Any way at all to upgrade the CPU in a MacBook Pro?

[ultra7k]

Think about what you're asking. You want to upgrade from a c2d to a sandy bridge CPU. Not only are they different sockets, you probably need new RAM. Sorry if you can't afford a new computer, too bad. As you say, we are in a first world country, you should be able to make enough money to purchase a new laptop.

Having recently come from PC myself, let me add my 2 cents.

C2D is what now, at least 3 generations old. So let's say you could upgrade your MBP C2D to something that is also in the C2D line. Chances are it wouldn't be much better anyways.

You can't go from C2D to the current sockets anyways. The only people that might allow for that leeway is AMD, with their AM2/3+ sockets. Even with that you'd need new RAM, not to mention you also have to weigh whether or not the power consumption would be well suited if you decided to upgrade....thereby making compromises.

While your brothers' laptops may have upgradeable laptops that extend beyond RAM and HDD...honestly, not that many people decide to upgrade their processors in their laptops.

They are too disposable in this day and age, especially if they are of the $500 variety. That's just a reality of living in the first world (really, developed country is the more appropriate term), you can't really have it both ways.

Really, in this case calling Apple stupid for not making more upgradable MBPs because they want to make money(!), then turning around and saying you live in the first world (really, developed country) and shouldn't have to buy a new computer every 2 years...is just...I don't even.

Clearly you are not satisfied with your MBP because it no longer suits your needs, so maybe you should opt for the more upgradable $500 laptops, you'll miss it less when you shove it off your desk.

Then again, since you have shoved it off your desk and it lies in pieces, you could always buy a new one, shove that one off it's desk and put it's innards into your 2010....

 

[Stetrain]

Well first i got the stupid thing 2 years ago which was well before I started doing animation and video. And no i shouldn't have to buy a whole new computer to replace one that's a mere 2 years old.

So you admit your computing needs changed drastically, and you're upset that a computer that you bought for a completely different purpose is no longer enough?

And yes you can totally replace the CPU in plenty of laptops out there. My brothers old acer had an upgradable CPU, my other brothers old dell had an upgradable CPU, my brothers current Asus has an upgradable CPU, and amazingly enough my other brothers 13 inch Lenovo has an upgradable CPU. So 4/4 clearly it's not uncommon and these aren't expensive high end laptops there everyday 500$ ones. My brothers Lenovo is almost identical size and thickness as my MacBook Pro so if Lenovo can fit an upgradable CPU into it I'm sure apple could have done it with the MacBook Pro.

Do any of those laptops allow you to upgrade between CPU/socket generations? I highly doubt it. Even if your Macbook Pro had a socketed CPU you could most likely only upgrade it to a faster Core 2 Duo.

PS: I'm still rocking a 2008 13" Aluminum Macbook with a Core 2 Duo. Upgraded to 4GB RAM and a 128GB SSD and it's great for what I use it for, which is mostly coding. Understanding your computing needs and how they relate to your computer's capabilities is important.

 

[SDAVE]

Mine is a mid 2010 13" MacBook Pro, and its just an awful piece of junk lately. And I know the cause is the Core 2 Duo CPU. Its to old and slow to do anything processor intensive. I can't render in Maya or adobe after effects, I can barely play certain games because the physics engines are to CPU dependant.

I know the CPU is soldered to the logic board, but is there a way to put a logic board with say a core i5 or core i7 on it into mine? Or there was a company that you could send old iMac G3 logic boards to and they would de-solder the CPU and put a faster one on, is there something like that for MacBook Pro's?

I really don't think I should have to buy a whole new computer when this ones only 2 years old. Apple is so stupid when it comes to designing computers. Who cares if its thin if I can't upgrade anything on it? Honestly I might not ever buy another apple computer if they keep making them less upgradable. They're all about the environment then they should make it more upgradable so theres less waste.

WHY?

Best update you can do is to pop in an SSD. Then run over your laptop and buy a new one.

