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7200 RPM upgrade? Did I make a mistake?

V

vbman213

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Apr 13, 2010
353
0
So last week I ordered my 15" MBP

Core i7, 4GB ram, high-res glossy, and 7200 rpm drive

I've been using glossy laptop screens for many many years now. I'm currently typing on a 4 year old Toshiba with a glossy screen. And honestly, I didn't really start to notice "glare" until I was trying to decide on which MBP screen to get.

Glare does not bother me. I don't do any professional work that requires "color" accuracy. I do like higher resolutions screens, and the 1440x900 resolution looks very "elementary" to my eye. 1680x1050 has more of a "Pro" feel to it.

I didn't upgrade the RAM as that is something I can do later on. I did however upgrade to the 7200 RPM drive. Only cost me 45 bucks.

I've heard some people complaining about the noise/vibrations. Did I make a mistake on this upgrade?

I upgraded to the 7200 RPM to hold me over until I can get enough money to buy a decent SSD.
 
For the price you paid for it, and considering you are only going to use it until you are able to get a SSD (same situation here), it was a good deal.
 
I normally carry the small apple wireless keyboard with me so I never noticed any vibration after upgrading to a 500GB 7200 rpm drive. But today I forgot the ext keyboard in the ofc and I'm amazed to find significant vibration with this 13" MBP. I guess it depends on the brand but this seagate really vibrates. Perhaps it's time to put a 5400 rpm 750GB in there.
 
panzer06 said:
I normally carry the small apple wireless keyboard with me so I never noticed any vibration after upgrading to a 500GB 7200 rpm drive. But today I forgot the ext keyboard in the ofc and I'm amazed to find significant vibration with this 13" MBP. I guess it depends on the brand but this seagate really vibrates. Perhaps it's time to put a 5400 rpm 750GB in there.
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Wow.

Its kinda funny actually, but my purchasing experience with buying my Macbook Pro has been the single most stressful buying experience I've ever had.

So many options. I find it very unsettling that even though Apple offers a "upgrade" 7200 RPM that people find it annoyingly loud.

I just hope that I didn't blow 2100 bucks. I hope that I made the right purchase decision. I've been saving for a few years for this Macbook pro, and it will be accompanying me to college this fall.

I could always ebay my free 8gb iPod Touch, use that money to pay the restocking fee. Buy a new macbook pro with 5400 RPM, and then ebay my second free iPod Touch ;)
 
I would be willing to net one you except the ipod rebate, you can't return the mbp without the ipod/can't return it at all.
 
Noise with the 7200 drive? With my i5 2.53 the 7200 drive does not make any loud noises and in fact it is quieter than the 5400 WD Scorpio in my Macbook.
 
dubels said:
Noise with the 7200 drive? With my i5 2.53 the 7200 drive does not make any loud noises and in fact it is quieter than the 5400 WD Scorpio in my Macbook.
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Thanks for your reply.

I'm just a little nervous. I just spent A TON of money on this. I want to make sure that I didn't make a mistake that I will regret later on.

That is why I opted for the Core i7. I figure, I can't upgrade that later on. So I needed to go ahead and buy it now.
 
Even IF you absolutely hate the vibration of the 7200 RPM drive, you can replace it with a 500gb (or larger) 5400 rpm drive starting at around $50. Then put the 7200 rpm drive into an external enclosure and use it as your time machine or even a media drive. It's a win-win situation.
 
alust2013 said:
Don't worry about it. It has slightly more vibration than the 5400, but the people who complain a lot are just being picky.
Click to expand...

Agreed when I upgraded I notice more vibrations but only when I rest my hand right on the drive. While typing or using the trackpad it's not noticable. I don't hear any more or less noise. The extra speed for feeling a little more vibrations when resting my hand on the MacBook during writers block is a small price.

Seriously dude, chill out and stop over thinking stuff. You'll give yourself a sotmach ulcer.
 
MikeinJapan said:
Agreed when I upgraded I notice more vibrations but only when I rest my hand right on the drive. While typing or using the trackpad it's not noticable. I don't hear any more or less noise. The extra speed for feeling a little more vibrations when resting my hand on the MacBook during writers block is a small price.

Seriously dude, chill out and stop over thinking stuff. You'll give yourself a sotmach ulcer.
Click to expand...


