Apple Officially Obsoletes First MacBook Pro With a Retina Display

As expected, Apple's first MacBook Pro with a Retina display is now officially classed as "obsolete" worldwide, just over eight years after its release.

2012 macbook pro retina
In a support document, Apple notes that obsolete products are no longer eligible for hardware service, with "no exceptions." This means that any mid-2012 Retina MacBook Pro 15-inch models still out there that require a battery or other repairs will no longer be accepted by Apple.

The only alternatives are to follow one of iFixit's many do-it-yourself repair guides, or to make enquiries at an independent repair shop, although many do not use official Apple parts.

When the MacBook Pro with Retina display was revealed at WWDC 2012, Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller called it "a breakthrough in display engineering" and claimed there had "never been a notebook this gorgeous."


Apart from being the first MacBook Pro to boast a Retina display, the 2012 model had a much slimmer design than previous models. This was made possible by Apple removing the built-in Ethernet port and optical disc drive for CDs/DVDs. It still featured pairs of Thunderbolt and USB-A ports, an HDMI port, and an SD card slot, however.

Related Forum: MacBook Pro

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Plus Feature

iPhone 17 Lineup Specs Detail Display Upgrade and New High-End Model

Monday July 22, 2024 4:33 am PDT by
Key details about the overall specifications of the iPhone 17 lineup have been shared by the leaker known as "Ice Universe," clarifying several important aspects of next year's devices. Reports in recent months have converged in agreement that Apple will discontinue the "Plus" iPhone model in 2025 while introducing an all-new iPhone 17 "Slim" model as an even more high-end option sitting...
iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
Apple TV Plus Feature 2 Magenta and Blue

Apple TV+ Curbs Costs After Expensive Projects Fail to Capture Viewers

Monday July 22, 2024 5:11 am PDT by
Apple is scaling back its Hollywood spending after investing over $20 billion in original programming with limited success, Bloomberg reports. This shift comes after the streaming service, which launched in 2019, struggled to capture a significant share of the market, accounting for only 0.2% of TV viewership in the U.S., compared to Netflix's 8%. Despite heavy investment, critical acclaim,...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
iPhone 17 Plus Feature Purple

These 5 Features Will Make the iPhone 17 the Biggest Update in Years

Monday July 22, 2024 4:02 pm PDT by
The upcoming iPhone 16 models that we're expecting to see in September are going to be quite similar to the iPhone 15 models, but rumors suggest that Apple is making big changes in 2025. We've been hearing hints of an all-new device in the iPhone lineup, and it may be the most expensive iPhone Apple has offered to date. New 'Slim' Design Rumors have taken to referring to the new iPhone 17...
iPhone SE 4 Thumb 1

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Launch Early Next Year With OLED Display, 48MP Camera, and More

Monday July 22, 2024 7:22 am PDT by
The fourth-generation iPhone SE will offer a series of major upgrades over the current model, the leaker known as "Ice Universe" claims. The information was listed in a post on Weibo, which also detailed the specifications of the iPhone 17 lineup. As previously rumored, the fourth-generation iPhone SE is expected to feature Face ID and USB-C, marking a major upgrade from current and previous ...
bsod

Microsoft Blames European Commission for Major Worldwide Outage

Monday July 22, 2024 11:55 am PDT by
Last Friday, a major CrowdStrike outage impacted PCs running Microsoft Windows, causing worldwide issues affecting airlines, retailers, banks, hospitals, rail networks, and more. Computers were stuck in continuous recovery loops, rendering them unusable. The failure was caused by an update to the CrowdStrike Falcon antivirus software that auto-installed on Windows 10 PCs, but Mac and Linux...

Top Rated Comments

MacFather Avatar
53 months ago
Deleted.
Score: 121 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nfl46 Avatar
53 months ago
These MacBook Pros are still going strong today. It’s pretty insane that a 8-year-old device still performs well.
Score: 42 Votes (Like | Disagree)
joelhinch Avatar
53 months ago
Easily the best series for it's time.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mac Rules Avatar
53 months ago
Still my main computer, going strong.

For me still the best design and port selection of the last 10 years.

Hopefully it powers on for another two years before diving into ARM.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Spock Avatar
53 months ago
Best notebook design they ever released in my opinion. Thin and light with all the ports you could need except ethernet.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bryce13950 Avatar
53 months ago

✓ It doesn't say 'MacBook Pro' under the screen.
How are you supposed to know what computer you are using?
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)