Why no one wants to buy a cheap used Mac right now

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If you're in the market for a used MacBook right now, especially something in the lower price brackets, buying a sub 1,000 dollar MacBook can be quite the challenge! Getting a good deal on a cheap used Mac used to be my bread and butter, but thanks to Apple silicon things have definitely changed...
time stamps
0:00 intro
2:50 Finding an old Intel Mac
4:50 Even Apple Silicon deals are bad
6:27 Scam listings are still rampant
8:10 Don’t trust large eBay ‘companies’
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[@shib5267]

you bought all of them bruh

[@savagepro9060]

He only has to go down in the basement, and VOILA!

[@Dzlyesful]

Hell ya

[@nopstro5268]

HELP HAHAHAFA TRUEEE 😭😭😭

[@_Donald_Duck.]

Bruh, he bought them all, so we don't have to.

[@_AI_Takeover]

😅

[@AliasEveWatches]

most of the cheap ones are just "for parts/repair" now... but isnt it because of your influence why it's harder to find cheap mac treasures on ebay? I've gotten the courage to purchase and upgrade some old macbooks because of you!

[@UrbanistBlooms]

The Observer is never seperate from the observed.

[@n4botz]

I found last year two MBP (2013, 2014) in a nearly new condition for under $200. My daily used MBP M2 (2022) only for my home office and the cheep ones to work outside. They are less powerful, but enough to show clients the current states of a project or run a simple presentation. I mean, if you will, you can use an older machine for most tasks. Even though with the newest macOS by the help of the OpenCore Legacy Patcher. Last but not least - if you are crazy enough, upgrade by soldering better flash chips and/or the maximum of RAM.

[@nopants4259]

I buy cheap complete machines to strip for parts and get a profit when I fix a screen etc. A1502 with smashed screen , lcd was £380 , I got a whole machine for £92 and swapped the screen out. The customer was happy with a used screen

[@CCC54E]

Thanks for the advice and warnings, Luke. Your videos like these keep me from making costly mistakes and I don't have to learn everything about MacBooks and components to protect myself.

[@ken1w]

Similar to when Apple transitioned from PowerPC to Intel. No one wanted a recent PowerPC Mac for everyday use after Intel Macs showed up. And that transition was fast. Tiger started transition with separate PowerPC and Intel releases, Leopard was “universal,” and Snow Leopard was Intel-only. Granted, those older MacOS X major releases were not annual, but Apple switched to Intel quickly, across the lineup. After this transition to Apple Silicon, things on eBay will probably stabilize once the M1 generation of Macs are a few years older.

[@laserwizard2]

I also have mirror door G4 that was given to me "not working" and after just minor tinkering, I have a show piece on a table along with matching monitor and keyboard. It has no real value, but it is working and it is a time piece of hardware.

[@linux42069]

Luckily x86 as a platform is not lost and these older Intel Macs can make good Linux machines

[@DerDudelino]

Granted - I wouldn't recommend anyone to buy a used a Macbook M1, because of battery cycles. Gotta be careful with this one, you can easily end up buying a machine which only has 85 percent charge.

[@ken1w]

@@DerDudelino Even 50% would be better than Intel equivalent at 100%. And battery can still be replaced eventually.

[@liquidsnake6879]

@@linux42069 But they'd be the shittiest Linux machines you can buy for that price lol so what's the point?

[@fmoll8748]

here to give advice with the anti reflection coating on the retina display coming of. i tried all the tricks to remove it completely, but what ultimately worked nicely was baking powder (german composition)

[@Epicgamer_Mac]

Love ur content Luke. Seriously post more often cuz ur the 🐐

[@barexampasser]

I love my intel mac from 2020. Last of its kind. I use boot camp almost daily. Feels great

[@CharlieConover]

Love your ebay/used mac videos!

[@jpdemer5]

People are in denial about the low value of these older machines, and are holding out for ~$100 more than the things are actually worth. Especially true of refurb dealers with dozens of machines in inventory, that are worth less than what they paid for them. Reality will sink in eventually.

[@ianlessing2510]

100% sellers need to face up to market reality and drop their prices or they will be stuck with unsellable machines.

