kevflyer

Currently using an early 2015 MBP and I am given the option by work to upgrade to the 2019 model with touch bar (don't care for that). Currently debating which one to choose and could use some help.
I'm leaning towards keeping my current MBP because it has more ram, which is important to me as a programmer. Also the it has USB 3.0 ports which means I don't need to bring a hub or adapter with me while I'm on the road. I usually charge my iPhone / Gopro / Powerbank / etc nightly so having access to USB ports is a must.
While my current computer still has a good battery, it does seem to be real sluggish as of late, so things are getting slow on it.

Early 2015 model specs:
i7 @ 3.1ghz
16gb ram
2 USB 3.0 ports +2 thunderbolt 2 ports + HDMI port

2019 model specs:
i5 @ 1.4ghz
8gb ram
2 thunderbolt 3 ports only (and the power adapter takes up 1 of the ports)

Both have 128GB SSD, which is awful, but it is what it is.

Every Mac comparison (first 2 columns)
https://everymac.com/ultimate-mac-co...=MacBookPro126

CPU benchmark showing the 8th gen i5 has > 2x score than the 5th gen i7
https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare...57U/2502vs3605


Would you guys recommend I take take the newer 2019 model or stick with the early 2015?
Thanks!

Arthurrs

My software engineer son likes his 2013 MacBook Air better than his work provided 2019 MacBook Pro! Reason? It has a real row of function keys and escape key. He says that the touchbar is unusable for his programming work. Speed is really not an issue unless you're doing rendering work.

I have the mid 2015 15" MacBook Pro, and I plan to upgrade it from a 1TB to a 2TB SSD next week. It isn't that difficult to do. https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/...2013-2014-2015

Check to see if your 2015 MacBook Pro is under recall for a new battery.

LondonElite

I love my early 2015 MBP. I’d love a bit more RAM but mag charging and the keyboard prevent me from upgrading.

kevflyer

Thanks! That's exactly how I feel about the touch bar too - it's nice gimmick but I much prefer the function keys. I'm aware of the recall but doesn't apply to my 13". I hadn't considered upgrading my SSD, I will definitely think about it now.

If you're referring to the butterfly keyboards, I believe the newest MBPs no longer use them. But I totally agree with the mag safe charging.

rstruthe

I have a 2019 with touch bar, currently with apple having the screen replaced. Two friends with same gen have screen issues. Beware.

tmiw

FWIW, I've made my 2017 13" MBP with Touch Bar work as a developer. The secret is to use Ctrl-[ instead of the Esc button. Granted, I also don't do much in Xcode, so I imagine I could be way more annoyed if that wasn't the case.

That said, I'm considering either the 2019 16" MBP (refurb) or waiting until hopefully the final Intel 16" is released (supposedly later this year/early next), mainly for screen real estate and GPU/additional cores. I imagine if I end up waiting much longer, it'd make more sense just to wait for the ARM version or possibly switch to PC.

Error 601

I have the 16-inch and honestly I would rather have the MacBook Air, the touch bar is that stupid.

nkedel

If you're OK with the current processor speed (I wouldn't be; I wouldn't have been OK with a dual-core back in 2015), stick with the current one. If not, it's lose-lose - whatever you gain on the much faster processor (2 more cores, and while the "base clock" is quite low, the real per-core speed is going to be comparable or higher) you'll lose on the memory.

Granted, I work on enterprise Java stuff where the software itself + docker tends to go through RAM like a drunken sailor (I've some a 32GB work laptop or another since well before that 2015 machine came out, and a 32GB desktop back to probably 2012-13) but 8GB is a huge step back. And since it's Mac, you can't just take the machine as-is and expense a RAM upgrade.

Can you get them to upgrade you to a 16" or a previous-year 15"? The size may be inconvenient, but if it gets you more memory AND the faster processor, would probably be worth it.

HDQDD

I can't imagine a programmer using a laptop all day without a large screen monitor (or multiples) and an external Keyboard and Mouse/TrackPad... I do some development (Python, C#) and it would be nearly impossible on my MBP 13" screen. I had the 16" for a while, but it was too big and heavy for the amount of travel I do. So I use the 13" with a 34" monitor and separate kybd/trackpad at my desk. I can still debug onsite with a 13" if I have to, but it ain't fun.

nkedel

"Speed is not really an issue unless you're doing rendering work"??? Speed can be a huge issue, just depends on what kind of development you do. Some projects build fast enough you can use any machine; some projects are so slow you can't build them locally no matter what you do, but there are a LOT of "in between" where the difference between 2 cores (the smallest machines you can get today) and 6 (the typical mid-high-end laptop CPUs) makes a big difference, and there's also a potentially big difference in speed per core.

There are a much smaller number of projects where the difference between 8 cores (the largest laptops available today) and 16 (the largest consumer desktops available) makes a big difference (and of course there are some "workstation" machines which are basically deskside servers, where the sky is basically the limit.) It can also make a big difference in debugging integrations, although it often quickly becomes more cost effective to just have two machines (or a big cloud instance and a laptop) rather than scaling an individual machine vertically.

WilcoRoger

I have a personal MBA2017 and a work MBA2020, both 13' models - the lack of ports on this year's model is just making me crazy. In the office it's still surmountable with a dock, but on the road I'm totally helpless - I cannot connect ANY peripherals at all.

LondonElite

What about a hub dongle. Satechi and Aukey make some nice ones.

WilcoRoger

What's the point of having a slim, thin, light laptop if you need to lug around dongles, adaptors, etc?

/rant off

LondonElite

I hear you. Talk to Apple about that!

nkedel

With the adapters, you only take them out of your bag when you need them, and you only get an adapter or adapter for the subset of additional ports you need. If you're getting a traditional laptop with a full set of ports, you're dealing with that extra weight all the time, and there is no single standard set of ports (nor has there really ever been.)

Having a full standard set of connectors is my preference (and when not on the road - all the time with COVID of course) my main machine is a 3.5kg workstation-class machine... but throwing a couple of adapters (one USB-C to A+HDMI "hub", a USB-C to ethernet, and a USB-C to Displayport) into my travel bag is really not a big deal. Having one fairly standard power supply standard is more than worth it.