MBP users, can I live with a 128GB SSD for main drive (no opti)

[Tydog07]

I'm looking into buying a used 15 2.2 that has an Apple 128GB SSD. My music library is about 13GB's, and i'll need that constantly on my laptop. I have about 2GB of photos that I'll want on there (that is all I have). And I can keep my video (tv/movies/raw hd footage from camcorder) on my 500GB external HD. I realize that the OS (Lion) is 4GB. I'll want a couple heavy programs such as Final Cut X, Aperture, Microsoft Office Professional and a few browsers and the like. It looks like Final Cut is 4GB in application size and 55GB of other content I can keep on an external hard drive. So now I'm up to 23GB, add a few GB's of documents/PDF's/Misc. and your at ~30GB.

My question is can I live with a 128GB SSD for most of my (portable) time and then attach my external HDD when I want to use it for watching movies/tv?


Otherwise, what is keyboard wear like on these laptops? And he says it doesn't come with iLife, aren't all Macs installed with iLife? I'm asking him to send me a screenshot of his coconut battery.


This is a really tough decision for me, plus, the free ipod deal hasn't started yet and some think it won't start, which means that it could add $200 to the price for me if I buy one new, I just need to figure out if I can live with a 128GB SSD.



Can I swap out the Apple SSD for a HDD later on and do an optibay setup? I like that Momentus X hybrid drive. Please help, I want to make a decision soon.

 

[AFPoster]

Can I swap out the Apple SSD for a HDD later on and do an optibay setup? I like that Momentus X hybrid drive. Please help, I want to make a decision soon.

Yes you can & vis-versa.
If you're worried about space go with a HDD and upgrade to an SSD when they're cheaper and offer more space. Otherwise get the 128gb SSD and just grab an external hd.

 

[Tydog07]

Yes you can & vis-versa.
If you're worried about space go with a HDD and upgrade to an SSD when they're cheaper and offer more space. Otherwise get the 128gb SSD and just grab an external hd.

Regardless, is it reasonable to live on a 128GB SSD?

How is the keyboard wear on these laptops? I just read another thread of things I should check when buying a used laptop.

 

[motoracer1486]

I personally wouldn't want to have a 128 SSD by itself...too small.

 

[AFPoster]

Regardless, is it reasonable to live on a 128GB SSD?

How is the keyboard wear on these laptops? I just read another thread of things I should check when buying a used laptop.

You can live with 128gb. I'd use the 128gb for system files and apps only and purchase an external 1tb or more (like $100 or a little more) for everything else. Me personally I wouldn't get an SSD, I'd just do a HDD until the prices and storage size come down and up (if you get what I mean) and then just swap since that doesn't void a warranty.

My keyboard is fine and I type a ton on my with dirty, clean, and chip fingers...lol. When buying used make sure it's still under warranty, battery cycle count, screen, scratches, dents, etc and serial #.

 

[Tydog07]

I personally wouldn't want to have a 128 SSD by itself...too small.

Yes but I'll have a 500GB external as well.

You can live with 128gb. I'd use the 128gb for system files and apps only and purchase an external 1tb or more (like $100 or a little more) for everything else. Me personally I wouldn't get an SSD, I'd just do a HDD until the prices and storage size come down and up (if you get what I mean) and then just swap since that doesn't void a warranty.

My keyboard is fine and I type a ton on my with dirty, clean, and chip fingers...lol. When buying used make sure it's still under warranty, battery cycle count, screen, scratches, dents, etc and serial #.

I agree but the price on this laptop is pretty good, and if the B2S promotion doesn't come through, then his laptop would be $150 cheaper then my original plan. If I get nervous about the 128 GB SSD, I could always swap out.

 

[motoracer1486]

Yes but I'll have a 500GB external as well.



I agree but the price on this laptop is pretty good, and if the B2S promotion doesn't come through, then his laptop would be $150 cheaper then my original plan. If I get nervous about the 128 GB SSD, I could always swap out.

I understand you'll have an external...but are you willing to always carry it around with you? If so, then go for the 128GB SSD.

 

[JR1993]

I understand you'll have an external...but are you willing to always carry it around with you? If so, then go for the 128GB SSD.

