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7200 Disk Upgrade in Unibody MacBook

T

tekilla

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 11, 2008
95
0
Afternoon,

I've done some searching and Google-ing but can't find a definitive answer about whether you can upgrade the HD in a Unibody MacBook with a 7,200rpm disk ?

I currently have a 2.4 MBP (Penryn) with the factory fitted 7,200rpm disk and really notice the difference when compared to my Dad's 2.4 Unibody. Being that the stats should be similar (or the Unibody MB quicker with a 1066fsb), I was surprised at the difference on bootup and in iMovie.

I previously upgraded the disk in my old white MacBook with a larger 5,400 using the SuperDuper method (Tiger, so before Time Machine restore was available), although noticed a strange issue afterwards. The machine would power on <pause> white screen <pause> Apple Logo <pause> Chimes <pause> Boot...
Would I be likely to see this again, or was this a one-off with either my cloned image or the replacement disk ?

If this is possible, I'm actually quite tempted to sell my MBP and buy a Unibody MacBook myself. I love the 15" screen on the Pro, but sometimes the appeal of a smaller machine is there :)

Thanks in advance.
 
tekilla said:
Afternoon,

I've done some searching and Google-ing but can't find a definitive answer about whether you can upgrade the HD in a Unibody MacBook with a 7,200rpm disk ?

I currently have a 2.4 MBP (Penryn) with the factory fitted 7,200rpm disk and really notice the difference when compared to my Dad's 2.4 Unibody. Being that the stats should be similar (or the Unibody MB quicker with a 1066fsb), I was surprised at the difference on bootup and in iMovie.

I previously upgraded the disk in my old white MacBook with a larger 5,400 using the SuperDuper method (Tiger, so before Time Machine restore was available), although noticed a strange issue afterwards. The machine would power on <pause> white screen <pause> Apple Logo <pause> Chimes <pause> Boot...
Would I be likely to see this again, or was this a one-off with either my cloned image or the replacement disk ?

If this is possible, I'm actually quite tempted to sell my MBP and buy a Unibody MacBook myself. I love the 15" screen on the Pro, but sometimes the appeal of a smaller machine is there :)

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

Yes, this is simple and can be done by removing just one screw (plus the ones on the drive itself). You could also put in an SSD if you want real speed (and have lots of money).
 
dwsolberg said:
Yes, this is simple and can be done by removing just one screw (plus the ones on the drive itself). You could also put in an SSD if you want real speed (and have lots of money).
Click to expand...

How much are we talking for SSD? I'm guessing it's cheaper than the factory fit Apple option?
So the 7,200 disk would work fine in a Unibody MB.. hmmm, tempting..
Anyone want a 2.4MBP ?;)
 
You may want to get with an apple authorized service provider and see how much they would charge you to put in a 7200 rpm hard drive.

I've got the 2.4, and I can tell a noticeable improvement in disk intensive activities, and boot up is much faster.

Unless you've got a MBP that's older than a year or two, you may get maximum bang for the buck by replacing your hard drive with a 7200 rpm. Or go to www.ifixit.com and see if you're up to replacing it yourself.
 
clyde2801 said:
You may want to get with an apple authorized service provider and see how much they would charge you to put in a 7200 rpm hard drive.

I've got the 2.4, and I can tell a noticeable improvement in disk intensive activities, and boot up is much faster.

Unless you've got a MBP that's older than a year or two, you may get maximum bang for the buck by replacing your hard drive with a 7200 rpm. Or go to www.ifixit.com and see if you're up to replacing it yourself.
Click to expand...

Thanks Clyde - I've already got the factory fit 7,200rpm disk in my 2.4 MacBook Pro, the question was more about upgrading to a 7,200 in a new Unibody MacBook.
If it's possible (which it sounds like), I'm tempted to sell my MacBook Pro (2.4 Penryn) and buy a new Unibody MacBook then upgrade the disk myself.

I always thought there'd be some sort of limitation on the motherboard of SATA controller that would limit the disk speed? If not, I don't see why Apple don't have the 7,200rpm as an upgrade on the MacBook as well as the MBP ?
 
tekilla said:
How much are we talking for a decent <128gb SSD ?
Click to expand...

The best bet for a fast SSD is OCZ's Vertex at $345 for 120 GB at newegg.com.

The best SSD is Intel's X-25M, but that will cost about $370 for just 80 GB or about $770 for 160 GB.

If you can't afford either the Vertex or the X25-M, don't buy a cheaper SSD. They aren't worth it.
 
Sorry about misreading your question. Yeah, if you've got a decent torx set, you can replace the had in a uni mb in about five minutes. Any notebook sized hd will do (9.5 mm).

But to be honest, I'd stick with what you have already. There's going to be no discernable performance difference, assuming you've got 4 gigs of ram along with the 7200 rpm hd, and the screen is a definite downgrade from what you've already got.
 
tekilla said:
How much are we talking for a decent <128gb SSD ?
Click to expand...

What dwsolberg said. Also SSD prices are dropping every 3/6 months or so for the capacity so I'd say hold out or buy now, either way, the HD is really the biggest bottleneck out there. No matter how fast the CPU is, the SSD makes EVERYTHING faster, not just calculations and stuff, but opening apps, booting, etc.
 
Yeh unless u really need the space. SSD is the way to go. Probably still to exy for most, but prices are going to be dropping from now on.
 
clyde2801 said:
Sorry about misreading your question. Yeah, if you've got a decent torx set, you can replace the had in a uni mb in about five minutes. Any notebook sized hd will do (9.5 mm).
Click to expand...

Am I right in guessing that any after market HDD upgrade (MB or MBP) would mean that you don't get the Sudden Motion sensor? Or is that somewhere else in the unit as opposed to on the disk itself ?
 
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