13" Mbp Only 1.5gb Sata ? - SOLVED!!!!!!!!!

[HLdan]

How am I talking like a geek? Is it because I want to know what I'm spending $1000+ on? Maybe you like spending your money in the dark, but I want to know exactly what I'm getting. And I don't want to stick with my PC; I wanted to try something different. I'm just hoping it will be the MBP.

Okay dude, you're totally contradicting yourself. You say you want to KNOW what you are spending your money on right?

Okay here are your very words:
On the tech spec pages of the 13” and 15” MBPs it states that they each have “Two USB 2.0 ports”. Why is there a need to identify the ports as 2.0? When was the last time USB 1.1 was sold in desktops/laptops? If Apple’s page just said “Two USB ports,” would you even consider that they wouldn’t be USB 2.0;

So which one is it? You want Apple to be thorough on what USB is so you'll KNOW what you're spending your money on OR do you want Apple to assume most people know that USB is 2.0? You're contradicting your own argument.

You're being a "geek" like many of us here because you expect the rest of the world which are average computer users to understand computer jargon rather than Apple fully explaining what version of USB is in their product. Yes, we at MR know that it's 2.0 but most people don't. Also for the record you're already branded a geek when you post on computer forums.

 

[macinsanity]

In preparation for returning my new 2009 MBP 2.53GHZ 13" I cloned the drive over to my 2007 15" 2.4GHz MBP. Once they were cloned I was curious if I was really getting anything except for the possibility to add 2 more GB of ram and better battery life.

In a fairly unscientific (but good enough for me) benchmark, I started both computers at the same time. They booted to login in the same amount of time. I then logged to the new "faster" MPB 13" and then the older "slower" MBP 15" with 10 seconds of the MBP 13. To my surprise my older MBP 2.4 15" got all my programs loaded in to the menu bar well over 30 seconds faster than my old 15" MBP even though I logged in to the 2.4GHz machine last.

Since I can't get much of an advantage from upgrading the new 13" MBP to a fast SSD, this isn't an upgrade for me. I can buy an extra battery for much less than the $1500 I paid for this new MBP. I'm headed back to the Apple Store tomorrow.

 

[Thiol]

In preparation for returning my new 2009 MBP 2.53GHZ 13" I cloned the drive over to my 2007 15" 2.4GHz MBP. Once they were cloned I was curious if I was really getting anything except for the possibility to add 2 more GB of ram and better battery life.

In a fairly unscientific (but good enough for me) benchmark, I started both computers at the same time. They booted to login in the same amount of time. I then logged to the new "faster" MPB 13" and then the older "slower" MBP 15" with 10 seconds of the MBP 13. To my surprise my older MBP 2.4 15" got all my programs loaded in to the menu bar well over 30 seconds faster than my old 15" MBP even though I logged in to the 2.4GHz machine last.

Since I can't get much of an advantage from upgrading the new 13" MBP to a fast SSD, this isn't an upgrade for me. I can buy an extra battery for much less than the $1500 I paid for this new MBP. I'm headed back to the Apple Store tomorrow.

I don't think it's safe just to clone over a drive to a new computer. Some OS builds are specific to certain machines. Without the specific system files, some things might not work (or work more slowly).

 

[fpnc]

In preparation for returning my new 2009 MBP 2.53GHZ 13" I cloned the drive over to my 2007 15" 2.4GHz MBP. Once they were cloned I was curious if I was really getting anything except for the possibility to add 2 more GB of ram and better battery life...

What made you think that a 0.13GHz change would result in a notably faster computer? The 13" MacBook Pro isn't necessarily any faster than the previous generation 15" models, it's just less expensive and smaller. In fact, I suspect that the graphics performance on the 15", 2.4GHz MBP would be better than what you'd get on the new 13" MacBook Pro.

For reference, here is a link that discusses the differences between the 8600M GT and the 9400M.

http://www.lindenlan.net/2008/10/15/9600m-gt-versus-8600m-gt-versus-9400m/

 

[ImaBigD]

You stole my thunder boatski - were going "halvsies on the credit" for this one! There is no point in advertising my twitter page now...

Let's all post to one account to keep the numbers up!

Starting complaining to @applefixsatambp on Twitter

 

[macinsanity]

I don't think it's safe just to clone over a drive to a new computer. Some OS builds are specific to certain machines. Without the specific system files, some things might not work (or work more slowly).

