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Just ordered the baseline rMBP 13" - Few questions/comments

M

melman101

macrumors 68030
Original poster
Sep 3, 2009
2,751
295
Hey all,
I just ordered the baseline 13" rMBP. I am currently running on a Mid-2009 13" 2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo with 4GB of RAM and a 1TB Hard drive (I'm going to pass this one to my wife as she's running on a plastic 2006 Macbook that can't go past Snow Leopard).

I understand the Haswell's will be better battery life, but my battery lasts maybe an hour with this computer and that's fine for me. What about performance? Am I going to miss out on a huge performance increase?

Also, I'm a bit upset that you can't change out the RAM or the Hard Drive. How do I compensate for missing out on my huge hard drive? I got the 128GB SSD. Where do I store my iTunes library? Luckily I have iTunes match. Also, what about my iPhoto library? I do have a Time Capsule as well, but if I store it there, then I won't have a backup for that.

I guess I should have considered that. My other colleagues got the Non-Retina macbook pro with the same specs for the same price, however, I think they can change the Hard Drive and the RAM.

Thanks everyone, can't wait to get a new machine.

Oh and what are the chances I'll be entitled to OS Mavericks upgrade for free?
 
melman101 said:
but my battery lasts maybe an hour with this computer and that's fine for me.
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:eek:

Also, I'm a bit upset that you can't change out the RAM or the Hard Drive.
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You're supposed to learn these things before you buy it. (You're not exactly a newbie here).

How do I compensate for missing out on my huge hard drive?
Click to expand...
External drive.

I do have a Time Capsule as well, but if I store it there, then I won't have a backup for that.
Click to expand...
External drive.

I guess I should have considered that. My other colleagues got the Non-Retina macbook pro with the same specs for the same price, however, I think they can change the Hard Drive and the RAM.
Click to expand...
Yes, the non-retina is fully upgradable.

Thanks everyone, can't wait to get a new machine.
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It sounds like you're getting everything you don't want. Why don't you cancel it? :confused:
 
If you have regrets you have 14 days to return it I believe.
If it hasnt' been shipped you should be able to cancel it as well as KB said.

Also, you could have looked into the refurbished site to get one for probably cheaper price with better specs.

Yeah the rMBP cannot have the memory upgraded like the new MBA. I believe you can upgrade the SSD though on the rMBP.

The cMBP can have the memory and HDD upgraded by the end-user.
 
Well I honestly can't complain. As a friend of mine who is a pre-k teacher always says "You get what you get and you don't get upset". The real secret is that my job ordered it for me. So I have no say in when they ordered it or return it, etc. Also, even if I went for the Non-Retina MBP, they would force me to get the 128GB SSD.

You are right in that I'm not a newbie. When the Retina's came out, I do remember seeing that you couldn't upgrade and couldn't believe it. I honestly completely forgot.

And I am dying to have that Retina screen. Just got a new camera (Sony RX100II), and would love to see how Aperture runs on it and how my pictures look.
 
I have the base model as well with the 128GB SSD... but I have another computer (mac mini) which has all my movies, music, Aperture library, etc.

I have pretty much everything I need installed on my rMBP and I still have 83GB free. Probably going to use up another 10GB for a Windows 7 virtual machine.

I may swap it for a Haswell model, but so far I'm not hurting with the 128GB drive, I'm just paying more attention to what's taking up space (I have the sleepimage disabled for example).
 
Why would you buy a rMBP when it's highly likely it will be updated in two weeks? Storage options may be cheaper per GB. Battery life will be better.

I'd return it and wait for Haswell. Of course I thought Haswell rMBP's were going to be released at WWDC in June... :rolleyes: But it's October and most of us believe this is finally the month.
 
Yeah the rMBP cannot have the memory upgraded like the new MBA. I believe you can upgrade the SSD though on the rMBP.
Click to expand...

Please explain.

I know that you can upgrade the SSD in both the Air and the Retina although TODAY there are few third party options in the market.

And I know that, in both Air and Retina, you cannot upgrade RAM.
 
Thanks guys. If it was my money I definitely would have waited :). But seeing as it's from the job I can't be upset.

Has anyone tried SimCity on it? That's the last game I bought.

Also, stupid question, can you use it as a non-retina display and increase resolution from 1280x800 to something higher and have it be non-retina?

Although I'm mad pumped to check out this retina display. Especially when viewing my RX100M2 photos.
 
melman101 said:
Thanks guys. If it was my money I definitely would have waited :). But seeing as it's from the job I can't be upset.

Has anyone tried SimCity on it? That's the last game I bought.

