Need an Internal Hard Drive.

AKAY1431 wrote:

Can someone help me with a reputable place to purchase an Internal Hard Drive for my MBP 15 in. Mid 2012?

OWC/MacSales— see OWC Mercury Electra 6G

https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/owc/macbook-pro/2012?srsltid=AYCX9vKd-HczYHnuXN_hnzak-J06w1GB7nVD0C8Fpj8PR0f7hjk09-Bt

these are getting harder to find...

AKAY1431 wrote:

Can someone help me with a reputable place to purchase an Internal Hard Drive for my MBP 15 in. Mid 2012?

I agree that you will have a much better experience with a new computer. However, the old one are still great computers. I replaced the internal hard drive on every computer of that vintage that I ever owned.

However, you didn't fully identify your computer. There's a big difference between the retina and non-retina versions. The closest I can get is this site: https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/owc/macbook-pro

From there, pick the computer you have to see the internal upgrade options.

If you do have the older, non-retina computer, then you have many more options. Pretty much any 2.5" SATA SSD will work. But if you have the retina computer, I recommend sticking to the macsales website.

There are TWO 15-inch Mid 2012 MacBook Pros. The non-Retina uses the drive that Leroy linked for you.

The other is a Retina model that uses a blade-type NVME SSD like this:

https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/owc/macbook-pro-retina-display/2013-2014-2015

The non-Retina model is A1286; the Retina is A1398. Look on the case bottom for fine print that usually shows the "A" numbers.

Are you looking to increase storage or to replace a failing/failed original drive??

Sorry I can not help you find a hard drive for your Mac.

My advice, FWIW, is to not spend any money or time trying to repair an obsolete/vintage computer that will never get security or operating system updates. Spend your time and money getting a new computer.

re: 15" mid-2012 MBP

I will add it is often recommend for the mid 2012 to replace the SATA cable at the same time when upgrading the SSD for a nominal expense to side step any potential wear issue.

SATA replacement 15" MBP mid-2012

https://eshop.macsales.com/item/Apple/9230084#15_inch

if no longer available then forget about it, and test you new drive, maybe it is not an issue for your machine...

Internal SATA cables are actually not cables but flexible circuit boards, usually mylar, with printed circuit traces taking the place of wires. This type of cable can experience cracks in traces due to aging, heat, vibration,  impact or  abrasion. They can be damaged quite easily if the unit is mishandled during assembly or re-assembly.

*The 13" mid -2012 was noted to have more issues with the mylar SATA cable and abrasion within the machine.

I'm having trouble understanding why posters are recommending spending time and money repairing an obsolete computer that will never receive security or other updates. I have a vacuum tube radio that is not working. Is it recommended that I spend time and money repairing this radio or should I get a new radio? I have an 8-track player that is not working. Should I spend money getting it repaired? And my beta-max is having issues. Should I get it repaired?

Technology changes over time. A 2012 computer is obsolete and will never work to today's standards. Data stored on a 2012 computer will never be secure because the computer will never get security updates including updated apps.

My recommendation to get a new computer remains. At least that would be my approach to your issue.

BobTheFisherman wrote:

Technology changes over time.

True, but to what useful purpose? I do the same things on my M2 today that I did on the first Macbook I bought almost 20 years ago. Browsing, email, watch DVDs, bit of video conversion, listen to music, run a few spreadsheets. None of the technology changes that forced me to buy three of four new Macs since then have made any of those things better by the thousands of pounds I've spent in buying and binning Macs. If my 2008 Macbook were still functioning today then it would do everything I need but I've been forced to spend the thick end of £10k for no good reason that I can think of.

Zurarczurx wrote:

If my 2008 Macbook were still functioning today then it would do everything I need but I've been forced to spend the thick end of £10k for no good reason that I can think of.

Sounds as if some of that money was used to replace a non-working computer.

Sounds as if some of that money was used to replace a non-working computer.

Nope - they all worked perfectly but stopped receiving security updates. I've kept one that I use to run backups between NAS's but the rest got a cold chisel through the HD and went in the bin.

" If my 2008 Macbook were still functioning today..." certainly made it sound as it it was not longer functioning (points for proper use of the subjunctive, by the way).

But then it's not at all clear why you felt the need to keep buying computers. Part of me suspects it's so you have something to complain about. ;-)

Computer and internet technology continues to change rapidly. it's not always just hardware that goes obsolete.

In June 2015, Researchers at standards organizations formally declared that Secure Socket Layer (then SSL 3) Internet Encryption was not nearly as secure as was thought, and needed to be replaced. SSL Versions 1 and 2 had already been deprecated by that time.

Early versions of Transport Layer Security (TLS) were already available in many Browsers. Over a remarkably brief period of time, sites tightened requirements for what was acceptable for encryption, and refused connections from browsers that could only offer SSL 3.

Apple issued Safari version 9 in 10.11 El Capitan version of MacOS, which included an early version of TLS encryption. Safari 9 was later provided by Security Update into the two previous versions of MacOS. 10.10 Yosemite and 10.9 Mavericks, PROVIDED you applied all available software updates.

MacOS versions older than those can not make secure [httpS:] connections on the Internet, because by 2016 standards, your proffered encryption (SSL) is considered inadequate.

BobTheFisherman wrote:

I'm having trouble understanding why posters are recommending spending time and money repairing an obsolete computer that will never receive security or other updates ...

A 2012 computer is obsolete and will never work to today's standards. Data stored on a 2012 computer will never be secure because the computer will never get security updates including updated apps.

There are genuine use cases where that doesn't matter.

For example, I have a couple of old Macs that I keep around and they are never connected to the internet. On purpose. I capped them on Snow Leopard to continue using the original Final Cut Pro, associated plugins & apps that are no longer available or supported. They are useful to me and I cannot replicate some of the functionality with current stuff. If those Macs develop a problem I might spend some time & money trying to fix them. That's just one use case.

I also have a turntable, a couple of cassette decks and a VCR, which are even more useful to me. And, yes, I have spent money to keep them in good repair so they continue to work and I can enjoy my collection of LPs, cassettes and videotapes.

MartinR wrote:

There are genuine use cases where that doesn't matter.

Absolutely. But the OP did not say anything about a special use case. I have several old photo albums but if someone came here asking how to best store images I would not advise them to print the images and store them in physical photo albums.

I am looking to replace the HD on my MBP 15. It went out on me and all I get is a small window that says Mac cannot find hard drive.

Thanks for the advice. Makes sense.

Edit: deleted.

I decided to scratch and trash this MBP.

AKAY1431 wrote:

I decided to scratch and trash this MBP.

Please recycle it responsibly.