Macbookpro 6,2. I want a SDD drive

[fysbne]

Hi

Ive got 15in macbook pro here are the specs below

Id like to change the inbuilt hard drive with a SSD drive. In not looking for huge amount of storage.. currently i think im only using about 300gb but could delete a lot of movies onto an external drive if i needed to. So id be looking at 250-500gb. Can anyone advise me of a compatible drive that would improve my performance somewhat at a reasonable price. If seen some solutions wherer you need to remove the optical drive which isnt something i really want to do. So really id need the SSD + kit for the right screwdrivers etc and instructions to do all this. IM guessing the SSD would need to be formatted for Mac prior to insallation? So really im looking for recommendations for vendors and also the right hardware. Thank you for your help people, ive been a long time lurker in these forums but this is my first post.


Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro6,2
Processor Name: Intel Core i7
Processor Speed: 2.66 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache (per core): 256 KB
L3 Cache: 4 MB
Memory: 8 GB
Processor Interconnect Speed: 4.8 GT/s

 

[T5BRICK]

Your computer has SATA II, not the most current SATA III so your speeds will be limited by that, not the drive.

I'd suggest a Crucial M4, I've had good luck with mine in my mid 2009(also SATA II).

As for tools, I bought a couple of screwdriver kits at home depot. I've had them for about 6 years now and I've taken many PowerBooks and MacBook Pros apart since then.

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100087664/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100074336/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053

iFixit has good instructions for the actual hardware install. Although, I skip through all the steps where they have you disconnect the battery(just make sure your computer is turned off before you start working on it).

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Unibody+Mid+2010+Hard+Drive+Replacement/3030/1

Reinstalling OSX is very easy, but the process is going to be different depending on the version you're currently running. If you're sticking with 10.6.x, just use the DVDs that came with the computer to reinstall the OS and then restore your data from a backup. If you're using 10.7.x or 10.8.x, you can use internet recovery or you can create a USB recovery drive.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4718

 

[markus843]

Crucial M4, or Samsung 830. Both really good and affordable

 

[T5BRICK]

The Samsung 830 is a great drive if you can find it, but they're getting harder to find now. I don't know about the reliability of the 840 drives, so I don't really want to recommend them until more is known.

 

[fysbne]

So this is what i need?
Plus the screwdrivers? Anything else?
http://www.crucial.com/store/partspecs.aspx?IMODULE=CT256M4SSD3

Are they already formatted for Mac? So i just pop it in using the various instructions on youtube and then put in my old snow leapoard install disk. Install it and then upgrade to mountain lion? Is this going to work for me?

Can you tell me how much noticable performance ill get? I dont do video editing or gaming. I just want to speed my machine up for normal office use.

I was impressed my my friends lower spec macbook air with SSD which seems a lot faster than my machine which is i7 (dual core) hence the reason for wanting to upgrade. Im out of warrante period now and already had a logic board change out of warantee period which i manage to get for free after a lot of calls to apple and begging

 

[T5BRICK]

So this is what i need?
Plus the screwdrivers? Anything else?
http://www.crucial.com/store/partspecs.aspx?IMODULE=CT256M4SSD3

You want the 2.5" version like this

http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-2-5-Inch-Solid-State-CT256M4SSD2/dp/B004W2JL2A

Are they already formatted for Mac? So i just pop it in using the various instructions on youtube and then put in my old snow leapoard install disk. Install it and then upgrade to mountain lion? Is this going to work for me?

I don't think they're formatted, you'll have to use Disk utility before you install the OS. You can access this from the install DVD or USB drive. If you already purchased Mountain Lion, you should be able to install that without first installing Snow Leopard.

This will allow you to create a bootable USB drive using your Mac that is already running OSX 10.7.x or 10.8.x.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4848

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Can you tell me how much noticable performance ill get? I dont do video editing or gaming. I just want to speed my machine up for normal office use.

I thought it was a pretty noticeable improvement when I put the SSD in my MacBook Pro. It boots faster, applications start faster, it is just flat out more responsive. I think SSDs are pretty awesome.

 

[fysbne]

maybe a 500gb would be better on second thoughts. Which one do i need on the crucial site?

I bought ram from crucial a year ago never had any problems with them

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I havent bought lion or mountain lion yet im still running snow leapoard

can i make the disk utility thing to format the SSD using this?

 

[fysbne]

Oh - also my country (Australia) doesnt deliver from Amazon. Where should i buy from thank you

 

[fysbne]

Is this the same thing as suggested above?

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW-Cruc...Internal_Hard_Disk_Drives&hash=item3ccb205dbe


The model number slightly different as an "A" at the end

It also comes with a cloning kit. I assume you just put the cd in, connect the usb and turn on computer and it will mac format the SSD and copy the files accross then its just a matter of swapping them over?

Is the standard mac HD able to be used in a housing so i could use that as a USB backup device also?

Thanks