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Elmzeh

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 3, 2013
135
2
London
Good Evening All,

I'm new to these forums and need some help, I'm a current windows user but have finally decided to jump ship over to an Apple system;

I've viewed and read countless reviews and also spoken to a few Apple representatives and have decided for many reasons that its best for me to go for the MacBook Pro 2012 (Non Retina) for my first purchase instead of going all out on the retina.

What I need some clarity on is;

1) How much roughly in £/$ does it cost to upgrade RAM and Hard drives on the MacBook Pro (Non Retinas)?

2) How hot do the Laptops get while sitting on a desk during normal use and also for higher use (Video/Music Processing & Gaming etc)? My current laptop gets too hot and shuts down after browsing the internet and watching youtube for anymore than 10-20 minutes.

3) I'm not expecting them to be amazing for gaming and the reason I'm going to give a MacBook Pro a go is that I'd like to try and get more into music and video production however can the 2012 systems handle games like Diablo 3, League of Legends and some Steam titles at medium settings without much fps lag etc?

4) While I know the Mac Pro's are going to be much much stronger all around, can the MacBook Pro's handle the music and video production side of things well?


I'll probably get a fan/cooler for the system initially just in case but these are the main other concerns that I have.

These are the final things that I need some advice on before I go ahead with my purchase :)
 

kage207

macrumors 6502a
Jul 23, 2008
971
56
Good Evening All,

I'm new to these forums and need some help, I'm a current windows user but have finally decided to jump ship over to an Apple system;

I've viewed and read countless reviews and also spoken to a few Apple representatives and have decided for many reasons that its best for me to go for the MacBook Pro 2012 (Non Retina) for my first purchase instead of going all out on the retina.

What I need some clarity on is;

1) How much roughly in £/$ does it cost to upgrade RAM and Hard drives on the MacBook Pro (Non Retinas)?

2) How hot do the Laptops get while sitting on a desk during normal use and also for higher use (Video/Music Processing & Gaming etc)? My current laptop gets too hot and shuts down after browsing the internet and watching youtube for anymore than 10-20 minutes.

3) I'm not expecting them to be amazing for gaming and the reason I'm going to give a MacBook Pro a go is that I'd like to try and get more into music and video production however can the 2012 systems handle games like Diablo 3, League of Legends and some Steam titles at medium settings without much fps lag etc?

4) While I know the Mac Pro's are going to be much much stronger all around, can the MacBook Pro's handle the music and video production side of things well?


I'll probably get a fan/cooler for the system initially just in case but these are the main other concerns that I have.

These are the final things that I need some advice on before I go ahead with my purchase :)
1) Check out this.
http://ifixit.org/2787/mid-2012-macbook-pro-teardown/
Shows that you can upgrade. Look at the parts of both the RAM & HDD needed. Then do some searches on Newegg, Amazon, MicroCenter, etc.

2) Normal usage, my computer CPU is roughly around 45 degrees C for me. Your computer will not shut off on you during normal usage (at least it shouldn't unless there's a problem).

3)Gaming, it gets hotter as it is more intensive. The more intensive applications you use, the more heat generated. Why not check out the system requirements for Diablo III and the specs for the computer?
https://us.battle.net/support/en/article/diablo-iii-system-requirements
You can do the rest of the games. Simple web searches. Also if you search the web, there are reviews usually for these games and the system you are looking for.

4) You should be fine in terms of processing power for music production. Video production may vary as depending on the program and how it utilizes the CPU & GPU. The GPU is not the best so keep that in mind. CPU will have enough power. These are i5's and very nice processors. Keep in mind Mac Pro is not a laptop.
 

amit715

macrumors member
Dec 10, 2012
36
0
new york
i am a first time mac user myself,i recently (about 2 months ago)bought my first mac .i decided to get the base mid 2012 13inch macbook pro.so far i upgraded the ram from 4gigs to 8gigs which cost about $50 bucks and i just ordered a samsung 840ssd pro 256 gigs for $240.i do mostly browsing /video and music editing and this machine works great!the battery life is twice as better than any other laptop ive ever owned .
 

RichWatts

macrumors newbie
Jan 3, 2013
9
0
Good Evening All,

I'm new to these forums and need some help, I'm a current windows user but have finally decided to jump ship over to an Apple system;

I've viewed and read countless reviews and also spoken to a few Apple representatives and have decided for many reasons that its best for me to go for the MacBook Pro 2012 (Non Retina) for my first purchase instead of going all out on the retina.

What I need some clarity on is;

1) How much roughly in £/$ does it cost to upgrade RAM and Hard drives on the MacBook Pro (Non Retinas)?

2) How hot do the Laptops get while sitting on a desk during normal use and also for higher use (Video/Music Processing & Gaming etc)? My current laptop gets too hot and shuts down after browsing the internet and watching youtube for anymore than 10-20 minutes.

3) I'm not expecting them to be amazing for gaming and the reason I'm going to give a MacBook Pro a go is that I'd like to try and get more into music and video production however can the 2012 systems handle games like Diablo 3, League of Legends and some Steam titles at medium settings without much fps lag etc?

4) While I know the Mac Pro's are going to be much much stronger all around, can the MacBook Pro's handle the music and video production side of things well?


I'll probably get a fan/cooler for the system initially just in case but these are the main other concerns that I have.

These are the final things that I need some advice on before I go ahead with my purchase :)


1) Well hard drives will vary depending on if you are looking for an actual HDD or an SSD drive?

