Looking to buy a 15" MacBook Pro

I bought a great used 13" Mac Book that has been refurbished. I believe (Scott) the guy I bought mine from is certified to repair Mac computers. I know Scott wouldn't mind me posting his phone number 1-(312)-860-0909. I can't remember his e-mail or any of his other contact information. He will welcome your call and questions. I'm sure he's got a few computers (mac) for sale too. I know when I bought mine, he gave me a guarantee. I don't have an answer for you, only a friendly suggestion for you to get the info, or the computer you want. Hope it helps..

Like you, I did not want a retina model, for many of the reasons you cite. I did a vast amount of research on the very same question. Based on that research, I recently bought a mid-2012 15" Macbook Pro, Quad Core. I can tell you for a fact that it can be upgraded, because I did so. First, I upgraded the RAM to 16 GB, then I upgraded the memory to 1 TB. I bought it used by in "A" condition from iMacket, LLC. Shipping was free. They will do a lot of the customization for you, if that's what you want, and they do not charge for labor. I've been very, very pleased with my new machine.

Hope this helps!

Sara

Don’t buy from iMacket, zero customer service. Won’t refund or replace faulty products. Google them. There is even a Facebook account calling them Scam artists.