Are these decent upgrade parts for my 2010 13"?

[0186279]

Hi all. I had a thread going about the pros and cons of upgrading my mid 2010 MBP 13" and I got a lot of good advice on there. It kinda died out though and I've finally figured out what parts I think I'm going to get and wanted to run them by everybody. I opted for a 120gb SSD because my apps folder is only 10gb (on that note, why do people suggest only putting apps on the SSD?)

I wasn't sure what batteries most people get but this one seems popular enough? Also, what do I need to buy to mount the SSD in the Obtibay?

 

[iamMacPerson]

Hi all. I had a thread going about the pros and cons of upgrading my mid 2010 MBP 13" and I got a lot of good advice on there. It kinda died out though and I've finally figured out what parts I think I'm going to get and wanted to run them by everybody. I opted for a 120gb SSD because my apps folder is only 10gb (on that note, why do people suggest only putting apps on the SSD?)

I wasn't sure what batteries most people get but this one seems popular enough? Also, what do I need to buy to mount the SSD in the Obtibay?

I have no comment on the battery as all the third party ones I have ever bought went back because they were crap. You can never go wrong with Crucial memory, and 8GB will take care of you for a while. 120GB, IMO, isn't enough for an SSD, but thats only because I do video editing and I need to have plenty for scratch space. Samsung SSDs are pretty good, but see what deals Crucial has on their MX100 SSDs. They are usually not much more and I'm more apt to trust Crucial since they have been making memory chips for decades.

As for why people say only put the app folder on the SSD, its because back in the day SSDs were expensive as hell (I paid $300-$400 for my first 128GB SSD from Apple in 2011). The trick was to create a symbolic link to your home folder and store it on a spinning drive connected to the system. Since SSDs are much cheaper now then they were, its really best to put all your data on them. They are less susceptible to damage then HDDs and are much faster. What I would do is go into About This Mac and see how much storage you are using on your HDD in total and buy your SSD accordingly.

Typically, I recommend putting the SSD in main HDD space next to the battery for speed, but it wouldn't make a difference in this machine since both ports are SATA II. I typically recommend and buy the OWC Data Doubler. I have used them in multiple machines and have yet to have one fail on me. It includes all the hardware and instructions you will need. Click here to view it on OWC's website.

Lastly, check out B&H Photo's pricing. They are typically the same or cheaper then Amazon, but have free shipping and don't charge tax to most of the US (the only exception is New York state last I checked).

Good luck! I'll try to help as much as I can, just quote this post so I will get alerted.

 

[0186279]

I have no comment on the battery as all the third party ones I have ever bought went back because they were crap. You can never go wrong with Crucial memory, and 8GB will take care of you for a while. 120GB, IMO, isn't enough for an SSD, but thats only because I do video editing and I need to have plenty for scratch space. Samsung SSDs are pretty good, but see what deals Crucial has on their MX100 SSDs. They are usually not much more and I'm more apt to trust Crucial since they have been making memory chips for decades.

As for why people say only put the app folder on the SSD, its because back in the day SSDs were expensive as hell (I paid $300-$400 for my first 128GB SSD from Apple in 2011). The trick was to create a symbolic link to your home folder and store it on a spinning drive connected to the system. Since SSDs are much cheaper now then they were, its really best to put all your data on them. They are less susceptible to damage then HDDs and are much faster. What I would do is go into About This Mac and see how much storage you are using on your HDD in total and buy your SSD accordingly.

Typically, I recommend putting the SSD in main HDD space next to the battery for speed, but it wouldn't make a difference in this machine since both ports are SATA II. I typically recommend and buy the OWC Data Doubler. I have used them in multiple machines and have yet to have one fail on me. It includes all the hardware and instructions you will need. Click here to view it on OWC's website.

Lastly, check out B&H Photo's pricing. They are typically the same or cheaper then Amazon, but have free shipping and don't charge tax to most of the US (the only exception is New York state last I checked).

Good luck! I'll try to help as much as I can, just quote this post so I will get alerted.

Damn, maybe Ill have Apple replace the battery for me then? My current HDD is 250gb and I'm not in front of it right now but I believe I'm using about 170gb of that. I use this computer pretty casually: word processing, web, itunes, light photoshop. I suppose I could opt for a 250gb SSD, but any bigger than that is getting pretty pricey for me. Im trying to upgrade for cheap but get good enough stuff to give me another year or two out of this machine.

So even if I put this in the main HDD slot and take the old one out Im going to have to buy the part from OWC to do that with, correct?

Thanks for the awesome reply.

