UPGRADING A 2012 MACBOOK PRO 13" IN 2024!!! STILL A GOOD LAPTOP???

Ғылым және технология

In today's video, we will upgrade a 2012 MacBook Pro 13-inch with more memory and faster storage! The 2012 MacBook Pro is the last year for proper upgradability and we're going to be giving this laptop a second chance at life by taking advantage of that!
PARTS USED (Amazon Affiliated):
INLAND 512GB SSD: amzn.to/3TVY7qu
G.SKILL 16GB DDR3L MEMORY: amzn.to/4cvV7bn
THERMAL PASTE ARTIC MX-4: amzn.to/4abJ3uq
TOOLS I USE (Amazon Affiliated):
SMALL IFIXIT TOOL KIT: amzn.to/3TVfM1r
BIGGER IFIX IT TOOL KIT: amzn.to/3TAILWQ
IFIXIT PRYING TOOL KIT: amzn.to/43Lv24b
SUBSCRIBE: / @cynonexus
INSTAGRAM: / urielartvisuals
0:00 Introduction
1:00 More Memory and Faster Storage!
1:52 Dormant Battery
2:29 The Condition of the 2012 MacBook Pro is mint!
2:45 Disassembling the MacBook
6:55 Final Product
7:04 Installing Big Sur using OpenCore
7:31 Overview
9:35 Conclusion

Пікірлер: 111

  • @andylee7862
    @andylee78623 ай бұрын

    i really love the unibody MB Pro... whoever finds one MBP 2012 in good condition. Just go for it and max it out. It is a lot of fun and good to have. For typing any thesis or writing emails... its wonderful!!!

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Still a fantastic laptop even today!

  • @aliaulman

    @aliaulman

    2 ай бұрын

    I could agree with you. Bought mine 3 months ago in pretty mint condition and maxed it out just like everybody else's told and you're right! This machine is great for typing and doing some sort of light computing activity! I didn't install anything, 99% just doing things with Google chrome and it works flawlessly!

  • @mztahhan

    @mztahhan

    2 ай бұрын

    @@cynonexus you can install ventura

  • @Boodaa12345

    @Boodaa12345

    13 күн бұрын

    have one from 2012. Will newer sell it🥰

  • @masterofcosmos
    @masterofcosmos3 ай бұрын

    I owned a MB pro 2012 for like 6 years, and it was the best, still now, we get lot of those in our office for repair and updates, and it's one of the best products apple made. Fully upgradable, can run MacOS, Windows 10 as well as Ubuntu flawlessly. These things are gem.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    the ultimate legacy macbook model year for sure! hoping for it to last the next 5 years

  • @kevindougherty2936
    @kevindougherty29363 ай бұрын

    I daily a M1 Pro MBP, with a 34" ultra wide, but I find my self tinkering with my 2012 13" MBP to this day. Just within the last two weeks, I upgraded the wifi card (small wires have fun!!!) and now it even unlocks with my watch, and tossed its 2nd aftermarket battery in it. Before that maxed out RAM with an SSD, aftermarket fan too... then brought it up to date with OCLP and Sonoma. Such a fun and capable little 12 year old lap top. If you're handy and can follow the plethora of YT videos to upgrade it, you'll have a good time for sure. It's kind of a vintage lil rig that I could just bust out at a coffee shop and have other nerds stare at me haha. Cheers, great vid!!!

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    2012 are still fantastic! on the thicker side but they are bulletproof literally and figuratively lol. Unfortunately, I find it sluggish on Sonoma, but I'm sure there are so many use cases for it in 2024!

  • @bakokat6982
    @bakokat69823 ай бұрын

    I have exactly like it. I haven’t been able to let it go, it is a wonderful computer. I am watching this to see if I can up grade some things in this computer. Mine is still in perfect shape,it didn’t get a lot of us, as I also purchased a 27 inch Mac at the same time. Both are still working well. I hope I can learn how to fix it up. Thanks for showing. Mine has been cared for just like this Mac you are showing us.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Anything 2012 or later is very much usable in todays world! Solid state drive are really what prolonged the lifespan of these computers

  • @KrishnaDraws
    @KrishnaDraws3 ай бұрын

    I'm surprised the battery wasn't already swelling. Good video!

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Looks like the MacBook was kept in the right environment! Such a clean macbook despite being in storage!

