MBP Performance

[zechmann]

I don't feel I am getting full performance out of my MBP... is there a way to check if your machine is performing to its capabilities?

 

[HLdan]

What exactly is happening or not happening to make you think that?

 

[mad jew]

Well, you could run Xbench and compare the results to machine with similar specifications...

 

[joegomolski]

MBP Performance

First a couple of questions for you.

In my opinion the best way to get max performance from a MacBook Pro, is to, 1) max out the RAM, and 2) Replace the HDD that came with your MacBook Pro, it probably has a speed of 5K, with a HDD that runs at 7K.

Do not purchase these items from Apple. Their prices are for newbies converting to Mac. No one else buys these upgrades from Apple.

Instead get the best price by searching on the internet.

What I do is buy RAM and HDD replacements from OWC, macsales.com. They're tons cheaper for the same products. And they have great tech support.

 

[dmw007]

First a couple of questions for you.

In my opinion the best way to get max performance from a MacBook Pro, is to, 1) max out the RAM, and 2) Replace the HDD that came with your MacBook Pro, it probably has a speed of 5K, with a HDD that runs at 7K.

Do not purchase these items from Apple. Their prices are for newbies converting to Mac. No one else buys these upgrades from Apple.

Instead get the best price by searching on the internet.

What I do is buy RAM and HDD replacements from OWC, macsales.com. They're tons cheaper for the same products. And they have great tech support.

This is exactly the course of action that I took, and my 2.2GHz MacBook Pro is quite the speed-demon.

 

[zechmann]

my MBP seems to freeze a lot and sometimes Little Snitch is using all my cpu but this is not the only time when my comp slows down... it is just random times usually when i am running a couple different programs (itunes, safari, word, excel... nothing too processor heavy)

 

[mad jew]

Keep Activity Monitor open as you work and check All Processes. See what is coming up during the freezes or slow downs and report back here. Do you have the latest version of LittleSnitch?

 

[HLdan]

my MBP seems to freeze a lot and sometimes Little Snitch is using all my cpu but this is not the only time when my comp slows down... it is just random times usually when i am running a couple different programs (itunes, safari, word, excel... nothing too processor heavy)

May I ask what is Little Snitch used for and why are you using it?

 

[mad jew]

LittleSnitch monitors outgoing network traffic.

 

[heatmiser]

my MBP seems to freeze a lot and sometimes Little Snitch is using all my cpu but this is not the only time when my comp slows down... it is just random times usually when i am running a couple different programs (itunes, safari, word, excel... nothing too processor heavy)

In Little Snitch, try disabling the Network monitor. Perhaps that's responsible for its high processor usage.

 

[Sun Baked]

Note the times when the machine seems to come to a halt, and then look at the logs ... you might find something.

Also check the fsck_hfs log to see if it is repairing a lot on restart.