 

[wickedking94]

Why don't I buy a cheap 500$ laptop? Because I like Mac OS way more than windows, not to mention all my software is for Mac.
And yes I get it they change the stupid CPU socket. Then my complaint no longer lies with apple it lies with the entire computer industry not making things a little more future proof.

And btw my MacBook is fine it fell 3 feet into a pile of laundry.

 

[g8rduc]

You complain about things that are your fault, you throw your computer like a spoiled brat, you have a computer that isn't up to the task that you need it to be and it's the computer's fault, you whine and bitch about the lack of CPU upgradability, your "slow" computer, etc.

Delete the thread and start over or even do a search on how to make your 2 year old MBP faster. It's not that difficult.

Oh yes I'm totally a troll.
Why don't I buy a cheap 500$ laptop? Because I like Mac OS way more than windows, not to mention all my software is for Mac.
And yes I get it they change the stupid CPU socket. Then my complaint no longer lies with apple it lies with the entire computer industry not making things a little more future proof.

And btw my MacBook is fine it fell 3 feet into a pile of laundry.

 

[wickedking94]

Also, to those people telling me to get a job, I have been trying for 2 years. Unfortunately I live in a tiny town with at most a dozen places to work and about 1000 other people in my age group. Otherwise I wouldn't be trying to find a way around getting a new computer

----------

You complain about things that are your fault, you throw your computer like a spoiled brat, you have a computer that isn't up to the task that you need it to be and it's the computer's fault, you whine and bitch about the lack of CPU upgradability, your "slow" computer, etc.

Delete the thread and start over or even do a search on how to make your 2 year old MBP faster. It's not that difficult.

Lets see how to make a Mac work faster... Max out the ram to 8GB? Did that. Putting in an SSD won't make the CPU faster.

And I didn't "throw" my MacBook I slid it sideways off my desk into a laundry basket. I knew the laundry was there it had a nice soft landing and its fine

And how is it my fault? When I bought this computer most computers both Mac and PC were still using core 2 duo CPUs. I had no idea that in less than a year they were getting replaced with the Core i series.

 

[g8rduc]

You pushed your laptop off of the desk out of anger...wow. You're pushing the max out of your laptop, good for you. So stop bitching about it. Either move to another area and find a job or change jobs. It's life. You're whining about a computer that's still considered a luxury for a lot of people. It doesn't do what you need it to? Then do what you can to find a way around it. Surf the first page of your own thread, you did nothing but bitch about Apple when it's nothing to do with them.

Lets see how to make a Mac work faster... Max out the ram to 8GB? Did that. Putting in an SSD won't make the CPU faster.

And I didn't "throw" my MacBook I slid it sideways off my desk into a laundry basket. I knew the laundry was there it had a nice soft landing and its fine

And how is it my fault? When I bought this computer most computers both Mac and PC were still using core 2 duo CPUs. I had no idea that in less than a year they were getting replaced with the Core i series.

 

[Furifo]

Why don't I buy a cheap 500$ laptop? Because I like Mac OS way more than windows, not to mention all my software is for Mac.
And yes I get it they change the stupid CPU socket. Then my complaint no longer lies with apple it lies with the entire computer industry not making things a little more future proof.

And btw my MacBook is fine it fell 3 feet into a pile of laundry.

Wow. You honestly sound like my five year old cousin.

I'm not posting this to actively flame you, I'm just trying to help you out a little bit...

1) You didn't really plan for the future properly. If you were planning on keeping the machine for more than 3 years, you should have realised in 2010 that your C2D MBP was going to struggle.

Really what you should have done was save up a few extra $ and buy a 2010 15" MBP (2.4ghz i5/nvidia 330M GT card) which WAS available at the time you bought yours. It probably would have suited you alot better till now.

2) You can't really blame the "entire computer industry" for moving forward and innovating new technology rather than wasting time planning on supporting 5 year old tech.

The fact of the matter is that the majority of people don't even think to upgrade the CPU on their laptops so why should Intel waste time and money in thinking up ways in which to do that?

3) You really shouldn't have bought a computer without a discrete graphics card with the intention of gaming. Seriously.