[@akiko009]

A few things are coming together to make the used Mac market tight. 1. users can lock down systems to make their refurbishment by an independent vendor more difficult and/or impossible. 2. there is a thriving second hand market in developing countries that suck up a lot of our left overs and happily take a mixture of broken and working units as their labor costs are low enough to justify patching the units to working condition. 3. the economic cycle might be in a place where users will keep their systems until they are dead-dead-dead, rather than upgrading to ever more expensive locked-down replacements ($360 for adding 1TB of storage?) with marginal performance improvements (except for peak loads that most users don't experience).

[@davidbillberg2203]

Love these kind of videos !

[@wokecults]

It's not only MacBooks Pro. I noticed that selling iPads is also very difficult these days and I imagine it must be the same for iPhones as well. I used to change my iPads all the time, and the old ones were selling in a day or two. Not anymore unless you are willing to lose a lot of money.

[@Boolean21]

The only iPhone that seems to be holding its value over the last year is the 13 pro and pro max because it still has a physical sim tray in the United States. I’m assuming it’s because of international travelers.

[@alistermccallum]

@@Boolean21 Those international travellers could buy an international iPhone 14. I have the 14 Pro Max and it has a sim tray.

[@Blueyzachary]

@@alistermccallumthey might not work well with US carriers, then.

[@taucetus3657]

For the iPhone, lack of a sim tray is the issue. iPad, the cheap iPad 9 can be found about anywhere for a decent price. Guess who also struggling to sell used iPads? Apple themselves. Go to their refurbished store and see a plethora of iPads which have been listed there for years and have never been bought.

[@alexforce9]

Your problem is that you think that the product you have is worth the money you are asking for it. It doesnt. You are losing money NOT selling it. Coz it will only get older and more absolete the more time it spends in your garage in some box.

[@mats33667]

Amazing video!

[@compudude]

Good tips on scammy stuff to watch for. Thanks! And yeah, the market for used Macs has tanked a fair amount. It'll only get worse given that Apple is aging out hardware with new OS system requirements faster than ever, too.

[@JoseVGavila]

Yes, for sure it was useful!. I was about to spend 500€ on an Intel Macbook Pro (a 2019 unit) and you have got me out of that "deal". Thanks!

[@yomommastupid]

I blame Luke. 😂 It's been expensive anywhere outside of the USA for decades...here in Mexico try finding a good condition mb 2015 for under 300 USD...almost impossible...i did passed on a 650 USD M1 deal because the screen had water damage and case was also damaged 😂

[@christianl3592]

Sí, se pasan de lanza con los precios aquí en México.

[@mangakey]

Gotta suck I bought a 2015 mbp a while back for 90$ it was such I good deal I got 2.. and I return a 2014 I bought for like 180$. So I got 2 for 1 plus upgrade...

[@utterlee]

I just sold my base model (8gb RAM, 128gb SSD) 2015 13 inch Retina MacBook Pro for £140. It was in great condition - apart from a horrible case of the anti reflective layer in the screen issue. Still with a four hour battery life too. I was happy with that price given how old it is.

[@kimura317]

I have a mid-2014 similar to the one Luke searches for at the beginning of the video. I had the same issue with the screen seen at 3:33. This isn't a wear issue, but the matte finish delamination issue. It's a defect from the factory. I was able to scrub the matte finish off with baby wipes and it looks like a brand new screen - it's just glossy now. Something to think about if you do see that screen issue and the mac is otherwise what you're looking for

[@VacayCebu]

Thanks for the tip, my 2013 has the exact same problem.

[@tonytech5520]

I don't think there was a matte finish option for the mid-2014 Macbook Pro. It is just a film or some sort of treatment to make the screen less glossy.

[@kimura317]

@@VacayCebu yeah if you do some searches on MacBook screen delamination you’ll see lots of different approaches. Some people use simple green and even more aggressive chemicals. Some elbow grease and baby wipes worked out great for me! Mine looked just like the one in the that eBay screenshot

[@kimura317]

@@tonytech5520 that’s right, it’s not an option. It’s on all of them

[@emilsecker7881]

@@VacayCebuyou should really upgrade that. Big Sur is going unsupported later this year

[@cainan_c]

Here in the UK you're able to get a used M1 Air in good condition with warranty for around £595-620 depending on colour from the large second hand retailer CeX

[@thefiestaguy8831]

CEX are rip off merchants, I avoid buying from them or selling to them like the plague

[@BollingHolt]

Someone recently gave me a mid-2014 MacBook Pro 2.5GHz i7 with a 512 gig SSD and 16 gigs of RAM. The retina display had that same problem you showed, but I was able to clean it up rather nicely. I put the Open Core Legacy Patcher on it with Ventura, and it runs FANTASTIC. Not too bad for free! ;)

[@arricammarques1955]

Free = Best Price.