  • @alberttremblay2737
    @alberttremblay2737Ай бұрын

    Late "11 MBP i7 16/256 ssd. replace the CD/DVD drive with 4Tb ssd got the Apple Superdrive external to work on the "11 MBP. its a pretty beast.

  • @WillWatchAnything
    @WillWatchAnything3 ай бұрын

    I have a 2012MBP that I did similar upgrades to and put on Windows 10 in a dual boot. Even though I use a different MacBook now I still keep this around. It’s still very usable for basic everyday tasks.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Agree! Still usable even today

  • @Kaiser_Playz
    @Kaiser_Playz2 ай бұрын

    Planning to do the exaact same thing soon.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    best time to do it, parts are cheaper than ever

  • @AllTimeTech12
    @AllTimeTech123 ай бұрын

    If you do live boot on popos usb you can use the mac without needing to destory internal storage trust me its fast

  • @songsan807
    @songsan8073 ай бұрын

    Good video. Would be interested to see some benchmarks before the upgrade and after. I am planning to go to a computer swapmeet later this month where they usually sell these older macs and might pick a few up to play around with. I know there are some of these unibody that have the NVME slots and they put faster NVMEs in there and save the HDD just for extra storage?

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    thank you! the MacBooks with nvmes are the retina models from late 2012 to 2015, this one is the older one that uses a 2.5" hard drive! They're very usable even today and will be for another 5 years for sure!

  • @namus404
    @namus4043 ай бұрын

    My MBP mid 2012 now has 16 gb memory, 1 Tb SSD + 500 Gb HDD and running on the latest Sonoma 14.4. + OCLP

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Nice! I find Sonoma to be a bit sluggish on the 13" 2012 so I figured Big Sur/ Monterey is a good middle ground!

  • @joao__gouveia

    @joao__gouveia

    3 ай бұрын

    same here... but on a 15'' macbook pro

  • @21jilu

    @21jilu

    Ай бұрын

    @@cynonexus How about Catalina version 10.15.7? Will you be able to suggest to best OS for this MB mid 2012 please? Thank you.

  • @Muxik4k

    @Muxik4k

    9 күн бұрын

    @@cynonexus Mine has Catalina, but lately i got many messages that are discontinuing software for this OS, which other OS is recommended to keep a fast computer.

  • @aliaulman
    @aliaulman2 ай бұрын

    Bought mine 3 months ago in pretty mint condition and maxed it out just like everybody else's told and they are right! This machine is great for typing and doing some sort of light computing activity! I didn't install anything, 99% just doing things with Google chrome and it works flawlessly!

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    Great to hear!

  • @dantoti657
    @dantoti6573 ай бұрын

    I have an old MacBook with a new battery that shows the Battery Service warning which happened after I used a 3rd party charger... Perhaps? Great Video!!

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    That happened to me when I bought a cheap after market battery, as long as the battery is still lasting you long hours, you should be fine! These are very easy to replace when the time comes.

  • @PatSmashYT
    @PatSmashYT3 ай бұрын

    I got the 2012 unibody and its almost the ultimate media machine. Its got a 1tb ssd so I can store days worth of movies and shows, kept the dvd drive intact so i could watch movies and theres plenty of ports, its also the oldest Mac that can airdrop. Only issues are that the sd card reader got borked and the battery life os about 3 hours

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    The cd drive is really a nice touch for retro purposes!

  • @m.silverberg
    @m.silverberg3 ай бұрын

    Did the same with a 2009 MacBook, but it’s also important to put new thermal paste in if you can, will run much cooler

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Always

  • @anthonyyoung9570
    @anthonyyoung957010 күн бұрын

    Damn I have the same exact MacBook, but got no idea how to do this :(

  • @saburotoshio
    @saburotoshio2 ай бұрын

    Did the same with my MacBook and still using it daily. I also installed Big Sur on it, and it runs pretty okay with an external monitor. Now I only need to replace the battery and repaste it

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    Batteries are readily available but just make sure to find a great one that will last you a good while

  • @saburotoshio

    @saburotoshio

    2 ай бұрын

    @@cynonexus I use my mac on my desk for most of the time. So battery isn't a big problem for me, but still going to replace it sometime.

  • @timfireblade
    @timfireblade2 ай бұрын

    Still using a 2012 Macmini as my desktop, works fine.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    Would love to get some kind of Mac mini or trashcan Mac pro for a home theater setup

  • @maladamedialabs4214
    @maladamedialabs42143 ай бұрын

    I've been resurrecting some 2011-2012 13" Macbook Pros. doing mostly what you've done. I installed High Sierra first then used Open Core Legacy patcher to upgrade to either Monterey or Sonoma. The 2012 could take Sonoma with a little tweaking but the 2011 works best on Monterey. Would have liked to see your removal of the motherboard - I didn't attempt that. Keep up the good work!

