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buying new macbook pro soon. Not sure when and if this config is good.

K

KTK1990

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 26, 2008
349
42
Hey, I am a long time lurker and finally got around to making a account here.

I am thinking of getting a new macbook pro, when they do the 17 inch revisions the other macbooks got in October. But, I have no idea where to get a new one from. I was thinking of surfing Amazon, using the 5% off trick too. Then getting that macbook with the best processor, cheapest HD and Ram.


I am taking community college classes now, so I can get the education discount (Thats how I got my iMac, Apple store. Education discount on tax free weekend).

Also, where would I get the best HD? I was planning on replacing the internal HD for a 500 gig (or higher if it was cheaper). And which HD would be the best?

Also same for ram. Getting the 2 gig or 4 to save some $$$ and buying 6 gigs. Unless a patch is released to make 8 gigs not freeze up the pc. I have read here that 8 gigs freezes the pc and isnt worth upgrading to, but 6 is. Where would I find cheap ram that is good for that mac?

And, should I wait for Snow Lepord?

I dont have much $$$ now, so I am trying to get the best laptop that will last me a long time. I also plan on running Vista Ultimate on it (64 bit, since I want to see and use all the ram). I am using Autodesk 3ds Max 2009 on this pc, and will probably install it on the macbook. And also am a Gamer.
 
oo, i just thought of this question too.

Would adding the RAM/HD myself void the warranty? I was planning on getting Apple Care.
 
Is there a cheaper place to get the RAM?

I think I might wait then for Snow Lepord. I dont want to pay a extra $120 and install a new OS, I would rather have it pre-installed :p.
 
Currently 500GB HDs are only available with 5400RPM models from a limited number of manufacturers, and prices are mostly the same (exactly the same according to Newegg), so take your pick. Personally though, I'd hold off with 320GB 7200RPM until Q1 2009, and see how good the Toshiba 512GB SSDs really are. Mind you they will be expensive, but hopefully real life performance won't deviate too much from the current specs (200MB/s sustained read/write).

4GB of RAM is plenty for almost everybody right now. And 6GB isn't a big leap in capacity, so there is no reason to go for 6GB. Plus, DDR3 memory is not really cheap yet, so just get 4GB from Apple.

Snow Leopard, like Tallest Skil said, is months away. You will be able to upgrade to it when it's released (though not free), so I don't recommend waiting.
 
The modifications you have listed don't void your warranty and are quite easy to do. We don't really know that SL is 6 months away. It could come at any time. My guess would be October-ish.
 
I wouldn't bother with 6 GB at this point. I've yet to come across anything that even eats all 4GB.
 
TheCakeIsALie said:
4GB of RAM is plenty for almost everybody right now. And 6GB isn't a big leap in capacity, so there is no reason to go for 6GB. Plus, DDR3 memory is not really cheap yet, so just get 4GB from Apple.

Snow Leopard, like Tallest Skil said, is months away. You will be able to upgrade to it when it's released (though not free), so I don't recommend waiting.
Click to expand...

Ok about the Hard Drives, I don't really have much $$ so the 512Gig SSHD would probably be a little too much for me. I was planning on having about 200 gigs for Windows Vista 64 bit.

I was going to go to 6 because I would be doing some gaming on it, 3d modeling and Photoshop on it. Also because I plan on having this macbook last for a long time. Do you think memory prices will go down by at least 50% in 1 year? I could go with 4 gigs and upgrade to 6 later.

Snow lepord - I think I might wait. It is waiting anywhere from January - October ish.
If I get it in like March (Or after I have enough to pay for it) and snow leopard comes out a few months later. What will the upgrade be like? Will it be like the 10.5.5 to 10.5.6 upgrades? Pop in disk, run installer and then boot into 10.6 and all my data is there? Or is it a clean install? And would that mess up the Boot Camp partition?

And thats good that it dosen't void the warranty. I have replaced a few parts on my HP I am using now (Hard drive, replaced RAM on some older desktops) and viewed the videos on how to replace the HD and Ram on the MBP's, so I doubt I would break anything. I would make sure to be extra careful though.
 
I think I can sum up the collective answer to the age old 'buy it now or wait' question:

If you need it now, buy it now. If you can afford to wait, then wait.

If you can hold off for a few months, you're likely to see DDR3 ram prices, as well as SSD prices/capabilities, improve, as well as get 10.6 included as part of the deal. Who knows, 10.6 may even allow you to fully optimize 8 gigs of ram!

I'd at least wait to see what they say about 10.6 at macworld, even though Steve Mobs-sorry, Jobs, won't be there. If they're estimating it will ship in February or March, wait. October or November, get it now.
 
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