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should I buy a 7200 rpm HD for my macbook?

J

javks

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 20, 2009
9
0
HI, I own a macbook with 2.4ghz cpu, 2gb ram and 160 gb drive. I am thinking about doing some upgrades to it because I need to run parallels, and it makes the computer too slow.
So, I was wandering if 2 x 2Gb PC667 DDR2 CL5 Kingston would make it.

Also, I want to buy a new hard drive, I have 3 options but just don't know wich one I should choose:

1)Western Digital - HDD 320GB SCORPIO 16mb cache Sata 7200 RPM 2,5"

2)Western Digital - 320GB SCORPIO SATA 8mb cache 5400 RPM 2,5"

3)or buying an external Western Digital - HDD 320GB 2,5" so I could use it's case for my old disk

so does it makes a lot of difference to have a faster hard drive or shoul I save some cash buying a slower one?
and are the external drives as good as the internals or because they can't get good transfer rates trough the usb cables the manufacturers make them slower? Anyone knows the cache and RPM specs for this ones: http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.asp?driveid=391?

thanks
 
1)Western Digital - HDD 320GB SCORPIO 16mb cache Sata 7200 RPM 2,5"

I bought this one. I notice VERY LITTLE difference in speed. I personally wish I would have saved the $100 and not upgraded it. Just not worth it as the differences are so minor from the 5400 rpm hdd.
 
Additional RAM will give you a greater performance boost when running parallels. Personally, I've found that 7200rpm drives have three distinct performance improvements (over 5400rpm drives):
- Boot times
- Cold starting apps
- Large file transfers

Generally speaking, the difference will only be a few seconds, but then again, a second can feel like an hour in some cases.
 
I just got the 7200 rpm Seagate 320 GB, and it has been fantastic (i.e. I haven't lost my data yet).

My computer has definitely been faster, but it's probably not entirely due to the 7200 rpm speed. Your Mac will be faster if you have more harddisk space. I only had 7 GB free on my old harddisk, so of course my computer was a little bit slower. Perhaps a 320 GB 5400 rpm harddisk would have been around the same speed, but if you do large data transfers that will take a long time, there will probably be a performance boost using the 7200 rpm harddisk. Starting applications may also be (slightly) faster, but again, it may be due to having a lot more free disk space than before.
 
ok, I guess I will buy a 5400 rpm, but what about the external devices, do you think that the drive inside as the same performance as the internal ones?
 
Cheffy Dave said:
get the 7200, but get a Hitachi from OWC:eek:
Click to expand...

I'm no longer a fan of Hitachi. I don't know what returning drives from other brands is like, but Hitachi's return process seems designed to encourage you to just buy a new drive instead.

Edit: I should add that this was for returning a year old but still under warranty dead hard drive.
 
already bought 2gb of ram, the only one the store add, now I have 3gb of ram installed but haven't really noticed a difference opening parallels, maybe slightly faster, probably with 4gb paired it will go faster

Haven't got the disk, still unsure that, if I buy an external one and remove it from it's casing and put it in my mac, it will have the same performance as a specific internal drive
 
2X2GB Crucial RAM at Newegg $36.99 free shipping.

What kind of external drive do you want? I would suggest an internal 5400 RPM for your MB if you want to keep it cool. The white MBs tend to be like plastic toasters.

As for an external, I just got This 320GB 7200 RPM combo USB/F400 External drive from OWC for $129.99 after rebate for my sister-in-law. It is cheaper than buying the drive and enclosure separately.

As for your internal drive, is this computer out of warranty? If so, just buy from OWC for $59.99 after $10 rebate plus $4.99 shipping and rebate your old drive. You could get $25 back for the drive. However, if this is still in warranty you might as well keep the old drive so you can pop it back in if you send it for repair. If you want to keep your drive and get free shipping just buy from Newegg for $59.99 after $10 rebate.
 
I bought a 320gb, 7200rpm and 16mb cache hard drive from Western Digital, but I am going to trade it for a 5400rpm one because it makes a lot of vibration compared with my old drive
 
While you'll get a bit more speed..

You won't notice it. But you will notice the space that goes along with a 500GB Hard Drive. I believe Western Digital is the best (most reliable, quiet, green, etc). The best way to do it:
Buy the external drive for super cheap,
Clone your drive onto it (CCC or Time machine restore)
Take apart the external drive and swap drives with the MAcBook.
Now you've got 500G of space AND a sweet external pocket drive! All for $100 - easy!


 
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Cleve said:
You won't notice it. But you will notice the space that goes along with a 500GB Hard Drive. I believe Western Digital is the best (most reliable, quiet, green, etc). The best way to do it:
Buy the external drive for super cheap,
Clone your drive onto it (CCC or Time machine restore)
Take apart the external drive and swap drives with the MAcBook.
Now you've got 500G of space AND a sweet external pocket drive! All for $100 - easy!
Click to expand...

Interesting.
 
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Do not get a 320Gb, get the new Seagate 500Gb 7200 rpm hard drive. You might have to wait a bit for stock, but it's well worth the upgrade.
 
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