[@BollingHolt]

@@arricammarques1955 No doubt!

[@blk124]

Best thing about it. It's memory upgradable unlike these new macs!

[@twitcharchive0]

@@blk124 Yeah not upgradeable does suck but I am fine with the 16gb RAM M1. I went with 256 GB storage and just use external SSD's and didn't upgrade anything else either. Got it for a bit over 1000€ new a while ago before they raised the price of the M1 (since the Euro dropped in value). Love that it is 100% silent and the battery life. It not being able to be upgraded is the only flaw in my eyes but I think I can easily keep this thing another 5 years.

[@KiwiKyle]

Cool, did the display have wear and if so what did you use to clean it? I have an old 13.3 inch 2015 MacBook Pro that I use as a second computer with a small amount of wear

[@frazerweb]

I think with the best deals it's bring in the right place at the right time. Even amazon has some crazy price drops from time to time.

[@Ahmed-oi9pw]

I recently bought a MacBook Pro late 2019 (i7, 512 SSD, 16GB DDR4) for $400. Got the top cover replaced under butterfly keyboard replacement policy/warranty from Apple that gave me new top keyboard, half of the body and brand new battery. I think it’s a nice deal for that price as I use the laptop for day to day light use.

[@OrganicFoxes]

man them 2018 and 2019 pros I think are the best value on ebay at the momment, can find good spec 13 inch ones for under 400 with a little wear on it. I recently picked up a 330USD with an offer, maxed out, i7, 512gb, 16gb ram 13 inch 2018 with some wear on it and a new battery.

[@bb5242]

I have two 2019s right now for work, but I wouldn't buy either one with my own money.

[@00700556]

I purchased a 2018 2.6 ghz 6 core i7 with 32GB ram, and a 512gb SSD in flawless condition for 549.99. Crazy I bought that THAT cheap

[@ChasOnErie]

Bought one for 3000.00 in spring 2019.. still don’t have it all set up … and now you can get them for 400.00..:🤫🤫🤫😥😥😥😥

[@TheWutangclan1995]

@@ChasOnErieI remember buying my brand new i7 mba a decade ago. Now it’s basically worth peanuts. Especially when it’s my daily beater. Sucks that it depreciated so badly. But on the other end, I’ve saved myself a lot of money from upgrading my windows laptop every two years.

[@user-tj5sy4ed8e]

LOVE how your sponsor is a pool cleaning robot... LOL Definitely what people looking for cheaper Macs to fix up are needing in their life...

[@flowersteve7772]

There appear to be very good deals on 27" 5k iMacs for 2015, 2017 and 2019 models, so would be interested in a video trading off on these models for home/light office work and for more processor intense efforts - and maybe include a trade vs. a M2 Mac Mini with a 4k monitor.

[@dennissdigitaldump8619]

I did a hand audit of E-Bay on "location locked" M1's. It was over 40%(not disclosed). I notified them and they made some changes.

[@Lord_Mangoat]

At some point I want to upgrade my work laptop, which was handed down to me from a co-worker. It is a 2014 MacBook Pro. It operates fine, but does need a battery replacement (system recommends it) and the display has that weird layer peeling off issue, which was apparently a known issue for that model, but my co-worker never bothered to bring it while under warranty. All trade-in sites say its value is "recycle". I know it is going on 10-years old at this point, but I'd hate the thing to just be scraped when it still functions... just doesn't last very long when not plugged in. Maybe 2-3 hours at most.

[@mirceamihai94]

3:50 this one also has a new cheap battery that is swollen already. You can tell because the topcase is bowed upwards.

[@g6ter1]

a tip for those scuffed up screens on the older MBPs. That is the antiglare coating coming off. It's better to remove it completely. can be easily done by using clorox wipes, it completely dissolves that top coat and comes right off.