Might not always need to carry it round.

I plan to have a 120GB SSD for OS, programs, files and music (i dont have much music). Then on external I will have photos and movies, which I will only need when at home, or a long journey when i have a bigger bag anyway.

Of course, the OP might need it all the time, I dont know.

 

[Dark Void]

that's for you to decide. if you are asking generally, then yeah, of course, that could be enough space for someone...you just have to decide if it's enough for you personally. as suggested you could also just store anything that wouldn't require the ssd on an external such as photos, movies, and the like. if you see yourself carrying around an external more often then you would carry around an optical drive, you may want to look into putting something in the optibay. also, the momentus xt has been reported to have a lot of problems, although successful sometimes, i would stay away from it for now until (if) other companies start producing these hybrid drives.

 

[Apple Expert]

That's too small for me. My iTunes alone is about 160gb. I currently have a 500gb drive and ben thinking of going to 250gb ssd. But afraid I will miss the disk space.

 

[bniu]

I have a 128GB SSD and I actually decided to switch back to a 750GB HDD because at the end of the day, Storage is King. One thing I've heard is to look at Hybrid HDDs. Does anyone have any experience with that Seagate one?

 

[nickcao]

I'm looking into buying a used 15 2.2 that has an Apple 128GB SSD. My music library is about 13GB's, and i'll need that constantly on my laptop. I have about 2GB of photos that I'll want on there (that is all I have). And I can keep my video (tv/movies/raw hd footage from camcorder) on my 500GB external HD. I realize that the OS (Lion) is 4GB. I'll want a couple heavy programs such as Final Cut X, Aperture, Microsoft Office Professional and a few browsers and the like. It looks like Final Cut is 4GB in application size and 55GB of other content I can keep on an external hard drive. So now I'm up to 23GB, add a few GB's of documents/PDF's/Misc. and your at ~30GB.

My question is can I live with a 128GB SSD for most of my (portable) time and then attach my external HDD when I want to use it for watching movies/tv?


Otherwise, what is keyboard wear like on these laptops? And he says it doesn't come with iLife, aren't all Macs installed with iLife? I'm asking him to send me a screenshot of his coconut battery.


This is a really tough decision for me, plus, the free ipod deal hasn't started yet and some think it won't start, which means that it could add $200 to the price for me if I buy one new, I just need to figure out if I can live with a 128GB SSD.



Can I swap out the Apple SSD for a HDD later on and do an optibay setup? I like that Momentus X hybrid drive. Please help, I want to make a decision soon.

the apple ssd got 121 Gigs in total and the whole SL system used like 16 Gigs. im not sure how much space u need for app and music, but for me aft i install all app music and some games, i still have like 40-50 Gigs free space left (i put movies ect on my 1tb fw800 driver).

 

[Apple Expert]

You can lighten the load of SL if you choose custom install and remove all the printer drivers and download only what you need.

 

[Tydog07]

I understand you'll have an external...but are you willing to always carry it around with you? If so, then go for the 128GB SSD.

I won't need to carry it around, I will be using the portability of it for class purposes only, when I come home, I'll connect it to my monitor and plug it in.

that's for you to decide. if you are asking generally, then yeah, of course, that could be enough space for someone...you just have to decide if it's enough for you personally. as suggested you could also just store anything that wouldn't require the ssd on an external such as photos, movies, and the like. if you see yourself carrying around an external more often then you would carry around an optical drive, you may want to look into putting something in the optibay. also, the momentus xt has been reported to have a lot of problems, although successful sometimes, i would stay away from it for now until (if) other companies start producing these hybrid drives.

This is the way I feel, I think I might just go for it, I will research those hybrid drives more.

the apple ssd got 121 Gigs in total and the whole SL system used like 16 Gigs. im not sure how much space u need for app and music, but for me aft i install all app music and some games, i still have like 40-50 Gigs free space left (i put movies ect on my 1tb fw800 driver).

The whole SL system uses 16GB? Lion only uses 4GB?

You can lighten the load of SL if you choose custom install and remove all the printer drivers and download only what you need.

Wow! Great tip, what else can I remove, I read in Macworld that you can remove a lot of the loops/sounds in garage band to increase space.

