So I have an early 2011 MBP and here are the specs.
15" hi-res antiglare display (1680 x 1050)
2.0Ghz quad core i7
8GB ram
500GB HDD @ 7200rpm
256MB AMD 6490M graphics
Intel HD3000 512MB (shared)
FW800
Thunderbolt
USB2
On the Apple Canada refurbish page there now seems to be only one non-retina MBP offering (standard res screen) and all others are now retina display. I'd still prefer to upgrade to the last non-retina (yet hi-res) MBP because I can install two HDD or SSD if I so choose. With the retina I can't do that. That's the one thing that has always bothered me about it. Not having an internal optical disc drive does not bother me. If I need it I can get an external one. But the option for a second internal HDD or SSD would be nice.
Right now Apple lists refurbished retina MBP models released in June 2012 and October 2013. So what I'm wondering is the following. 8GB vs 16GB ram. Does it matter?? Nvidia GeForce 650M 1GB vs Iris Pro (or Iris Pro plus Nvidia 750M). Is Iris Pro any good? Also would it be best to get the highest capacity of SSD now or is there upgrade options available? I know it's the one thing I can change if desired. Thanks for any and all assistance.
15" hi-res antiglare display (1680 x 1050)
2.0Ghz quad core i7
8GB ram
500GB HDD @ 7200rpm
256MB AMD 6490M graphics
Intel HD3000 512MB (shared)
FW800
Thunderbolt
USB2
On the Apple Canada refurbish page there now seems to be only one non-retina MBP offering (standard res screen) and all others are now retina display. I'd still prefer to upgrade to the last non-retina (yet hi-res) MBP because I can install two HDD or SSD if I so choose. With the retina I can't do that. That's the one thing that has always bothered me about it. Not having an internal optical disc drive does not bother me. If I need it I can get an external one. But the option for a second internal HDD or SSD would be nice.
Right now Apple lists refurbished retina MBP models released in June 2012 and October 2013. So what I'm wondering is the following. 8GB vs 16GB ram. Does it matter?? Nvidia GeForce 650M 1GB vs Iris Pro (or Iris Pro plus Nvidia 750M). Is Iris Pro any good? Also would it be best to get the highest capacity of SSD now or is there upgrade options available? I know it's the one thing I can change if desired. Thanks for any and all assistance.