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Macbook to Pro?

M

magicjames92

macrumors regular
Original poster
Apr 15, 2007
228
0
I have a macbook
C2D 2.0ghz
1gb ram
80gb hd

I do video editing and such. I am thinking about upgrading to a mbp. If i get about 900 from the macbook, and have about 300-400 to spend, are there any decent mbp's out there? Something better than my macbook of course, and it can be used or refurb. Let me know what to do, even if it means sticking with the macbook. thx.
 
You could upgrade your current Macbook with more RAM, etc.

There's a last-generation refurb MBP on the Apple Refurb Store:
- $1449
- 2.2GHz C2D
- 2GB RAM
- 120GB HDD
- 128MB VRAM
 
n1ght said:
You could upgrade your current Macbook with more RAM, etc.

There's a last-generation refurb MBP on the Apple Refurb Store:
- $1449
- 2.2GHz C2D
- 2GB RAM
- 120GB HDD
- 128MB VRAM
Click to expand...

Upgrading my old macbook would mean no better processor (does that matter?) and id still be stuck with the crappy fake graphics card on the macbook. Ive been looking at that mbp, but after tax, its a bit much...
 
The processor on your MacBook is pretty good, and the new ones will cut down on rendering/exporting times.

The graphics card only matters if you're using Motion and Color in Final Cut Studio.

2GB RAM would noticeably boost performance.

Your decision really hinges on your level of video editing. The MacBook is pretty powerful, but the higher-resolution screen and faster processor on the MBP would help out a bit.

The new MacBooks also enter into the equation.
- $1299
- 2.4GHz C2D (Penryn with SSE4.1 instruction set, decently faster than the MBP 2.2)
- 2GB RAM
- 160GB HDD
- Intel X3100 graphics (Not as good as dedicated ("real") graphics, but only noticeable with gaming, Motion, and Color)
 
I don't understand. Your system is too slow because you don't have enough RAM in your system, and so your solution is to buy a MBP?

Do you realize that no matter which computer you purchase, it would run like dog poo if you had 1 GB of RAM in it? Yes, even a MBP, or a Mac Pro, would run dog slow.

It's like having a star athlete on your team, not giving him enough food, and then blaming him for not performing as well as you had hoped.
 
n1ght said:
The processor on your MacBook is pretty good, and the new ones will cut down on rendering/exporting times.

The graphics card only matters if you're using Motion and Color in Final Cut Studio.

2GB RAM would noticeably boost performance.

Your decision really hinges on your level of video editing. The MacBook is pretty powerful, but the higher-resolution screen and faster processor on the MBP would help out a bit.

The new MacBooks also enter into the equation.
- $1299
- 2.4GHz C2D (Penryn with SSE4.1 instruction set, decently faster than the MBP 2.2)
- 2GB RAM
- 160GB HDD
- Intel X3100 graphics (Not as good as dedicated ("real") graphics, but only noticeable with gaming, Motion, and Color)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the response. Very interesting. I would like the MBP for the better screen, backlit keyboard, etc. But if the graphics card doesnt matter, then that macbook is tempting as well. It just wouldn't be very exciting, as it is similar to what I have now. What do you guys think?
 
Cave Man said:
You'd probably be better off just getting 4 gigs of RAM and a 320 gig hard drive. That'll set you back about $250.

(And get an external DVI display to go with it.)
Click to expand...

No. For the reasons above and I do have an ext hd already.
 
The LED screens on the MBP's are gorgeous and much nicer than the macbooks. The middle of the road MB is a nice price/performance machine but I'd say go for the nicer MBP if you can sell your MB for a good price.
 
magicjames92 said:
No. For the reasons above...
Click to expand...

Well, then you shouldn't ask us this:

magicjames92 said:
But if the graphics card doesnt matter, then that macbook is tempting as well. It just wouldn't be very exciting, as it is similar to what I have now. What do you guys think?
Click to expand...

If you don't want others' opinions, then you shouldn't ask.

...and I do have an ext hd already.
Click to expand...

Whatever it is, it won't be as fast as a 320 gig 5400 rpm drive inside your MB.
 
Cave Man said:
Well, then you shouldn't ask us this:



If you don't want others' opinions, then you shouldn't ask.



Whatever it is, it won't be as fast as a 320 gig 5400 rpm drive inside your MB.
Click to expand...

I do want others opinions, I was just letting you know that that wasnt something I was interested in, as I stated earlier to others in the thread. I wasn't getting pissed at you. Sorry if it came out that way. Thanks for posting.
 
magicjames92 said:
I do want others opinions, I was just letting you know that that wasnt something I was interested in, as I stated earlier to others in the thread. I wasn't getting pissed at you. Sorry if it came out that way. Thanks for posting.
Click to expand...

