13" MBP wisest configuration to order ?

[entatlrg]

I've decided on the 2.5ghz but there's a lot of opinions on which Hard Drive to order with it.

# 250GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm
# 320GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm
# 500GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm
# 128GB solid-state drive
# 256GB solid-state drive

I'd like the latest and greatest and don't feel like changing the HD myself so was me ordering the 256 ssd a good move?


Thanks for your input.

 

[Sun Baked]

Depends, if you normally don't download and keep a bunch of stuff on the drive you can go SSD.

Otherwise the money is likely better spent on the largest HD you can buy, the 500GB.

Since you tend to run out of room far faster over 2-3 years, than you decide your drive is pathetically slow.

 

[Hellhammer]

Get SSD if you can afford it. It's best HD available

 

[J&JPolangin]

...seriously, get the smallest option avail and DIY so you get a back up drive in the process for much less $$...

 

[neiltc13]

There is no reason to buy the 2.5GHz model - it isn't really any better than the cheaper one. Yes, you'll get an extra 300MHz clock speed on the CPU but it is still the same CPU - the difference in performance will be negligible at best and most likely invisible in day to day use.

Buy the cheapest model - 2GB is more than enough RAM for most people.

 

[quasinormal]

Buy stock. I assume Australia is the same as everywhere else, in that a stock computer can be returned for any reason, while a built to order can't.

 

[Bengt77]

There is no reason to buy the 2.5GHz model - it isn't really any better than the cheaper one. Yes, you'll get an extra 300MHz clock speed on the CPU but it is still the same CPU - the difference in performance will be negligible at best and most likely invisible in day to day use.

Buy the cheapest model - 2GB is more than enough RAM for most people.

Quite true, indeed. The only things that differentiate the two models are 2GB of RAM, 90GB of hard drive space, and 2x0,27GHz processor speed. The cost of upgrading the RAM and hard drive to match the 2,53GHz model's specifications cost $150. That means that the very small speed upgrade costs a whopping $150. Not worth it in my opinion, either.

Having that said, I think the OP should buy a fast, big external hard drive himself and swap the drive that's in there with the drive in his MacBook Pro. The 500GB upgrade from the Apple Store costs $150, which is of course cheaper than what my linked solution costs. But the 500GB drive Apple offers as an option is only 5400rpm, while the OWC offer gets you a 7200rpm drive plus an external enclosure for $240. Very much worth it to have a backup drive plus a faster internal drive for only $90 extra.

 

[eXan]

Niether.

Get the low-end model. 2 GB RAM is enough for most people indeed and if you decide to upgrade you can easily do it and even save some money. As for HD, well Apple's upgrade prices are very high so I suggest you either get a 3rd party internal drive (this way you can use the stock 160 GB as portable drive if you put it into enclosure) or a 3.5" Firewire 800 drive if you don't need all your data with you.

The CPU difference is basically unnoticeable. If I replaced your 2.53 with 2.26 you would never know until I told you I did.