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Are there any more ways to upgrade my Late 2008 Unibody MacBook Pro?

lhlee96

lhlee96

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 5, 2009
84
6
Sydney
I have a 2.53 GHz uMBP (Late 2008) with 4GB of RAM 1067 MHz DDR3 and I was wondering if there were any other ways to upgrade my MBP?
I heard the new June 2009 MBPs can have 8GB RAM and 3.06 GHz. I am a gamer, so I am looking for improving my game's speed- basically the overall smoothness of the game.

Also, does anyone have the InvisibleSHIELD for the MBP? Is it a good investment?
 
lhlee96 said:
I have a 2.53 GHz uMBP (Late 2008) with 4GB of RAM 1067 MHz DDR3 and I was wondering if there were any other ways to upgrade my MBP?
I heard the new June 2009 MBPs can have 8GB RAM and 3.06 GHz. I am a gamer, so I am looking for improving my game's speed- basically the overall smoothness of the game.

Also, does anyone have the InvisibleSHIELD for the MBP? Is it a good investment?
Click to expand...

I personally do not recommend using an InvisibleShield. In my experience, it just traps dirt under the so-called shield.

Your MBP can be unofficially upgraded to 6GB of RAM I believe. Have you considered a SSD?
 
You can always upgrade the hard drive, but that's lengthy and doesn't improve performance much. Plus, it may void your warranty if you don't have a unibody macbook pro.

Probably your best bet if you're looking for more FPS's would be to sell the one you have, use the cash, and buy a dell with the same or better specs for less money.
 
6gb Ram

Vulcan said:
I personally do not recommend using an InvisibleShield. In my experience, it just traps dirt under the so-called shield.

Your MBP can be unofficially upgraded to 6GB of RAM I believe. Have you considered a SSD?
Click to expand...

Well, if I do upgrade it to 6GB of RAM, will it void my warranty with Apple? And just wondering, but what is an SSD?
 
thejadedmonkey said:
You can always upgrade the hard drive, but that's lengthy and doesn't improve performance much. Plus, it may void your warranty if you don't have a unibody macbook pro.

Probably your best bet if you're looking for more FPS's would be to sell the one you have, use the cash, and buy a dell with the same or better specs for less money.
Click to expand...

He said he had a unibody in the first post so the process only takes a few minutes.

Edit - No, upgrading the RAM will not void your warranty. A SSD is a solid slate drive, which are much faster than traditional hard drives.
 
thejadedmonkey said:
You can always upgrade the hard drive, but that's lengthy and doesn't improve performance much. Plus, it may void your warranty if you don't have a unibody macbook pro.

Probably your best bet if you're looking for more FPS's would be to sell the one you have, use the cash, and buy a dell with the same or better specs for less money.
Click to expand...

Hard drive upgrades do NOT void the warranty. You void the warranty if you break anything when you're in there, but at no other time.
 
thejadedmonkey said:
You can always upgrade the hard drive, but that's lengthy and doesn't improve performance much. Plus, it may void your warranty if you don't have a unibody macbook pro.

Probably your best bet if you're looking for more FPS's would be to sell the one you have, use the cash, and buy a dell with the same or better specs for less money.
Click to expand...

But the only reason why I bought a MBP in the first place was because I wanted to use Mac OS X and because the uMBPs are much sleeker looking that the clunky Dell laptops.
 
Tallest Skil said:
Oh, heavens; it's just RAM! :)

Here: www.ifixit.com follow the tutorials for your model on here.

Trust me, you'll be coming back from the store begging to know how to do it yourself.
Click to expand...

Okay, I guess I can take a shot. :) Also, can you upgrade your GHz? I know I'm taking it a little over the edge...but curiosity is fine, isn't it?
 
lhlee96 said:
Okay, I guess I can take a shot. :) Also, can you upgrade your GHz? I know I'm taking it a little over the edge...but curiosity is fine, isn't it?
Click to expand...

Nope, you cannot upgrade the processor. The only two things you can upgrade without voiding your warranty is the RAM and the hard drive.
 
Vulcan said:
Nope, you cannot upgrade the processor. The only two things you can upgrade without voiding your warranty is the RAM and the hard drive.
Click to expand...

How much can the Hard Drive memory go up to for the Late 2008 uMBP?
 
Vulcan said:
A rough estimate... $90-$800 USD. $90-$150 range for hard drives, $500-$800 range for solid slate drives.
Click to expand...

Hmm. Wait, I'm confused.
How much GB can a Hard Drive have (SSD and normal HD) and for how much? (The maximum GB and price for it, please- I'm going for maxing out my MBP)

and I know I can get 6 GB for the RAM, so how much is that, basically? I have 4 GB now.
 
lhlee96 said:
Hmm. Wait, I'm confused.
How much GB can a Hard Drive have (SSD and normal HD) and for how much? (The maximum GB and price for it, please- I'm going for maxing out my MBP)

and I know I can get 6 GB for the RAM, so how much is that, basically? I have 4 GB now.
Click to expand...

For 6GB, you'd have to buy a 4GB stick to add your existing 2GB. Looking at prices from Newegg, here's a rough estimate.

4GB, 512GB SSD, 256GB SSDs, 500GB HDD's.
 
Get an SSD

I have the exact same MBP from late 08.

Mine has an OCZ Vertex SSD 120gb in it and it SCREAMS. It is a life altering difference. Things open instantly and it's SOOO snappy.

Once you go SSD, you won't go back.

The Vertex is awesome, but if you're buying now, get the latest model called the Summit, which has 2x the onboard cache and is even FASTER at everything.

My $0.02
 
All your performance issues have been addressed so far, so let me comment on the invisible shield.

I'm using one on my 13" unibody macbook. I really like it. It has a non-residue adhesive on the back that prevents dirt and other things from getting in between the computer and the shield itself.

My only caution is that you must watch the video on zagg's website before you attempt to install it. I did not and didn't do such a great job the first time around. Use LOTS of "installation solution" when putting it on so you can reposition it and have time to get the bubbles out.

Otherwise, it's great. Sticks well, makes the aluminum grippier and Safari snappier ;)
 
lhlee96 said:
How much can the Hard Drive memory go up to for the Late 2008 uMBP?
Click to expand...

Because the current limit on Hard drives is 500GB (thats the biggest drive for laptops out there), 500GB is the biggest hard drive you can get. However, there is no limit how big your hard drive can be.

Also, better performance can also be achieved by using a Solid State Drive (SSD), rather than a Hard Disk Drive (HDD or HD) since an SSD does not use moving parts and is up to 150% faster (or more) in many cases.

However, the prices for these drives might leave a dent in your pocket.
 
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