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Need SSD advice for 17" Early 2011 MBP

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5683565

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Original poster
Feb 18, 2006
586
0
Hong Kong
Hi all,

I have a MacBook Pro 17" Early 2011 model (Sandy Bridge i7), and I would like to install an SSD because the 5400rpm drive is killing me. My 2006 iMac with a 7200rpm drive is faster in certain tasks, including starting up.

I'm looking at a 120GB SSD, though I've come across SATA II and SATA III. Is the III compatible with my machine?

When I've installed the drive I plan on using a Mountain Lion disk to set it up. Do I need to upgrade firmware or anything?

Thanks in advance,

J
 
So that's a yes to SATA III?

Great how Amazon wants a credit card number before telling me how much shipping will cost :confused:
 
RocketRed said:
would this work on a 2011 Macbook Air 13.3'' ?
Click to expand...

No. Afaik the new AIRs do not use 2.5" SSDs. Check this out.


jamesmcd said:
So that's a yes to SATA III?

Great how Amazon wants a credit card number before telling me how much shipping will cost :confused:
Click to expand...
Go to System Information, and under Serial-ATA, if it says "Link Speed" at 6 Gigabit, then yes, that is SATA III. My early 2011 15" MBP does SATA III.
 
Hah - cheers :)

Vendor: Intel
Product: 6 Series Chipset
Link Speed: 6 Gigabit
Negotiated Link Speed: 3 Gigabit

----------

$39 shipping... Still, it's cheaper than buying it here as there's no sales tax when ordering from overseas :D
 
I would recommend looking into your SSD options before just buying one though. I'm not saying that the Crucial M4 is a bad choice, at $1.17/gb, it's a solid choice. But if you wanted a faster SSD, you can look @ the Samsung 830, Intel 520, or even a SandForced based SSD.
 
I was in the same situation you were in. Early 2011 17" MBP looking for a SSD. I eventually got the Crucial M4. TBH, it's faster yes, but not by so much that I'd save time/money from it. Booting used to take 35 seconds. Now, it takes just a little over 15 seconds. Apps such as After Effects, Photoshop, FCP boots in around a second. But my HD booted in 3-5 seconds. I feel that the SSD is currently not worth the money. You also might have to consider carrying around an external drive. I already did that so it didn't bother me too much but just take that into consideration. It's faster and you notice it but it's just one of those things that are nice to have.

Just my two cents.
 
jekyoo said:
I would recommend looking into your SSD options before just buying one though. I'm not saying that the Crucial M4 is a bad choice, at $1.17/gb, it's a solid choice. But if you wanted a faster SSD, you can look @ the Samsung 830, Intel 520, or even a SandForced based SSD.
Click to expand...

As the OP lives in New Zealand, they can pretty much forget about the Samsung 830, unless they are willing to spend ~$2/GB.

OP is most likely best buying direct from Crucial, assuming NZ is similar to AUS, where SSDs just don't seem to exist, and nobody ships them.

EDIT: Seems Amazon does ship to Australia and New Zealand. So go for it!!! I'm tempted!
 
Last edited:
Make sure the EFI firmware on your Mac is up to date before installing a SATA III SSD.
 
jamesmcd said:
When I've installed the drive I plan on using a Mountain Lion disk to set it up. Do I need to upgrade firmware or anything?
Click to expand...

Unless you are truly doing development and a dev, don't install a beta/ preview environment on a production machine as you are just asking for headaches and issues (and depending on how Apple codes the updates, if you are not a dev you may be stuck with this version without going through the hassles of uninstall, wipe, reinstall. Their is a reason it is meant for developers, just look at the 10.8 area and see all the problems from non-devs installing ML and having issues. IF you are a dev, ignore the above as you already know this.)
 
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