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Removing the logicboard is pretty simple! Just be careful of the microphone location! I've tried Sonoma on a couple of 2012 13" but always find they're on the slower side of things, most likely because of the HD 4000 but no worries, Ventura etc is still good! Thank you! I highly recommend replacing the thermal paste!

  • @redesignedlife777
    @redesignedlife7772 ай бұрын

    So glad i got rid of my 2012 mbp. Heat issues, it got really slow. 16 gig ram and 2 tb drive in it. I enjoyed being able to upgrade it but it was time to move on.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    It’s getting up there in age but a new MacBook is always a welcome change after years of service on the good ole’ 2012

  • @DJenerate

    @DJenerate

    18 сағат бұрын

    @@cynonexus The dual-core CPUs just don't cut it anymore in my experience. I recently upgraded from a 2015 13" MBP to a 2018, and the difference is pretty big.

  • @pacboy24
    @pacboy24Ай бұрын

    If replace the stock ssd with a new 1tb ssd, will it automatically install a new OS? or do i need a bootable usb with OS installation?

  • @izzzzzz6
    @izzzzzz63 ай бұрын

    I got one. Good but chunky. I just use the 2015 retina now with 16gb ram and 2.9ghz dual i5. I did want to try to experiment with 2x ssd running in the mode where they can write twice as fast between the 2 ssd's The problem is keeping os up to date. Eventually apps no longer update and eventually they stop working bit by bit. It's my backup dj machine. bit of a wrist breaker.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Unibody’s are chunky as heck but they’re definitely modular for sure! And I have the ssd caddy to switch up with the optical drive, looking forward to see how much performance it gives

  • @legitgrowthnigeria1471
    @legitgrowthnigeria14719 күн бұрын

    Is it worth to buy in 2024..if yes can it run Adobe packages and corel draw

  • @nicktw8688
    @nicktw86883 ай бұрын

    I like the nostalgia factor, and keeping it from the landfill.....but my ipad air M1 would run circles around this thing.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Honestly! Even back then with the iPhone 7, it was closing in the gap!

  • @sarfrazff2991
    @sarfrazff2991Ай бұрын

    Hey bro does macbook pro mid 2012 worth to buy in 2024 please suggest me

  • @Emrys1524
    @Emrys15247 күн бұрын

    Can you tell me i use these macbook now..but when it start up i always wait too many minutes...because the app i opened is slow to open...can you help me fix that

  • @EmulationPiracy
    @EmulationPiracy15 күн бұрын

    Love this machine but on every Mac it jumpscares me every single time I boot it

  • @kanmisanusi7382
    @kanmisanusi73822 ай бұрын

    I have a clean macbookpro mid 2012 just like this..i need yo do same will all these oarts in the video work for this too as id love to install a macos sierra on it.thanks

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    Yes all the parts link in the description will work!

  • @JohnXWayne
    @JohnXWayne3 ай бұрын

    The only thing I wish they did was give this a Retina display, would have gone from 9 out of 10 to 10/10

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    I know! Or even a matte version like the 15”

  • @rubenj2869
    @rubenj28693 ай бұрын

    I have this laptop and definitely will like to do this update. I have a question for you. Will I lose the documents and programs already installed? Thanks for your response.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    If you upgrade from the original harddrive to an ssd, yes if you don’t back everything up!

  • @taxineil1
    @taxineil12 ай бұрын

    I picked up one of these about a year ago in superb condition.I cleaned it out,installed SSD and 8Gb ram and updated via open core to Sonoma.I'm told that although you can fit 16 Gb ram it can only actually use 8 Gb,so can you check and see if its actually using it?If so I'll put more in this.Thanks

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    I upgraded this 2012 to 16 GB! The 2012 MacBooks are perfectly fine upgrading to 16 GB! in fact, 2010 onwards can run 16 GB of ram.

