MBP Purchase

[cazzy84]

Hi Guys,

I'm a longtime Windows user who is about to make his 1st purchase!

I've decided on the following configuration:

15"
2.2ghz (doesn't seem worth the money for the 2.3)
4gb RAM (have a 8gb kit already)
128gb SSD
High-Res AG
Apple Care

My plan is to upgrade the SSD (maybe Vertex 3 or another SandForce based SSD) after others have used it for a month to see if there are any probs. Is this a bad strategy or should I just get the 500gb and wait? $85 aint much so i thought I would enjoy an SSD for now.

I also want to do a thermal paste upgrade as I've read Apple is pretty sloppy and over generous with paste. Will this void the warranty? If I use ninja style, is there a way for them to tell?

I hear iStat Pro thrown around these parts often. Are there any other must have apps you recommend? My current plans are to install Parallels, Microsoft Office and Adobe CS5.

Last question, is Apple Care worth it? I'm using my AmEx card so I get an extra year of my factory warranty by doing so.


Thanks guys, I’ve been mulling over this purchase for weeks and I'm ready to start trolling with my MBP!

 

[ECUpirate44]

Good plan and choice with the SSD. I've heard great things about the Vertex 3.

Don't mess with the thermal paste. It will void the warrantee and Apple will surely find out.

A quick mroogle or google search will land you tons of popular apps. istat is a good one.

Apple Care is definitely worth it.

 

[iZero]

Don't mess with the thermal paste. It will void the warrantee and Apple will surely find out.

+1. It's a very minimal improvement in even the best cases. Sometimes 10c cooler (at best it seems) on a machine that was already idling at a perfectly normal temperature. It's a fine tune, not a fix, as there is no problem to be fixed. I agree they were sloppy with the paste, but it isn't cause for any problems in any case that I have seen, even the wildly exaggerated heat threads you see here.

If you open it up and do that mod, your warranty is gone. Only do it if you can afford the risk of possibly losing the money you put into that machine, if it should have a problem someday. There's little to no chance that anything would go wrong, but if it does, that would be one costly "mod" to have done to a machine that was perfectly fine to begin with... Leave it as is, is my suggestion. Even if you do have a heat related failure, Apple will fix it or exchange the machine at no cost. Do the mod, and have something happen, bye-bye cash

AppleCare is most certainly worth it! Unless you plan on doing that mod of course

 

[cazzy84]

@ECUpirate44 Thanks for the feedback...I guess I'll pass on Thermal Paste

@iZero lmao...appreciate the insight and the laugh!


It's good to hear great things about AppleCare. My buddy is pushing me hard to get it, but I thought he had his Apple Salesmen hat on!

 

[iZero]

@ECUpirate44 Thanks for the feedback...I guess I'll pass on Thermal Paste

@iZero lmao...appreciate the insight and the laugh!


It's good to hear great things about AppleCare. My buddy is pushing me hard to get it, but I thought he had his Apple Salesmen hat on!

Haha Really, AppleCare is great. I've rarely had trouble with my Macs. But over the years, it does happen eventually. It takes a 5 dollar repair, or 2,000 dollar repair, or whatever, and makes it a zero dollar repair Or even an exchange, if the machine is really messed up. (unless you damage it yourself, for example dropping it, spilling something on it, etc.) You are allowed to modify the HDD and RAM, without voiding your warranty, but nothing more.