple.com/au_edu_5000447/shop/buy-mac/macbook-air
If you need the extra Opmph of the MBP with a fan, then the THERMAL pad mod, it take 5min and costs about $1
Don’t forget that extra inch… very important. Ask my wife.
And your sister
MBP has a different display panel (mini-LED), better speaker sound and it's got more ports. It's not just 1 inch bigger.
The MBP screen is at least twice as bright, twice the refresh rate…
I wouldn't consider this 'under $2k'. People who fall for $0.99, $4.99, $99, $999 kind of marketing traps should give away their Ozbargain badge. This kind of pricing shouldn't be allowed and should fall under false advertising rules tbh.
People need to train their brain that this is actually $2k.
$1999 is definitely under $2k by any standards.
Whether "under $2k" and $2k makes a difference that's a totally different issue.
This or Framework 13 Pro?
If you want the Framework Pro you would know it. For most people this will be a better laptop. Although, again, if you don’t know why you want this laptop consider a MacBook Air instead.
I'm batting for the MacBook Neo for everything else, if you're just browsing, typing docs, sending emails. Bought one, astounding value for money for $700. Every bit as well built as the Air, if you need power just go to the Pro.
The MacBook Neo is incredible value and well built but it not "every bit as well built as the Air". From the top of my head it lacks the ports, trackpad haptics, backlit keyboard, true tone display and the thin borders.
@Nillionaire: That's features, that's not build quality. I'm talking about the materials, fit and finish, quality, etc etc. You know, the "build".
@Nillionaire: Do you not understand what "As well built as.." means?
None of what you listed has anything to do with build quality…
@Nillionaire: The neo looks like great buy until you see what the extras cost ontop of basic model. Neo is great supplement for people who have iPhone , don’t want an IPad or MacBook for $1600+. I was amazed for how many people phone is primary IT device.
No backlit keyboard is a deal breaker for me
I’m waiting for killer MacBook Air deal, work supplies a windows 11 laptop, the MacBook Air is for personal use without work bloatware or tracking.
VERY different machines. This M5 is quite a bit cheaper than the entry level Framework 13 Pro, which would set you back about $2700 and north of $3k for one with performance that matches. The flip side with the framework is that you'll get a very repairable and customisable machine, more IO options etc.
You like Linux/Windows or MacOS?
I just don’t want a Windows machine.
I already have an m2 pro MBP, but I was thinking of either getting the 13 pro or waiting for the m6 macbooks with oled
I have windows and MacOS, use windows more due to application support , but the apple hardware is nicer to use.
Depending on what you're planning to do in windows…
MacOS then use Parallels with Windows. I only spin up windows when I need it for the few apps I use…
One is the most closed system in the world, and the other is the most open. How are you cross-shopping the two?! Pick an ethos or system that suits you then get the best option within that system
I'd wait for reviews on the 13 pro if you're considering it. Pretty unknown at this stage hardware wise.
Panther lake is looking pretty promising but barely trickling into the market so it's hard to gauge how users are receiving it. Whereas apple silicon/the m5 is pretty known in terms of performance/heat/battery life.
FW13P will get you an LPCAMM2 upgradeable to 96GB, not so on MBP14. Same with the PCI-e Gen 5 NVMe slot being upgradeable but not so on MBP14. Not stuck on macOS, sp choose your linux flavour or, worse, use winblows 11.
HUGE CAVEAT for FW13P: you'll be waiting 4-5 months for your device.
Excellent price, M1/2 MacBook Air 256/8 used to be that price.
Are you high? Base M1/M2 Air used to be around ~$1200, I still have receipt here
'Cause I got high, because I got high, because I got high 😂
No fun or jokes allowed!
i bought my m2 macbook air base model at launch for about $1749 back then from Apple store directly… And soon after 3 months, JB and Officework had discount for $200 off on it. What a naive idiot back then TvT.
The M1 MBA was the best value laptop for a long time so it's drilled into everyone that it was obtainable for significantly less than $1999.
To be honest, thinking this again. If I am leaving MacOS, $1999 can easily get a windows laptop (MSI, Lenovo, ASUS, …) for a 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD, and perhaps a OLED touch screen….
$1999 can easily get a windows laptop (MSI, Lenovo, ASUS, …) for a 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD, and perhaps a OLED touch screen….