I'm using the very same machine that you are right now and with 8GB ram + an SSD, it flies through my day to day tasks. Yes, processor intensive tasks are slow and yes modern games don't play very well but I wouldn't go so far as calling it 'junk'.

Do what I'm doing - save up for next years batch of computers (15" rMBP 2nd gen, I'm looking at YOU), sell your computer when the time comes and buy a new one that fits your needs better.

 

[wickedking94]

And really, to anyone who's good with computers would you rather spend 200$ every two years on a CPU upgrade to stay current, or would you rather buy a new computer every two years or have to spend 4000$ on a fully loaded iMac just so it's future proof?

And it's not even just about cost. E-waste is a huge problem and making computers less fixable and less upgradeable is a bad way to go about fixing the problem.

 

[76ShovelHead]

Mine is a mid 2010 13" MacBook Pro, and its just an awful piece of junk lately. And I know the cause is the Core 2 Duo CPU. Its to old and slow to do anything processor intensive. I can't render in Maya or adobe after effects, I can barely play certain games because the physics engines are to CPU dependant.

I know the CPU is soldered to the logic board, but is there a way to put a logic board with say a core i5 or core i7 on it into mine? Or there was a company that you could send old iMac G3 logic boards to and they would de-solder the CPU and put a faster one on, is there something like that for MacBook Pro's?

I really don't think I should have to buy a whole new computer when this ones only 2 years old. Apple is so stupid when it comes to designing computers. Who cares if its thin if I can't upgrade anything on it? Honestly I might not ever buy another apple computer if they keep making them less upgradable. They're all about the environment then they should make it more upgradable so theres less waste.

Ouch... Core 2 Duo user right here.. Can't help but feel kind of offended.

I LOVE my Core 2. I have moved from a Celeron D (THAT was JUNK), to a Pentium Dual-Core, and finally upgrading to a Core 2 Duo last year (Yah, I know, I'm pathetic –I can't afford a fancy new i series or even AMD).

But my point is that my Core 2 Duo running ML is wicked fast at everything. Faster than Windows 7 or even Windows 8. Your Mac's slow performance most likely stems from your cluttered Hard Disk Drive. Try some of the MANY utilities out there to clean it up and do run a permissions repair.

In the meantime, lay off the C2D!

 

[wickedking94]

Okay then. Any constructive advice on how to improve the performance of my macbook? And when i say its running bad i mean BAD. Like it freezes loading a web page or when watching youtube. I cant even boot recovery mode to try and re install ML. I press R while rebooting and it just continues to start normally.

I upgraded the ram 8 months ago, could bad RAM be giving me these problems? How can i test that?

My hard drive isnt too full. 220 GB free out of 500 GB. I already repaired permissions.

 

[g8rduc]

Could be a couple of things. Check this link on how to check RAM (http://www.maclife.com/article/howtos/how_diagnose_your_mac_bad_ram)

I've had situations in the past where a HD that was starting to go bad gave me the same symptoms as you. Possibly check with Techtools or any number of other utilities out there. A SMART utility can check that for you also.

Okay then. Any constructive advice on how to improve the performance of my macbook? And when i say its running bad i mean BAD. Like it freezes loading a web page or when watching youtube. I cant even boot recovery mode to try and re install ML. I press R while rebooting and it just continues to start normally.

I upgraded the ram 8 months ago, could bad RAM be giving me these problems? How can i test that?

My hard drive isnt too full. 220 GB free out of 500 GB. I already repaired permissions.

 

[SDAVE]

my complaint no longer lies with apple it lies with the entire computer industry not making things a little more future proof.

Dude, it's a laptop not a desktop. A portable device. I've never seen people change their laptop CPU's, unless you're one of those gaming nerds who buy those 10 inch (in height) laptops with 5 HDD slots and a 17" monitor for gaming.

Apple is in the business of making portable computers. The move to make them smaller means more will be soldered onto the motherboard. The whole industry is moving that way.

Also, Intel moves really fast. Microprocessor architectures change very quickly, usually in half to a year.

Think of it this way. Your machine is almost 4 years old. You got something out of it, right? Good. If it is not enough right now, then sell it, add some more money and invest in a refurbished Apple (2012) cMBP and you will be happy.

