Anyone upgrade from 2008 MPB to rMPB?

[Andy-V]

Hi,

I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro, the first Unibody model with a 2.53 Core 2 Duo. It has an SSD in which made it significantly faster.

I'm just wondering, for people who made the switch from a 2008 model to the Retina MBP, how big a difference there is? I know it's significantly more powerful, but I'm just wondering what people noticed the most from the upgrade, the most notable pro's (and maybe cons?)

Thanks!

 

[IlikeMacsSoMuch]

Hi, I had the early 2008 15 inches MBP and I bought the june 2012 15 inches cmbp, I upgraded the ram to 16 Gb and the hdd to a 480 Gb ssd, so basically it has the same specs than the rmbp performances wise except for the display, mine is hd and mate. Same 1Gb graphic card.

The older 2008 mbp I gave to my son because it still works very well but man! The 2012 model with these specs flies! A lot of people prefer the rmbp but performance wise it is the same as the cmbp equivalently spected.

So:
Pros: A bunch
Cons: none

 

[ColdCase]

I had a late 2008 MBP 15, I think a base model with 4GB RAM. I put a 250GB SSD in it. I gave it away, as it is still a very nice machine.

My maxed out 2008 Mac Pro is getting older and I decided on a maxed out 2013 rMBP 15 to give it a try with video and photo editing.

Difference between the 2008 MBP and 2013 rMBP to me is like night and day. The rMBP is so much better in every way. Both are running Mountain Lion.

The first thing I noticed is just how light and portable it is. The 2008 I had to "lug", the 2013 is light as a feather in comparison. The 2008 had a nice screen, but 2013 seems to be easier on the eyes when doing a lot of reading. I'll be adding a large screen monitor at some point. Processing power wise, the 2013 just flies in comparison to the 2008 MBP. Seems to be on the par with My 2008 2x2.8 Quad core desktop with 10GB RAM but there are a few tasks that seem to be zippier on the rMBP. I have not done benchmarks. The 2013 runs a lot cooler than the 2008.

The rMBP retina is one great laptop. I don't know of a con unless upgradability or battery replacement becomes an issue at some point. Its also big buck$. No FW port, but there is a $10 TB to FW adapter available from apple. No DVD drive, but I don't miss it... I can't remember the last time I inserted a DVD drive.

 

[Andy-V]

Thanks for the responses. I'll probably be upgrading later in the year!

 

[macalec]

I had the first uni-body system as well. Very good and dependable unit. I have upgraded to the retina, and I was just blown away. The screen is unbelievable. And it is really fast! I highly recommend it, and it is a great upgrade. You will not regret it!

Hi,

I have a late 2008 Macbook Pro, the first Unibody model with a 2.53 Core 2 Duo. It has an SSD in which made it significantly faster.

I'm just wondering, for people who made the switch from a 2008 model to the Retina MBP, how big a difference there is? I know it's significantly more powerful, but I'm just wondering what people noticed the most from the upgrade, the most notable pro's (and maybe cons?)

Thanks!