Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

13" MBP SSD, yes yes or no no?

A

AppleLou

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 7, 2011
24
0
Just wondering if I should add the SSD to a 13" MBP I plan on buying (maybe tomorrow.. who knows)?

I know there's a pretty big increase in speed but i'm just wondering if it's THAT important.

Also, will changing the harddrive to a solid state drive void the warranty of the machine?

Thanks.
 
AppleLou said:
Just wondering if I should add the SSD to a 13" MBP I plan on buying (maybe tomorrow.. who knows)?

I know there's a pretty big increase in speed but i'm just wondering if it's THAT important.

Also, will changing the harddrive to a solid state drive void the warranty of the machine?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

HDD is a user replaceable part, so it will not void your warranty.

What year is your MBP? If its a 2011 go with a SATA3 SSD, if its not 2011 go with a SATA2.


Wether or not its important is dictated by what you do in your laptop. If you do a lot of disk usage then the SSD will help you a LOT, if you mostly do email, internet and documents then its not really worth it.
 
altecXP said:
HDD is a user replaceable part, so it will not void your warranty.

What year is your MBP? If its a 2011 go with a SATA3 SSD, if its not 2011 go with a SATA2.


Wether or not its important is dictated by what you do in your laptop. If you do a lot of disk usage then the SSD will help you a LOT, if you mostly do email, internet and documents then its not really worth it.
Click to expand...

Ah good, didn't want to void the warranty!

And it's going to be the 2011 13" base model.

I'm only really going to use it for general use, travelling (does it have any effect on battery life?) and probably playing a few games (just like minecraft and WoW).

Maybe I could just see how it is for a while and upgrade to a SSD at a later date if I find it slow..
 
I would order it stock and see how it feels for you. If you do get a SSD down the road then you get the stock drive for Time Machine or whatever backup solution you choose. Don't worry about SATA II or SATA III. Find the best capacity and price that fits your needs. You're not going to notice the difference between any SSD from a reputable brand with your use. Very few in general would.
 
AppleLou said:
Ah good, didn't want to void the warranty!

And it's going to be the 2011 13" base model.

I'm only really going to use it for general use, travelling (does it have any effect on battery life?) and probably playing a few games (just like minecraft and WoW).

Maybe I could just see how it is for a while and upgrade to a SSD at a later date if I find it slow..
Click to expand...

Well, the SSD will certainly help with gaming performance. As far as price goes, you'll have to decide if it is REALLY worth it for you. I, personally, would choose an SSD over an HDD just because of their lifespan and reliability.
 
gorskiegangsta said:
Which is a big part of RPGs like WoW.

I get what you're saying though, the SSD is not the same as upgrading the GPU. I wasn't trying to make it sound that way.
Click to expand...

Yes, but unelss you are in Org, the alliance city or Dalaran you wont really notice it, and its like 20sec of non-combat. so it really has no effect on game play.
 
As of right now, the factory SSD used by Apple (Toshiba made) is unquestionably the most reliable SSD when used on the 2011 MacBook Pros. Also, upgrading to a 120SSD is 100usd, which is pretty cheap. Is it worth it? IMO, if you DON'T have a SSD than you are not getting your money's worth given the computer's overall performance capability.
 
NickZac said:
As of right now, the factory SSD used by Apple (Toshiba made) is unquestionably the most reliable SSD when used on the 2011 MacBook Pros. Also, upgrading to a 120SSD is 100usd, which is pretty cheap. Is it worth it? IMO, if you DON'T have a SSD than you are not getting your money's worth given the computer's overall performance capability.
Click to expand...

That all depends on what you are doing. SOme things require a LOT more GPU, CPU or RAM than they do HD, and for them upgrading your HDD will only have very marginal improvements.
 
altecXP said:
That all depends on what you are doing. SOme things require a LOT more GPU, CPU or RAM than they do HD, and for them upgrading your HDD will only have very marginal improvements.
Click to expand...

The load speed seems to make everyone happy, although you are absolutely right as it varies by usage. But clicking on MS Word or Firefox and having it load instantaneously is nice. Once you get used to that and compare it to a HDD, it becomes hard to go back IMO.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back