What used apple computers should I avoid?

[jaslion]

So I've been looking for a used apple pc with semi decent specs as I am now required by my school to HAVE a mac even tho I've been using my windows laptop that just fine and none of the applications we are using are OSX only. I can just not do that and take the course of 3 months later that has a teacher that allows windows computers (without owning an apple computer yourself) in his class but that would mean I would be 3 months behind so I'm just looking for something cheap and decent.

 

Now I've been looking at anything that runs the current os and have on my own already made a list of what to avoid:

Any radeon 6000m series macs
Any 2015 or later macbooks
Any pre 2014 macbook air (but really any macbook air)

The previous "better" mac mini which is worse than the version before it

 

The best mac I've so far found is:

late 2012 27 inch imac

I7 3770

16 gb ram

1tb fusion drive

gtx 680mx

 

for 500€ which is an ok price I think.

 

Overall a bit worse than my current laptop but not too bad.

 

 

[DrMacintosh]

We need to know what your max budget is and what you're going to be doing with the Mac. 

[jonrosalia]

this is the guy I look to for used Macs

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3c8H4Tlnm5M6pXsVMGnmNg

 

this is a great imac

 

[jaslion]

Oh programing, Photoshop, Illustrator, autodesk maya and max, zbursh, substance painter, blender sculpting and that's about it.

 

Since I have to buy one might as well get one that I can use instead of just being there to exist on my desk to be proof I can work with an apple system and I meet the schools requirements for my diploma.

 

Current laptop:

 

i7 6700hq
32gb ram

gtx 970m

Samsung 960 pro 500gb

Samsung evo 850 1tb.

 

Desktop:

 

Xeon e5 2690v2
Rx 580
32gb ram
860 evo 1tb

So anything that I can work on is good. Rendering I can just toss on my desktop (which is also a hackintosh but that isn't good enough apparently).

 

Budget: well none really just as cheap as possible since I have better things to spend my money on then buying another computer.

[jonrosalia]

if that's the case I would say buy a 2015 Mac Pro its the last of the good Mac pros 

[Radium_Angel]

I'd avoid the Apple (Mac) Lisa.

Overpriced and waaaay hard to get parts for these days. 

 

On a more serious note, have you considered running OSX in a VM? Save you some cash and still let you do your work.

[jaslion]

2 minutes ago, Radium_Angel said:

I'd avoid the Apple (Mac) Lisa.

Overpriced and waaaay hard to get parts for these days. 

 

On a more serious note, have you considered running OSX in a VM? Save you some cash and still let you do your work.

I have. However we need to show official ownership of a current Apple Macintosh device. According to our agreement with school. However it is up to the teachers to enforce this rule (if you own an imac or something that is current then they cannot deny you access to the class even if you use a windows laptop). I got unlucky and got 1 of the 2 teachers that enforces this rule for a 3 month protfolio design course and he didn't agree with me having a hackintosh :p.

I also borrowed a friend's mac mini but that plan also failed when my teacher remoted in and I didn't have it here then. I tried to fool him with the hackintosh but failed.

[Radium_Angel]

14 hours ago, jaslion said:

I have. However we need to show official ownership of a current Apple Macintosh device. According to our agreement with school. However it is up to the teachers to enforce this rule (if you own an imac or something that is current then they cannot deny you access to the class even if you use a windows laptop). I got unlucky and got 1 of the 2 teachers that enforces this rule for a 3 month protfolio design course and he didn't agree with me having a hackintosh :p.

I also borrowed a friend's mac mini but that plan also failed when my teacher remoted in and I didn't have it here then. I tried to fool him with the hackintosh but failed.

Your teachers are jerks. Also, the school is in bed with Apple, but this is no surprise, the education system has been tightly linked to Apple for decades.

Considering the newest Apples seem to have an unending stream of issues, I'd buy one with the minimum specs needed to satisfy the program requirements (and go used at that) and the teacher's ego, and do your real work under a VM/Hackintosh.

 

But I'm stubborn like that and love to find ways around BS rules.

[jaslion]

Ended up with a used macbook pro f15,4" rom 2012.

 

It's the 2.3 ghz i7 model with no dedicated graphics. Got it for 55€ because it wouldn't boot. Thanks to Louis Rossman and a friend's dad letting me use his equipement I was able to repair it and now have a fully working macbook for a total of 90€ (had to buy a charger). It works pretty well for the couple times I've used it and now I can simply continue on using my regular ol laptop but now with an apple sticker on it :p. (as of today that sticker came loose in my backpack and I tossed it so oops).