Data transfer from MacBook Pro Retina 13 to MacBook Pro 14

JoA2022 wrote:

Will I be able to wirelessly transfer data between the two MBs using migration assistant as long as I'm using the same WiFi network on both MBs?

I think so, but I wouldn't recommend it. That's probably the least reliable way of doing a migration.

If you have an up-to-date backup of the old Mac, you can transfer the drive containing it to the new Mac, and point Migration Assistant at it. This can be a Time Machine backup, or a bootable clone backup ("startup drive") created using Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper! –whatever's easiest for you.

Alternatively, I am planning to buy a thunderbolt 2 cable + thunderbolt 3 (usb c) to thunderbolt 2 and use migration assistant to transfer the data. Should I anticipate any issues with this option? I am hesitant to buy these 2 accessories without first checking if this option will work.

That'll set you back something like $80+ for connection hardware that you might only use one time. I'd be inclined to migrate via a backup – even if you need to buy an external drive on which to make one. When buying an external drive, you could do it with an eye to reusing that drive as a backup drive for the new Mac once you had successfully migrated your data.

Note that as long as you are talking about USB 2/3 protocol, at USB 3.1 Gen 2 speed or less, you can get adapters to go between USB-C and USB-A in ether direction. So a USB-C (USB) drive can work with an older Mac that has USB-A ports, given the right adapter. USB4 is a different story, and your old Mac would not be able to work with a USB4-only drive.

Ideally, I prefer a full transfer of all my files and apps without having to do a backup to iCloud for which I have no subscription (current storage used on my old MB is around 139gb).

iCloud does act as a sort of backup service for iPhones and iPads – but it's not meant to be a full backup service for Macs. I don't think Migration Assistant would migrate data from a "backup" in iCloud, even if you copied all 139 GB worth of files on your old Mac to iCloud Drive.

JoA2022 wrote:

>>> Would you be able to recommend brands that will work well with my MB 2015? I understand I will need to use the built in Time Machine app in my MB 2015 to backup to the external drive.

Just about any external hard drive or SSD that connects via USB can be made to work, provided that it is large enough. For Time Machine, Apple recommends using a drive that holds at least twice as much as the one that you're backing up. (That gives it space to store some old versions of your files, not just current ones.)

Most external drives come preformatted with one of the following filesystems:

• NTFS, if they're sold as being for PCs
• HFS+ or APFS, if they're sold as being for Macs

Assuming that your old Mac is running Monterey, Time Machine will want the backup drive to be formatted as an APFS drive. No matter whether you buy a "PC" drive or a "Mac" drive, it is easy to do this in Disk Utility. I found these step by step directions on the Seagate site, but the steps would be pretty much the same for any external drive (HDD or SSD) from any manufacturer.

Seagate – How to format your drive APFS on macOS 11 (Big Sur) and later

“So a USB-C (USB) drive can work with an older Mac that has USB-A ports, given the right adapter. USB4 is a different story, and your old Mac would not be able to work with a USB4-only drive.”

>>> Can I then buy a USB A external drive to backup the old MB and then use a USB A to USB C adapter to transfer from the external drive to the new MB using migration assistant?

Yes.