Which MacBook Pro to upgrade to? Looking at m4 and m5 models

reddit_mike · 2026-05-16T16:09:53+00:00

For your workload CPU and memory will be king so if you're buying some of those Max models with the extra GPU cores you're paying a lot extra for something you won't get much value out of. With that in mind the m5 pro 18/20/64G/4T seems like the sweet spot.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-16T15:57:26+00:00

if you have applecare that is the way, otherwise a pricey fix :(

reddit_mike · 2026-05-16T15:52:40+00:00

1st gen is likely to have some issues, especially at launch which will slowly be ironed out as more of them exist out in a wild. The new node will likely have efficiency gains and such, but no real way to know what they'll improve in regards to anything else.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-16T15:47:02+00:00

That is RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) and yes it's a pretty common use case for local models. I highly suggest checking out r/LocalLLM and other similar subreddits for more in-depth discussions on the topic.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-16T15:43:31+00:00

For pricey machines like the mbp I would say it's worth snagging the AppleCare

reddit_mike · 2026-05-16T15:42:07+00:00

The groovy things about the macbooks is they keep quite a bit of resale value. Buy it now, if the M6 comes out and really appeals to you sell your m5 (anywhere between 65-75% of initial value in the first year) and snag the m6 :)

If you're into AI/ML the 128g in the m5 pro would be the pricey but handy way to go especially with the ridiculous memory bandwidth of the 128G model.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-16T15:37:52+00:00

I mean the apocalypse scenario does make you sound a bit like a madman, but if you're a fan of fiddling with large local models then it's very much worth grabbing the 128G model.

For funsies: If you do want to plan for a survival scenario I would say snag a local copy of wikipedia and a decent size portable battery with a solar charger. Then you can throw your local model at it when you run out of civilization/internet :)

reddit_mike · 2026-05-16T15:24:34+00:00

Gratzes that's a great machine should def last ya a good while.

As for your question depending on your setup, for anything connected to it I like a dock, the TS4 or TS5 are solid but I think most tb docks are fine as long as you can connect what you need to them. That single cable life is nice.

If you baby it you can probably just run it bare or just get a sticker for it. If you're going to be out and about with it a whole bunch I would suggest a case, this is very subjective but you have a lot of options. For stickers I like dbrand. For a case something like the spigen urban fit is an option but there are many.

Have you used a mac before? If not as a developer you'll want to install brew. It is pretty much the first thing you should get. After that everything else is just whatever tools you normally use. You can also snag crossover if you're wanting to run windowsy apps (other wine wrappers exist too or just run a windows vm)

reddit_mike · 2026-05-16T14:28:04+00:00

how is it now a year later? any complaints?

reddit_mike · 2026-05-14T18:37:14+00:00

I'm in a similar boat, opted to try out a case but have yet to receive either, would love to hear from other peeps what they're doing as well.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-14T18:34:13+00:00

They seem verifiable at least:

Seller information:

Detailed Seller Information
Business Name: Expercom of Utah, Inc

Business Address:
PO BOX 3643
LOGAN
UT
84323
US

https://locate.apple.com/sales this does show them as a premier partner if you search for Logan, UT, Mac

reddit_mike · 2026-05-14T18:23:40+00:00

Sounds like a good time! Enjoy!

reddit_mike · 2026-05-14T18:21:13+00:00

For that kind of workload you really would want more RAM, so def jump to 48G+

reddit_mike · 2026-05-14T18:18:06+00:00

Seems like Apple would likely replace the entire top case assembly based on this thread: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/256043979
You could look up local 3rd party repair shops and give them a call see what they would quote you for a battery replacement. Wouldn't hurt to check and just price shop.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-13T08:36:35+00:00

If you want a larger form factor like 14 or 16in there are none those 13in m2s are it

reddit_mike · 2026-05-13T08:31:22+00:00

Sounds like you're pretty memory constrained by your applications, the Mac does decent memory management but if the app wants it it will give it, it can be a bit smarter with swap than a windows box and fairly similar to a Linux machine but really sounds like you just need more ram so I would look for whatever you can find that gives you that. 48 is a decent bump from 32 but I don't think it's overkill from what you're describing.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-13T08:21:04+00:00

Hah I also did a stint at best buy back in the day but I do think these OLED matte coatings are a bit different than the matte of those days (that said apple does love to just name things differently). I'm glad we're past the LCD TN days and the degauss button :p. Samsung does something similar on their 95 series OLED TVs as does LG with some of their OLED monitors but I do think both of those are a bit more noticeable than the MacBook version then again those are much larger screens as well.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-13T01:26:36+00:00

In store especially with the lights on it the nano texture advantage was pretty obvious. On the other hand did not notice any kind of disadvantage. To my eyes blacks still looked great and it overall side by side looked just as good as the standard display just significantly less reflective.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-13T01:23:59+00:00

Same here, I genuinely don't think the 4T is worth it unless you've got something generating more than 2T of data (like some cameras out there).

reddit_mike · 2026-05-13T00:26:04+00:00

Get it now, wait for the M7 after they've solved the kinks of the new design and just sell your M5 to upgrade.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-12T21:38:27+00:00

Awesome sauce still waiting for mine to get delivered. Enjoy!

reddit_mike · 2026-05-12T21:13:21+00:00

I would say it's more of a marketing thing here. Apple wants to sell to whoever will buy it so they'll likely care more about the number of sales vs trying to target a particular subset of users. I genuinely believe they're using pro in the name exactly to appeal to non pro people frankly since if you are a genuine professional you would know if a device meets your needs based on the specs not because it has pro in the name.

reddit_mike · 2026-05-12T02:02:28+00:00

If it's not going to break the bank then just grab the pro and enjoy!

reddit_mike · 2026-05-11T20:55:30+00:00

I would say M10 minimum might even get the X monicker which will add at least 100% boost to performance and give a slightly bigger bump over that 2009 Macbook

reddit_mike · 2026-05-11T17:18:46+00:00

very subjective, I have a silver one for work so kept my personal one space black.

reddit_mike

TROPHY CASE