  • @monshicar
    @monshicar7 күн бұрын

    Is not there only upgrade upto 8gb of ram in early 2012 model

  • @Sonicup_
    @Sonicup_10 күн бұрын

    Does anyone here know if the Kingston A400 960gb SATA ssd is compatible with this macbook

  • @bramvandenbroeck5060
    @bramvandenbroeck50603 ай бұрын

    It's my main mac, because i don't need anything more then that! I have a gaming pc with good specs, and for the mac side of things, as long as this mac can talk to icloud, i am fine! I own a iPhone 14 pro, and this phone syncs perfectly fine to this mac, it has 1tb (to be able to comfortably take iPhone backups) and 16gb of ram. It does everything i need a mac to do, i don't game on it, i just use it to browse some social media, some youtube, play some dvd movies and import my cd collection, and transfer that to my phone, that's it! Everybody looks at me for using such an old mac, thinking i am nuts for using an unsupported mac, but no, it's not unsupported, apple doesn't support it anymore, but OpenCore is, Ventura is my poison of choice on my machine!

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    I just bought one for myself! Gonna see what I can do with it!

  • @bramvandenbroeck5060

    @bramvandenbroeck5060

    3 ай бұрын

    @@cynonexus Well, if you are a lil patient, it can do anything my mom cab do with her M1 Pro, which i had before i bought my 2012, crazy, i know! I had the 14 inch 1TB 16gb ram, my 2012 machine has the exact same amount of ram and storage and is a decade older :p why did i gave my M1 Pro to my mom? I couldn't run windows on it, i need my laptop to run windows for those apps unavailable on macos, and those M1 macbooks can't emulate x86, only arm, so it was useless to me. Let us know how well you do with a 2012! I am interested in other people's opinion for sure :)

  • @trylz999
    @trylz99922 күн бұрын

    i can poot ddr4 ?? ram

  • @masongittings4237
    @masongittings42372 ай бұрын

    i have this MBP and am thinking about upgrading the ram and changing from hard drive to SSD.. would you say its an easy job to do?

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    Very easy! Just make sure to use carbon copy cloner to clone your drive into the new one ☝️

  • @funflipgamer
    @funflipgamer3 ай бұрын

    Bro how u downloaded this big sur on this mid 2012 Mac book pro ???? please reply I need to download it my Mac book pro is on Mac os Catalina 10.15.7 please help

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Look up Open core legacy patcher! Allows you to download the latest macOS through a patch

  • @LemSportsinterviews
    @LemSportsinterviews3 ай бұрын

    what's the best way to source replacement batteries, and who makes the best new manufacture one? is it worth getting an OEM one? is it better to cheap out on a $25 one from amazon, or is the ifixit one worth the extra pennies? could you post your battery stats for me now that we're some time on? sorry for the school essay question i just want to make sure i get the right unit

  • @LemSportsinterviews

    @LemSportsinterviews

    3 ай бұрын

    also, while restoring mine, i used loads of pinesol and now it has that new car smell (:

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Microcenter offers great 3rd party batteries, but for the most parts kinda a mix bag regardless whether it’s expensive or not. The original will always be better :)

  • @Kaiser_Playz

    @Kaiser_Playz

    2 ай бұрын

    @@cynonexus Any place online or that is in Canada?

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    @@Kaiser_Playz not too familiar with tech store in canada, microcenter is mainly local in the states! ebay might be your best bet

  • @nman3345
    @nman33453 ай бұрын

    I prefer to disconnect the battery when doing RAM upgrades and even HDD upgrades. Better safe than sorry.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Always, I usually do it but i forgot I guess lol

  • @iMischaa
    @iMischaa3 ай бұрын

    How long does the battery lasts? like 4-5 hours? I have a MBP 2011 13' I5 but my battery has been used for 800 cycles I've been thinking about getting a new battery and change the speakers, do you think it's worth it?

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Parts are readily available, 100% do it! It’ll make it more usable again!

  • @JuanGuillermoSanchezPerez
    @JuanGuillermoSanchezPerez3 ай бұрын

    you are right apple use to make that good laptop. That laptop was in brilliant design and effective use. After got mine 4 years already. I upgrade to catalina and ge 16 RAM. But the OS is no longer supported by apple. Better to save for a M3 processor.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    You can still run Sonoma using open core legacy patcher! Lots of developers are supporting the old legacy machines still!

  • @ran6110
    @ran61103 ай бұрын

    Good video but you should have replaced the battery even with a lower cycle count. At it's age the chemistry of the battery has been degrading and will only get worse!

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    I agree, worst case, I can easily just grab a replacement at my nearby microcenter!

