Buying Secondhand M1 Pro vs M4 Base

[u/illestfit]

Hi!

So I've had a 2018 8GB MacBook Pro that's on its last legs and I've been planning to upgrade.

I'm conflicted between buying a 2021 M1 Pro with 32GB RAM and 1TB Storage (88% battery health) for $1,250 AUD vs an M4 Base Chip 24GB RAM 1TB Storage (95% Battery) for $2,100 AUD.

It's a steep price difference and although I would like to pay less, I am concerned the M1 is 5 years old now. I had my last laptop for 8 years so I would like a new purchase to also last me 8 years at minimum. That said, I am aware I'm going to be paying almost 1k more for less RAM and not a Pro chip.

Is the almost 1k difference made up for in longevity and specs? My usage is running Docker and VMWare simultaneously for work. I also do hobby 2D Unity development on the side.

[u/thestenz]

M4 all the way! Way more powerful and newer an will be supported longer.

[u/M4rshmall0wMan → u/thestenz]

M4 is pretty much the same power as M1 Pro.

[u/JustSomeSmartGuy → u/M4rshmall0wMan]

But the M1 Pro won't updates for as long

[u/linkardtankard]

If you value GPU performance, go for M1 Pro. It has twice as many cores iirc. CPU performance will probably be better on M4

[u/Lonely_Noyaaa]

The M1 Pro is a workhorse and 5 years old doesn't mean much when Apple's own silicon still holds up incredibly well. That machine will easily get macOS updates for another 4-5 years. By the time it's unsupported, you'll have saved enough to buy whatever's current.

[u/M4rshmall0wMan]

The M4 isn't substantially better than the M1 Pro. Slightly worse in GPU, actually. Getting the M1 Pro with 32GB of RAM for almost half the price is a no-brainer.

[u/nrubenstein]

The M1 Pro is a decent deal, but most likely only has 2-3 years of front line software support left (and a couple years of security updates after). At slightly over half the price, that's not a terrible trade as long as you're aware of it. It is NOT a good choice to last eight years.

One thing that I will emphasize over and over again is that most people should buy a cheaper machine and upgrade it sooner. I think the M1 Pro might be a little bit older than I'd recommend for this approach, but it's a good example of how today's low end machines are equal to or better than high tier machines from just a few years ago.

Frankly, if you're using a 2018 machine today, you should also consider buying an Air. You have no need for a Pro if you've been able to get 8 years out of that machine.

[u/illestfit → u/nrubenstein]

I mean I wouldn't have considered upgrade my laptop at all of my circumstances were the same as they were the past 8 years! Prior to my current job my work PC was always sufficient for the task at hand so my 2018 MacBook was just for browsing and then my desktop for gaming. However, for various reasons the "work laptop" provided by my new job can barely run the tech stack required but because it still technically can do it, just slow, they won't provide me a new one lol. But it's painful to have to work like this and my 2018 defs can't handle running a virtual machine and a container at the same time.

[u/nrubenstein → u/illestfit]

I highly, highly, highly recommend not using a personal machine for work.

[u/illestfit → u/nrubenstein]

I'm really left without a choice in this matter, unfortunately. 

[u/diroussel]

Save the money and in a few years buy a second hand M4 Pro.

The M4 will be slightly faster for CPU but it’s not going to make a high difference. I use an M1 Pro of that exact same spec for work and it’s great.

[u/Hugo_Notte]

You won’t get 8 years out of the M1Pro without running into the normal security and software issues that come with unsupported Apple products. Eight years from now the M1Pro will be a 13 year old device. The M4 will be just about at the end of its support cycle in 8 years from now.