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Keep 2010 13' MBP or Upgrade to SSD or 2011 MBA

N

NYRangers11

macrumors member
Original poster
Jan 28, 2011
91
0
Hey Guys wanted some opinions....

I currently have a almost one year old 13' 2.4 C2D from 2010. My time window to get applecare is about to expire and here I am faced with a dilemma. I am thinking I should probably get applecare if I plan on keeping this computer. On the other hand I can also sell this one for about $700 - $800 and buy a MBA. Im thinking either 13 or 11 with 4 GB Ram and 128 HD. Or I can get applecare and buy a 128 SSD from OWC. Price wise I can swing either option but I think applecare + SSD upgrade will come out to be a little more than the current MBA.

My computing needs are fairly simple. I mainly use it for browsing, MS Office, music, movies, and some amateur aperture here and there. I do understand that with a MBA I will gain an advantage in portability yet I will loose the Superdrive.

Lets hear some opinions. Thanks !
 
NYRangers11 said:
Hey Guys wanted some opinions....

I currently have a almost one year old 13' 2.4 C2D from 2010. My time window to get applecare is about to expire and here I am faced with a dilemma. I am thinking I should probably get applecare if I plan on keeping this computer. On the other hand I can also sell this one for about $700 - $800 and buy a MBA. Im thinking either 13 or 11 with 4 GB Ram and 128 HD. Or I can get applecare and buy a 128 SSD from OWC. Price wise I can swing either option but I think applecare + SSD upgrade will come out to be a little more than the current MBA.

My computing needs are fairly simple. I mainly use it for browsing, MS Office, music, movies, and some amateur aperture here and there. I do understand that with a MBA I will gain an advantage in portability yet I will loose the Superdrive.

Lets hear some opinions. Thanks !
Click to expand...

I have the same machine and put a 120GB OCZ Vertex 2 SSD in it with 8GB of RAM..the thing books, opens MS Office apps in <2 seconds, handles Aperture 3 well as far as I'm concerned, etc.

I'm somewhat interested in selling mine, though - I'd like to upgrade to one with an i-whichever processor as well as have a Tbolt port to futureproof it a bit. Im sure a processor upgrade + SSD + RAM would certainly fly. I'm worried about that C2D being a bottleneck for the machine at times.

I've never resold Apple gear - where would you do it?
 
I would either sell it to someone I know or I will put out an ad on craigslist. I would obviously meet them in a safe and public location for a cash only payment.
 
I have the same model. I did not buy Applecare as I prefer to self-insure and my credit card covers me for the second year of warranty. I am not going to SSD at this time as my computer starts up instantly from sleep. There isn't necessarily a dilemma. Unless something is wrong or you need more power, consider doing nothing and save your money.
 
I just did the exact thing you are considering. I sold my 2010 13" MBP to my brother's friend for $850 and bought a new 13" Air.

I took a look at eBay and $850 seemed to be the average price for the base 13" MBP. If you have all the original boxes and it's in great condition you might get more.

I mainly use my laptop for browsing and find the Air is perfect for using on my lap. It's definitely faster than the MBP.

I bought an external optical drive from NewEgg for $29 over the weekend, so hopefully that will work with it when the kids want to watch a DVD on the road. It came yesterday, but I haven't had a chance to hook it up and test it out.
 
I think if you are doing photography you would be disappointed in the MBA screen compared to the MBP. The MBA is a great portable laptop but I do not see how you can compare the 2 screens when it comes to editing photo's.
 
Definitely Apple Care and a SSD. Definitely. The SSD in ANY "current' MBP will make it better than any MBA in all regards. You have the regular voltage HD3000, a 13 inch screen (lower resolution though, not too bad), a higher clocked processor, a CD drive (or a 2nd storage drive), and the long battery life.

That machine would last you at least another 3 years. I just got a MBP yesterday and I'm probably just going to keep it for 3 or so years, at least until I get out of college.
 
AdrianK said:
Clock speeds aren't everything. The 2.4GHz C2D in the OP's MBP geekbenches at ~3342, whereas the 1.7GHz i5 in the Air benches at ~5372, and ~5800 for the 1.8GHz i7.
Click to expand...

Ah you're right; it will turbo boost and surpass all former MBPs. For some reason, I thought I included the iCore to iCore comparison, guess not.
 
Young Spade said:
Definitely Apple Care and a SSD. Definitely. The SSD in ANY "current' MBP will make it better than any MBA in all regards. You have the regular voltage HD3000, a 13 inch screen (lower resolution though, not too bad), a higher clocked processor, a CD drive (or a 2nd storage drive), and the long battery life.

That machine would last you at least another 3 years. I just got a MBP yesterday and I'm probably just going to keep it for 3 or so years, at least until I get out of college.
Click to expand...

+1

You can also upgrade the RAM to 8GB.
 
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