[@chancesareshewears]

picked up Mid 2011 Imac for 40$. Came with an SSD, and It flies. Sure, it's stuck on High Sierra but it has no issues and I love it has a DVD drive.

[@emilsecker7881]

Waste of money. Time to upgrade again. High Sierra has been unsupported for years now

[@Patricia-kk8tr]

Put a lightweight Linux on it and it will work fine

[@emilsecker7881]

@@Patricia-kk8tr 🤮 just no 🤣

[@dennisud]

I'm FINALLY getting that New M1 MacBook Air from either Amazon or Best Buy . Thanks for thus video as for me it justifies me waiting for this as I already have an M1 Mac Mini and this new MacBook will pair well with it.

[@songsan807]

Good timing for me to stumble on this video. I got a few Macbooks that were 2013 and 2015 that I have not use for a few years and was thinking of getting rid of them through eBay or Mercari. Excellent condition and working. Now I am just going to keep them around for myself since they are actually really good. Got a bunch of "Windows" laptop for $1 each when a local PC repair shop close down. Even when you see Macbooks as parts they will never be $1. Macs keeps their value.

[@GiancarloCarccamo]

great video

[@TheParadiseParadox]

I bought a 2011 Macbook Air yesterday here in Mexico for 2500 pesos, about 150 USD. I bought it after seeing your videos and a couple of other channels talking about how cool it is to have these machines. It's still nice and light. Not much is built to last these days so it's interesting to see something this old that still works, and well. The battery has more cycles than I expected, about 570. That was something I forgot to check before purchase. It looks like the battery will hold up for a while yet though In any case it will be cool to mess around with it, install different versions of Linux and experiment

[@paolopetrozzi2213]

Thanks, Luke

[@dragonfire3697]

i almost thought mine that is listed on there would pop up.

[@johnhricko8212]

Good points. I got one of the newer used Intel's, probably paid too much for it, but, I wanted to be able to dual boot into windows native. If you're using your computer for audio recording, it should be running on a native hardware platform. Latency is best handled on native hardware, and if I need to run windows audio recording software, I want native hardware. When I compared the performance against an M1, it was very close. And I got 16 gigs of ram, more USB type C ports, and I am a happy camper...

[@justhuman3424]

this is true. There's just so much trouble with buying 2nd hand macs nowadays especially with older models that it would be cheaper to actually buy an original one. the m1 definitely changed the game for macs. the base model is priced reasonable for the performance.

[@geminithugbaby473]

TIP FOR MBP SCREEM COAT My MBP screen was spotting really bad I saw videos on how to remove the coating with various wipes but nothing worked that great that the videos recommended or If it did I had to rub the screen pretty hard! What I found that did work were these citrus wipes I bought at the dollar store for polishing wood furniture I didn’t have to rub the screen as hard and now my screen looks wayyy better you will notice that your screen colors may look weird when powering it back on but it goes away in a matter of minutes just make sure not to apply too much pressure

[@andycress]

Just picked up a $65 2012 Mac Mini on eBay already upgraded with 16GB RAM (maxed out) and a 480GB SSD that has a bad HDMI port. I was already planning on running it headless as a home media/Time Machine server, bonus that the Thunderbolt port still works if I did want to hookup a monitor. Updated to Ventura with OCLP and it runs like a champ. Photoanalysisd has been running for a week, but hey, that's life.

[@emilsecker7881]

A huge waste of money. macOS Catalina is unsupported time to upgrade

[@andycress]

@@emilsecker7881 I'm already running Ventura, the current public release, which is more recent than Catalina. Thanks for your reply though?

[@kirishima638]

And here I am still using my 2013 11 inch MBA as my personal machine. i5 with 4gb of RAM! It's still adequate for my needs, although I have replaced the battery, thermal paste and keyboard.

[@emilsecker7881]

Time to upgrade that thing. macOS Big Sur is going EOL later this year

[@nookeen]

I am still using 16in i9 and I really should not complain. I tested three machines for my work: M1 Mac Mini, 16in i9, M1 Pro 16in and for video processing I do, 4k => hevc, 4k => 720p, 1080 editing, all vary between +-2 minutes. And 16in i9 now affordable - around $800. But you get bigger screen + great sound + 1TB + 16GB Ram than MBA with M1 for the same money.

