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First time MacBook Pro Purchaser - to SSD or not?

C

Claydon

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Apr 27, 2009
5
0
Greeting's,

I shall soon be purchasing a 15 inch MacBook Pro 2.93Ghz and was wondering if the 128GB SSD option was worth the outlay when you take into account the performance versus price comparison? I do like to game, not extensively, so this would be a benefit. I also like the power saving and added reliability inherent of the SSD.

I do not have a desktop, nor do I want one and use portable HD's as my mass storage devices. I've had little to no contact with SSD, hence the question.
 
I know 128 GB is small but I keep a lot of movies, music, pictures etc. on Portable HD's I don't see this as a problem. Unless I've missed something?
 
SSDs are good stuff, most pple dont get them because $ for a reliable one, and also b/c they are so small. I personally would love one but wont till they are reliable at 500gb
 
I think most people would want a huge SSD if they have the money. Cost is one of the main deterrents.

Other than say better, bigger and cheaper SSDs releasing soon, I say get a SSD.
 
Claydon said:
Greeting's,

I shall soon be purchasing a 15 inch MacBook Pro 2.93Ghz and was wondering if the 128GB SSD option was worth the outlay when you take into account the performance versus price comparison? I do like to game, not extensively, so this would be a benefit. I also like the power saving and added reliability inherent of the SSD.

I do not have a desktop, nor do I want one and use portable HD's as my mass storage devices. I've had little to no contact with SSD, hence the question.
Click to expand...

Don't buy the SSD with Apple. You might get better SSDs by buying it separately. Intel X25-M just dropped in price today, 320$ for 80GB and 630$ for 160GB. They are the best SSD right now for Macs with OCZ Vertex second (120GB for 350$).
 
Yes buy a MacBook Pro; no, don't buy it from Apple.

In fact, I'd as far to say, just get the stock middle (AKA 2.66GHz) configuration model and buy an Intel X25-M.
 
alphaod said:
Yes buy a MacBook Pro; no, don't buy it from Apple.

In fact, I'd as far to say, just get the stock middle (AKA 2.66GHz) configuration model and buy an Intel X25-M.
Click to expand...

And installation is relatively simple i.e. for somone who's sole upgrading skill is slotting in RAM?
 
MikhailT said:
For the newer laptops, it is as easy as replacing the battery.
Click to expand...

Sounds ideal. Though I assume you have to install the OS as well.

I just had a look at the prices and they are quite steep. It'll be close to $1000 Australian if I purshase a 160 GB Intel X25-M.
 
Claydon said:
Greeting's,

I shall soon be purchasing a 15 inch MacBook Pro 2.93Ghz and was wondering if the 128GB SSD option was worth the outlay when you take into account the performance versus price comparison? I do like to game, not extensively, so this would be a benefit. I also like the power saving and added reliability inherent of the SSD.

I do not have a desktop, nor do I want one and use portable HD's as my mass storage devices. I've had little to no contact with SSD, hence the question.
Click to expand...

if you want this for casual gaming i dont think that it is worth it at this point. SSD's will probably come down in price soon. i think you should wait. it will only save you 5-10 seconds on loads but other than that their wont be much difference in games. in my opinion not really worth the $400+ that they go for right now. but if you have to do it get it from a 3rd party. newegg is probably the best or macsales
 
Claydon said:
Sounds ideal. Though I assume you have to install the OS as well.

I just had a look at the prices and they are quite steep. It'll be close to $1000 Australian if I purshase a 160 GB Intel X25-M.
Click to expand...

You can easily restore from a Time Machine backup. How much in AUS if you upgrade to SSD with Apple?
 
Get the SSD. The speed is worth it. I will never buy another computer without one.
 
Claydon said:
For the 128GB it's AUD$530.
Click to expand...

Well, I suggest still to buy separately. I think your AUS cost isn't up to date yet, it might drop down soon as Intel only dropped the price today. It should be around $890 AUS in a week or so for the 160GB Intel. You can wait another 6 months and it should drop more another 100$ AUS. Up to you.
 
I personally would wait until SSD's drop in price and get larger in capacity. In terms of the technology.. there is still a lot to be done on reliability of the SSD.
 
i just installed Corsair SSD 128GB ($370 a bit pricey in indonesia) on my UMBP17" with 2.66ghz.

why i bought it? because after using Macbook Air rev.B with SSD, i can't no longer want to use a traditional hard drive.

the SSD might be expensive right now and has small capacity, but it's the only spare part that makes the performance of your computer really high, i mean really high is REALLY HIGH!.

go for it if u got the money to burn, and i too keep all my movies and such in my trusty WD passport external hard disk.
 
If you can afford it and the capacity isn't a problem, go for it. As some other posters said, the most sensible option would be installing a fast, reliable SSD such as X25 and vertex into the 2.66Ghz model, I think. The speed gain from higher clock frequencies pales in comparison with what you get from a SSD unless you usually run extremely CPU extensive apps, in which case probably you don't want a laptop in the first place.

Replacing the standard HDD with a SSD and installing Leopard is quite easy. Some members of this forum had trouble installing SSD of some brands, but you should be safe as long as you choose a drive recommended in this thread. I'm using 160GB X25-M on my UMBP and installation was smooth.

One thing no one has mentioned in this thread is "silence." SSD don't make a mechanical noise like conventional hard drives. It's so quiet you can only hear a slight fan noise while using MBP for usual tasks. It's a huge plus for a laptop if you ask me. Actually I was tempted to disable the optical drive because its noise when I boot my laptop became quite annoying.

The difference in power consumption seems to be negligible, at least to me.

Anyway, I recommend a SSD. I heard SSD users say, "It's the biggest single upgrade I have ever made" and "I will never use a HDD for my laptop." I couldn't agree more with these comments. Of course, the speed gain is like a few seconds for each app launch, and it may seem to be insignificant. But in my opinion the snappy feeling it gives is huge. A responsive computer may save you only several minutes a day, but I think it's the feeling that increases your productivity.

Sorry for the long post. It's just my experience with SSD was so good...
 
magamo said:
Anyway, I recommend a SSD. I heard SSD users say, "It's the biggest single upgrade I have ever made" and "I will never use a HDD for my laptop." I couldn't agree more with these comments. Of course, the speed gain is like a few seconds for each app launch, and it may seem to be insignificant. But in my opinion the snappy feeling it gives is huge. A responsive computer may save you only several minutes a day, but I think it's the feeling that increases your productivity.

Sorry for the long post. It's just my experience with SSD was so good...
Click to expand...

+10000!

anyway, after i put SSD and removed the optical drive from my UMBP17, the weight is quite similiar to UMBP15" now. lol. or is it just a feeling?
 
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