A few questions about the Macbook Pro?

[tombewick]

Right, I've been wanting a MacBook Pro for a few years now, and I'll finally be at the stage where I can afford one and the upgrades below in about 2 months time. I've decided to go for the none retina 13" 2.9GHz i7 with the 1TB HDD everything else will be standard.

I'm wanting to install the Samsung 840 256gb SSD (as well as having the 1TB HDD, Removing the optical drive and replacing it with a hard drive caddy) + 2x Kingston HyperX 8gb DDR3 1600mhz, However not being someone who has used a Mac before, Do you think that I would find it daunting to change the hardware out, is it different to a windows PC/Laptop or are the principles the same?

Once you change the hardware of the computer does that void the warranty?

Have any other of you guys had similar upgrades to the same machine, does it run noticeably better, Smoother, Faster or is it not worth upgrading to that extent?

As I say I'm a windows guy that's moving over to the dark side take it easy on me lol, Thanks Tom.

 

[KUguardgrl13]

Right, I've been wanting a MacBook Pro for a few years now, and I'll finally be at the stage where I can afford one and the upgrades below in about 2 months time. I've decided to go for the none retina 13" 2.9GHz i7 with the 1TB HDD everything else will be standard.

I'm wanting to install the Samsung 840 256gb SSD (as well as having the 1TB HDD, Removing the optical drive and replacing it with a hard drive caddy) + 2x Kingston HyperX 8gb DDR3 1600mhz, However not being someone who has used a Mac before, Do you think that I would find it daunting to change the hardware out, is it different to a windows PC/Laptop or are the principles the same?

Once you change the hardware of the computer does that void the warranty?

Have any other of you guys had similar upgrades to the same machine, does it run noticeably better, Smoother, Faster or is it not worth upgrading to that extent?

As I say I'm a windows guy that's moving over to the dark side take it easy on me lol, Thanks Tom.

iFixit.com is a good place to find guides for how to replace parts in just about any Apple product. They have detailed instructions and photos. They do tend to use "necessary" repair tools that they sell, but usually you don't actually need them.

Replacing the RAM is incredibly easy. The slots are stacked, but you just pull the tabs apart and they pop right out. I did it on my mid-2009 MBP.

I only know a little bit about replacing the hard drive, but the physical process is also pretty easy, and iFixit has a good guide.

I've never installed the optibay system, but several posters around here have.

 

[Agent-P]

In my 2010 MBP I pretty much did exactly what you want to do (replace the RAM myself and add an SSD while moving the HDD to the spot for the external drive). If you're already familiar with replacing parts in Windows computers then this won't be significantly different. I used iFixit's guide to show me which screws and such to remove. Super easy and I managed to complete everything in about an hour. I wouldn't expect you to have any problems with it if you're taking the proper precautions.

 

[terzinator]

OWC has some great videos for how to do the swaps. (I did it on my Early 2011 MBP. Piece of cake.)

I can't say that you'll void your warranty, but if you ever need to bring it into the Apple Store for AppleCare work or anything, I would be prepared to put the original stuff back.

 

[tombewick]

Thanks

Thanks guy's you've cleared some things up for me.

I may post another thread once I have all the parts ready to be installed, and let you guys know how I get on. Thanks - Tom.