Do mouth ulcers count? I have a few of those right now. I get them when I'm under stress. I wonder why lol

edit:

Speaking of upgrading hard drive later on, how durable are the screws on MBP? I've upgraded hard drives on several Toshiba's and HP's in my day, and some screws really suck. Easy to accidently strip. What's the chances of damaging a MBP while doing a hard drive upgrade?
 
vbman213 said:
Do mouth ulcers count? I have a few of those right now. I get them when I'm under stress. I wonder why lol

edit:

Speaking of upgrading hard drive later on, how durable are the screws on MBP? I've upgraded hard drives on several Toshiba's and HP's in my day, and some screws really suck. Easy to accidently strip. What's the chances of damaging a MBP while doing a hard drive upgrade?
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Wow man, buying a new Mac is suppose to be fun, you're the first person I've ever read here that thought Apple had too many options when customizing their new Mac purchase, LOL , if you truly feel this stressed you should call Apple and just cancel the order and maybe do this later or not at all. In terms of the screws, there are several people here that have stripped their screws when replacing hard drives on their MBP, it's best to check out iFixit or some YouTube videos upon switching out hard drives to reduce any chance of errors.
 
HLdan said:
Wow man, buying a new Mac is suppose to be fun, you're the first person I've ever read here that thought Apple had too many options when customizing their new Mac purchase, LOL , if you truly feel this stressed you should call Apple and just cancel the order and maybe do this later or not at all. In terms of the screws, there are several people here that have stripped their screws when replacing hard drives on their MBP, it's best to check out iFixit or some YouTube videos upon switching out hard drives to reduce any chance of errors.
Click to expand...

In all honesty, it doesn't matter what I purchase, I always get like this. I worry about everything. I stress myself out.

I'm sure I will be a happy camper on Thursday when Fedex delivers my first MBP!

Ordering my iPhone 4 will be much less stressful. =)
 
Too many options? Go take a look at any big PC manufacturer. If I wanted to buy a Dell laptop, the amount of possible upgrades that I could make would total more than all of Apple's upgrades combined.
 
noodle654 said:
Too many options? Go take a look at any big PC manufacturer. If I wanted to buy a Dell laptop, the amount of possible upgrades that I could make would total more than all of Apple's upgrades combined.
Click to expand...

It really isn't "too many options", it is finding the configuration that fits "me".
 
vbman213 said:
Do mouth ulcers count? I have a few of those right now. I get them when I'm under stress. I wonder why lol
Click to expand...

That's how they start, leave the stuff that is done done and do the stuff you can do. Screw the rest. Took me 3 years out of uni and 4 months of stomach ulcers to get that. I still get the odd mouth ulcer here and there. They are the warnings to chill out. I have one now from a Japanese test I have been studying too hard for. Chill out PS3 week is coming.
 
I worry a lot with any purchase, but I'm very happy with my MBP. It took me two tries to buy it. I called in returns - no problem, but when I did go though with it I was happy.

I upgraded to a Hathachi 7200 rpm 500gb Travelstar myself. I watched the web video and worked slowly. My drive does not vibrate and actually seems to use less battery power.

I'm sure it will all work out for you.
 
Fedex came today!

2 Days early than what the "estimated" delivery date was!!!!

I LOVE THIS MACHINE! Been using it for a few hours now.

The glossy display is amazing! Yes there is glare, but I haven't really noticed. The screen is just so crisp and clear!

I actually forgot about the 7200 RPM upgrade while I was unboxing. I don't notice it at all! The only thing I hear is the fans. Which is totally normal.

Everything works great!

I think the 7200 RPM drive was a good upgrade. It is definitely faster than the 5400 RPM in my old laptop.

Right now I'm transferring my documents and iTunes library over. And installing all my updates.

It shipped with 10.6.3
 
No issues here with my 7200RPM drive and the response time is noticeable. Best decision I've ever made!
 
howardnow said:
I upgraded to a Hathachi 7200 rpm 500gb Travelstar myself. I watched the web video and worked slowly. My drive does not vibrate and actually seems to use less battery power.

I'm sure it will all work out for you.
Click to expand...

Yup, I got the same Hitachi - don't notice any change in vibration or power consumption. Perhaps it's a little hotter than it used to be, but not so's I notice.

The thing I really do notice is lots more space. Oh wait, I filled it up already...
 
vbman213 said:
Fedex came today!

2 Days early than what the "estimated" delivery date was!!!!

I LOVE THIS MACHINE! Been using it for a few hours now.

The glossy display is amazing! Yes there is glare, but I haven't really noticed. The screen is just so crisp and clear!

I actually forgot about the 7200 RPM upgrade while I was unboxing. I don't notice it at all! The only thing I hear is the fans. Which is totally normal.

Everything works great!

I think the 7200 RPM drive was a good upgrade. It is definitely faster than the 5400 RPM in my old laptop.

Right now I'm transferring my documents and iTunes library over. And installing all my updates.

It shipped with 10.6.3
Click to expand...


Congrats!! I hope your stress has turned into excitement now. :). I love mine as well, I just got it 2 weeks ago with the Antiglare screen. If you're cool with the reflections then enjoy.
 
Ordering my iPhone 4 will be much less stressful. =)

Reviews have picked up some defects with regard to reception - so you may want to wait a little bit.

Glad your new MBP is everything you hoped for!!!
 
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