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Should I update RAM, Hard Drive or... both

What should I do

  • Upgrade to 2GB or RAM

    Votes: 6 15.8%

  • Upgrade to 4GB of RAM

    Votes: 11 28.9%

  • Upgrade Hard Drive to 160 GB and upgrade the memory to 2GB

    Votes: 3 7.9%

  • Upgrade the Hard Drive to 160 GB and upgrade the memory to 4GB

    Votes: 21 55.3%
  • Total voters
    38
S

soupyjnr

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 12, 2008
251
0
Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
Hey Guys

So I wasnt going to pay £90 to upgrade my MacBook to 2GB or RAM, so I thought I would just buy the basic macbook and upgrade from there.

I will be using my computer for photos and music, making presentations and slide shows etc. - so would I be better upgrading my RAM to 2 GB or 4 GB, or updating my Hard Drive to 160 GB? Or would it be good to do both?

Ive added a poll so please vote and leave a comment :)

Thanks for your help
 
It is always good to have the biggest hard drive you can get, but for your needs I would say you should save yourself a few bucks and only get 2GB of memory.
 
If you are just using the MB as storage, then a bigger HD is what you need (you can always put them on a CD/USB thumbdrive). If you are working with the pics then max out on the RAM.

I would personally max out the RAM as it will help with everything on the Mac, especially if you use BootCamp, and then move the pics off to other devices, external HD/USB/CD.
 
i just updated to 2gb of ram and a 160gb hard drive, i also got an enclosure so i can use my old hd as an external:D:D:D
 
As you have relatively simple requirements, I would go with the 2GB memory upgrade.
 
Regardless of what you do with your machine, upgrading to 2GB will be the single best option. 1GB with MacOS X 10.4 or 10.5 is what I would consider to be the minimum usable amount.

Only you can determine if you need more HD space. There will be little significant speed increase in going with a larger drive.

On a cost-benefit consideration, RAM is probably best.
 
Just bought the latest BlackBook and orderd 4gh of Ram from crucial! So excited for the Ram to arrive this week. Sweet. :D
 
Crucial are great - i've put their ram in all the macs i've had and delivery is always quick.
 
Suggestion: don't use multiple-choice polls. They make it impossible to tell how many people actually voted, and what they voted for.

That said, I'd upgrade the memory. There's no need to upgrade the drive unless you're running out of space.
 
Oh and with regard to what to upgrade. Keep in mind that it's much more hassle to upgrade a hard disk once you have used your computer for some time as you have to transfer files and programs. I'd suggest getting the hard disk first.

When I got my macbook, I even waited a day before turning it on so I could put a 250 GB HD in.
 
Fezzasus said:
Oh and with regard to what to upgrade. Keep in mind that it's much more hassle to upgrade a hard disk once you have used your computer for some time as you have to transfer files and programs. I'd suggest getting the hard disk first.

When I got my macbook, I even waited a day before turning it on so I could put a 250 GB HD in.
Click to expand...

/agree

how much did that set you back? sounds great. i wouldnt need that much. i keep my games/movies on my desktop, and jus transfer my movie to my mac when im going away for a bit. 80 gigs free is plenty
 
modesty said:
/agree

how much did that set you back? sounds great. i wouldnt need that much. i keep my games/movies on my desktop, and jus transfer my movie to my mac when im going away for a bit. 80 gigs free is plenty
Click to expand...

I have two networked, wireless hard drives that I used for my music and movies when I had my iBook with an 80 GB hard drive (upgraded from 40 GB). I found that I'd prefer to have my itunes library on my laptop rather than a hard disk, because I do some radio work it's fairly large and I needed the 250 GB to have the music and some free space.

It was £100 at the time, I think it's close to £60 now.
 
Fezzasus said:
I have two networked, wireless hard drives that I used for my music and movies when I had my iBook with an 80 GB hard drive (upgraded from 40 GB). I found that I'd prefer to have my itunes library on my laptop rather than a hard disk, because I do some radio work it's fairly large and I needed the 250 GB to have the music and some free space.

It was £100 at the time, I think it's close to £60 now.
Click to expand...

im jealous >.<
 
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