Also, stupid question, can you use it as a non-retina display and increase resolution from 1280x800 to something higher and have it be non-retina?

Although I'm mad pumped to check out this retina display. Especially when viewing my RX100M2 photos.
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You can definitely increase the resolution. Things just won't be as sharp.
 
I solved my rMBP SSD storage problems with a portable 2TB external drive. ( www.amazon.com/Passport-Portable-External-Drive-Storage/dp/B006Y5UV4A/ ) I have moved pretty much all my media (movies, music, photos) over to that drive which leaves me plenty of room on the SSD for lots of apps and documents.

The portable drive is easy to bring along when I'm traveling, but when I'm just using the laptop around town, I usually don't need it. (I have plenty of music on my iPhone.)
 
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KevinC867 said:
I solved my rMBP SSD storage problems with a portable 2TB external drive. ( www.amazon.com/Passport-Portable-External-Drive-Storage/dp/B006Y5UV4A/ ) I have moved pretty much all my media (movies, music, photos) over to that drive which leaves me plenty of room on the SSD for lots of apps and documents.

The portable drive is easy to bring along when I'm traveling, but when I'm just using the laptop around town, I usually don't need it. (I have plenty of music on my iPhone.)
Click to expand...

Yeah I think I'm going to do something similar. I just have to make sure my time machine backs that drive up as well.

I am pretty excited, can't wait to get this machine :)
 
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An external drive is no solution. Its slower, and cumbersome. Yes, it will work but you'll be happier with a bigger internal drive. USB is not that fast.
 
ZipZap said:
An external drive is no solution. Its slower, and cumbersome. Yes, it will work but you'll be happier with a bigger internal drive. USB is not that fast.
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Cool! Where would I get a 2TB SSD upgrade to fit my video/music/photo library? Would I have to pay a little more than the $120 the WD external drive cost? It's a real hassle - it's as big as a deck of cards and only transfers data at 100MB/sec.
 
Yeah I'm going to buy a USB3 drive and do that. If I need to do anything fast, i'll move files to SSD :).

Can't wait to get it :)
 
melman101 said:
Yeah I'm going to buy a USB3 drive and do that. If I need to do anything fast, i'll move files to SSD :).

Can't wait to get it :)
Click to expand...

You'll be more than happy. I know how excited I was when retina came out. A lot of apps weren't even optimized and had tons of blur. You're adapting at the perfect time. :)
 
alphaod said:
Entitled... no.

Though Apple will probably offer anyone who bought a computer in the last 3 months Mavericks for free.
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Semantics, semantics. LOL. I have no problem purchasing Mavericks honestly. It'll probably be $29 bucks again. Not a big deal. Was just wondering cause I know they usually do deals to people who buy computers right before they come out with an OS.
 
melman101 said:
Semantics, semantics. LOL. I have no problem purchasing Mavericks honestly. It'll probably be $29 bucks again. Not a big deal. Was just wondering cause I know they usually do deals to people who buy computers right before they come out with an OS.
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I will have to buy 4 copies; hopefully they will just charge me for 1 copy, like the last time, since they will all download from the same Itunes account !
 
Oh btw, I had mentioned that my other colleagues had gotten non-retina macbook pro's. That was incorrect. They got Retina's MBP's too with 128gb SSD as well.

It should be here next week, I got the secretary to give me the tracking number. I have jury duty next week though, so hopefully i can find some time to pick it up from the office.

I'm thinking about picking up a Gigabit Ethernet Adapter but not sure yet. I'm running the new 802.11ac wireless at home, and 802.11n with the retina will give me maximum speed between my internet connection and my computer. I get 80mbps with my current macbook pro and I only pay for 75mbps.

If I need to transfer files between my wife and I, I think I can use Airdrop (I believe this Mac supports it).

At work, I just have to VPN if I'm on the wifi which isn't a big deal. I think I've talked myself out of the ethernet adapter. Thanks Guys :).

I'm really pumped to play with this new Mac. I'm sure the SSD is going to make the machine lightning fast. I'm currently running on a 5400 rpm drive.
 
rMBP only gives you an hour of battery life?

Am I understanding this correctly?
 
3lite said:
rMBP only gives you an hour of battery life?

Am I understanding this correctly?
Click to expand...

No, my current Mid-2009 gives between an hour and two hours of battery life. Never replaced the battery yet.

I'd said it's in great shape for how old it is.

Design Capacity: 5450 mAh
Current Capacity: 2555 mAh

Age of Mac: 49 Months
Battery Loadcycles: 660
 
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