 

[lesyork]

The Lion upgrade is 4GB, not the size of the whole OS.

 

[ScubaCinci]

I've been using a 120GB SSD for six months now. The only time I ran into storage issues is when I went on vacation and took a bunch of video and tried to do the editing at the hotel. I filled it up pretty quickly. I should have planned ahead and brought my 64GB flash drive which is a nice option.

 

[Apple Expert]

I won't need to carry it around, I will be using the portability of it for class purposes only, when I come home, I'll connect it to my monitor and plug it in.



This is the way I feel, I think I might just go for it, I will research those hybrid drives more.



The whole SL system uses 16GB? Lion only uses 4GB?



Wow! Great tip, what else can I remove, I read in Macworld that you can remove a lot of the loops/sounds in garage band to increase space.

You can remove the tones from GarageBand. The extra junk from a photoshop install such as media browser. You just need to ask yourself if you use it and not install it just because. Removing all of printer drivers saves you about 2gb of disk space.

 

[palpatine]

Judicious use of your external hard drives and online services like dropbox and sugarsync (I mainly use this one) can make it pretty easy to live within those limits.

Depending on your workflow, you might also be able to benefit from evernote, google docs, and other online services to further reduce the amount of stuff you carry around.

the roll out of amazon's locker, icloud, and other services will probably make it even easier in the near future.

 

[Tydog07]

The Lion upgrade is 4GB, not the size of the whole OS.

So I checked the apple store, SL is 5GB so 4+5=9GB, not 16GB, I'm lost.

I've been using a 120GB SSD for six months now. The only time I ran into storage issues is when I went on vacation and took a bunch of video and tried to do the editing at the hotel. I filled it up pretty quickly. I should have planned ahead and brought my 64GB flash drive which is a nice option.

Good to know.

You can remove the tones from GarageBand. The extra junk from a photoshop install such as media browser. You just need to ask yourself if you use it and not install it just because. Removing all of printer drivers saves you about 2gb of disk space.

Is it difficult to sync video and photos that will be used for projects in FCP and photos for iphoto/Aperture on an external drive?

Judicious use of your external hard drives and online services like dropbox and sugarsync (I mainly use this one) can make it pretty easy to live within those limits.

Depending on your workflow, you might also be able to benefit from evernote, google docs, and other online services to further reduce the amount of stuff you carry around.

the roll out of amazon's locker, icloud, and other services will probably make it even easier in the near future.

It looks like I've made a decision, 128GB SSD it is!

 

[Shadow Runner]

So I checked the apple store, SL is 5GB so 4+5=9GB, not 16GB, I'm lost.

Well those numbers are before any files get expanded. Sometimes this can be a significant size difference. Even with that, you still have enough storage. You'll probably be conscious of the very limited space all the time though.

Kind of like having an all electric car, you can't go too far or else...

 

[snaky69]

I'm looking into buying a used 15 2.2 that has an Apple 128GB SSD. My music library is about 13GB's, and i'll need that constantly on my laptop. I have about 2GB of photos that I'll want on there (that is all I have). And I can keep my video (tv/movies/raw hd footage from camcorder) on my 500GB external HD. I realize that the OS (Lion) is 4GB. I'll want a couple heavy programs such as Final Cut X, Aperture, Microsoft Office Professional and a few browsers and the like. It looks like Final Cut is 4GB in application size and 55GB of other content I can keep on an external hard drive. So now I'm up to 23GB, add a few GB's of documents/PDF's/Misc. and your at ~30GB.

My question is can I live with a 128GB SSD for most of my (portable) time and then attach my external HDD when I want to use it for watching movies/tv?


Otherwise, what is keyboard wear like on these laptops? And he says it doesn't come with iLife, aren't all Macs installed with iLife? I'm asking him to send me a screenshot of his coconut battery.


This is a really tough decision for me, plus, the free ipod deal hasn't started yet and some think it won't start, which means that it could add $200 to the price for me if I buy one new, I just need to figure out if I can live with a 128GB SSD.



Can I swap out the Apple SSD for a HDD later on and do an optibay setup? I like that Momentus X hybrid drive. Please help, I want to make a decision soon.

