do yourself and your wallet a favor and just get the base model. I don't recommend throwing $500 in the trash which is what you'd be doing if you got the supposed "higher-end" model.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
2.4 or 2.66 MBP? (15.4")
- Thread starter fokket
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
do yourself and your wallet a favor and just get the base model. I don't recommend throwing $500 in the trash which is what you'd be doing if you got the supposed "higher-end" model.
It sure makes boot ups faster. After I put the scorpio black in my-now finacee's-macbook pro, I can tell a difference. The few times when I transfer files benefits as well. I just got a used 2.33 ghz mbp today with the hitachi 120 gig drive, and software update seems so slow...I realized it's the part where it's checking itself for updates that's the kicker.
I installed one in my friend's 2.4 ghz white macbook, and he's raving about the difference in his machine.
Oh yeah, and safari feels snappier.
I installed one in my friend's 2.4 ghz white macbook, and he's raving about the difference in his machine.
Oh yeah, and safari feels snappier.
I agree. If nothing else, remove the stock drive and put it in an external enclosure, replacing it with a 7200rpm model for ~$100 and having an extra drive as a bonus. As opposed to paying $50 for a 7200rpm drive with no second HD. Upgrade the RAM and it will be good for 3-4 years to come
If I set the RAM as 4GB and 7200RPM 250GB for both 2.4 and 2.66,
The price difference is still about $350, difference being the CPU and RAM for graphics card. I do not see myself needing extra 256MB V-RAM, so it boils down to CPU..
Goddammit it's really difficult to decide.
I DO have the money, but I can't justify spending another 350 just for the CPU. I know you get more V-RAM, but that's not my concern, but I will moan about the extra performance
The price difference is still about $350, difference being the CPU and RAM for graphics card. I do not see myself needing extra 256MB V-RAM, so it boils down to CPU..
Goddammit it's really difficult to decide.
I DO have the money, but I can't justify spending another 350 just for the CPU. I know you get more V-RAM, but that's not my concern, but I will moan about the extra performance
if you can't justify spending the $350, then DON'T. your decision has been made, hurry and order the 2.4. The sooner you decide the sooner that beautiful slab of aluminium will be in your hands
Buy the 2.4 GHz and never look back. The $300+ you save will buy you a lot more in a couple of years when you have to upgrade next. .26 GHz, +3 MB L2 cache and a bit more VRAM (on a weak graphics card so it doesn't make that much of a difference), isn't worth it. On the update front, there is an Intel price drop at the end of May. Whether Apple will bump processors in line with that (2.53/2.66 GHz and 2.8 GHz models?) for back-to-school season is anyone's guess.
I think it's a bit naive to say that SSDs are rubbish. It's a dramatic difference in using the computer-especially a laptop. I think SSDs have been proven and are great additions to a computer---what you could say is that SSDs are way too expensive right now, which I'd be inclined to agree with, but at the current price, I think the improvements are very much worth it. Upgrading the RAM is important, but if you ask me whether between going from 2GB RAM -> 4GB RAM or going from HDD to SSD, which was most important--I'd without a doubt say the HDD upgrade (but it was also about 4x more expensive of an upgrade).
I would get the 2.66 as it is already set up form the start with 6mb cache, which makes a difference 4gb of ram and a 320gb HDD. But tehn again i am lazy and like to have everything the way I like it.
My 2.4 I added a 500gb HDD and 4gb of ram brought from apple. It is noticeably slower in my mind anyway then my 2.66. But most likely this is in my head.
My 2.4 I added a 500gb HDD and 4gb of ram brought from apple. It is noticeably slower in my mind anyway then my 2.66. But most likely this is in my head.
Agreed. Buy your own hard drive (you can even buy a 500 GB 7200rpm one nowadays) and use the original for backup or you could even sell it.
Congrats. I do relatively the same thing (Graphic design, picture editing, etc.) and I've got a 2.4 GHz. Then again, I'm not really as power user then you, often having only one picture open at a time, etc. I still didn't see the 2.4GHz limitation so far (apart in really CPU intensive apps like Phun), I've topped 9400m a few time and the 9600mGT is still not used at full potential. You'll love your MBP.
Then it comes down to two thing: Do you need portability OR desk use only is right for you?
Well I actually wanted to get 2.93 iMac with HD4850 or Mac Pro (cheaper one), but since I NEED portability I decided to go with MBP
I'm hoping the future work buys me a decent desktop though!
I should note that this is the first time me buying a laptop.
I'm hoping the future work buys me a decent desktop though!
I should note that this is the first time me buying a laptop.