[@georgesenda1952]

I always pay for the Ebay provided electronics warranty because I have bought stuff that was DOA and the seller refused a refund back in the old days before Ebay will now give you a refund.

[@danielpeti3885]

Use listerine and a fibre cloth. Takes about 1 hr and your screen is good as new. Takes of that coating easily.

[@rogerhargreaves2272]

I still love my 2012 Unibody MacBook Pro. Still easy to upgrade the hardware.

[@HatBodega]

I got my 2015 in 2018 because of u🤞🏽… Best investment ever!

[@andresd270]

There is people trying to sell late 2012 mac mini for $300, crazy!

[@dn13lz]

Recently, I got MBP 13" Mid 2012 i5 with 120GB SSD + 500GB HDD, 12GB RAM, and the issue only on the screen has only 1 white spot. I got it for just $145. That's a steal deal for me, since normally it would cost me about $270 or more.

[@ognickea7180]

I was thinking the same last week.

[@raulgorgulio9834]

I recently have bought MBP 13 2015 in a great condition (new battery, perfect screen and other hardware, no dents, only some scratches) for $475. I needed a not expensive laptop for traveling because I don't feel comfortable taking my main work laptop anywhere but the office. It works great as a secondary laptop, and has enough horsepower (I've got 16/512 version) for all of my tasks - some office work with doc/xls files, ux/ui design and beatmaking. I've considered M1 Air as an alternative, but the cheapest one that I found was $750, and that falls out of «not expensive» range. Also I actually don't need all that power in secondary laptop, so there's no actual reason to pay 1.5x more. The only real advantage in my case is greater battery life on the M1, but I've about 4 hours on the 2015 MBP with turned off hyper threading, and it's more than enough to get from one power source to another. $250 difference in price is very significant in some places, so there is still a big market for old Macbooks. I've seen a lot of good offers on my local classified ads website, starting from 2010 models in a great condition for $100 (and for $150 with 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD).

[@j.lietka9406]

Maybe that is why I found a tossed out A1466 yesterday!

[@jasondang9051]

I brought a 2015 15 inch MacBook Pro last year for $800 but was included the 27 inch thunderbolt display. Was this a good deal

[@frankschafer1505]

watching this on a late 2009 17 inch macbookpro that still works like a charm

[@emilsecker7881]

Time to upgrade that shit. It’s been unsupported for years

[@sethbessinger2025]

I bought one a few months ago to replace my old laptop. It works great! It’s the 2013 MacBook Air.

[@MapOfEurasia]

I recently bought a MacBook Pro 13 inch Late 2016 touch bar model (8GB of RAM with 256GB SSD) with a broken screen for 120€. I fixed it with a 100€ used screen assembly from eBay and slapped Ventura on it with OCLP. Works great and is pretty snappy. Oh, the battery is brand new in it because the previous owner replaced it at some point. Yeah I know it isn't the best MacBook Pro, but is definitely an upgrade from my 13 inch Mid-2010 Core 2 Duo.

[@emilsecker7881]

You’re going to want to upgrade. That thing isn’t officially supported. Apple Silicon is way better

[@ElliotsTrains]

I got a 2014 Mac mini for £80 ($102). It has 8gb ram, a 2.6 ghz i5 and a 256gb SSD. It might not be as powerful as an Apple silicon Mac but I get a machine more than capable for simple editing and browsing for around $100 🤷‍♂️ It supports Monterey natively and can run Ventura fine with OCLP.

[@MrJayArt]

I bought a used MacBook Pro because I know what I’m looking for, It arrived in nearly brand new condition. I’ve been using it for over a year now without a single issue. One time I was sitting in my friends car and he had a MacBook Air with a small dent on the corner sitting on the floorboard. I asked him why it was dented and he told me it stopped working after he dropped it once and that I can just have it because he already bought a new one. Well turned out all I had to replace was the ssd and that Mac has been going strong now for over 10 years now since that point.

[@St0rmcrash]

I wouldn't trust the Amazon sellers much more than the eBay ones these days. Unless the buy box details show Sold by Amazon then who knows who you're actually buying from, Claims of warranty from a small seller or vendor mean nothing, and if the device breaks or is not as advertised good luck with support

[@g6ter1]

Have had as my everyday driver a late 2012 i7, 16gb retina macbook. still looks brand new, no issues at all, is still quick and snappy, does what i need it to do 95% of use cases, running adobe illustrator and after effects, ableton live, figma, architectural drafting programs, etc. Would upgrade if i needed to 3d render or do heavy video editing.