I think what they're trying to say is upgrading your MacBook is cheaper then just buying a whole new computer (also compared to the time doing so). If you get up to 1300-1400, the best you may find is like a 2.0-2.2GHz refub, in which is not going to be a giant (if any) increase in your already 2GHz. The computer speed doesnt just rely on the processor.

You'll be fine with the processor, you just need more RAM which will increase your speed, and also a bigger hard drive. I have a 2GHz CD MB, and upgraded to 2GB RAM & 250GB speed so im not lying when I say the performance increase is there.
 
l Krafty l said:
I think what they're trying to say is upgrading your MacBook is cheaper then just buying a whole new computer (also compared to the time doing so). If you get up to 1300-1400, the best you may find is like a 2.0-2.2GHz refub, in which is not going to be a giant (if any) increase in your already 2GHz. The computer speed doesnt just rely on the processor.

You'll be fine with the processor, you just need more RAM which will increase your speed, and also a bigger hard drive. I have a 2GHz CD MB, and upgraded to 2GB RAM & 250GB speed so im not lying when I say the performance increase is there.
Click to expand...

LOL. ur sig says "I need a macbook pro"
 
As others have said, you'll get the best performance-to-price boost not from buying an MBP, but from adding more memory to your MBP. Since consensus suggests you would not particularly benefit from a real graphics card (the only real advantage of the MBP), if you're looking for a cheap solution, you don't actually need a new computer. It seems, however, you want an MBP more than anything else, which is leading to disagreement between you and responders.
 
I looked on apple's site and it isn't much cheaper to upgrade my memory. For the work of switching out the memory, (and im not comfortable with buying 3rd party memory btw) its not worth it. So I guess my new question is: Where can i get a cheap pro?
 
You're amazing. You don't really want to hear anything other than what you're already thinking. If you want it the refurb MBP, then get it. However, depending on how hardcore you are, you probably don't need a MBP for the 5-10% performance difference you'll get from them. That's miniscule, and a waste of money. Buy a FAST harddisk with Firewire, and buy RAM. That's it.

Getting a new MacBook isn't a good option. I do not, and cannot, understand why you consider this to be a good idea. You need RAM to make a fast machine run fast. A fast processor means nothing if you don't have the RAM. Processor speed only gives you a "potentially" fast machine. The RAM are the little workers that actually make it possible.

You don't want to buy more RAM, and you don't want to buy 3rd Party RAM, which all of us, even "professionals", do because you don't feel comfortable using a screwdriver.


I don't know what to tell you. Buy whatever you think you need, and then come back to tell us how much faster it is, even though it's probably just a placebo effect and probably not true.


PS: I own the same C2D 2.0 GHz MacBook as you, but with the 120 GB harddisk. I also have 3 GB of RAM, and it runs fast.
 
^ I agree. I remember a thread like this in the OS X forum, where someone was complaining about a slow Mac, but refused to upgrade from the miniscule amount of memory he had, and refused to consider reinstalling the operating system. He kept insisting the machine should somehow become faster, but he wasn't willing to actually do anything to the computer. It was crazy.

Oh man--here it is.
 
I'll tell the original poster what he wants to hear: buy the Pro. I traded up from the Macbook to the Macbook Pro (refurb for $1449 last week or so) with the same CPU, memory, and hard drive, and I'm very happy with my purchase for one major reason: the display. The larger, LED backlit display of my Pro is so much nicer than that of the Macbook, especially for video editing and photography. I don't care about the backlit keyboard or the dedicated graphics card so much. I do like the aluminum finish as opposed to the scratch-prone white plastic, but it's the Macbook Pro's screen that makes me happy I switched.
 
well given your budget of $1300 you could look out for the 2.16 mbp models that sometimes appear in the refurb section of the apple web site.


Let me know what to do, even if it means sticking with the macbook. thx.
Click to expand...

strange while everyone offered this option you shun it off. Woulda been better saying that you need the extra screen and the cool look of it, rather than making us believe it was based only on performance
 
marioblackman23 said:
well given your budget of $1300 you could look out for the 2.16 mbp models that sometimes appear in the refurb section of the apple web site.




strange while everyone offered this option you shun it off. Woulda been better saying that you need the extra screen and the cool look of it, rather than making us believe it was based only on performance
Click to expand...

Sorry. When I said that I meant should I keep my macbook, and just leave it the way it is. Save up my money for a later notebook release.
 
well if thats the case, sticking with your macbook isnt your best choice but your most realistic. firstly selling your low end macbook that you have for $900 while apple sells their refurb model for 850 + tax (with one year warantee) is gonna be a tough task.

Even if you do sell it for 900 your still going to need to gome up with at least 500 more to buy the 2.16 mbp model which still has 1gb ram and a 100gb hard drive and since u dont like 3rd party ram this would also be creepy slow.

So Yeah, Stick with the macbook you have now until you can get together enough money to obtain a real update
 
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