I had the 2008 C2D Unibody MBP before my 2011 MBP, and it was no slouch. I doubt you were pushing it more than me. An SSD will give about 30-40% of increase in performance and maxing out your RAM is also essential. You will squeeze a bit more out of your device if you go this route.

A similar complaint to yours would be if I bought an NES then got pissed off that Nintendo came out with an SNES. Things happen. The electronic industry is always moving forward. If you want to have something that lasts a long time, go buy a typewriter.

 

[g8rduc]

Or just use Techtool Pro to check your RAM and Hard drive.

 

[Vudoo]

I would do is check for bad memory. A SSD would help with overall speed, but that's a matter of determine cost to performance ratio. I definitely would do a clean install and put Snow Leopard back on since it is more efficient.

Talk to your parents and see if they would pitch in the difference for a new laptop if you sell your old one.

If you want upgradeability, get a desktop. And never buy a laptop without a dedicated GPU even if there is a hint that you may play games or do anything that is graphic intensive.

 

[snaky69]

Okay then. Any constructive advice on how to improve the performance of my macbook? And when i say its running bad i mean BAD. Like it freezes loading a web page or when watching youtube. I cant even boot recovery mode to try and re install ML. I press R while rebooting and it just continues to start normally.

I upgraded the ram 8 months ago, could bad RAM be giving me these problems? How can i test that?

My hard drive isnt too full. 220 GB free out of 500 GB. I already repaired permissions.

That would be because the keyboard shortcut is CMD-R, not simply R, google would've told you that gladly. If it's randomly crashing and has trouble loading pages and has slowed to a crawl, the first thing I'd do is a clean reinstall to see if software has somehow corrupted the thing. If no changes appear, my personnal guess is that your hard drive is starting to go.

 

[wickedking94]

I would do is check for bad memory. A SSD would help with overall speed, but that's a matter of determine cost to performance ratio. I definitely would do a clean install and put Snow Leopard back on since it is more efficient.

Talk to your parents and see if they would pitch in the difference for a new laptop if you sell your old one.

If you want upgradeability, get a desktop. And never buy a laptop without a dedicated GPU even if there is a hint that you may play games or do anything that is graphic intensive.

Yeah I'm considering an SSD. I actually ordered an adapter to put a HDD where my ODD is. I could get a 120GB SSD and install my OS and Apps onto the SSD.

I wish I could go back to SL, but I can't restore my files from my time machine backup because they're formatted for ML.

Also I don't really wan't to sell my MacBook. Even though I did shove it off my desk it does have sentimental value to me since its my first Mac. And even if I sold it I might get 800$ for it. That still leaves 400$ to get a new 13" and thats still a dual core model. If I were to get a new MacBook then I would want a 15" so I can get a quad-core that would probably be more future proof.

 

[darngooddesign]

Also, to those people telling me to get a job, I have been trying for 2 years. Unfortunately I live in a tiny town with at most a dozen places to work and about 1000 other people in my age group. Otherwise I wouldn't be trying to find a way around getting a new computer.

Do yardwork and physical labor.

Learn to code websites and work remotely.

Also I don't really wan't to sell my MacBook. Even though I did shove it off my desk it does have sentimental value to me since its my first Mac. And even if I sold it I might get 800$ for it. That still leaves 400$ to get a new 13" and thats still a dual core model. If I were to get a new MacBook then I would want a 15" so I can get a quad-core that would probably be more future proof.

I bet you can find a faster used MacBook Pro for a grand.

 

[wickedking94]

Do yardwork and physical labor.

Learn to code websites and work remotely.

Yeah learning to code websites shouldn't take more than a weekend. Not to mention I absolutely hate anything to do with coding in any way what so ever.

I bet you can find a faster used MacBook Pro for a grand.

Yeah faster maybe. But honestly I wan't something future proof.

Yeah learning to code websites shouldn't take more than a weekend. Not to mention I absolutely hate anything to do with coding in any way what so ever.

 

[therealseebs]

You "know the cause"?

