Question Used laptop in 2019: Macbook vs Windows

[Anguser]

Hi,
I want to buy a laptop as my secondary PC. My budget is around 25k-30k INR. After spending some time in research, surely choosing a right Laptop is not as easy as picking parts for desktop. So, I could use some help.
My requirement for this as my secondary PC are: small/lightweight, decent batterylife and performance. Also I wanted to try MacOS, so I was considering of buying Macbook Air.
1: Found some deals on OLX for 2015 Macbook Air. But as I am not very good at laptops and have not much knowledge of Macs, I am worried how long it will be supported.
2: Also I would like to know what good alternatives from Windows side I should look for to buy second hand? And if I'm going for Windows, are there any brand new ones fulfilling my above requirements?

 

[velocityg4]

1. With Macs it is hard to tell. Right now support is for 2012 and onward (2010 for Mac Pro with GPU upgrade). I'd guess another three years based on jumps Apple does in requirements. Although whichever the last OS is will still get some security patches and apps will continue to support it for several years. Make sure it has at least 8GB RAM. Recent OS X versions are not usable on 4GB RAM for anything beyond basic tasks.

2. I couldn't help with the used market in your country. I'd stick with 7th or 8th Gen i3/i5 (u series), 8GB or more RAM (ignore Optane), 13" to 14", 1920x1080 display, 120GB+ SSD (no HDD) and 40+Whr battery (with u series CPU). That should get you one to fit your requirements. If possible find one with good reviews on a site like laptopmag.com.

I did find this new HP 14-CF0014DX on Amazon India. Which fits in your budget. It is light and based on customer reviews has excellent battery life. Don't be thrown off by the weight listed on Amazon that must be shipping weight. The actual weight is 3.15Lbs (1.4Kg). It meets all my above criteria except the screen. Which is only 1366x168. It's usable but 1920x1080 is more popular due to increased detail.

 

[Anguser]

1. With Macs it is hard to tell. Right now support is for 2012 and onward (2010 for Mac Pro with GPU upgrade). I'd guess another three years based on jumps Apple does in requirements. Although whichever the last OS is will still get some security patches and apps will continue to support it for several years. Make sure it has at least 8GB RAM. Recent OS X versions are not usable on 4GB RAM for anything beyond basic tasks.

2. I couldn't help with the used market in your country. I'd stick with 7th or 8th Gen i3/i5 (u series), 8GB or more RAM (ignore Optane), 13" to 14", 1920x1080 display, 120GB+ SSD (no HDD) and 40+Whr battery (with u series CPU). That should get you one to fit your requirements. If possible find one with good reviews on a site like laptopmag.com.

I did find this new HP 14-CF0014DX on Amazon India. Which fits in your budget. It is light and based on customer reviews has excellent battery life. Don't be thrown off by the weight listed on Amazon that must be shipping weight. The actual weight is 3.15Lbs (1.4Kg). It meets all my above criteria except the screen. Which is only 1366x168. It's usable but 1920x1080 is more popular due to increased detail.

Thanks for the reply!
Just to clarify, in 2nd sentence u meant, the 2015 Macbook Air I mentioned, will be supported for next 3 yrs right?
Well, that would be fine for me.
The criterias u mentioned would go 1.5x-2x my budget for new product in India 😅😜. Thanks for the tips though.

 

[velocityg4]

Thanks for the reply!
Just to clarify, in 2nd sentence u meant, the 2015 Macbook Air I mentioned, will be supported for next 3 yrs right?
Well, that would be fine for me.
The criterias u mentioned would go 1.5x-2x my budget for new product in India 😅😜. Thanks for the tips though.

Yes I think the 2015 will have at least three years of support. Given Apples previous time tables. Apple considers a Mac obsolete after seven years. After that future OS support becomes questionable.