Lion's install file is 4Gb, the OS itself will take up more room than that.

The only person that truly knows if you can live with such little space is you. I know I could probably get by, but not by that much of a margin, and it is good practice to keep 10-20% of your hard drive free.

 

[Kleptomaniac]

I have a MacBook Pro with the 128GB SSD and personally I find it great! The speed of the system makes up for the small capacity and most people would own an external HDD anyway so thats where all my files that don't need the insane speed will go. I also have a PC with a 1TB HDD so that does help.

 

[superfula]

Judicious use of your external hard drives and online services like dropbox and sugarsync (I mainly use this one) can make it pretty easy to live within those limits.

Depending on your workflow, you might also be able to benefit from evernote, google docs, and other online services to further reduce the amount of stuff you carry around.

the roll out of amazon's locker, icloud, and other services will probably make it even easier in the near future.

I love Dropbox and use it extensively, but items are still stored locally on your harddrive so it isn't going to save space. The same will apply for iCloud.

Op...I went from roughly 500gig down to a 128gig ssd relatively painlessly. I also have a couple terabytes of movies and music as well as a backup drive, but all that stayed solely on the Mac Pro. Before buying I went through and marked everything that I absolutely needed to have on the laptop.

As others have suggested remove any printer drivers or unnecessary fonts. I also cleared out all Garageband crap as I'll never use it. Those steps alone will save you a chunk.

In the end I have Photoshop, Office, Starcraft and WoW installed with all other apps I use and still have 20 gigs of space left. Because of the music and movies, I certainly couldn't live with only 128gig, but with another drive to store lesser used items it's easily doable for me.

 

[Zumino]

You can live with a 128gb SSD alone. It'd probably be fine for your purposes.

I have a 128gb SSD, and all of my "important" files are on it (variety of reasons).

I've got 16gb of Apps (CS5, office2011, iWork, iLife, Steam/Games, etc), 20gb of research, and 10gb of PDF papers.

That said, I went the optibay route, and just installed a 750gb 2nd harddrive for storage, and moved my music/movies/etc to that drive.

But yeah, 128 is about what most people consider to be "enough", especially if they are smart enough to realize that they don't need to have every song/picture/video with them at all times. (and it's actually safer to NOT have them with you, because that means you've backed them up somewhere!)

 

[Tydog07]

I have a MacBook Pro with the 128GB SSD and personally I find it great! The speed of the system makes up for the small capacity and most people would own an external HDD anyway so thats where all my files that don't need the insane speed will go. I also have a PC with a 1TB HDD so that does help.

I want your same setup 15" hi-res, 128 SSD! So how much does leopard use on your system? How much space to you have free on the SSD? Do you use an external hdd?

I love Dropbox and use it extensively, but items are still stored locally on your harddrive so it isn't going to save space. The same will apply for iCloud.

Op...I went from roughly 500gig down to a 128gig ssd relatively painlessly. I also have a couple terabytes of movies and music as well as a backup drive, but all that stayed solely on the Mac Pro. Before buying I went through and marked everything that I absolutely needed to have on the laptop.

As others have suggested remove any printer drivers or unnecessary fonts. I also cleared out all Garageband crap as I'll never use it. Those steps alone will save you a chunk.

In the end I have Photoshop, Office, Starcraft and WoW installed with all other apps I use and still have 20 gigs of space left. Because of the music and movies, I certainly couldn't live with only 128gig, but with another drive to store lesser used items it's easily doable for me.

You can live with a 128gb SSD alone. It'd probably be fine for your purposes.

I have a 128gb SSD, and all of my "important" files are on it (variety of reasons).

I've got 16gb of Apps (CS5, office2011, iWork, iLife, Steam/Games, etc), 20gb of research, and 10gb of PDF papers.

That said, I went the optibay route, and just installed a 750gb 2nd harddrive for storage, and moved my music/movies/etc to that drive.

But yeah, 128 is about what most people consider to be "enough", especially if they are smart enough to realize that they don't need to have every song/picture/video with them at all times. (and it's actually safer to NOT have them with you, because that means you've backed them up somewhere!)

I'm liking this!