I am going through the same deal looking for something different. I revived an old Lenovo a couple years ago. Couldn’t upgrade the processor so just maxed the memory at 16. New battery and charger. Installed Linux mint then umbuntu before settling on zorin os from Linux because that was the only one I could get my WiFi to work on. Then use Firefox. It’s simple and basic but slow. So as I look into something better I’m exploring what BlackOp mentioned. Another eBay seller I like but haven’t bought one of his computers is:

https://www.ebay.com/str/1530computersllc

He has all refurbished but exclusively Dell. None have the side keypad but his have either windows 10 or 11. Or Linux mint or unbuntu, etc. I’m thinking if I can’t find what I want in a refurbished/used Mac I might try asking this guy if I can get one of his Dell with both windows and Linux installed. eBay has a bunch of sellers hopefully we can get some posts in this thread on any personal experience with eBay or other sellers.

Also be aware that Apple is not going to support Intel at all after the last Intel Macs are EOL. They made it much much harder in recent OS releases to run Windows side by side with MacOS.

You're better off just buying whatever native OS you want to use and be done with it. Unless you're a power user and really know what you're doing.

Acer? You like those?

You probably aren't playing many games, especially not resource intensive ones, with that CPU. Holy shit it's an I3-1215U.

I've only owned two and they were for my kids probably 10 years ago. They didn't have any problems at all and were replaced when they weren't powerful enough to run stuff anymore. Windows is just a shit OS.

Yeah that’s why I used Zorin on the 15-20 year old Lenovo. Just to try it out. You know of any good places for refurbished or used Mac Pros ? Good reputation online places?

Dude whatever - OPEN your eyes (not your wallet)! AMD SUCKS in the GPU ZONE! I have thick RAM, GAME AWAY! This site isn't having load time issues and slowness issues - PLEASE show me proof it is. Alienware, Vengeance are not going to bankrupt us? Convince me otherwise. We lost to the WORTHLESS Lenovos last week for Gods Sake! So things are going to change in 1 week vs. an i5? Whatever.

Only 1 left in stock and its a nice little powerhouse for under $700. Installing an OS is pretty damn easy to do these days if you don't want MAC OS.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B6GQBLMV...&offsiteFlag=1

EDIT: Those seller reviews aren't too promising. Caveat Emptor



.

I have a somewhat related question I just thought of while reading the OP. My laptop from probably 15 years ago is still in my possession. It was an IBM Lenovo Thinkpad I believe (with the little red button in the middle of the keyboard) and was a beast. Anyhow, it died because the fan went out and I bought something new rather than fix it. That being said, I never trashed it bc I always wanted to get around to trying to get it turned on again and grab whatever old photos/files were on there.

Is there a way to do that without 1)replacing the fan or 2) taking it to some stranger to pull everything off the hard drive for me?

I don't know EXACTLY what's on it but the thought of a random stranger getting to snoop around my laptop from my 20's isn't appealing. Any advice from the technically savvy on here??

I thought it looked underpowered too but i haven't run into any probs yet. Pretty soon i'll put it under some stress and we'll see how she goes.

Running into this issue with my phone. iPhone 8 Plus and I love the damn thing. Only problem it no longer supports updates for the OS. Now there’s some apps I can’t update or use. The last year they used the home button feature. I much prefer the thumbprint option over the facial recognition shit. So much so I’m considering a Samsung Galaxy 24 ultra. Or a iPhone 14 or 15 pro max and I will just have to get used to the facial recognition. I really really am used to the thumbprint and don’t want to switch. Bastard engineers need to bring the home button and thumbprint back to iPhone!!!

I have 6 macs...My 2 2019 laptops run Ventura and my 2019 production tower is staying on Catalina. It runs how I need it to run.

Mac OS updates arent going to be an issue for 98% of casual users...it'll be years before they are obsolete...and the newest OS is littered with AI shit I dont want.

All the M1/M2/M3/M4 models...with the exception of the tower has the SSD soldered to the motherboard...they also wont boot from an external anymore. So when the SSD dies...these units are essentially bricked.

There will no 2nd market for this silicone generation....they are disposable in 6-8 years by design. They want EVERYBODY tethered to AI...no thanks.

The intel MacBook Pro versions are great machines...way more power than your average consumer needs...unless you plan on serious gaming.

I have a 2012 MacBook pro that stills runs 95% of what my newer models do...for casual use it's perfectly fine. It'll run the 2022 version of all Adobe software.

It's pretty easy these days*, they have all kinds of USB adapters for HDD and SSDs... something like this for an HDD...
https://www.amazon.com/SABRENT-SATA-...011M8YACM?th=1

Confirm what kind of hard drive it has, open it up and confirm you can get it out of there, buy the USB converter for it, then plug it into the new device.

*I say this as a Linux user, which easily opens drives from these converters... Windows may complicate things, because Windows..... but, the converters are cheap, at least.

I actually have a bunch of 2019 16inch Macbook pros for sale. I think most have the i7 though.

Word. I bought it for general browsing and watching some vids. I built a gaming PC in Dec 2019 and it still runs like a top. I plan on putting it somewhere in the bsmt right below where i sit, so i can run some long cords to game when i want to. Store the monitor, kb and mouse and table nearby, etc.

I was just getting tired of having my whole setup right in front of me on a tray table and went with a new laptop since most of my time is just spent browsing and watching vids these days. I was a heavy PC gamer from '19-'22.