Apple MacBook Pro Apple - MacBook Pro 13.3" Certified Refurbished - Review

For $320, this refurbished 2017 MacBook Pro is a solid deal for basic tasks. You get Apple's legendary build quality and a beautiful Retina display wrapped around very old internals. The 8GB of RAM is its biggest weakness. Only buy this if your computing needs are light and you really want a Mac on the cheap.

Let's be real, you're not looking at this 2017 MacBook Pro for its raw power. You're looking at it because it's a MacBook Pro for $320. That's the whole story. This is a certified refurbished model, which means Apple cleaned it up, tested it, and slapped a new battery in it. It's a 7-year-old design, but that design is still a classic: thin, light, and built like a little aluminum tank.

This laptop is for someone who needs a reliable, portable machine for basic tasks and wants to stay in the Apple ecosystem without spending a grand. Think students writing papers, someone managing their household budget, or a traveler who just needs a web browser and email. It's not for editing 4K video or playing games. It's for getting online, typing documents, and watching Netflix.

The interesting part is the value proposition. For $320, you get that famous MacBook build quality, a stunning Retina display that still holds up today, and macOS. The catch is you're getting 2015-era Intel internals. It's a time capsule of a laptop, but for the right person, that's perfectly fine.

Performance is exactly what you'd expect from a 5th Gen Intel Core i5 and 8GB of DDR3 RAM. In our database, the CPU lands in the 24th percentile. That means it's slower than about three-quarters of the laptops we track. For everyday stuff like web browsing, document editing, and video calls, it's adequate. You'll notice some lag if you have too many Chrome tabs open, but for focused work, it gets the job done. The integrated Intel HD 6000 graphics are in the 48th percentile, which is basically the definition of 'fine for everything except gaming.'

The real star here is the SSD. Apple's PCIe flash storage from this era was way ahead of its time. With sequential read speeds up to 3.2 GB/s, this thing will boot up and launch apps faster than many modern budget laptops with slower SATA drives. So, while the processor is showing its age, the storage system still feels snappy and responsive. Just don't expect to fill that 256GB drive with much.

The value argument is simple: this is a $320 MacBook Pro. You are trading modern performance for the Apple experience at a bargain price. Compared to a new $999 M1 MacBook Air, this is less than a third of the cost. You could buy three of these for the price of one entry-level new Mac.

Is it a good value? For a very specific user, absolutely. If your needs are basic and you prioritize build quality, screen quality, and macOS over speed, this is a unique deal. Just know you're paying for the shell and the OS more than the components inside. Compared to a $320 Windows laptop, you'd likely get a newer CPU and more RAM, but you wouldn't get this level of fit and finish.

The most direct competitor is a used or refurbished newer Intel MacBook Air, but those often cost more. In the Windows world, a new budget laptop like an Acer Aspire or Lenovo IdeaPad around $400 will smoke this MacBook in CPU performance and offer more RAM and storage. But they'll have plasticky builds and mediocre displays.

If you're looking at other refurbs, the trade-off is clear. This MacBook Pro offers superior build and screen at the expense of internals. A similarly priced refurbished business laptop, like a Lenovo ThinkPad, will give you a better keyboard, more ports, and often upgradable RAM, but a worse screen and heavier chassis. The ASUS Zenbook Duo is in a completely different league (and price bracket) with modern chips and a dual-screen design. This 2017 MacBook Pro exists in its own niche of 'affordable Apple.'

Skip this laptop if you need to do more than one thing at a time. The 8GB RAM ceiling is a hard stop for multitaskers, researchers, or anyone who lives in their browser. Also, avoid it if you need to use modern peripherals, as the lack of USB-C and Thunderbolt 3/4 will be a constant hassle.

You should also look elsewhere if you're a creative, even casually. Photo editing in Lightroom or basic video editing will be a slow, frustrating experience on this old Intel chip. And gamers, obviously, look at anything else—its gaming score is 7.2 out of 100. For these users, a used M1 MacBook Air (if you can stretch the budget) or a modern Windows laptop at a similar price would be a much better investment.

We can recommend this MacBook Pro, but only with very clear conditions. If you are a student on a tight budget, a secondary user in a household who just needs a web machine, or someone who wants a durable travel laptop for simple tasks, this is a compelling buy. The reliability score is high, and for basic use, it will feel perfectly fine.

However, if you plan to use this as your primary, do-all computer, you should save up for something newer. The 8GB of non-upgradable RAM is a deal-breaker for any sort of future-proofing or serious multitasking. Also, if you need to run the latest macOS versions with full security updates, you need to check Apple's support page, as this model may be nearing the end of its official OS support life.