So... What are my options?

[Customhobo]

Hey guys.

So I bought an Intel X25-M (160) last month in anticipation of buying a new MBP very soon (The Intel I found on ebay was a very good deal so I jumped on it asap)

When the new MBPs were announced last week I was very excited, glad that I had waited for WWDC until I made my purchase.

I waited a few days, looked at some first reviews, and I couldn't find any problems, so I ordered one.

I then hear about this SATA downgrade today.. and I am pretty disappointed.. I have just spent all this money on a new MBP and a great SSD.. but I hear that the SSDs performance could be reduced as low as half..

So.. what are my options? Does apple have a return policy? Am I being unrealistic for wanting to return it? Is there a chance that Apple will fix/replace the SATA interfaces for us early adopters?

Just trying to figure things out, you know.

Thanks in advance guys.

 

[Schtumple]

Well by the sounds of it, unless you're going to be moving large files around constantly, you're not going to notice a difference.

 

[MacDawg]

You might want to join the discussion in this thread

They have already covered most of these bases there

Woof, Woof - Dawg

 

[Customhobo]

Well by the sounds of it, unless you're going to be moving large files around constantly, you're not going to notice a difference.

Why do you say that?

 

[thegoldenmackid]

Hey guys.

So I bought an Intel X25-M (160) last month in anticipation of buying a new MBP very soon (The Intel I found on ebay was a very good deal so I jumped on it asap)

When the new MBPs were announced last week I was very excited, glad that I had waited for WWDC until I made my purchase.

I waited a few days, looked at some first reviews, and I couldn't find any problems, so I ordered one.

I then hear about this SATA downgrade today.. and I am pretty disappointed.. I have just spent all this money on a new MBP and a great SSD.. but I hear that the SSDs performance could be reduced as low as half..

Remember, there is still a debate about whether a simple update could fix this...And, no one knows yet about how much performance will be lost...

So.. what are my options? Does apple have a return policy?

Yes, 14 Days and you can avoid a restocking fee for not opening it. Most likely you could call Apple now and cancel it.

Am I being unrealistic for wanting to return it?

To each their own? I mean, you did go out of your way to spend money on the SSD.

Is there a change that Apple will fix/replace the SATA interfaces for us early adopters?

See above (about firmware update), but it would be un-Apple like to issue a refund or massive recall to replace them. If they did I would imagine that it would be to people that purchased an SSD from Apple only, because most standard hard drive users would hardly notice a thing. But, once again, I'd say the odds of this happening are about as good as the odds of the Cubs winning the World Series.

Just trying to figure things out, you know.

You could always buy a refurb/new older model, sure you would sacrafice battery life, but you could get the speed at a much lower price.

 

[spinnerlys]

Why do you say that?

SATA 1.5 (also called SATA I) has a theoretical throughput of 1.5Gbit/s, which is 187,5MByte/s more than double the write speed of the drive (70MB/s).

But the drive's read speed of about 250MB/s will not be reached with SATA 1.5.

Maybe you have luck and your interface is the SATA 3.0 one, if not, you could always exchange it at Apple's and ask for the 3.0 interface.

 

[jeme]

Well I have the new 13 inch MBP and had a Intel X25M 160GB SSD drive and installed it in the machine on Wednesday night - I am just as disappointed as everyone else.

I couple of things to comment on - the machine is still smoking fast - I boot into OS X in 18 seconds and shut down in 3 seconds - things seem to launch very fast.

My options are very limited - if they do not fix this and I decide to return the machine - I (and my X25) are going back into my Sony Z590.

I still have to decide that - but again - the machine is very fast - but I feel like it is a waste to spend so much of the disk and then have the machine not be able to utalize the speed.

 

[Customhobo]

SATA 1.5 (also called SATA I) has a theoretical throughput of 1.5Gbit/s, which is 187,5MByte/s more than double the write speed of the drive (70MB/s).

But the drive's read speed of about 250MB/s will not be reached with SATA 1.5.

Maybe you have luck and your interface is the SATA 3.0 one, if not, you could always exchange it at Apple's and ask for the 3.0 interface.

But don't all the new MBPs have the 1.5 interface? I couldn't just walk into the store and say "Give me a faster interface" lol

And that is really what I am worried about.

It will be my ONLY computer that I have access too, so even though it isn't the best, I am still going to be doing a lot of gaming on it, meaning loading large 3D levels.. meaning I will want all 250MB/s of that read capability that the x25 has to offer...

 

[spinnerlys]

But don't all the new MBPs have the 1.5 interface? I couldn't just walk into the store and say "Give me a faster interface" lol

And that is really what I am worried about.

It will be my ONLY computer that I have access too, so even though it isn't the best, I am still going to be doing a lot of gaming on it, meaning loading large 3D levels.. meaning I will want all 250MB/s of that read capability that the x25 has to offer...

Following some threads around here (not all of course, as there are many many much of many), some state, that they have bought a new MBP and still have the SATA 3.0 interface.

But as far as I remember all I've read was about the SATA interface for the optical drive, not the mechanical one.
But maybe new ones have emerged and stated that also some of those SATA interfaces with the HDD are affected by the lower SATA 1.5 standard.

 

[Customhobo]

Following some threads around here (not all of course, as there are many many much of many), some state, that they have bought a new MBP and still have the SATA 3.0 interface.

But as far as I remember all I've read was about the SATA interface for the optical drive, not the mechanical one.
But maybe new ones have emerged and stated that also some of those SATA interfaces with the HDD are affected by the lower SATA 1.5 standard.

Ya, I just finished reading all 15 pages of the topic you linked me too.

I guess all I can do is wait until I recive mine..

If I have the 1.5 interface, I'll wait 11 or 12 days for a word from apple. If I hear nothing, then I'll just return it and wait to see what happens.

EDIT: I have read that if you order a new MBP that COMES customized with an SSD, then you will get the 3.0 interface... wow.