I cloned the drive to the old computer, and it works fine so far.

 

[macinsanity]

What made you think that a 0.13GHz change would result in a notably faster computer? The 13" MacBook Pro isn't necessarily any faster than the previous generation 15" models, it's just less expensive and smaller. In fact, I suspect that the graphics performance on the 15", 2.4GHz MBP would be better than what you'd get on the new 13" MacBook Pro.

For reference, here is a link that discusses the differences between the 8600M GT and the 9400M.

http://www.lindenlan.net/2008/10/15/9600m-gt-versus-8600m-gt-versus-9400m/

You raise a good question, I expected the faster CPU and 1066mhz bus to help, but it doesn't.

One other observation is that it'll be much cheaper to upgrade my 2.4Ghz MBP to 6GB of RAM.

 

[fpnc]

I don't think it's safe just to clone over a drive to a new computer. Some OS builds are specific to certain machines. Without the specific system files, some things might not work (or work more slowly).

Thiol is correct. You should NEVER clone a system either TO or FROM a newly released Mac. The version of 10.5.7 that runs on the new MacBook Pros is a custom release for that model of Mac. The only clone operation you should attempt with a new Mac is to clone to an HD/SSD which you plan on using exclusively with the new unit (for example, an upgrade to the internal hard drive). However, once 10.5.8 arrives you can do a combo update which will make your system truly universal (capable of running on any Mac -- I mean at least those supported by that version of the OS).

 

[Jeanne-W]

The link might be easier to use than just the name since it doesn't seem to be in their search yet.

http://twitter.com/applefixsatambp

I'm there, count me in 5 followers so far, lets see how many more we can get by the end of the weekend! It takes a village......

 

[fpnc]

You raise a good question, I expected the faster CPU and 1066mhz bus to help, but it doesn't.

One other observation is that it'll be much cheaper to upgrade my 2.4Ghz MBP to 6GB of RAM.

The bus speed will help a little, but it's not going to make much of a difference on many applications. Furthermore, on the 13" MacBook you have to share the memory with the graphics processor which means that there is going to be some memory contention between the CPU and GPU.

Overall, the graphics performance will be better on the 15" while the 13" will have maybe a single-digit percent better CPU performance.

 

[goMac]

"experts" have postulated that with some back of the envelope power calculations based on assumptions. There is no definitive answer either way.

Take an electrical engineering course. This isn't magic. The chipset itself is not going to take much power, it's just not doing that much. You're doubling the clock speed of a chip that takes almost no power to begin with. The drive itself, quite honestly, takes up many many times more power, and setting the bus to SATA1 doesn't change the power consumption of the drive.

I, for one, am keeping my new MBP. It's a fantastic laptop.

So am I, but considering I bought it with upgrading to SSD in mind, I would like them to fix it.

 

[shadie]

As others have mentioned, could the downgrade reason be associated with the
SATA to PATA bridge? I thought the Superdrive interface was SATA.

The reason given for the SATA downgrade on the Thinkpad line (T60P and X61 in my case) was due to an incompatibility/throughput issue with having the PATA bridge integrated with the SATA controller.

Here is my MAY09 uMB 2.4G DVD drive info.

HL-DT-ST DVDRW GS21N:

Firmware Revision: SA15
Interconnect: ATAPI
Burn Support: Yes (Apple Shipping Drive)
Cache: 2048 KB

Here is my NOV08 uMBP 2.53G DVD drive info.

MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-868:

Firmware Revision: KA14
Interconnect: ATAPI
Burn Support: Yes (Apple Shipping Drive)
Cache: 2048 KB

Have the drives or the interface changed?

 

[goMac]

I'm pretty sure it's not a bridge problem. The last Macbook Pros used the exact same version of the exact same chipset, and there is no way Apple would have rolled back the optical drive to PATA.

Likely some engineer just screwed up. This sort of thing would make it past testing because the computer would appear to be working just fine. Happens all the time with Apple.

Also my 09 MBP has the EXACT same drive, just newer firmware.

 

[ImaBigD]

BTW,

Thanks to Aleksandra for the suggestion to reset the PRAM. That did the trick and I am now booting up in about 25 seconds. Not sure why I didn't think of that off the bat.

Meanwhile, ran my benchmarks on the Intel X-25M and they didn't magically get better. I really don't want to waste the performance of this drive (I feel like I have a Porsche Boxer Engine mated to a transmission on a Geo Metro....)