You bought a small form factor machine that didn't have space for both a discrete GPU and a core i series CPU.

If you had bought a 13" PC laptop you would have gotten a useless integrated GPU and would have similar issues.

This is not true. Last summer, I bought an Acer TimelineX 3830TG. 13" laptop with a GeForce 540M and a core i5. Played games tolerably, if not exactly well. Cost $800-900 or so.

Look, there are lots of reasons to prefer the Mac to the PC, but the claim that a 13" PC would necessarily lack discrete graphics is just plain not true. (Now, ask about the quality of the LCD display, and we see why you might get the Mac anyway...)

 

[dukebound85]

Yeah faster maybe. But honestly I wan't something future proof.

Yeah learning to code websites shouldn't take more than a weekend. Not to mention I absolutely hate anything to do with coding in any way what so ever.

Is that all? Dang if only

 

[therealseebs]

Also, to those people telling me to get a job, I have been trying for 2 years.

Sorry about that. It's sort of the curse of Apple's fairly awesome design work -- we end up with an unusual density of fans who are so committed to Apple that any time someone is unhappy with anything Apple does, they have to make it be the user's fault so they can feel good about how Apple is the best at everything. It's... Not one of the strengths of the community. In general, if you ask whether a machine will be good for something it's not, you'll get a roughly even mix of "it'll be perfect", "it will be okay, but nothing else anyone makes will be better", and "stop being lazy, you should buy the more expensive one".

Hang in there, you get the hang of sorting through the bull and there's some very smart people here who know a lot about computers.

That said: In practice, I think you'll find that the C2D machine has pretty limited options. If you don't need a huge amount of space, it might be worth using an SSD with it, that can produce a very nice increase in performance. Also make sure you have the max memory it supports (which I think is likely 8GB, but check to be sure). If you get an SSD, I recommend Intel or SanDisk, I have had mediocre experiences with OCZ. Also be sure to get and use Trim Enabler.

 

[wickedking94]

Sorry about that. It's sort of the curse of Apple's fairly awesome design work -- we end up with an unusual density of fans who are so committed to Apple that any time someone is unhappy with anything Apple does, they have to make it be the user's fault so they can feel good about how Apple is the best at everything. It's... Not one of the strengths of the community. In general, if you ask whether a machine will be good for something it's not, you'll get a roughly even mix of "it'll be perfect", "it will be okay, but nothing else anyone makes will be better", and "stop being lazy, you should buy the more expensive one".

Hang in there, you get the hang of sorting through the bull and there's some very smart people here who know a lot about computers.

That said: In practice, I think you'll find that the C2D machine has pretty limited options. If you don't need a huge amount of space, it might be worth using an SSD with it, that can produce a very nice increase in performance. Also make sure you have the max memory it supports (which I think is likely 8GB, but check to be sure). If you get an SSD, I recommend Intel or SanDisk, I have had mediocre experiences with OCZ. Also be sure to get and use Trim Enabler.

Thanks for that. I agree. Though helpful, it seems the apple community is never willing to admit apple's faults. My local electronics shop only has kingston SSD's, but I looked up reviews and its largely positive. I do need a lot of space though so I've ordered one of those adapters to put a HDD where my optical drive is. I can get a 60 GB SSD for 70$ which is big enough for Mac OS and my apps to fit (I have 34 GB of apps, and OS X is around 8GB) then I can use the SSD for fast stuff and have my HDD for my big files like movies and stuff that dont need high speed.

Also what is Trim enabler, and what does it do?

 

[5aga]

It doesn't matter now anyways because I shoved the piece of junk off my desk and onto the floor and I'm just going to use my phone until apple figures out that nobody actually cares how thin their laptop is.

why did you do that? you could have easily sold the MBP and bought a decent PC laptop and still had $$$ left over.

 

[darngooddesign]

Yeah faster maybe. But honestly I wan't something future proof.

Yeah learning to code websites shouldn't take more than a weekend. Not to mention I absolutely hate anything to do with coding in any way what so ever.

If the type of work you like is unavailable, then you have to do the type you don't like.