As I've learnt, it not about raw specs. Windows laptops are just crap in comparison to apple. I'm not a fanboy, but their vertical ownership of the hardware and optimisation is lightyears ahead of the competion.
I was looking for a chromebook-esque laptop and ended up with the macbook neo. half the specs, four times the perceived performance than the crap that was on offer from the competion.
so even though the spec is double, this macbook pro m5 model would run smoother? I do not have many heavy workload atm. But I do want to have the option of doing some demanding tasks (academic research modelling, photo/video editing) next year.
It's a question of whether you actually need either the extra storage or the extra ram. Running smoother is mostly going to come down to the CPU and the OS and the M5 performs pretty damn well compared to most $2k Windows laptops.
No idea about academic research modelling but photo/video editing? Macbooks win no question.
Exactly my case too, tried to switched back to Windows, ended up sold that Lenovo Aura Edition and bought an Air M4, so much better for me!
That’s not even taking into account resale value years later. Any MacBook would hold their price must better than a Windows laptop let alone a straight to the e-waste bin Chromebook after 5 or 6 years.
based on the chromebooks i used brand new at jb they are straight into the e-waste bin from day 1. they're just shocking build quality and usability.
@coffeeinmyveins: Sold my Chromebook within 2 weeks of buying one, no wonder google make the operating system freely available.
If you're only doing tech-specs comparison then MacOS is not for you.
That $1999 Windows PC has 2-3 years of life if that if you're keeping it on Windows at the rate that Windows is going.
Windows has much better support for older hardware, so I don't know what you are talking about.
Dropping support for 10 year old CPU due to TPM requirements is the only exception to MS otherwise fantastic hardware support. My friend who collects Macs has to install Linux on his old machines to keep them usable.
support for older hardware =/= runs well on those updates
I run linux on most of my machines (servers/laptops)
My 'cheap' windows machines (laptops) that are on win10/win11 run like dog doo doo due to bad chassis/cpu combos.
My desktop is of course a different story. The thread is discussing laptops.
@ozbargainhunter400: You did specifically mention Windows, as in the OS.
But yeah I agree outside Apple laptops you need to be super careful and DYOR before purchasing.
My windows laptop has 5 years and only down side is a few cracks on the glass touch screen, own windows and MacBook laptop so regard myself unbiased having paid for both.
I don't disagree with you, but its a little more grey for a sub $2000 AUD Windows laptop whether its 'good' or not.
One needs to do proper research as opposed to blindly buying. Most folks blindly buying Apple products will generally be… pleased. Others getting a Windows device without research is going for a gamble.
I have Lenovo devices that are wildly different in performance from similar year generations due to bad chassis design pairings.
That being said, I do drive my machines with lots of compute requirements with VMs and photo/video. and these days, Local LLMs.
Macbooks are so optimised that it's hard to compare spec for spec. i bought my first macbook ever and got an mbp m1 pro - it's so buttery smooth, so capable under performance load, amazing battery life, and excellent hardware (trackpad, keyboard, screen). puts my powerful windows machines to shame
MacOS will outperform Windows with 1/4 of the specs.
So if you want to compare, get something 5x the spec of the macbook in windows form, and even then i doubt it will outperform…
I did that a few years ago but switched to the Macbook Air for photo editing and it turned out to be far better for my use case and has also aged a million times better for general use.
I feel like these days you are paying a tax to stick with Windows instead and they are giving less and less reasons to stay.
touch screen comes in handy if you want to see If the pc is frozen or not when the mouse isn't moving when rendering at the speed and efficiency of Apple Silicon :D trade offs
True, but then you have to use Windows 11. Or Linux, if you have the time to learn it and how to maintain it.
Great price but I’m waiting for them to piss-off that notch. It was ridiculed on a phone but accepted on a laptop? Make that make sense.
dont even notice it when I have dark mode on
After 4 years with one of these I can honestly say that I barely notice it at all. For fullscreen apps it's completely hidden, for non-fullscreen it's in the centre of the menu bar which hardly ever gets used anyway.
Agreed. Its so stupid. Literally cuts down your screen size
Still rocking an M1 Air, 16g ram.
Works like a charm.
Had a MacBook since 2009, and a bit of upgradeable RAM and SSD made it to 2014 before a big electricity surge damaged the whole MacBook. Changed to another MacBook with retina in 2014 and still rocking as of today. Light Lightroom PS with my photos no video editing and does all office works and watch videos and surf the net all good still!
are you saying your macbook still have OS/Security updates after 12 years? all all latest applications still work?