I want my SSD drive to roar, not whimper! (well, figuratively since it's almost silent!)

 

[mac jones]

A sad time for X25M (and like)

Stunted, inhibited, repressed, disrespected (ouch),reduced, marginalized,etc..

 

[fpnc]

I'm pretty sure it's not a bridge problem. The last Macbook Pros used the exact same version of the exact same chipset, and there is no way Apple would have rolled back the optical drive to PATA.

Likely some engineer just screwed up. This sort of thing would make it past testing because the computer would appear to be working just fine. Happens all the time with Apple.

Also my 09 MBP has the EXACT same drive, just newer firmware.

iFixIt says that the unibody MacBook requires a SATA SuperDrive (DVD/CD). However, under Apple's Disk Utility the SuperDrive in my unibody MacBook is listed as a ATAPI connection bus. Thus, it seems that the drive itself is PATA but the drive must include its own bridge chip to SATA. Thus, the connection in the unibody MacBooks and MacBook Pros is SATA but the drives themselves have the bridge chip. This makes some sense as it would mean that existing PATA drives could be used with the MacBook's SATA connection.

Thus, the information that shadie provided appears to be confirmed in my Oct 2008 unibody MacBook. I suspect that the new MacBook Pros are using the same arrangement (PATA SuperDrive with integrated SATA bridge chip).

As I suggested yesterday, maybe there has been a problem with the 3.0Gb SATA in ALL of the 9400M based products and Apple is just getting around to address it in the latest products (that would be the new 13" MacBook Pro and the newly redesigned 15" MacBook Pro). Thus, the "downgrade" to 1.5Gb SATA may be a "fix" and not an arbitrary bug or oversight.

Still a complete SPECULATION but something to think about. Another thing to consider, the MacBook Air doesn't have a SuperDrive, so it might not suffer from this assumed defect. That would leave the 17" MacBook Pro as the only oddball in the newly released lineup. Wouldn't it be interesting if that model was now shipping with a true SATA SuperDrive (one without a bridge chip). Can someone check on this?

 

[Lder]

First of all we are all in this together! I believe that everyone agrees, fanboy, lover, hater, potential client or whatever that this is something we didin't expect. So why not pull all of our efforts together and try to pressure Apple for an answer. THE TWITTER PETIOTION IS A GREAT IDEA! AND BY THE WAY CONTINUE TO CONTACT APPLE DIRECTLY THOUGHT THEIR ONLINE FEEDBACK FORM! If there's enough noise i'm confident they'll say something.

58 pages now on this? Geeeeeees!
Sadly, about 2% of you are actually gonna jump up to a SSD drive where you'll actually get hurt by this.
...And don't give me that lame 'I'll take my $1300 somewhere else then!' excuse. They have like $30B in reserves, they wipe their ass with your $1300. Trust me, they hardly bat an eye to 0.0005% of their market getting their panties in a knot over this.

You're completly underestimating yourself!
If i buy this computer, the HDD is more than enough for me BUT i'll problably expect it to last 4,5 years (at least they say the battery lasts that long) so it is logic to think that in 3 or 4 years time SSD drives will be more affordable than they are now. Don't you want THE OPTION of changing your computer drive and making it a little faster???
By the way if 100 of us don't buy the MBP because of this situation and we tell our friends about it, and they tell their friends and so on, maybe Apple loses much much more than a "simple" amount of 1300$

Maybe this situation is easier to solve than we think (I REALLY HOPE IT!!!) but i also believe( and by the way 58 pages of this really shows it) that Apple should say something about this whole situation! Once again my humble opinion.

 

[LEOMODE]

I found out something interesting today in Apple Store, Ginza, Japan

I went to the Genius bar to ask something else about my macbook pro, then I asked them about the 1.5gbps issue with the SATA.

They knew about the issue and they said it is set at 1.5gbps, and that it is rather hardware issue than the software issue.

Whatever he meant, I'm sure he is aware of the fact that the new macbook pros are shipped with 1.5gbps, but actually hardware is exactly the same one right?

He also knew that the CTO's that come with the SSD is still capped at 1.5gbps.
And he commented by saying you cannot change that to 3.0gbps because that's how the new model is for now.

So bottom line, he knew about the issue and he recalled it as a hardware issue rather than the software issue. Something interesting.

