Upgrading a 2012 Macbook Pro A1286 RAM, SSD - worthwhile?

I have to commend your resourcefulness. But I think the 2012 Macbook Pro is not a good candidate for refurbishing.

• It can go to Catalina, 10.15.7, not the best of the recent MacOS, but certainly better than High Sierra in many respects. However a HDD will perform poorly, especially because it will be changed to APFS. Modern computing assumes SSD speeds nowadays, but the APFS on an HDD will be very poor, probably unbearable.
• So you are looking at (prices from OWC Macsales):
• 2 TB SSD $250
• Battery $90
• Memory $50 (for 16 GB, assuming you have a non-Retina Macbook Pro -- retina ones are not upgradable as the memory was soldered on). But note that Apple says 8 GB is the max, although some claim 16 GB can work.

So this comes to $400 minimum plus maybe another $150 if you have an Apple Authorized Service Provide do the work. It sounds like you would do this work yourself. But even at $400, that's 33% of the cost of a new M2 Macbook Pro laptop. Which would like be 10x faster and can run all modern software, MacOS, with latest security.

I have a 2013 Macbook Air running Big Sur and it is fast but it has a 1 TB internal SSD. So I'm not opposed to squeezing all the mileage you can out of an obsolete Mac. I do it too. I also have a 2010 Macbook Air that is pretty decent as well. But these computers will not last much longer, I do not expect.

D_Loo wrote:

My A1286 (MD104LL/A) Macbook Pro 15" purchased in mid 2012

Apple used the model number A1286 for a number of 15" MacBook Pros spanning release dates from Late 2008 to Mid 2012. If "mid 2012" is an approximate purchase date, you may want to check About This Mac in the Apple () menu to see if this is

• The Late 2011 model – sold until June 2012, which can only upgrade as far as High Sierra, or
• The Mid 2012 model – introduced in June 2012, which can only upgrade as far as Catalina

It's currently on High Sierra 10.13.6.

I don't mind keeping on this OS but wondering if I can take it any higher.

If it's the mid-2012 model, you can upgrade macOS to Mojave or Catalina. Catalina is too old to get Apple security updates, or to run current applications from the likes of Microsoft and Adobe.

Other things to know about Catalina:

• Catalina won't run 32-bit applications
• Catalina will run the current versions of Firefox, LibreOffice, and the commercial Affinity Photo V2
• In Catalina, iTunes went away, replaced by separate applications: What happened to iTunes? - Apple Support

How to download and install macOS - Apple Support

Has anyone ever physically done this type of upgrade in hardware and been able to upgrade the software a bit as well?

Yes, but the time to do it would have been ten years ago. That Mac is nearing the end of its useful life, if it's not there already.

If money is no factor, then yes a SSD would improve its performance markedly. However, if money is no factor, you'd be buying a newer Mac.

Don't bother adding more RAM unless Activity Monitor justifies it: Check if your Mac needs more RAM in Activity Monitor - Apple Support. If its "Memory Pressure" graph is frequently "red" your Mac would benefit from additional memory. If not, it won't, and you would literally be throwing money away.

Memory is a complete waste of money for a computer this old. If memory was a problem, then you would have upgraded the memory years ago. Plus Macs are very picky about the memory they use so definitely do not buy RAM from Amazon since there are a lot of fake & scam products on Amazon (you cannot trust the ratings or reviews either). @John Galt has been providing you with very good advice.

The biggest performance boot can be obtained by upgrading the internal hard drive to an SSD. The best choice for an SSD is the Crucial MX500 series SSD as it is the best compromise on price & performance, but avoid the Crucial BX500 series since they are absolute junk and may even be slower than your current hard drive.

Plus if you do decide to upgrade to an SSD, then you may also need to replace the internal hard drive SATA Cable if you encounter problems. I would avoid the Samsung SSDs, especially the EVO series since I have seen a lot of people report compatibility issues on some Macs, plus the Samsung SSDs are usually much more expensive. The Crucial MX500 series SSD I mentioned is probably the best option.

