Setting preferred language on an old MacBook Pro
October 8, 2020 4:19 PM   Subscribe

Is “English (Qatar)” correct for the US?

My wife’s boss got her a refurb 15” MacBook Pro. I believe it’s a 2013 Retina model.

I went to run the initial setup and I’m not sure about the language choice it’s giving me (It’s been awhile since I had to setup a Mac) In the setup, after selecting “United States” it shows the preferred language as being “English (Qatar)” which has me a bit thrown. Is this correct for a Mac being used in the US? There are no other language choices available in the Customize menu.

Thanks.
posted by Thorzdad to Computers & Internet (5 answers total)
 
I think you can just change this later in system preferences. Mine says United States.
posted by pinochiette at 4:33 PM on October 8, 2020


Best answer: Is this correct for a Mac being used in the US?

No. English (US) is correct for a Mac being used in the US.

There are no other language choices available in the Customize menu.

If that were happening to a Mac I was trying to set up, I'd nuke and pave before trying again.
posted by flabdablet at 4:54 PM on October 8, 2020 [5 favorites]


Response by poster: Thanks! Nuke and pave, it is.

FWIW, the boss bought the refurb through a "Certified Refurbished on Amazon" associate (techdeals4less) and, as far as I know, it was not revealed as having a localized, non-US, version of the OS installed. I have no idea if it would have mattered to continue on, but nuke-and-pave seems like the best way forward.

I guess "buyer beware" is something to consider when dealing with an Amazon refurb.
posted by Thorzdad at 6:15 AM on October 9, 2020


I guess "buyer beware" is something to consider when dealing with an Amazon refurb.

This is universally good advice, and if you read down in the reviews of Amazon Apple refurbs you'll find plenty of other examples as to why. My inference is that since in many countries the Apple store will happily and painlessly buy your Mac back from you, most of these refurbs are coming from overseas trade-ins and big corporate buys where that's not an option.
posted by aspersioncast at 7:42 PM on October 9, 2020


FWIW there are no Apple stores in Qatar, only "premium resellers", which are locally owned franchises. The same is probably true foe anywhere else in the Middle East.
posted by Logophiliac at 10:45 PM on October 9, 2020


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