Good current source for macbook pricing? Need a bit of advice.

[weapon]

The m1 chip is awesome but I have 32 bit software that I still like to keep around like fontographer and adobe CS6. So as tempting as it is to grab a m1, I believe I need an Intel macbook. Currently for portables I am running a 2013 Macbook Air which has been great but figure I should upgrade at some point. Then buy a second gen M2 after the M1 bugs are worked out as my new main laptop.

Where can I find a current used price list for reference? Need some reference when dealing with craiglisters. What is the last version that can run Mojave (32 bit apps)? 2019 or was there an early 2020 laptop?

Here is to future proofing some of the weird 32bit application & plugins that they no longer make or support.

[sekker]

Anything prior in 13" form factor without a discrete GPU is not going to feel like a huge speed increase, as some of the increased CPU is taken up by the extra pixels you are driving with the retina screen. My son has a maxed-out 2013 MBA - it's still an excellent machine today for many uses.

I think the last Mojave-based machine is from 2018. I purchased one for this very reason, a quad core 13"MBPR. It comes with the crappy butterfly keyboard, however.

You could consider a 2015 15" laptop, I think those will start becoming available as people sell theirs for new M1 iron.

[Gareth]

Basically, 13" & 15" models through 2019. 16" model is a no-go for Mojave, as are 2020 models.

But, of course, you have to deal with the butterfly keyboard on later models.

In general, there's not a lot of difference between 2013 and 2015 models (which is the sweet spot for the "good" keyboard), so you have to go to the butterfly keyboard to see the most performance gain.

eBay is really the best place to see actual sold prices. It'll depend on your state, but here in CA, I figure the sold price on eBay is the fair value for a Craiglist transaction. Since otherwise, the seller would have eBay fees if they sold on eBay, but I'd have to pay tax if I bought on eBay, so it kind of evens out.

[Gareth]

https://everymac.com/ will tell you the minimum OS requirement for any given model. It'll also tell you the "used" value, but I find those to be wildly off, so go by my eBay recommendation above.

[Ombligo]

or skip the crazies on Craigslist and buy through Swappa. The prices are likely going to be close to the same. Additionally, you have a guarantee of it working with no water damage.

[weapon]

Gareth wrote:
https://everymac.com/ will tell you the minimum OS requirement for any given model. It'll also tell you the "used" value, but I find those to be wildly off, so go by my eBay recommendation above.

Good list. Thanks.
Looks likes this is my sweet spot.
15-Inch (2019 Touch Bar) Mojave (10.14.5) 18F132
13-Inch (2019 Touch Bar, 2 TB 3) Mojave (10.14.5) 18F2058

But wondering if I can downgrade the new models to Mojave?
16-Inch (2019) Catalina (10.15.1) 19B2093
13-Inch (2020, 2 TB 3) Catalina (10.15.4) 19E2265
16-Inch (2020, 4 TB 3) Catalina (10.15.4) 19E2269

[Gareth]

weapon wrote:
But wondering if I can downgrade the new models to Mojave?
16-Inch (2019) Catalina (10.15.1) 19B2093
13-Inch (2020, 2 TB 3) Catalina (10.15.4) 19E2265
16-Inch (2020, 4 TB 3) Catalina (10.15.4) 19E2269

Nope.

[weapon]

That makes it easier to centralize my search.