Also, why get a 2TB SSD when you have been happily using a 750GB size drive? Are you really going to be storing that much extra data on it?

Even macOS 10.15.x is really old now. Most third party app developers will only support the last three versions of macOS these days (currently Sonoma, Ventura, Monterey). This includes most of the popular web browsers. It won't be long before the third party browsers will no longer be able to access the Internet.

Depending on how you want to utilize this laptop, it is possible to install Linux Mint on it instead which would give you an up to date, non-Apple OS capable of using most of the popular web browsers. You won't be able to run any of the other popular third party software so you would need to find a third party alternative to work for any other things you want to do with this laptop. There is a lot of free & open source software available in the Linux Mint software repositories. Linux works well with just 4GB of RAM installed as long as you are not doing anything too memory intensive. You can easily have dozens of windows & tabs open in a web browser.

Linux does require you to learn a new OS, but it is a great way to extend the useful life of older computers. However, Linux is not for everyone. You can take Linux Mint for a test drive by selecting "Live" mode from the Linux Mint installer. Linux Mint will run extremely slow this way, but at least you will be able to see what it is like with the default installed apps.

Just make sure to create a bootable macOS 10.15.7 USB installer before doing anything else so you can easily install macOS if you change your mind about Linux Mint.

I also like to keep older computers running for as long as possible. In fact I have several of them from about 2006/2007 with the old Intel Core 2 Duo CPUs which are able to allow me to do basics tasks with just 4GB or RAM.....mostly surfing the Internet and I tend to keep a lot of tabs/windows open. I would never invest any more money into them other than an SSD which I could later remove and use for external storage. Memory is a complete waste since memory will only work in that particular computer. Only you can decide what to do.

FYI, newer Retina model Macs do not run very well without a battery connected. It is only the older non-Retina models that could run just fine without a battery connected...although it may trigger the fans to run at high speed since the battery temperature sensor would not be communicating.

To me, 11 years old is well past time to update Macs.

Your current Mac will never be able to run the current MacOS (Ventura...soon Sonoma) no matter what updates you're able to do with it.

I would not be "investing" in any upgrades on your current Mac.

Hi d_loo you’re getting some strangely bad advice here looking at the comments I’ve read so far. Your Mac is absolutely useful to have if only as a backup machine or one you use as a secondary machine in a den/study. If cost is the issue then don’t necessarily go by the prices you’ve been quoted which seem a little high.

Watch several videos on replacing ram and replacing cd drive with a hard drive bay that will fit there. Pay attention to the parts used in the videos and then purchase the tools/parts you need at a micro center or AliExpress. Wait for sales on drives at micro center. Buy ram and put it in. You will have a perfectly usable backup computer that can still do all the things you need for less than cost of AppleCare for a new one you won’t ever be able to fix or upgrade yourself.

Removing the ability to change hard drives yourself in a computer, and saying it’s for the best, is the greatest trick the devil ever pulled.

FWIW, I would not spend any money on an obsolete/vintage computer that can't run current operating systems or apps.

But an the Intel Core i7 handle it?

Nothing is stopping you from upgrading that Mac to Catalina right now. Cost is free.

Some Amazon RAM is going for $35 and a Samsung SSD from Best Buy would be $170 for 2TB.

Both of those choices would be a waste of money, even before determining if you really need RAM or it would be throwing money away.

Generic RAM won't work and Samsung SSDs do not enjoy a good reputation among Mac users. Best Buy does not enjoy a good reputation among anybody.

If you're going to do it right, do it right. Or don't do it at all.

The Apple-Silicon Macs are far more capable than the one you have in hand. so much so that you can easily consider going DOWN a step (MacBook Pro to MacBook Air) and Gaining speed and capabilities.

**except if you edit videos daily. But somehow I don't thing you are doing that on your 2012 MacBook Pro with 8K Ram and a rotating magnetic drive.

Several experienced contributors have provided you feedback. Whether to spend your money on an old computer is now your choice.