MacBook Pro 13

[AlexJ]

So I've had some changes in the last few weeks.

Decided to replace computer.

I use predominantly macs at uni so decided to grab a pro

Thinking about getting a refurb 13' i7 and installing ssd in optical drive + adding more ram. My question is once ssd is installed will it act as quickly (startup + general operation) as if say an equivalent powered mac with no sata drive in the machine (ie can I set ssd as primary drive?)

Also is there anyone with the skills to do this as I do not have them?

[SolDios]

generally most it stores that work with apple should be able to do it, yes you can use the ssd as your primary and there is no speed limitation, the cd drive uses the same speed sata as the HDD.

If your going to be using it alot, id recommend upgrading to the 15" pro as the screen real-estate (You know what im trying to say) does help alot. Even if it means downgrading to an i5 my 13" pro with 4gb ram and i5 can pretty much handle anything I throw at it.

[AlexJ]

I have no interest in the 15. I want something smaller on purpose. I used to have a 12' school laptop which was literally perfect for my needs. Frankly I don't need something that bulky.

[Mitch]

Depending on what model you get, the Optical drive sometimes runs on a slower bus compared to the hdd slot. If your interested in an SSD, i'd either put it in the HDD bay and take the hdd out completely, OR put the ssd in the primary hdd bay, then get a bracket to put the old HDD in the optical drive slot. From memory the brackets aren't that cheap though.

Also making those kind of changes as soon as you buy it instantly voids your warranty. May be worth just paying to have the ssd upgrade done when you buy it. Or consider the retina 13" model, as it is based on a flash storage architecture which is very fast.

[AlexJ]

I was going retina but heard that retina display was much heavier on battery use and heat output

Also would be a late 2012/2013 pro model if not retina. Frankly to buy new is going to cost me 1900 and I don't quite have that... Refurb pro I wanted was at like 1290 or something. I figure what $2-300 for 256 ssd? If speed and battery is comparable IDE like to have the extra 400 and extended hdd storage available

[AlexJ]

Bump

[AlexJ]

So it seems I'm going to buy a 2nd had mac from a close friend. It seems a pretty good buy for about 900 2012 model i7 8gb ram 750gig hdd. The basic things I need, just going to buy a 256 ssd and have someone install it.

Would this sound like a reasonable idea?

[Mitch]

900 seems reasonable. I'd want any purchase to come with receipts + still be in warranty though, so make sure you check those things out first.

Before you go and buy an SSD, find out how much it is going to be to have the drive installed. I would do it if I didn't live so far away. Keep in mind, being an apple product there is a bit more involved in putting a 2nd hard drive in, so labour costs will be a factor if you're planning to put an SSD in. A lot of Mac places will charge around $150/hr. Note that Genius bar won't do the upgrade unless you buy the SSD from them, and they won't put the old hdd in the optical drive slot due to it not being an officially supported configuration.

You'll also need a bracket so the 2.5" hdd fits in the optical drive slot. You'll be looking at 300 for SSD, 90 for the bracket/adapter, + labour costs.

So it could all end up around 900+300+90+150 = 1440 (for a second hand laptop)

How much were you looking at spending again?

[vieri3217]

One thing that always tricks everyone is:

SSD's have write and read speeds. Make sure your get the fastest write speed and read speed as possible.

There are some drives with read speeds of 530mb/s with only 130mb/s write speed. Write speed is where most of the performance comes in. In other words you will access files and load programs quickly, but when you start copying files to your SSD it will be a slower process.

I bout a Kingston Hyperx SSD, read speeds of 555mb/s and 510mb/s write speed. Kingston make server memory and they have been around for a long time. They make quality products and you wont be dissapointed.

http://www.kingston.com/en/ssd/hyperx/