Thinking of selling my 15" Macbook Pro

June 12, 2012 12:57 PM

I’m thinking of selling my 15" Macbook Pro ("Early-2011"), but I’m wondering what’s the best (safest) way to do so—and if it would even be worth what I might get for it.

Hi,

With the official announcement of the upcoming Retina-display Macbooks, I was thinking I might try selling my early-2011 15" Macbook Pro. (the Retina screen sounds great, and I would like the increased speed of an SSD drive—and a somewhat lighter machine wouldn't hurt)

(I know that while Macs historically hold their value well, with the rather big change to Retina displays, this may not hold as well for me.)

I'm not sure how much I could reasonably ask for, but just as importantly I would want a safe/reliable way to sell it. (I would be worried about some scammer buying it on eBay and then saying it didn't work, had arrived without RAM, or all scratched up or something, thus leaving me without both my working laptop or any payment).

Here are my MBP’s specs:

• 15" display with 1680-by-1050 high-resolution glossy display (this was a higher resolution than normal MBPs, and cost a couple hundred at the time of order)
• 2GHz quad-core Intel i7 processor
• 8 GB 133 MHz DDR3 memory (upgraded from 4GB)
• 500 GB hard drive
• Covered by AppleCare insurance through mid-March 2014

(the laptop has been sitting on a laptop stand on my desk for most of it's life, so has no scratches that I can see—oh, and the screen has no dead pixels)
It shipped with Snow Leopard (I think it was the last MBP to do so), and I still have everything it shipped with (box, discs, cords)

What do you guys think? Worth it* to sell?

If so, best suggestions for safe way to do so?

Thanks for your suggestions!

*I would be turning around and ordering the low-end Retina Macbook Pro, which I can get at the educational price of $1999.

posted by blueberry to computers & internet (10 answers total)

I had good luck purchasing via Craigslist, and I'd definitely try it again. If you're up-front about all issues and take the usual craigslisty precautions I'd certainly try that first.
posted by odinsdream at 12:58 PM on June 12, 2012

I've had no problems with craigslist.

I would say you could get from 1200-1400.
posted by wongcorgi at 1:03 PM on June 12, 2012

First thing to try is to sell it to someone you trust, like a relative or a friend.

Second is Cragislist, dealing in cash and meeting in person in a public place.

There is no step three.
posted by kindall at 1:18 PM on June 12, 2012

Powermax and Small Dog will take your old Mac in trade for a new one, and have been recommended on here in the past.
posted by Runes at 1:55 PM on June 12, 2012

I advertised both my 2010 11" Macbook Air and my 2010 13" Macbook Pro on my Facebook wall yesterday, and had the Air sold (to someone from MeFi) within 30 minutes and the Pro spoken for in another 30. Now waiting for my 2012 11" Air to ship!
posted by mrbill at 1:55 PM on June 12, 2012

I successfully sold an old Macbook Air to mac of all trades. You give them a description of the laptop and all the accessories you have and they email you a quote; if you like it, you let them know and they mail you a shipping label. After I sent the laptop off, it took about 2 weeks to get the check in the mail. All the negative reviews that I could find about them were about people buying laptops, not selling laptops.

Selling to a friend or coworker is probably easier, but I found selling on line easier than dealing with flaky craigslist people, and they gave me almost as good of a price.
posted by asphericalcow at 1:57 PM on June 12, 2012

Keep in mind, they didn't completely abolish the non-Retina MBP. You can still get the 13" and 15" in the normal non-Retina versions. I wouldn't expect the release of some new MBPs with Retina displays to dramatically reduce the value of used MBPs across the board. Check Craigslist and Ebay for comparable listings, and use that as a guide to establish your price. Perhaps go a little high, because yours sounds like it's in great shape (plus the memory upgrade, though, to be honest, is $40 from Newegg). Or shoot a little low if you want to sell it faster.

If you live in a college town and don't need to sell it right away, used laptops often sell very well around the start of an academic year. Plus, that lets you deal in person.
posted by xedrik at 2:34 PM on June 12, 2012

Had great success and got a high price when I sold my old MacBook Air on Amazon about a year ago.
posted by lohmannn at 2:38 PM on June 12, 2012

Sell on Craigslist, insist on cash, meet at your credit union or bank.
posted by Slinga at 2:53 PM on June 12, 2012 [2 favorites]

This is hardly a representative sample, but I have sold 4 laptops on eBay with no problems.
posted by Silvertree at 6:44 AM on June 13, 2012