120 vs 160 hard drive for MBP

[newmacguy88]

I was curious if it is worth it to pay $67(student discount) to go from 120GB hard drive to 160GB hard drive on the low end 15in MBP. I will be a college student in the fall. I have a ton of music and photos I'll mostly be writing papers, surfing the web, etc. I do a lot of artwork, so I might consider getting something like photoshop elements in the future.

Thanks for any advice

 

[Zwhaler]

Based on what you plan to do with your computer, I would definitely get the upgrade. It does not cost very much, and trust me, that extra space will come in handy some day

Especially if you get into video at all, I made a home movie last night that is less than 3 minutes and it took up a gig and a half of space Get the upgrade, you will be glad you did

 

[TimJim]

well how much music and pictures do you have. just look on your computer and see if you need the 160.

 

[NewSc2]

I got the upgrade and I love having the extra space. You'd need to get an external hard drive to back up everything, cuz even 160gb can get filled up.

 

[darkcurse]

Always get more than you think you need... Within your budget of course. My MBP has 120gigs and I never thought that I'd use it up. But as of now, only 6gigs remaining

 

[samh004]

The more HDD space you have, the longer your computer will last, before you need to start deleting things or re-arranging stuff.

If your HDD gets really full too, your computer will slow down a bit, so adding a 160GB drive would be useful to stop a slow-down of your system, along with slightly longer longevity.

Always get more than you think you need... Within your budget of course. My MBP has 120gigs and I never thought that I'd use it up. But as of now, only 6gigs remaining

And I bet your computer has taken a performance hit because of it too...

 

[tango554]

I have a ton of music and photos I'll mostly be writing papers, surfing the web, etc. I do a lot of artwork, so I might consider getting something like photoshop elements in the future.

I think this answers your question.

 

[dmw007]

For the small difference in price, go with the 160GB HDD.

 

[newmacguy88]

thanks everyone, I appreciate your advice

I'm ordering it in like 2 weeks. Decided to get the matte screen instead of glossy, I don't like the reflections.

 

[Aniej]

thanks everyone, I appreciate your advice

I'm ordering it in like 2 weeks. Decided to get the matte screen instead of glossy, I don't like the reflections.

very good decisions you made. the glossy is interesting, but the glare for me is killer. 120 to 160Gb is about $70 so you really can't go wrong there.

 

[newmacguy88]

very good decisions you made. the glossy is interesting, but the glare for me is killer.

I went to the Apple store because I wanted to see the difference for myself. The matte screen now that they updated to the LED is actually REALLY nice. I think it would actually be nicer to watch movies on a matte screen than the glossy.

Another big factor for me was screen size. I love the blackbook, but when I saw it in person, I really thought it was too small(for me! it may be perfect for you)

I'm thinking about getting one of those cooling fans for underneath the mbp when it is on a flat surface. A teacher of mine had one of these and it seemed to keep the temps down. Anyone ever used one?

 

[tango554]

I'm thinking about getting one of those cooling fans for underneath the mbp when it is on a flat surface. A teacher of mine had one of these and it seemed to keep the temps down. Anyone ever used one?

Never used one, but is it necessary? What do you think about the griffin elevator? Your back and neck wouldn't be strained and it would help keep your computer cool.