  • @AdiGoodBoi
    @AdiGoodBoi2 ай бұрын

    Im thinking of completely recleaning my macbook and putting 16gb ram and repasting the thermal paste to reuse it. Idk if i should put 16gb because i already upgraded it to 8gb and 240gb ssd.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    If you think 8gb is still good for you then I wouldn’t worry about upgrading! But ram on these machines are so cheap now it’s a no brainer to upgrade!

  • @AdiGoodBoi

    @AdiGoodBoi

    2 ай бұрын

    @cynonexus yeah I tried to open my laptop but the screw was stuck so I can't open it so no upgrade for me unless I take to some tech store

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    @@AdiGoodBoi you need a nice set of screw drivers like the ifixit I use here so you won’t strip the screws out, you can probably get a drill and drill the stripped screw out

  • @AdiGoodBoi

    @AdiGoodBoi

    2 ай бұрын

    @cynonexus thanks for the info, I was actually dumb and I didn't try to open with other screws but I finally got it open. It wasn't really dusty but I'll ask my friend to help me apply thermal paste and maybe I'll be able to play some games like valorant here 😅 thanks for the help tho

  • @tessalala272
    @tessalala272Ай бұрын

    I'm using my 2012 MacBook for university studies again but the internet browser doesn't allow me access to certain pages for my study units. App Store tells me I need at least a MacOS version of 12.3 or later to download certain apps. Can anyone tell me whether purchasing the products in this video from amazon will allow me to upgrade my apple version pleaaaase ?

  • @elgatopeludin194

    @elgatopeludin194

    Ай бұрын

    Yes of course!! i will recommend you MacOs Monterey using OpenCore for this model the last update right now is 12.7 wich is perfect for more software ccompatibility

  • @tessalala272

    @tessalala272

    Ай бұрын

    @@elgatopeludin194 aw thank you for replying. I currently have macOS Sierra version 10.12.6. MacBook Pro 13inch mid 2012. Do you know how I could get the recommended products in Australia ?

  • @kentabrahamsson
    @kentabrahamsson2 ай бұрын

    why not put the latest Sonoma on there? I run my MBP mid 2012 perfectly flawless on latest Sonoma with OCLP.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    I think 2012 dual cores are a bit sluggish on Sonoma in a good amount of scenarios, Big Sur is flawless performance still

  • @kentabrahamsson

    @kentabrahamsson

    2 ай бұрын

    ​@@cynonexusMaybe somrhing is not ok with your machine then, because it works really great on Sonoma. No sluggishness on my machine. Works similar as with Monterey. From my experience, there is no need to hold back if on 16 GB RAM and SSD.

  • @lavpec7052
    @lavpec70523 ай бұрын

    It’s incredibile that can we use an old MacBook as new!!!

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Yup! Even today and probably for another 5 years!

  • @mustasheolll2020

    @mustasheolll2020

    3 ай бұрын

    ⁠​⁠@@cynonexusHell, I wouldn’t be surprised if there was still some usefulness in it 10 years down the road

  • @mustasheolll2020
    @mustasheolll20203 ай бұрын

    Yeah I think ever since around Vista came out technology has aged a lot slower. 90s - Early 2000s is when technology aged rapidly and a computer from 1997 would be completely useless by 2003 or so. Nowadays you can still do quite a bit with a computer even from 2008 in 2024, granted not everything, but some things.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Agree 😂 i guess vista despite being one of the worst, it was a blessing in disguise for longevity

  • @mustasheolll2020

    @mustasheolll2020

    3 ай бұрын

    @@cynonexus Well I think it was the most dramatic shift in terms of system requirements, I think that may have something to do with it.

  • @dyu583
    @dyu5832 ай бұрын

    How is the temp?

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    New thermal paste helped the cpu temps by 5-8 degrees Celsius, these MacBooks have very inadequate thermal cooling so regardless every bit helps

  • @hartlytartly
    @hartlytartly3 ай бұрын

    Not repasting that machine is a crime.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Umm yes I did lol 6:20

  • @DavidChavez-tk7ny
    @DavidChavez-tk7ny2 ай бұрын

    This laptop support Sonoma whit open core.

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    2 ай бұрын

    Yup but it’s on the slower side so Monterey or Ventura would be the best options!

  • @cliftonbrown8434
    @cliftonbrown84343 ай бұрын

    Great video.But why Big Sur?

  • @cynonexus

    @cynonexus

    3 ай бұрын

    Honestly it was the only OCLP copy I have, Ventura would've been perfect but Sonoma is too much for the 2012 13" unfortunately

Келесі