Buying a used Macbook Pro

[ajdrummer]

Ok so i am looking at buying a used macbook pro to use for web surfing, torrent dl ect and will also be doing some light audio editing (garage band mainly). I will want to record with an electronic drum set. so i cant decide what i should buy. i have seen some good deals on a 2.5 core 2 duo for around $500. to get the i5 could be a few hunderd more. Is the i5 worth it of would i be good with the core 2 duo. Maybe a SSD and memory upgrade?

thanks guys

 

[thecurryman]

if you get the core 2 duo then you gotta get a ssd and memory

however if you get the i5 then the ssd/memory really isnt necessary for your needs

either way it'll cost the same based on your needs

 

[Doward]

Why not go i5 with SSD and Memory?

 

[NewishMacGuy]

Contrary to what others have implied, most Core i5 MBPs don't come with tons of memory and SSDs. Most will be base configured uMBP-13s with 4GB RAM and a 5400rpm HDD, so you may wish to get a faster drive and additional RAM anyway.

The advantage to the Core i5 machines is that they will be Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge, which means that you'll get a Thunderbolt connection, an XDSC card slot, larger max RAM capacity, and they'll be faster. On 2012 or 2013 models you'll also get USB3.

You don't need any of those things for what you want to do, but they may be nice to have for future-proofing.

You also don't need an SSD, but it sure will make your user-experience better. Large ones can be quite pricey though though so if you need a lot of space (and I suspect that you will given your intended usage) you may wish to consider a hybrid.

You will likely need a RAM upgrade, 4GB just barely gets by these days.


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