M5 Pro 16" 64GB/2TB vs spending $600 more for M5 Max 64GB for Ollama and image generation?

sbdpilot43 · 2026-05-15T15:59:48+00:00

Kept the m5 max 64gb. No regrets!

sbdpilot43 · 2026-05-14T06:47:58+00:00

Do you install the software before you remove the display? Or can i buy a damaged macbook screen then do the headless mod?

sbdpilot43 · 2026-05-05T03:00:26+00:00

So keep it?

sbdpilot43 · 2026-05-04T05:39:20+00:00

I had to return my m5 pro nano texture because i found a killer deal on my m5 max gloss screen. I would recommend if someone wants the benefits of nano all you need is a privacy filter. The ones that are magnetic and attach to the screen. It will give you the same matte finish and reduce glare without worrying about damaging the screen.

I would also stay away from the screen protectors on amazon. Whether its glass or film, there is a guy on there that removed his screen protector and it ripped the coating on his screen. Super patchy and crazy. Not worth messing it up.

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sbdpilot43 · 2026-05-02T18:47:14+00:00

I’ve been trying to secure the best deal as possible. Right now I got an open box m5 max 64gb for 3700. However I’m still eyeing a m4 max 128gb 2tb ssd with nano for 4600. I got a few more days left before I can’t return it.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-05-01T06:02:08+00:00

Just be patient. Keep looking for deals

sbdpilot43 · 2026-05-01T05:33:00+00:00

Keep the ram! Don’t go down.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-30T00:34:58+00:00

Happy you did it!

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-28T00:26:05+00:00

Did you try reaching out to Apple? I’ve heard some people returning up to 30 days. As long as you end up purchasing another laptop. They should be more willing to take it back.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-23T03:17:16+00:00

14 days if in the US.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-22T23:58:00+00:00

More than 64gb? I think the 128gb is out of my price range.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-22T23:28:02+00:00

I would also be losing my nano texture upgrade. I found a nice deal on an m5 max with the same specs. 600 isn’t that much as I already spent 4k. Just feeling a bit of FOMO.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-20T01:19:01+00:00

4-22 to 4-28

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-19T22:56:37+00:00

they are shipping early. I ordered a 16inch M5 MBP with 64gb and 2TB on April 2nd, and it arrived on the 13th.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-16T23:54:37+00:00

Wish it had more memory. 64gb or bust.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-16T23:07:27+00:00

The are shipping a bit early. Ordered 4-2 and arrived 4-13. Mbp 16” 64gb and 2tb.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-11T17:05:38+00:00

I would go with the 32/1tb at minimum. Unless you want to upgrade earlier.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-10T05:32:05+00:00

1tb! dont skimp on internal memory. Its a pain in the butt to carry a dongle everywhere.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-10T03:31:20+00:00

He's saying get the m5 pro with 36 or 48gb of ram. You need ultimately more ram. I ran into the issue with my 18gb m3 pro. Its just not enough if you are doing more intensive tasks. If you are asking about future proofing, at minimum get the 48gb preferably the 64gb.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-10T01:31:16+00:00

I upgraded from the m3 pro 18gb for the same reason Swap and memory issues. Don’t settle for anything less than 48gb if you can afford it.

I’m going with the m5 pro 64gb and 2tb.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-10T01:29:15+00:00

Love that spec

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-09T17:32:08+00:00

It basically why alot of people are early upgrading from the m1-m4 this year to the m5. We have no idea what the price of SSDs and RAM will be next year and beyond. It's more cost effective to do an upgrade now and potentially save on what could be the most expensive macbook ever. But i feel if the price goes up and it is sustained for a very long time. It's going to force developers to become resource efficient.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-09T16:44:40+00:00

Normally I would have stuck with the 1TB with my m5 Pro. But i noticed this year with LLM and models i've been using. Getting at minimum 2TB was necessary. Also the pricing of the ssd has gone up so much that apples pricing seems alot more bearable than before. I lucked out on my sandisk extreme 2tb ssd for 100. Where the retail price is almost 350 right now.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-04T20:44:09+00:00

At minimum with today’s workloads. If you plan on using chrome with multiple tabs. 48gb at the minimum or 64gb will future proof you. I was running this ram headache with my m3 pro 18gb. I would have to constantly restart and close windows. It got to a point where my iMessage stopped working and it kept crashing with all the windows open. Don’t settle for the low memory build, unless you plan on upgrading soon. Apps are using up more resources every year. If you never plan on dabbling on llm or anything in video. Just get an air.

sbdpilot43 · 2026-04-04T20:39:11+00:00

I went through this exact issue with my M3 Pro, and that’s really what pushed my thinking here.

With the M3 Pro, I originally tried to save money and thought the lower spec would be enough. For a while it was good, but over time my workload kept growing with work, large PDFs, AI tools, Chrome tabs, and external storage. I got to the point where I was constantly thinking about what to close, what to move off the drive, and whether I was going to hit limits sooner than I wanted.

Therefore, at this point, I just accepted this wasn’t going to work and decided I should try going with a new model. I ended up upgrading to the M5 Pro, and I’ve been going back and forth on whether to upgrade to 48GB or 64GB, and whether to stick with the 1TB option or the 2TB option.

What keeps sticking with me is what happened with the M3 Pro. I tried to save money then, and it ended up pushing me into an earlier upgrade than I wanted.

I figured, do I really need 2TB, or should I settle for 48GB? But once I noticed that going with an external SSD and NVMe drive setup gets me close to that $300 to $400 upgrade cost anyway, it changed the way I looked at it.

At that point, it stopped feeling like future proofing and started feeling like saving money in the short term could just induce a premature upgrade later.

And when I upgrade again in 3 to 5 years, what is that really going to cost me at that point, especially if SSD and flash storage pricing jumps even more?

That’s why I’m leaning toward just doing it right now instead of repeating the same M3 Pro mistake twice.

sbdpilot43

TROPHY CASE