How soon should one upgrade the parts of their Macbook?

[Giggleheimer]

Hi,

this was a smaller part of another post I made as regards buying advice, so I'll just put in the link to show the original:

https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=6250655#post6250655

I essentially wanna buy the cheapest Macbook from Apple and upgrade the HD to 320 GB and the RAM to 4GB 800MhZ. I just want to check to see if it's advisable to open up the MB and start upgrading right away, essentially as soon as I open the box, even without ever turning it on first? I hear it's pretty easy to do, so I figure I won't even get distracted by turning it on etc and just flip it over and open 'er up.

That of course, depends on whether I choose to wait for the new Macbook, or not. If you've an opinion on that, see my other post. Complicated eh?

All opinions welcome. I know I'll get the advice I need here.

Thanks,

Gig

 

[JNB]

I'd suggest at least doing an initial power up and validation that all is as expected before anything else. That way, if it's DOA or dodgy in any way you can get it taken care of before the upgrade. If you have any issues post-upgrade, you won't know if it is a problem with your work or a preexisting issue. Play with it for a few minutes first at least.

 

[iToaster]

There shouldn't be a problem, but save your money, the MacBook doesn't use 800 MHz RAM.

 

[Giggleheimer]

There shouldn't be a problem, but save your money, the MacBook doesn't use 800 MHz RAM.

Whoa, dodged a bullet there, thanks!!

Yeah it makes sense to check to see that everything's working first. Cool.

 

[Mpulsive81]

Definitely fire it up as-is to make sure you're not dealing with a dud. After that, upgrade the memory to the max it'll take (2GB on the older, 4GB on the newer...both take PC2-5300, 667MHz). The hdd upgrade is a piece of cake, shouldn't take anymore more than 1-3 minutes depending on how fast you screw (get your head outta the gutter!) The Macbook is designed to be completely plug n play when it comes to upgrading, meaning you pop out the old and slide in the new. You'll need two types of screwdrivers, do not (I stress DO NOT) try to use anything other than the correct size. The last thing you want is a stripped screw. To remove the L shaped cover when u pop off your battery, you'll need a #00 phillips screwdriver. To remove the bracket off your hdd, you'll need a T8 Torx screwdriver. I picked up the #00 at my local Frys and the T8 at Lowes (didn't know I needed the T8 until the last second and I didn't wanna drive back to Frys to see if they had it). If you're left scratching your head on how to do it (or if you just want to look at a visual aid for reference) This website will be your new best friend.

As a side note - My honest opinion is to get what's gonna make you happy. If we would all wait til the newest thing came out, we'd never buy anything. Technology moves too fast to try to keep up. I'd say if you want a Macbook, get it and don't look back. I bought my Core Duo about a month and a half before the Core 2 Duo came out. In hindsight, it would've been nice to have waited and got the newer processor but mine is still running and I still enjoy every minute of it.

And most of all - WELCOME!