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nayxn2nayxn

macrumors member
Original poster
Jun 12, 2008
36
0
Hey guys!

I'm new to the forum as you can tell with my first ever post. After 7 trusty years with my 3.2ghz sager np8890 notebook, it no longer can do the tasks that i need now. I am an animation/filmmaking student and have already been experiencing Apple computers at my school. They have plenty of iMACs and MacPros for us to use. I am, however, looking for a portable to replace my old 12 pounder. I am looking at a Macbook pro. I have looked everywhere online and it seems the best deal as of now is at the apple store with the education discount and the free ipod. I was wondering what would you guys rather get. Here are the two options that I'm looking to make the switch to...

-a 17in macbook pro hi-res glossy with a 2.5ghz/4GB ram

-or-

-a 15in macbook pro glossy with a 2.6ghz/4GB ram

I calculated the difference which is about ~$170 taking into account the student discount, free ipod, my 5% cashback bonus on my credit card, and tax.

Thanks!
 
Go for 2.5 on the MBP, not 2.6. If you want portability, go with the 15. BTW, I don't see how a Sager with those specs can be that old. More like 4-5 seems reasonable.
 
No brainer for me, this is the machine I wanted, but settled (with myself) for a blackbook

PS. The 3.2's didn't come out until 2003, so how is your machine 7 years old?

well i pre-ordered it in 2001 with a company overseas and i got it in the summer of 2002 for around $2500 including shipping. So i guess it would be 6 years. It is stated on the box as a 3.06ghz processor HT but my system info says its 3.2ghz. Back then, I was ahead of a lot of people in computers. Now it's just an old brick lol. I still love the 16.1in screen however.

I actually had a typo up there. I orginally stated it as a np8890 it's a np8880 model

i also found this on a random blog from http://forum.notebookreview.com/archive/index.php/t-34834.html


Warlock69
12-03-2007, 03:33 AM
Please state model, how long you've had it, and what, if any.. issues have popped up over the course of wear and tear :)

I have had a Sager NP8880 for aprox. 5 years or so. However, it has only worked for 6 months of that time frame. My first problem that required me to send it back into Sager was the failure of the power supply. 4 to 6 months after that, while using it, the computer simply stopped working. I tried to re-boot it but that was not an option. I have a light on the power supply, as well as light on the power LED too. That is as far as the booting up of my laptop goes. I have no idea what is wrong, and I would love for someone with a bit more knowledge than I have, please tell me what you think my problem could be. Thanks. :(

So he's been having his since 2002 too
 
go for the 15"

simply for the portable angle, 15" is easier to lug around

i went from 17" to 15" and never looked back

i hated carrying the 17" but have never minded toting the 15"

other things in my mind at least don't make much difference
 
Yeah, I agree with Kumbaya. If your gonna be on the move a lot, the 15" MBP would be your best option. The 17" is a bit heavy for the old lugging around and the 15" would be, IMO alright.

Hope this helps you somehow ;)
 
Thanks guys for your opinions. The only time I will be carrying this around is back and forth home and school on airplanes like 4 times a year. Other than that, it's pretty much stationary for animation projects and major digital painting. I think the 17 inch Hi-res will be suited because of the screen real estate. But, then again I keep thinking about the super portability of the 15 inch and with the $300 saved, invest in an 22in LED Dell monitor or some sort. Hopefully, I can stop by an Apple store and decide soon. I don't think 7 lbs or whatever it is will be too much of a hassle since I'm currently carrying around a 15 lb. "binder" computer.
 
I literally just unpacked my refurbished 2.5GHz 15" MBP and I am LOVING it.
It is plenty big enough for the things I want to do, is very portable, and is able to be hooked into an external display with ease for my work at the desk.
I tossed around the idea of the 17" but it's just too big for me as a notebook.


By the way, I somehow got a 2.6GHz as well...... at least that's what "About this Mac" tells me :)
And it was still at the refurbished price :D
 
I think if Apple offered the 15" with a 1680x1050 resolution it would destroy sales of the 17".

I think this is why they keep it the way it is :(

You can't go wrong with either one, and you are right, coming from a Sager monster, the 17" will still feel light as a feather to you. It is a LOT more expensive though, the 15" is a much better value, dollars/performance.
 
I'd recommend going with the 2.5GHz vs the 2.6... I doubt you'd see any difference at all in performance, and you'll save $250. I wanted the best of both worlds.... I wanted a very portable MBP, but also wanted lots of screen real estate when working in my home/office. I went with the 15" for portability and I plan to get a 30" ACD for the home/office... just waiting to see if they come out with an update soon... hopefully, with a built-in iSight.
 
Not on your list, but the 2.5GHz 15" would be my choice. I've used the 17" Powerbook but it was just too big for me to carry with me. I opted for the 15" as a compromise of screen real estate and portability. I also have an old Samsung LCD that I hook up at my desk.
 
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