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Upgrade my 2.66ghz 17" Core 2 duo mbp to SSD or Sell it and get an i7?

B

bjoplin21

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 19, 2010
17
0
Hey I'm new to the forum here and would like to get some opinions on what I should do in my situation. I have a 17 inch 2008 Macbook Pro 2.66ghz 4GB ram with 500GB 7200rpm drive. It is my main machine and I use it for audio recording and HD video editing in FCE. I love the machine but I know the i7 could really speed up video exporting. I was wondering do you guys think I should sell this and put some money with it to get a 17 inch i7 MBP later next month? Or should I upgrade this to a 256GB SSD and wait a few months down the line for another Macbook Pro? I'm already set on getting another 17 inch when I do upgrade.... thanks for any feedback...
 
bjoplin21 said:
Hey I'm new to the forum here and would like to get some opinions on what I should do in my situation. I have a 17 inch 2008 Macbook Pro 2.66ghz 4GB ram with 500GB 7200rpm drive. It is my main machine and I use it for audio recording and HD video editing in FCE. I love the machine but I know the i7 could really speed up video exporting. I was wondering do you guys think I should sell this and put some money with it to get a 17 inch i7 MBP later next month? Or should I upgrade this to a 256GB SSD and wait a few months down the line for another Macbook Pro? I'm already set on getting another 17 inch when I do upgrade.... thanks for any feedback...
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I'd suggest an SSD for boot and HD in the CD bay as an interim holdover until the next gen is released. You might even decide that 2.66 GHz doesn't need replacing.

JohnG
 
Yeah I thought about just getting the 256GB SSD for around $650 and also maxing out my RAM to 8GB instead of selling my laptop and getting an i7.
 
Why not get a much smaller SSD for a third of the price and stick it in the optical bay, keeping your current hard drive for storage?
 
ozreth said:
Why not get a much smaller SSD for a third of the price and stick it in the optical bay, keeping your current hard drive for storage?
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I have alot of application files so I need the 256GB. My Logic Pro install takes up a huge chunk of disc space. Sidenote; I'm also hesitant about getting a SSD drive for my MBP due to no TRIM support yet...hmmm
 
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Sandy Bridge won't be so much faster than Westmere that it's worth waiting for, especially if you do a lot of audio/video work.

I don't believe an SSD is worth it for your use, either...most HD access for you would be sequential, right?
 
I would go ssd and then upgrade later and have the ssd for whatever you upgrade to. I got a 2.66 i7 but didnt feel like it was much faster than my 2.4 C2D until I upgraded the ssd....huge difference...
 
christophermdia said:
I would go ssd and then upgrade later and have the ssd for whatever you upgrade to. I got a 2.66 i7 but didnt feel like it was much faster than my 2.4 C2D until I upgraded the ssd....huge difference...
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I had a 2.53GHz C2D and got an applecare replacement 2.66 i7. They are quicker but not that much quicker. Go SSD and upgrade in a few revisions time.
 
bjoplin21 said:
It is my main machine and I use it for audio recording and HD video editing in FCE.
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Even though you're one of the few of us who would really benefit from an i7, if you're otherwise basically satisfied with your Macbook, I would just get an SSD and wait.

Although you'll see an advantage with an i7, it's not as great an advantage as you will see in everyday use with an SSD on your current machine.

If you run across a good deal on RAM, I'd think about that, too, if I were you.
 
George Knighton said:
Even though you're one of the few of us who would really benefit from an i7, if you're otherwise basically satisfied with your Macbook, I would just get an SSD and wait.

Although you'll see an advantage with an i7, it's not as great an advantage as you will see in everyday use with an SSD on your current machine.

If you run across a good deal on RAM, I'd think about that, too, if I were you.
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Thanks for the advice. I might do that.
 
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