Jeannietx

For me it would be new machine.

mvtm

Hahaha well i finally decided to update on this thread.

My 2012 11" MBA just died last week. I had a sudden SSD failure. Lost plenty of data but had the most important things backed up. (Will also buy OWC SSD to keep the machine working)

I'm finally going to upgrade next week with a big haul: 2.9Ghz 2017 Macbook Pro 512 GB,16GB RAM,4GB GDDR5, Apple Care, Samsung T5 500GB SSD, CharJen Pro MacStick (admits UHS-2 microSD), Tomtoc Sleeve Black.
All in all, near $3800 setup but i plan on paying $2800 for everything.

So yeah, my MBA finally gave up. To tell the truth i didn't want the SSD to fail.

aztimm

So I've replaced the battery in my 2011 MacBook Air at least twice now (maybe 3x?). A new battery will give the machine some life for a few months, then it seems to fade.

Is it time to look for a new machine? Or is there something else I should be doing?

When I replace the battery, I do use some canned air and spray out all the dust that collects inside.

LAXlocal

If you are only getting a few months from the battery there must be something wrong with the battery quality ,
Was it from Amazon or ?????
​​​​​

LtKernelPanic

I bought a battery from Amazon last spring for my early 2011 15" MBP that was a pile of, well, you know what. In the fall I finally decided to replace it with a refurb 2017 15" MBP and am for the most part very happy with it. Using my old MBP a few days ago did make me realize two things about it though. The newer ones are so much lighter (over 2lbs ~1kg!) lighter and man the keyboard on it sucks compared to the old one. It's also my first retina laptop which is so much nicer than the old displays.

aztimm

Apple no longer sells batteries for these machines. Other than Amazon, where do you suggest I buy one?
I'm using reputable sellers with decent rankings.

The batteries are lasting about a year or so. I think there's a larger issue at work...sometimes the machine will turn on the fan and get very warm, so I end up shutting down all apps and shutting down the machine. That usually helps, but it will do that every 2-3 weeks.

LAXlocal

I am not a Mac guy but I am sure there are some large Mac specialist companies that can tell you about batteries ,

There is so much junk coming out of China that looks great but has bad quality components to keep the price low .

Batteries that say 3500ma but are really 1800ma ,
Stuff like that ,

So buying from a big Mac specialist gives you some assurance that the quality is good ,

diburning

Newertech is a reputable third party brand owned by a reputable third party Mac store (Other World Computing). I would suggest trying there. Adoaram, B&H, Amazon, and Other World Computing all stock this brand.

LIH Prem

You've gotten 8 years out of it .. a testament to SSD, I suppose. That's excellent for a laptop.

I'd say it's time to retire it and not bother with another battery replacement, especially given the other issue you mentioned.

-David

kaka

i have a 2010 mbp as a backup - still running rather strong. updated RAM and SSD 3 years ago (the SSD must have been a few extra years older from my even older MB) but still have the original battery (last a good part of 2 hours or sometimes 3 hours.).

Just upgraded to the new 13"MBP since I am sick of the weight (tbh, the old one was taken from my sister in ard 2013 - she is in the design field and needs the power so i have been carrying extra weight i didnt need in return on $$). but still need the old MBP for a few things. However, i wasn't keen on the resolution of the generation of MBP that just got phased out and the extra size due to the thicker frame vs the current one (it's 1.5" bigger diagonally min).

Another thing to add is depending on the programs/apps you are using, you may/may not want the newest mac. If they arent compatible especially, which is why i need to keep my old one for some side-business work.

aztimm

Hey I'm still running this same machine! I must have had bad luck with some batteries. It has been at least 1-1/2 year since I replaced it and this one seems to be holding on strong.
The computer is wonderful! A 2011 machine still running strong in 2020.


I'm actually thinking of adding a Mac as my personal desktop. I've always had a PC/windows machine. But after using a Mac laptop so long I think I can handle a desktop.
Costco will have this one on sale starting tomorrow:
https://www.costco.com/apple-imac-21...100484365.html
Is it possible to add external monitors to this? It seems like a decent deal to me, is it good?

diburning

Yes. The two Thunderbolt 3 ports in the back can output to external monitors. You'll need an adapter unless you want to overpay for a montitor with Thunderbolt 3 input.

DYKWIA

Note that that machine does not have an SSD. My experience of Macs with mechanical drives are that they are extremely slow. Especially if you're used to an SSD on the Macbook.

diburning

On the bright side, that's fixable if you're willing to take it apart. If it came with an SSD already, it would be soldered in and not upgrade-able.

garykung

I would suggest you to reconsider.

Recent Mac models suffer various issue. Their quality do not seem they were used to be.So while you are still happy with a 2011 Macbook, you may end up dropping the brand when start using other latest Mac now.