MacBook Air's and Pro's Upgrade SSD's

DesignTech

DesignTech

New Member
Reaction score
1
Location
Bournemouth & Lowestoft UK
Hi
I'm looking at new SSD drives to replace low capacity SSD's in existing macbooks and wondered if anyone had a 'go-to' brand and model to use in apple macbooks?

It seems there is only one brand that fits directly, which is OWC, but they are very expensive, otherwise we need an adapter (PCI-E NVME M.2 SSD Adapter Converter Card M-Key for Apple MAC Air PRO 2013-2017)[http://www.pc-adapter.net/product/862.html]
but then the problem becomes which SSD to go for as trying to find out the coolest runners isn't easy - any ideas at all? Apparently samsungs run pretty hot and when i looked into sabrent rockets but then found many users experiencing problems 12 months further on

it would be helpful to hear anyone who uses a reliable cooler SSD in macbook upgrades approx 2013 - 2017 models seem most popular for enquiries

thank you
 
Don't bother. Apple is dumping support for all their Intel based Macs ASAP just like they did when they moved away from the PPC architecture. Nothing with an upgradeable SSD can support the most recent version of Mac OS and since Apple only supports their OS for like 1-2 years, those computers are completely obsolete.

Combine this with the terrible keyboards they had between 2016-2018 and basically all Macs are either obsolete or trash except for the M1 series or newer. The M1 Macs are as repairable as a disposable paper bag and are iCloud locked so they're basically smartphones now. Apple repair is 100% dead. Since modern versions of Mac OS automatically update, you won't even get people in that have an older version of Mac OS that need an upgrade because Safari no longer renders websites properly.

In other words, you won't get any software or hardware repairs that are viable. Apple has successfully killed off repair while ironically offering repair parts that cost more than the whole computer is worth in order to trick the senile old farts in Congress into thinking that they're complying with right to repair laws.

What's even worse is Apple computers are more popular than ever. The stupidity of the average person never ceases to amaze me.
 
How much longer will Louis Rossman's business be able to repair anything or do data recovery on any of these apple products moving forward? He's been the main advocate out there for Apple's terrible repairability issues. At the same time he points out many other industries too with the same issues. I like to keep up with his work out there in this field. Pretty grim future it looks like.
 
sapphirescales said:
Don't bother. Apple is dumping support for all their Intel based Macs ASAP just like they did when they moved away from the PPC architecture. Nothing with an upgradeable SSD can support the most recent version of Mac OS and since Apple only supports their OS for like 1-2 years, those computers are completely obsolete.

Combine this with the terrible keyboards they had between 2016-2018 and basically all Macs are either obsolete or trash except for the M1 series or newer. The M1 Macs are as repairable as a disposable paper bag and are iCloud locked so they're basically smartphones now. Apple repair is 100% dead. Since modern versions of Mac OS automatically update, you won't even get people in that have an older version of Mac OS that need an upgrade because Safari no longer renders websites properly.

In other words, you won't get any software or hardware repairs that are viable. Apple has successfully killed off repair while ironically offering repair parts that cost more than the whole computer is worth in order to trick the senile old farts in Congress into thinking that they're complying with right to repair laws.

What's even worse is Apple computers are more popular than ever. The stupidity of the average person never ceases to amaze me.
Click to expand...

What never ceases to amaze me is your hatred to a brand and how much wrong information is in your rant….
 
M1 series stuff - basically a non-starter on repair. Buy another one. Intel Macs.. not enough life left to worry about in most cases.
 
sapphirescales said:
Nothing with an upgradeable SSD can support the most recent version of Mac OS and since Apple only supports their OS for like 1-2 years, those computers are completely obsolete.
Click to expand...
If you insist on sticking with macOS then that's probably true but if you want a nice Linux machine then a few-years-old Intel MacBook is difficult to beat, especially if you have a Windows VM for those hard-to-replace legacy apps.

Written on my 2014 MacBook Air running Mint 21.1 - my daily driver for the past year, and possibly my best (or at least most appropriate) computer ever.
 
overburnz said:
how much wrong information is in your rant
Click to expand...
You're the one who's ignorant. I work on Macs almost every day. Everything I said is 100% accurate. The newest MacBook to have a removable SSD is the MacBook Air 2017. The newest version of Mac OS that the 2017 MacBook Air supports is Mac OS Monterey, which will be losing support in as little as a few months. Old versions of Mac OS no longer get security updates nor updates to the Safari browser. They also don't support the latest software made by Apple like Pages so if you want to download a typing program for your Mac and you're on an older version of Mac OS, you're stuck paying for Microsoft Office or going with third party software. Sometimes Apple allows you to download an old version of their software through the app store, but for reasons I don't understand, they only allow this some of the time. Even if they do allow this, you're still stuck with an outdated version that won't get security updates.

If you want to go with a newer MacBook like one of the Pro's from 2016-2018, be prepared to have a keyboard with failing keys. It was either in 2018 or 2019 that Apple put a membrane on the keyboard that supposedly prevents debris from getting in it and causing it to fail, but that didn't solve the problem, hence why Apple went back to a traditional keyboard design on their newer MacBooks.

