Is it worth limiting....

[macrumorsMaster]

myself to MAX 4gb and get a great deal on a prev gen refurb MBP?

Or is having the 8gb max ram limit really much better?


also, which is better:
getting a faster hd or bigger?
e.g. 250GB 7200rpm vs 320GB 5200 rpm

if same price.

 

[spinnerlys]

It all depends on what you do.

If you're just surfing, writing essays, dabbling in iPhoto or other iLife applications, 4GB RAM and a bigger HDD will suffice.

But if you open memory hungry software, and more than one at the same time, that also need fast access to files on your computer, 8GB RAM and a fast HDD will be the better choice.

There is also MRoogle.

 

[Airforcekid]

If you plan on having it 3+ years get the 8GB if less than that 4 will perform well.

 

[macrumorsMaster]

Editing shorts and hopefully features in the future with FCS.

I don't need more than 4gb now, but was thinking for the future.

 

[spinnerlys]

Editing shorts and hopefully features in the future with FCS.

I don't need more than 4gb now, but was thinking for the future.

Then go for the model with the fastest drive, as your footage should never reside on the internal HDD, but on an external FW800 or eSATA drive.

As for needing 8GB RAM, with editing that might not be necessary, but maybe with compositing or something more RAM intensive.

Also the RAM prices of DDR3 will come down eventually, so you can always upgrade later.