[@TroupeGoal]

That’s my eBay experience for any purchase, rip offs and chancers

[@bassenjoyer69_07]

Just bought a 2017 MacBook Air for 260€ for school and i love it

[@rrp6405]

something i am considering in the market is a older mac mini, for use with windows 10 / 11 (as apple have no modern os support) with dual monitor support, could you compare this to a windows / lenovo mini pc and see what the cost savings / benefits if any look like.

[@user-ov8le7id6g]

Easy fix that retina Oleophobic Coating issue … 5mis microfibres with “domestos”😅. 10-15mins with windows cleaner or isopropyl alcohol )

[@cgi2173]

Lol, I pointed out to an eBayer last week that their Macbook Air has a display issue. Got asked if I was interested in buying, they got mad and said I wasted their time. I never once said I was interested. 🙄

[@MrTrio5]

This week I got a 2014 Mac Mini i7 16Gb from OfferUp for $170 in great conditions. I think it was a good deal for that price for music creation.

[@Wile-E-Coyote_Super_Genius]

I bought a 2015 15" MBP not quite a year ago based on Luke's Videos as a replacement for an older 2010. Its not the top of the range with the dual graphics but did come with16gb ram and a years warranty. True its older but was almost perfect (just slight scuffing on the bottom) and if you dont have the money for new...you dont have it. I feel comfortable with the deal I got.

[@emilsecker7881]

You really should upgrade at the end of next year when macOS Monterey goes unsupported

[@Jeremy-kg1zr]

@@emilsecker7881 Why? The 2015 with 16bg RAM is plenty of computer for most things. Mine runs Great. Anyone who needs to upgrade due to heavy computing tasks probably isn't using a 2015 mac anyway, or is very aware of the limitations of their machine. If you want the newest OS, just Open Core patch it and you're good to go. No need to buy new shit just because it exists or everyone else is. Use what works for you.

[@emilsecker7881]

@@Jeremy-kg1zr because the 2015 model is shit. Doesn’t even support macOS Sonoma

[@TheSilentSniper321]

I found this video helpful.

[@TL-anonymous]

I was repairing electronics for minimal $ bonus and mostly for fun. Something happened in last year - prices for broken devices got so close to these in working condition - I would need to pay for repair myself. I think people selling broken laptops and consoles think that lowering price of working one by 10% makes reasonable deal.

[@thet4306]

I have had 1 of my friends buy a gaming Chromebook when steam didn't work and a MacBook after that and was disappointed with gaming compatibility

[@GrAYvTrAnE]

I just bought a 2017 MBP w/o touchbar. I spent $399.08. I did it because I wanted to switch to a Mac from being a life long windows user. And this got me into the Mac environment for the same price of a used/refurbished windows laptop specced out how I wanted.

[@chumbawumba1959]

Some of the best deals on what you are searching is actually at OWC (subject to avail). They have some really good prices, and you can add upgrade options (RAM, SSD). Also - and you frequently mention - Apple refurb is good channel for -1 gen hardware. Lastly, coming up on Tax-holiday on some states, then buying from OWC no sales tax.

[@VacayCebu]

Yes, i noticed that...good advice!

[@movdqa]

I've been spoiled by Apple Silicon MacBooks not getting warm on my lap. I still have a 2015 15 as a backup but I'm considering selling it and buying a 15 Air. My asking price would probably be $200 and I don't even know if I'd get that. There's still a health market for iMacs as efficiency isn't as big an issue on the desktop. I only sell on Craigslist out of my home and give the buyer a week to change their mind. The battery on mine was replaced in 2021, screen, keyboard and trackpad are fine.

[@emilsecker7881]

You won’t get much for it as macOS Monterey is going unsupported next year

[@FluffyNuggets369]

I'm keeping my MBP 15" mid-2015 until the MBP 16" M3 comes out.

[@PicoNeo3]

I just got a 2019 i7 MacBook Pro 15inch 512 gb for $350, im upgrading from my 2013 MacBook Air, and im so excited!

