Is this bargain too good to be true?

My high street computer shop has a Late 2012 MacBook Pro in the window with a Core i5 CPU and 16GB RAM for £399. This looks like a good deal to me, based on scanning eBay for similar systems, but I need to know one thing. Will I be able to connect this laptop to an external monitor? I’m planning to buy it as a sort of emergency backup, in case my current Mac mini dies suddenly, but I’d need to be able to plug it into my BenQ monitor for this to work. Do you have any thoughts on this? Mike Alford The first thing that jumps out is that this probably isn’t a Late 2012 Retina MacBook Pro. On that (13‑inch) model, the RAM is soldered onto the motherboard so it isn’t upgradable, and it was available only with 8GB. The Late 2013 model was the first 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro available with 16GB.

You can confirm the Mac’s model and date in the shop by clicking the Apple icon in the menu bar and selecting About this Mac, but I think it’s more likely it is a Mid 2012 non-Retina model. £400 is still a decent price for this, and the graphics card in it can drive an external display at up to 2560x1600 pixels. You will need a Mini DisplayPort to DVI or HDMI adaptor to connect it to your BenQ monitor, but these are less than £10 on Amazon (or £25 if you want the official Apple adaptor).