I believe the oldest supported Macbook is from 2019 so I don't think this 2014 one would be getting support.
opencore legacy patcher will bring them up to sequoia at least, whether or not you want to use hardware that old on newer OS's is a different story though.
I run my 15” MBP 2014 on Sonoma (14.8.3) using open core legacy patcher and runs great. Very smooth for most things like web browsing or productivity but granted not going to be doing anything super taxing on it. I’ll probably leave it on that as so stable.
If you’re doing software development you’ll run out the 512GB in no time just fyi.
Why ?
Your sync tool of choice will automatically stop hosting the local copy of your unused data - Dropbox/OneDrive/GoogleDrive all offer on-demand file access so they only need enough space for your current working set.
If you're trying to store ALL your stuff on the local drive at the same time, you're doing it wrong.
If you're trying to store ALL your stuff on the local drive at the same time, you're doing it wrong.
If you're doing software development with Dropbox/OneDrive/GoogleDrive you must be doing it wrong…
Ahh yes let me just sync 400GB of node_modules to Drive and watch my entire system go to shit as it tries to actively sync 900 million files I didn't ask it to… If you're suggesting this, you've never done software development.
I'm a software engineer and our company provides us with 512gb macbooks lol
for work alone it can be (somewhat) managable, most of the places including current has given out 512tb macs. But when you share your comp for both SD as (indie / side proj) & personal matters, it's game over.
Very tempting. Though I'd really like to get a M5 Pro processor.
Damn good price, struggling to decide between this or m5 air 24/512. $1861 on Apple AOC
I am in the same boat. Just general use, watching movies, the occasional video creation of family holiday videos.
If I ignore portability and weight, and MBP and MBA are similar priced, should I just go MBP?
Made my decision. Ordered the 24/512 m5 air. Upgrading from base m1 air.
Screen is good enough for photo and video editing, although not a fan of 60hz. Would rather the additional ram to dive in and play around with some local LLMs.
Personally, I'll take the extra 8gb of ram and save $138.
This MBP is absolute overkill for what you want it for, but if you genuinely don't care about portability and weight, and this is within your ideal budget, get it.
How do you get to $1,861, I must be doing something wrong.
Edit: my mistake, looked at 15 inch.
great deal but JB trade in is terrible. I got a $100 offer for my macbook pro 2020…
M1 or Intel?
Yeah, even the iPhone trade prices are a joke.
Best to compare between different trade in services eg mobile monster, CEX, etc.
I don't understand Apple's model number system. I'm looking to compare the speed of this with my M1 MBP 14" from 2021. Anyone know the model number of this one? Thanks
From the jbhifi page, model number is MDE04X/A
This would be an M5 so you would search for M1 vs M5 MBP performance.
hoping for a deal on the 1tb 24gb version
How much longer is 16gb going to be useful (or even usable) for an everyday laptop, even one tuned like a Mac?
I was using an 8GB Pro M1 until recently and it was more than capable of nearly anything I threw at it.
I upgraded to 24GB Air M5 and genuinely think I could have easily got away with 16GB. The GPU core/s seem to be the limiting factor for extreme tasks (e.g. AI voice training for TTS hits 100% GPU whilst there is RAM to spare).
I'm on an M2 Pro with 16gb and I have to manage memory usage, and the computer slows down to a crawl if I am not cautious. Software development, vscode, a few docker containers running, and lots of browser tabs. I wish I had gotten 32gb.
Unless you intend to use professional software for media editing, creation and software development, 16GB will be fine for next 5 years at least.
apple website says this model https://www.apple.com/au/shop/buy-mac/macbook-pro starts at 1TB, so where does this 512gb version fit in? Or am I missing something obvious?
They (apple) are running out the 'old" but still current MBP M5 at a nice discount but the Macbook Air M5 EDU price is $1579 @www.apple.com/au_edu_5000447/shop/buy-mac/macbook-air so personaly id buy the AIR and do the thermal pad mod!
Note this M5 and not M5 Pro or M5 Max
Looking into it the M5 is pretty average compared to the Pro and Max.
depends what you're using it for, far far cheaper too
Damn good price! I think this might be the first time a current gen 14" MBP has been under $2k?
Also, $700 for an additional 512gb of storage. What a joke, even for Apple.