[@LucienSabre]

I only bought devices on eBay twice (both times Android tablets, a Galaxy Tab A8 and a Xiaomi Pad 5, both from a seller with seemingly 100% positive feedback)....and both times I had to return the device due to issues -- the first tablet had a malfunctioning wi-fi card (it wasn't my home internet), the second one had multiple problems. That has pushed any thought of ever purchasing on eBay again far away forever.

[@therealnotanerd_account2]

Recently I needed an apple machine only to compile mobile applications to iOS and bacause I would not use the machine to anything else, I tried to buy a used one. I honestly thought people were crazy. Very old machines with prices not cheaper than a new one. Although I only use the computer few hours per month, I still decided to buy a new one.

[@atgred]

I have a Macbook Pro 15” i7 2012 and a Mac Pro 5.1 12 core. Just bought a Mac Studio and sits on top of the Mac Pro, great desk by the way!! 😜

[@emilsecker7881]

Time to upgrade both. They’re both unsupported

[@jonos138]

Im glad of this channel. Not knowing loads about buying macs, this info is invaluable. However, there is one other problem ive heard about and maybe you can clarify. Ive heard of people buying macs that state wiped and OS reinstalled ready for new user. However, as soon as they proceed with the set up apple asks for the previous owners details because its still locked to the previous owner, and the new owner cannot use the mac because of this.

[@Jeremy-kg1zr]

Scam. Probably a stolen laptop. You have to make sure the previous owner signed out of icloud. If it's icloud locked, you're fucked.

[@lunawense6288]

This situation only happens if the laptop is stolen or the previous owner had malicious intent to lock you out of a device (basically never). Do not purchase a apple product that is user locked because the seller is a criminal there is no workaround. It exists to combat theft of apple products.

[@andrewgrant788]

I would like to see a video on the market for desktop Intel Macs.

[@T779298RA1]

i found this video helpful

[@richarddcrossley]

I’ve got M1 Max and various M1 Macs but I’m just keeping all my mint condition Intel macs for compatibility and bootcamp. Think lots of people are doing the same or handing them onto family. Even had a battery swap on my top spec 2015 15 inch. Too many scammers on eBay and eBay always side with the buyer. I never sell tech on eBay. I’d rather get less but know I’ll keep the payment on Facebook marketplace.

[@mtndrewstevens885]

I bought an m1 air on my local marketplace for 500$ great condition. The only issue is a crunchy mute key but that’s the only problem

[@chickenpasta7359]

another reason you don't see good deals on eBay is because of the high seller fee. eBay takes 12.5% of whatever earnings you make per sale. a lot of sellers are realizing its better to just sell things locally now

[@TheGaloverde]

Honestly, Luke would absolutely IMPLODE if he ever searched the Brazilian market for Macbooks.... I mean, people here think they are gold plated or something. Buying a MacBook here from retail is REALLY EXPENSIVE and when people resell they want the same amount of profit as they have been taken for many years ago. Something like $1000+ 15" 2015 i7 MacBook Pros (5000 Reais+) and the prices only go up as the launch year goes up too.

[@shaocaholica]

Prediction on when the floor is going to drop out on TOP SPEC iMac Pros and Mac Pro 7.1s? Or never? I want a last gen max spec intel Mac as a collectible but I also don’t want to pay thousands for it.

[@AliasEveWatches]

Earlier this year, I was able to get a Macbook Air 2015 8gb RAM for $100 so lucky me. 😅 Now it's harder to find deals like this.

[@AliasEveWatches]

@ProjectXZ230 Lucky you! 😁

[@emilsecker7881]

A waste of money. macOS Monterey is going unsupported next year. You’ll need to upgrade again

[@AliasEveWatches]

@@emilsecker7881 I've got a Macbook A1278 2010 with a maximum of High Sierra and I'm still using it for leisure and entertainment. It's still does its purpose! 😁 For simple users, Monterey will be more than enough for the next couple of years.

[@mkm83672]

I bought MacBook pro 13" 2015 just last week, running on Monterey now and i can't be more happier, it was replacing two years older (but more powerful) i7 Win -laptop and i can't be more happier. Much better battery life (even tought i have renoved battery to Lenove).

[@emilsecker7881]

You’re going to want to upgrade next November when macOS Monterey goes unsupported

[@mozzer8234]

I couldn't sell my mid 2017 13" MBP base model retina for $200 on ebay a few months ago. It even had a fresh battery. Nobody was even viewing it after weeks. Had to find a local buyer and go lower than $200. Seems like there's no market for these right now.

