Mid-2009 MBP Should Still Be Good?

As long as it runs, you should be good! You could replace the HDD and battery and maybe upgrade the RAM.

 

I have the exact same model, but I only have 2 gb RAM and running 10.6.8. I'm thinking about upgrading to 8 gb RAM and mountain lion. Apple is giving me a new hard drive, and I got a new MagSafe. Long story short I was burning through hard drives and hard drive cables because of a sleep issue. Other than that it still runs pretty well for being 4 years old. I've heard that you shouldn't upgrade to Lion though. I'm not even sure you can buy it from Apple. Go straight to Mountain Lion and maybe upgrade your RAM to 8 gb. I've been told that 4 is ok but 8 is better. Maybe get a new battery.

 

8 GB is the maximum.

Upgrading RAM in MacBooks and MacBook Pros​

Them you will probably benefit from a 250 GB SSD like the Samsung 840 or Crucial M4.

And if your data is important to you, back it up.

 

Check your page outs with istat pro. If you aren't having any there is no need to upgrade your ram.

 

I gave my Mid-2009 MBP to my mom, her main response after half a year was that she hated Java with a passion.

Our country will stop using Java for banking this year, so no problem

 

I have the same computer and it works great. Recently upgraded memory to 8gb and its running 10.8.3 like a charm. No complaints.

 

My old MBP from March 2009 still works great. 8GB of memory (yes, you can install 8GB in that model) and an SSD and it flies.

I actually use it at home instead of my rMBP, mainly because I have a 2-year old running around the house that loves electronics, so my newer rMBP is only used at work.

The battery is shot in the old machine but it works fine when plugged in.