 

[iamMacPerson]

Damn, maybe Ill have Apple replace the battery for me then? My current HDD is 250gb and I'm not in front of it right now but I believe I'm using about 170gb of that. I use this computer pretty casually: word processing, web, itunes, light photoshop. I suppose I could opt for a 250gb SSD, but any bigger than that is getting pretty pricey for me. Im trying to upgrade for cheap but get good enough stuff to give me another year or two out of this machine.

So even if I put this in the main HDD slot and take the old one out Im going to have to buy the part from OWC to do that with, correct?

Thanks for the awesome reply.

That would be your best bet. Last I checked it just over $100 to have Apple replace the battery, which is worth it since you know your getting an official Apple part. I wish they would just sell the part to end consumers. It's two additional tri-wing screws to get the damn thing out. Anyway, I would try DaisyDisk to see what crud you can get rid of on your SSD. I have used it for about 4 years, and its the best app out there for data management.

If you have the 2.4GHz model, it shipped with a 250GB HDD. If you can trim things around a little bit data wise, then a 250GB SSD will suit you well. Also, on the RAM, if you have the 2.4GHz model it can take 16GB of RAM (the 2.66 can't for some reason). If that is the case, then I'd look into getting a single 8GB DIMM. That way, if you need more RAM later, you can just buy an additional 8GB DIMM instead of an entire 16GB kit. Thats what I did on my 2011 since the 8GB DIMM was only $4 more when I ordered it.

No matter what drive you put in the optical bay, your gonna need that adapter. The optical drive uses a different SATA connector then SSDs/HDDs. Electronically, its compatible. Physically, it isn't.

No problem! Just let me know if you need any help.

(Also note I am not paid to talk about any app, service or company. I just go off my past experiences with MacBook upgrades, since I work on them for a living)

 

[Dark Void]

Hi,

Great choices on the RAM and SSD. I would normally advise against third party batteries but I have purchased other items from Anker before and they know what they are doing. Their items are mostly power related and they all have wonderful reviews.

OWC has your kit for the optibay. Search the web for "2010 MBP optibay" in order to find the kit. I believe it costs $25 or so.

 

[0186279]

Welp, talk about switching gears. I think what I'm now going to do is: Have the battery replaced at Apple and purchase a 500gb SSD. I figure the RAM can wait. I will see what the SSD improvement does for me and maybe drop the money on the RAM in a month or so if I decide I need it.

 

[toly084]

Hi all. I think the better way to sell this macbook and that money that you want to spend for upgrade add and buy newer model. Though your MacBook has enough power, but it's electronic got old, and better to change MacBook itself. You cannot be sure how long it will work till it will be broken. The chipsets and video chips are the problem of all notebooks, if they not was cleaned in time from the dust. The best way to buy something with i5. I have a repair service, and know what I tell you.

 

[ApolloBoy]

Hi all. I think the better way to sell this macbook and that money that you want to spend for upgrade add and buy newer model.

IMO better to spend a little money on upgrading than giving in to consumerism and buying a brand new model.

 

[RobbieTT]

I've posted this elsewhere but after thinking long and hard I have chosen to upgrade my mid-2009 13" MBP with 8GB and a Samsung 500GB 850 Evo; both installed yesterday.

The memory is overkill but the 850 Evo has just brought the machine to life. Simply stunning. This machine may be approaching its 6th birthday but there is life in the old girl. Great performance for not a lot of money.

 

[toly084]

I didn't tell brand new but newer model, for example 2012 13 MBP, this in the finish will be almost the same money. 2010 with 2,4ghz cost about $300-400 plus money for upgrade about $300, and the model of 2012 13 MBP cost about $700-800. But in result you will have better speed and newer hardware.

 

[0186279]

I definitely considered selling and buying a new one. But if I can spend $200-$300 and get another two years of really nice performance out of this thing than I feel like that is a better option than dumping upwards of $1000 plus whatever I sell it for to get a new one that will perform the same tasks as my current one. Hell, even if I only get another year out of it I think I will have won

 

[0186279]

I've posted this elsewhere but after thinking long and hard I have chosen to upgrade my mid-2009 13" MBP with 8GB and a Samsung 500GB 850 Evo; both installed yesterday.

The memory is overkill but the 850 Evo has just brought the machine to life. Simply stunning. This machine may be approaching its 6th birthday but there is life in the old girl. Great performance for not a lot of money.

Nice, I saw this on my other post as well but I'll respond here instead to keep this one going. I'm glad you did the upgrade! You said on the other post that you dont approach the 8gb of RAM. I doubt I will either so Im going to do the SSD first and then consider the RAM a little down the line, but will probably do it because like you said memory is pretty damn cheap.