Regardless of whether you purchase it new, refurbished, or used, your
Mac is likely a sizable investment that you might wish to keep running
for as long as possible, not only because of the cost factor but also
because of the time and effort it would take to migrate your data and
workflow to a new system (even though Apple has made the latter quite
easy if you have proper backups).
There are many ways your
Mac
can get damaged, become outdated, or otherwise experience greater wear
and tear from use that can shorten its lifespan. In most cases these
will only have a little (if any) effect on the system but may help keep
the system running longer and without problems or capacity limitations.
The physical
The first part of your Mac is the physical machine, which includes
the logic boards and controllers, screen, keyboard, mouse, and other
similar components. While peripherals like the keyboard and mouse can be
replaced, it may be harder to do so for the components in the machine.
The machine itself
Of the considerations for ensuring a long-lasting Mac, the first begins
before you even purchase it where you are offered options to configure
your system. Apple offers a number of configure-to-order details
including RAM capacity, processor speeds and types, and hard-drive size.
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| Apple periodically updates its maximum RAM offerings. |
While for the most part these should be relatively comparable, the
faster you go and the more capacity you give the system the longer you
will be able to use it before you need to upgrade. For RAM
considerations I've usually recommended people get the minimal from
Apple and then upgrade at a later date to save money; however, for some
of Apple's systems such as the
MacBook Air and Retina
MacBook Pro this is not possible, so purchasing the ones with the most built-in RAM is recommended.
These
same recommendations extend to hard drives and processors, especially
for systems like the iMac that cannot be easily serviced (if at all in
some cases). If you are offered the option to get a Core i5 versus a
Core i7 processor for your system, then if you can afford it I would
recommend the upgrade (which sometimes comes with the benefit of a
faster graphics processor as well). Likewise, consider an SSD over
Apple's Fusion Drive, and a Fusion Drive over a conventional hard drive
for increased speed.
For hard drives, capacity is not so much an issue as you can always
use an external storage device if needed, but the speed of your internal
drive that holds your OS and applications is one of the biggest data
bottlenecks in the whole system so buying the fastest one will keep your
system running in top gear.
Power source care
Of the remaining details, perhaps one of the more common items to be
damaged is the system's power supply, which being subject to relatively
harsh and noisy wall power circuits can potentially break down over
time. In addition, the external power supply for laptops may experience a
greater degree of physical abuse that can eventually lead to a failure.
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| Apple's power adapters may be subject to wear with use, or be replaced with newer options. |
For power supplies, continued use is not too much of an issue,
but surges and sudden power failures may disrupt the system and result
in data corruption or broken components (hard drives or the power supply
itself), so be sure to help protect your system by either turning it
off when not in use, at least using a surge protected power strip, or
better yet use a Uninterrupable Power Supply (UPS).
For laptop
users, consider purchasing a second power supply for your system,
especially since as new technologies become available the older ones may
be phased out. For example, Apple recently released new Lightning
connectors for iOS devices and a new MagSafe connection for its laptops.
While the older MagSafe connections should be available for a while,
over time they will be harder to find.
In addition to the power supply for laptops, be sure to take proper care of its batteries.
For the health of the batteries, the best practice is to use them
regularly (often enough to run through a full charge cycle about once
per month) to help prevent dead spots that can reduce their overall
capacity. Additionally, do not use them in extreme temperatures, and if
you store system for a long period of time, be sure to charge the
battery until it is half-full before doing so.
Battery calibration is not a necessary step for its health; however, it can be done regularly as a way to ensure the battery is regularly used.
Avoid abuse
While it might be needless to say, avoiding physical abuse of the
systems is another easy way to increase the longevity of Apple's
systems. The aluminum Apple uses in its systems is durable and quite
protective, but is not indestructible. If you travel with your system
then consider using a case or cover that will help protect it, and also
consider using a properly padded bag even if you use a case.
In addition to transport security, consider a keyboard slip cover
for laptops to help protect the keys from wear. The keys on a MacBook
keyboard have a slightly matte finish to them out the factory door, but
over time with you pressing them the keys will become shiny as you wear
down the top surface. In some cases the wear can be great enough so the
symbol disappears making it difficult to type. One option instead of a
slip cover is to get a set of transparent stickers to place on the keys
that are showing any wear.
Lastly, be kind to the ports on your
Mac. When peripherals are attached, the ports can be subject to torquing
that in extreme conditions or over time may result in it no longer
working, not being able to hold the inserted connection firmly, becoming
mangled, or even being subject to shorting out and frying a component
of the motherboard. This is easily done by inserting the incorrect plug
into a port, so avoid fishing around blindly to insert a connection by
feel.
Be aware of your touch
I've often noticed people hammering on keys when typing, or mashing a
key or two in frustration, and while the keyboard ought to be able to
take such treatment, it can only lead to faster wear. If your system is
not working properly then clicking or tapping harder or faster will not
fix the situation, and will only increase the chance of damaging the
system. In some cases multiple presses during a frustrating hangup can
even confuse the system more and make the matter worse.
In
addition to using a gentle touch on the keyboard, avoid touching your
display, especially if you have one with a matte finish. Apple's glossy
glass displays are decently protected from touching, but matte displays
can easily be poked and damaged.
