Go to the refurbished section and buy the m1 max/ultra if u can, Minimum 16Gb of ram .

The reason u should go for the refurbished :

1. Apple is a control freak with their products, based on various testimonials form apple employees themselves. If they see a defect, it’s a complete replacement of the part. The Refurbished models come with the same warranty from apple, + the refurbishment is a total replacement. There are almost no scratches that are visible.
2. Much much more cheaper. Might even save $700 sometimes
3. Comes with better configurations, so u don’t have to spend time on choosing and spending too much.

If that’s not possible, Do the same with M2 Pro, Minimum 16gb of ram.

Good deal :

https://www.apple.com/shop/product/FPHF3LL/A/refurbished-14-inch-macbook-pro-apple-m2-pro-chip-with-12%E2%80%91core-cpu-and-19%E2%80%91core-gpu-space-gray?fnode=2666d99e8e111bbfa90f62e8944b86672204637aee5b9e4bf713131951fc9d97c04507de094ae7301db925306723553ab852aba884ab08512d7a1646b87f1eb7e76e08fd9514af72ba7c908b37532d5e

Best deal :https://www.apple.com/shop/product/FPHH3LL/A/refurbished-14-inch-macbook-pro-apple-m2-pro-chip-with-10-core-cpu-and-16%E2%80%91core-gpu-silver?fnode=2666d99e8e111bbfa90f62e8944b86672204637aee5b9e4bf713131951fc9d97c04507de094ae7301db925306723553ab852aba884ab08512d7a1646b87f1eb7e76e08fd9514af72ba7c908b37532d5e

If u buy the 1st one, don’t buy an external ssd. I’d strongly suggest considering the 2nd, + an 2tb nvme ssd (WD black SN850x, one with DRAM cache in it) + a nVMe usb 3.2 gen 2 ssd enclosure. (this saves a ton of money bc 1. u don’t buy from apple 2. It only takes 5 minutes to hack a great ssd which will give u better speeds than the ones that are pre glued together, 3. it’s surprisingly more rigid and portable & don’t come with obsolete connectors. I did the same, so if u need pics of what i did, reach out)

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(All macbook pros)