[@johnbergmann2896]

The scam on eBay is eBay with their fees. I’ve had listings I sold where I end up with 50% of the sale go to their fees.

[@F_K3NT_D]

I agree with everything you say here. I’m always looking for that super great buy that could be a decent flip. They don’t exist anymore and Apple silicon changed everything. My Wife’s M1 Air is so much better than the 1 yr older Intel Air I’m now using. No reason to go Intel Mac anymore.

[@cheap25]

I was flipping M1 MacBook Air's like hotcakes like a year and a half ago ...now you can't sell the damn things for 450 bucks. It's sad.

[@nonamed6434]

I got a great condition 8GB/500GB 13" early 2015 in great condition for 220 euros. The only issue it had was staingate which I removed right after the purchase. I think it was a great deal.

[@emilsecker7881]

You should really upgrade that thing at the end of next year when macOS Monterey goes unsupported

[@nolan9648]

I know this may be an exception to a trend and I in no way am saying you're wrong. You clearly know a ton more about it than I do but I recently got a mid 2012 macbook pro 13 for about 180cad all in (131 freedom dollars). I bought 16gb of ram and put in a 500gb ssd. The battery is in really good condition. I'm running linux and for day to day use it's awesome. Plus it has a dvd drive and has better built quality than any you could buy new for 4x the price.

[@laurasolano1654]

You are right.

[@artistnyc123]

Based on your reviews I recently bought a 2015 15" Dual GPU off BackMarket for $375. It was classified as "Excellent" and arrived without so much as a mark on it. The screen has zero lamination problems. If it arrived in Apple packaging As New, I would not have know the difference. Battery Cycle is in the low 200's. I'm VERY happy because I use this as my night time laptop for streaming content to my 50" 4K and it works perfectly. I even bought a beautiful case to preserve its condition even though it will probably never see the outdoors. Paying over a $1000 for Apple Silicon seems over kill to me for what I'm using it for. Also, the 13" air M1 is too small. But thank you for clueing me into the fact that this is one of the best Laptops Apple ever made. (I had a clue because this is replacing a 2012 13" unibody that I bought new and it still runs flawlessly 10 year later)

[@emilsecker7881]

That thing is garbage. Doesn’t even support macOS Ventura, let alone Sonoma

[@Hornet135]

@@emilsecker7881 doesn’t ‘officially’ support

[@marcokrauss5320]

I just replaced my mothers 2015 15”MacBook Pro with a 15” M2 Air and besides battery life and display brightness she did not notice any difference in day to day performance 😅

[@stpworld]

i found oen under 400 with a new display and it had the box to. And a new battery

[@PCJesus0]

If some of the parts laptops have no battery, then you can just replace the battery only, not the whole top case, you’d probably pay 100$ more for a used 256gb ssd and a new battery

[@JeffCD77]

Oh come on.... Now we need to be subjected to pool cleaning robot ads!?!? It was one thing when the ads were somewhat related to the channel content, but now it's just selling out to the highest bidder.

[@cgi2173]

LOL I know. Luke taking anything for ads now. He wouldn't have a pool. 😂

[@gabrielulibarri9950]

I bought a Mac off Ebay last month. I paid $300 and got free shipping and a 30 day money back warranty. It's a 2018 MacBook Air in near-perfect condition, only thing wrong on the whole machine is a small nick on the outside edge, very hard to see. It is only the i5 with 8gb RAM and a 128gb SSD. But powerwise, no MacBook holds a candle to my heckin beefy Dell Laptop anyway, so I'm cool with it. 2018 has the excellent force touch trackpad but still with an Intel cpu so I can run Windows.

[@tooobe12345]

@Luke Miani please check out fixing screen delamination by cleaning it with mouth wash! I've tried it and I actually works (some brands of mouth wash works better than others though)

[@user-xp2ds9db3w]

The thing is that if there was no demand for old MacBook Pro and Air, prices should reflect that. Now we have absurdly high asking prices for good samples of five to eight year old products with Intel cpus whereas you can go for a used M1 which makes more sense long term. As soon as sellers realize that they will adjust priciing according to make a sale.