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Is a RAM upgrade needed?

L

loccy92

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 26, 2015
9
2
Howdy!

I'm just having some issues with my Macbook Pro (15-inch, Late 2011). 2.2 GHz Intel Core i7 processor and 4 GB 1333 MHz DDR3 memory. Although lately everything is running VERY slowly. It takes a good 40 seconds to open up finder and opening programs like Word, Excel or Photoshop are absolute death and sometimes I just have to Force Quit to prevent my laptop from seizing up pretty much. I was wondering if I could get some opinions and experiences with RAM upgrades? I tried looking on the Apple websites for parts and it said there wasn't anything available at this point in time.

Thanks!
Loccy

Edit: Web browsing is usually no worries for me, but if I view a page that has a few images or if I try to load a video on youtube, my laptop freezes for about 15-20 seconds and then carries on as normal
 
I'd get a solid state drive and eventually get some ram. The SSD will make ALL the difference. I promise you.
 
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placidity44 said:
I'd get a solid state drive and eventually get some ram. The SSD will make ALL the difference. I promise you.
Click to expand...

Thanks!

Any suggestions on which SSD to use? Im hearing good things about Samsung 850 EVO, but I'm wondering is 256GB would be enough or if I should go for the 512. Which one are you currently using?
 
I'd get something from crucial just to know it's 100 percent compatible with no issues. You can also get ram from them. Here's a link to the ssd's. Apps load almost instantly and the boot up time is much faster. Then eventually you can upgrade the ram but I'll bet that the ram won't make near as much different as an ssd.
I'd get something from crucial just to know it's 100 percent compatible with no issues. You can also get ram from them.
 
Last edited:
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loccy92 said:
Okay I think I'm going to get the Crucial BX100 250GB SATA 6Gb/s 2.5" Internal SSD.

First time installing a SSD though, is there anything I need to be aware of before I do it? (I have all the instructions to physically install it) I.E, backups, etc?

EDIT:
http://www.cnet.com/au/how-to/upgrade-your-macbook-install-ssd-hard-drive/

^ does this cover all of it?
Click to expand...
When I installed an SSD, I just made a Time Machine backup on an external drive, booted the computer from that (after installing the SSD of course), used Disk Utility to format the SSD, and then restored from my Time Machine backup. Simple as pie.
 
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loccy92 said:
Okay I think I'm going to get the Crucial BX100 250GB SATA 6Gb/s 2.5" Internal SSD.

First time installing a SSD though, is there anything I need to be aware of before I do it? (I have all the instructions to physically install it) I.E, backups, etc?

EDIT:
http://www.cnet.com/au/how-to/upgrade-your-macbook-install-ssd-hard-drive/

^ does this cover all of it?
Click to expand...

You'll need a Time Machine backup and an 8GB USB stick (for creating the USB installer).

First, perform the Time Machine backup.

Next, download Yosemite off the Mac App Store.

Third, use DiskMakerX (free app, Google it) to create the bootable USB stick.

Then, shut down the Mac and install the SSD.

After that, plug the USB stick in and while starting it up, hold down the Option key. Then select the USB stick when prompted.

After that, select the installation language. From the Utilities menu in the top bar, open Disk Utility and format the SSD as Mac OS Extended (Journaled).

After that, quit Disk Utility and proceed to restore from a Time Machine backup.
 
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yjchua95 said:
Next, download Yosemite off the Mac App Store.

Third, use DiskMakerX (free app, Google it) to create the bootable USB stick.

*snip*

After that, plug the USB stick in and while starting it up, hold down the Option key. Then select the USB stick when prompted.
Click to expand...
Actually you don't have to do any of these steps. If you've already done a Time Machine backup on a system running Yosemite, boot from the external drive with your Time Machine backup on it and you can both use Disk Utility and do a full restore. There's no need to reinstall Yosemite considering that would already be included with the backup restore.
 
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Or

Buy an external USB disk caddy, put the SSD in it (another vote for Crucial)

Use Carbon Copy Cloner to clone your internal HDD to the SSD

Physically swap the SSD and HDD over

Boot from the SSD, check everything is OK

Use your old HDD as a spare external drive.
 
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Thanks everyone for your replies! Having a bit of trouble finding anywhere local that sells Crucial. They mustn't stock in Australian stores often or something. Will keep looking and keep updating :)
 
Howdy!

Success! :D

Everything is SO much faster. Way faster than I anticipated :D Thanks to everyone for their help :)

Just one tiny issue with the installation though. When I pick up my laptop and carry it around I can hear to SSD moving :S I screwed it in tight and everything? Have I missed something? :S
 
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loccy92 said:
Howdy!

Success! :D

Everything is SO much faster. Way faster than I anticipated :D Thanks to everyone for their help :)

Just one tiny issue with the installation though. When I pick up my laptop and carry it around I can hear to SSD moving :S I screwed it in tight and everything? Have I missed something? :S
Click to expand...
Did you remember to re-attach the four Torx T6 screws on the sides?
 
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