Ensuring you have clean hands
when using your system is another way to help increase its longevity.
Grime and oils on hands can help wear down the surface of keys or simply
contribute to dirt that gets into the keyboard and can potentially
block a key or two from working.
Clean your system
Dirt and grime on a system will not necessarily hurt it, but over time
it can become unsightly and may build up enough to cause a problem or
two, so be sure to gently wipe away any grime
in keyboards or around the edges of your display, but more importantly
be sure the ports and vents are clear of dust or obstructions. It is
very easy for dirt to get into these ports, and if you press a
connection into them then you only jam the dust in farther, so be sure
to check your data ports and clean them out.
For the vents on the
system, use canned air or a vacuum cleaner to remove any dust that you
see in them, as any reduction in the efficiency of these vents may lead
to a system that more easily overheats. For Mac Pro systems, you can
easily remove the cover and use canned air to blow around the fans and
heat sinks to clear any dust accumulation (do this outside, as billowing
clouds of dust can be irritating to live with).
Avoid hard shutoffs
Finally, unless your system is experiencing a crash or severe hangup,
then avoid holding the power key to shut it off or unplugging it as this
sudden interruption can be damaging to the system's logic boards and
components. If you are finding the system is regularly crashing then try
addressing this problem instead of resorting to always shutting your
system down by yanking the plug or pressing the power key. There are
numerous resources for helping find the source of hangs and crashes in
OS X, including Apple's retail stores and its online discussion forum.
The logical
Besides
taking care of your system's physical condition, consider lengthening
its usefulness by maintaining its capabilities, security, and stability.
Doing this not only involves the operating system and software that you
use, but also considers any components and upgrades that are available
for your system.
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Software Update is available in the Apple menu.
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Upgrade software
While it can be argued that the features and details in the latest
release of OS X may not suit your needs, at least be sure to update your
current OS installation to its latest version, as this will ensure the
best security and fixes to problems that people have been experiencing.
Updating a system can easily be done by going to the Apple menu and
choosing Software Update, where the system will check for and then
install new versions of operating system software or Apple's supplied
programs like iTunes, iPhoto, or iWork.
In addition to Apple's
software, be sure to update any third-party software you have installed
and keep those at their latest versions, not only to help maintain
security but also to ensure compatibility with OS X. Most programs offer
built-in updating features similar to Apple's software-update, and can
be configured to check for updates on launch or on a regular schedule,
so consider setting these up along with doing so for Apple's Software
Update to ensure you are running the latest versions of all of your
software.
Upgrade hardware
As you use your system and install new releases of OS X and upgrades to
your software, you may find that the new software demands more out of
your system and can result in a slower system. Therefore, as mentioned
above for new systems consider the faster upgrades at purchase, but for
older and used systems you can still consider similar upgrades to
breathe new life into it and get you up and running faster without
needing to purchase a new computer.
The two most common options are to upgrade your system's RAM capacity to give your processor and applications adequate "desk space"
in which to perform computations. While 8GB to 16GB of RAM should be
adequate these days for most uses, in general the more RAM the better so
get as much as you can afford. Just be sure to fully test your RAM once you have installed it to ensure it is working correctly, as bad RAM can be a major source of crashes and data corruption.
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Other World Computing's Data Doubler offers a convenient way to put two drives in an older MacBook system.
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Also consider a faster storage medium such as an SSD in place
of a conventional hard drive. For laptop systems you can replace older
and unused optical drives with a secondary internal drive, giving yourself the options for increased capacity, dual-drive redundancy, an internal backup, options for implementing Apple's "Fusion" drive, and more.
To give a rough estimate, an 8GB RAM upgrade, a 240GB SSD, and an optical drive conversion kit for an old 2008 MacBook Pro will cost about $300 to $400 and will at times more than double the speed of your old system.
Finally,
for Mac Pro systems you can upgrade the graphics card for increased
graphics performance. While the offerings for this are relatively
limited and a touch expensive, if needed the option to do so is out
there.
Take care of slowdowns and other problems
Over time and depending on how it's used a Mac can develop odd problems
or two that can lead to slowdowns, crashes, hangs, and other odd
behaviors that can be a real burden to deal with. Sometimes the issues
can be quite difficult to track down, but in general if you are
experiencing odd problems there are some approaches you can quickly take
to clear them up or at least help identify where the root of the
problem may be.
To do this, first try running a general maintenance routine
on your system to clear caches and other temporary items that if
corrupted may lead to odd problems. Additionally, you can run through a general troubleshooting routine
to help identify if the problem is systemwide, because of a third-party
program or two, or rooted in your user account, which can greatly help
if you need to communicate the problem to others for help.
Lastly, Apple's hardware test suite
should be available to most Mac systems and can be used to test the
system's RAM and internal sensors to see if a problem is occurring.
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Time Machine offers options to back up to more than one drive.
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Back up regularly
A final consideration for increasing your Mac's longevity is to make
continual backups. Your Mac's hardware is only half of the story, and
your Mac experience lies mainly in your documents, settings, installed
applications, and the entirety of your system's software environment.
With proper backups, should an irrecoverable problem happen to your
system then you can easily restore or migrate your data from the backup
to a new system and be up and running as if nothing ever happened (minus
the cash for a new system, of course).
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