You will get more storage per £/$ if you opt for a HDD over an SSD but the performance of an SSD is a far more enticing prospect imo. You can remove the optical drive (super drive/disk drive) and install an SSD in its place, boot your OS from the SSD and use the other HDD as storage. You could also get an enclosure for the optical drive that allows you to carry it round as an external USB device.

I would recommend looking at the Samsung 830/840 ranges for SSD’s. You can get a good 120GB for less than £100 now.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/310509916065?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

2) The fact is Mac’s run hot. I was concerned when I first got mine but they are designed to withstand a large amount of heat and run stable on temps of 80c. I use SMC fan control and you can manually increase the RPM of your fans to help keep your system cool. Some may argue this will wear out your fan but I’d rather a worn out fan and than burnt CPU.

3) Sorry I can’t answer this very well for you, as I don’t have much experience with gaming on a MBP. However, as you’re looking at a 2012 model I cannot imagine you will have any issues with FPS lag.

4) Yes definitely, I use my MBP for editing video using After Effects and Final Cut Pro. I must recommend you get at least 8GB RAM though for the type of tasks you sound like you will be endeavoring in. Look at OWC for RAM as you can boost your RAM to 16GB if needed.
http://eshop.macsales.com/memory/maxram
 

Elmzeh

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 3, 2013
135
2
London
Thanks guys, this helps a lot :)

Lastly, I've read a few posts that have said its worth it but I just need to double check...

Is the AppleCare Protection Plan worth it? For the laptop I'm looking to purchase its going to cost £195.60 which is quite a lot of money. I've never normally purchased extended protection plans with other products but as I'm new to Apple laptops I'm not sure of the best approach;
 

Elmzeh

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 3, 2013
135
2
London
15" although I've done a bit more research and think I might leave it and purchase it at some point in the first 12 months
 

Wicked1

macrumors 68040
Apr 13, 2009
3,283
14
New Jersey
The biggest thing I tell people is with a Mac, the hardware and software were designed to work well together. When it comes to a Windows laptop, the hardware is made by one vendor and the software by another, there is a huge disconnect between the two, and this is why things do not always work well together.

My biggest frustration is the fact with Windows 8, you can not go back to Windows 7. I was looking at a Samsung ultrabook for work, and you can not remove 8 and go to 7, not supported

The one biggest reason for a Mac IMO is the longevity you get with it, case in point.

Mid 2009 uMB 2.4 with 4GB/320GB HDD is 4 years old, still holds a 4-5 hour charge, and is as fast as the day I first bought it. Went from 10.5 to 10.6 to ML and never lost any data, in fact since it was the last model you can easily get the battery and HDD out of, I am holding onto it.

Tell me one Windows PC that still has that long of a charge on the battery, and that has not slowed to a crawl after 4 years of use and multiple OS installs.
 

Elmzeh

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 3, 2013
135
2
London
Hey Wicked,

Thanks for your response :)

Out of interest, whats the situation heat/fan wise on the MacBook Pro's (Non - Retina)?

I understand they dont have fans on the underside of the laptop so I'm assuming it would be a waste to buy a cooling pad/fan for it to sit on but have heard they tend to get quite hot, is this true or just an exaggeration?
 

Rhyalus

macrumors 6502
Mar 4, 2011
420
36
are you looking at the 13 or 15?? very different computers

THIS...

You won't game on the 13". The 15" i7 with discrete video cards will be more likely to meet your needs.

What the heck pc do you have that overheats on basic stuff right now? That is not at all normal and it sounds like something is wrong with your system.

R
 

Elmzeh

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 3, 2013
135
2
London
Thanks Rhyalus! Thankfully I ordered the 15" last night and went for the non retina as intended! It's my first Mac so didn't want to go all out on the 1st generation retina :)

I've got a Compaq Presario CQ60, I've done all the scans possible and defragmented etc but it still runs incredibly slow and gets hot during basic tasks while on my desk. By basic tasks I mean searching YouTube and browsing sites :)

I'm extremely excited about my MacBook Pro arriving, I'm just hoping I've made the right choice :)
 

runebinder

macrumors 6502a
Apr 2, 2009
904
121
Nottingham, UK
Hey Wicked,

Thanks for your response :)

Out of interest, whats the situation heat/fan wise on the MacBook Pro's (Non - Retina)?

I understand they dont have fans on the underside of the laptop so I'm assuming it would be a waste to buy a cooling pad/fan for it to sit on but have heard they tend to get quite hot, is this true or just an exaggeration?

Macs do not have vents on the bottom, cooling uses the vents in the back of the hinge and ports. See this thread for more detail on MBP cooling, it's talking about the 2011 model which has the same design as the 2012 non retina MBP you're interested in: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1133291/

It's not an exaggeration about the heat of the case, general usage is OK on the lap, but you don't want it there when the CPU ramps up. The case acts as a heatsink and draws heat away from the CPU.
 

duervo

macrumors 68020
Feb 5, 2011
2,465
1,232
Thanks Rhyalus! Thankfully I ordered the 15" last night and went for the non retina as intended! It's my first Mac so didn't want to go all out on the 1st generation retina :)

I've got a Compaq Presario CQ60, I've done all the scans possible and defragmented etc but it still runs incredibly slow and gets hot during basic tasks while on my desk. By basic tasks I mean searching YouTube and browsing sites :)

I'm extremely excited about my MacBook Pro arriving, I'm just hoping I've made the right choice :)

The most common cause of heat-related issues in older systems is dust and dirt build-up inside the case that inhibits proper airflow and cooling, combined with aging cooling fans that aren't working at the peak efficiency that they were when new.
 
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