But for sure, he told me that he doubts the new software update or a firmware update would be occurred, regarding the fact that Apple have decided to cap this on 1.5gbps on purpose.

Who knows what Apple was thinking, but I'll say that this new model is just stuck with 1.5gbps whether it was hardware issue or software-capped it on purpose, so better look for refurbs or new ones on the previous UMBP, or just wait for the newer generation. previous one rocks though!

 

[TheBrew]

PC: Hello, I'm a PC
Mac: And I-m....A....M-A-C...
PC: Is there a problem MAC?
Mac: Hold on PC, my SATA interface just got downgraded from 3.0 Gb/s to 1.5 and I'm a little slow today.

LOL

 

[Jeanne-W]

PC: Hello, I'm a PC
Mac: And I-m....A....M-A-C...
PC: Is there a problem MAC?
Mac: Hold on PC, my SATA interface just got downgraded from 3.0 Gb/s to 1.5 and I'm a little slow today.
PC: Ah Ha! I knew you sucked, MAC! PC's - SATA II 3.0 Gb/s all the way!

Maybe we'll see this on Microsoft's next "PC" commercial? ouch!!
If they did I bet there would be a "fix" before the second one aired...bwahahahahah!

 

[Slogan]

Maybe we'll see this on Microsoft's next "PC" commercial? ouch!!
If they did I bet there would be a "fix" before the second one aired...bwahahahahah!

It would actually work as an advertisement so put your money on Microsoft going for an alternative type of ad which has no effect at all on the audience.

Unfortunately!

 

[relativist]

I get the feeling that there is some "engineer" somewhere that snobbishly decided that people don't need anything faster than 1.5GB/s. The problem is, now is the worse time to make such an assumption with SSD's getting cheaper and faster every day. I'm sticking to my guns, and not upgrading my MB to the MBP until this is resolved, and I'm recommending the same to others. In fact the new tech they put in the 13" MBP was sufficient for me to upgrade even though my ultimate goal is a 17" when the next intel cpu is out. But because the future is uncertain (economy) I do not want to risk getting stuck with a machine that has limitations it shouldn't.

 

[goMac]

As I suggested yesterday, maybe there has been a problem with the 3.0Gb SATA in ALL of the 9400M based products and Apple is just getting around to address it in the latest products (that would be the new 13" MacBook Pro and the newly redesigned 15" MacBook Pro). Thus, the "downgrade" to 1.5Gb SATA may be a "fix" and not an arbitrary bug or oversight.

But there hasn't been any problem, that's the thing. The new 15" Macbook Pro uses the exact same chipset as the 08 Unibody MBP. It uses the exact same optical drive. Neither part has changed and I haven't heard of any issues on the old modal....

 

[xlii]

I get the feeling that there is some "engineer" somewhere that snobbishly decided that people don't need anything faster than 1.5GB/s. The problem is, now is the worse time to make such an assumption with SSD's getting cheaper and faster every day. I'm sticking to my guns, and not upgrading my MB to the MBP until this is resolved, and I'm recommending the same to others. In fact the new tech they put in the 13" MBP was sufficient for me to upgrade even though my ultimate goal is a 17" when the next intel cpu is out. But because the future is uncertain (economy) I do not want to risk getting stuck with a machine that has limitations it shouldn't.

You read my mind or I yours. I just ordered the 13" MBP yesterday. My 2002 iBook died and it's just not worth paying to get it fixed. I really wanted the 17" MBP as it has more of what I want in a laptop. But I'd like to hold off on the power machine until the next generation of intel CPUs are here (sometime in early 2010 maybe).

I knew about the 1.5 SATA issue. I can't afford the SSD I'd like to put in the MBP now (I'd like a 500GB SSD). Figure that 500GB SSD will be $200 in about 4 years. So an SSD for me is down the road.

I hope that Apple fixes this for those who want to put an SSD in their machines now.

I had the chance yesterday to look at my daughters Nov 2006 15" MBP. It had the 1.5 SATA controller in it.

 

[Harthag]

This thread has been very helpful for me, thanks all for posting. I bought the 15" 2.8ghz MBP last week with the intent of upgrading to solid state and just browsed around here and stumbled into this. I've now checked this thread a zillion times for any news and have had enough For those on the fence just pick up a previous gen MBP, Best Buy near me still has the 15" 2.66 ghz for $1999. Did it, peace of mind, problem solved! Model is MC026LL/A.