And yes, MacBooks are 100% disposable now. Want to replace a keyboard? Too bad. You have to replace the entire upper part of the computer. Then if you want your function keys to work or Touch ID (if it has it) you have to have a proprietary tool from Apple to pair the new keyboard to the logic board. Want to replace a screen? Too bad. You have to replace the entire screen assembly. Want to upgrade/replace your RAM/SSD? Too bad. They're soldered onto the logic board requiring a complete logic board replacement. Even the most minor repair costs $500+ not including ANY labor. Of course if you're fixing an old obsolete Mac like a 2017 MacBook Air things are more affordable but you shouldn't be fixing an obsolete computer like that anyway.

overburnz said:
your hatred to a brand
Click to expand...
Anyone who doesn't hate Apple is either ignorant or an Apple sheep, in which case there's no hope for them. Apple is a religious cult and as anyone who has encountered a religious person can attest to, providing them with facts won't snap them out of their delusions.

Computer Bloke said:
if you want a nice Linux machine then a few-years-old Intel MacBook is difficult to beat
Click to expand...
Linux has like 1% market share. So few people do what you're describing that you might as well be telling me that I should buy a Mac just to put it on a shelf as a display piece. Probably more people do that then install Linux on a Mac.
 
Apple serves high end customers and charges what most consider to be outrageous prices for service. Sound familiar? :p
 
timeshifter said:
Apple serves high end customers and charges what most consider to be outrageous prices for service. Sound familiar? :p
Click to expand...
I wouldn't have a problem with that if they didn't intentionally design their products to be 100% disposable. Even the most minor problem costs $100 less than just buying a new one because Apple doesn't want people to repair anything. Imagine defending a car company who permanently attached the tires to your car and the only way to replace them is to take out the engine and everything else from the chasis and rebuild it from scratch and the new chasis cost $1,000 less than just buying a new $100,000 car. That's Apple.

@GTP They can't. Some members here have an irrational hatred of me because I don't run my business the way most techs do. If there's anything wrong in my post I'd love to hear it because as far as I know everything I said is correct.
 
sapphirescales said:
I wouldn't have a problem with that if they didn't intentionally design their products to be 100% disposable.
Click to expand...
Maybe being disposable is the result of their design, but not the intention? From where I sit I'd argue that their intention is to make the products thin, light, reliable, fast, sleek, sexy. An unfortunate side effect is that the products aren't easily repairable. One could also argue that making things more integrated increases reliability in the aggregate.

sapphirescales said:
If there's anything wrong in my post I'd love to hear it because as far as I know everything I said is correct.
Click to expand...
I generally trust what you say about much of that as you seem to be heavily involved with the products on a daily basis. I trust but verify. One thing you said doesn't ring true...

sapphirescales said:
The newest MacBook to have a removable SSD is the MacBook Air 2017. The newest version of Mac OS that the 2017 MacBook Air supports is Mac OS Monterey, which will be losing support in as little as a few months.
Click to expand...
It's true that that machine will not run anything newer than Monterey.

macOS Monterey is compatible with these computers - Apple Support

You can install macOS Monterey on any of these Mac models.
support.apple.com support.apple.com

But, Monterey will continue to get updates from Apple until about October 2024, 21 months or almost two years from now, not "in as little as a few months". At that point the machine is 7 years old. Not great I agree, but 7 years is pretty old.
endoflife.date

Apple macOS

Check end-of-life, release policy and support schedule for Apple macOS.
endoflife.date endoflife.date
 
The way I look at it this is just a continuation of Moore's Law. It's always cheaper to produce something with fewer parts. Fewer parts means less things to replace. Also means lower prices. Historically, when it comes to printers, the cut off was around $400 or so. I can remember ordering parts for some HP ink jets in that price range like some in the 8xx and 9xx series. OEM's can justify the expense of maintaining a spares inventory. Can't do that for a $100 printer. So the same applies to computers. And there is certainly that segment that wants small sleek looking as well.
 
The problem could easily be solved with a simple option in the MacOS to reset the system and remove it from your iCloud account. Too many people though want to commit quasi-piracy by deleting all the personal data on a device but leaving all the software installed on it and handing it off to someone else either giving it away or selling it. The new "owner" then has some issues later and is forced to nuke and pave and then gets bit.
 
Computer Bloke said:
Just one data point here, but I really don't think that's true.

Though there are a few of us who wonder whether your cattle match your hat.
Click to expand...
Pretty much. At best he exaggerates his prices, his number of staff, and the size of his store(s). At worse, he is a serial liar.

However, I pretty much agree with his assessment of Apple's product lines. While all computer manufacturers, if not the manufacturers of anything, engage in planned obsolescence, Apple is clearly the worst offender at least in the PC realm. He is right with the return of Apple-made CPUs they are again drawing a hard line in the sand and casting off support for anything Intel. They did it before with PPC though this time Apple has more direct control of the process then they did in the PPC era.
 
sapphirescales said:
Bull. Complete bull.

@britechguy People are finally starting to talk about these problems:

Click to expand...
So the number 1 priority in the design goals in the Apple boardrooms is making products disposable? Didn't realize you had access to their meetings.

That stack of laptops is making the rounds online. First, I question the legitimacy of that photo. Maybe there is one that is locked, who knows. People lie online. But, even if it's legit, I'd bet money they're all stolen.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

D
New style MacBook Pro SSD's - which adapter to buy?
Replies
5
Views
1K
wolfson
wolfson
Back
Top