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Thinking of buyin a Macbook... :)

J

Jukes316

macrumors regular
Original poster
Apr 1, 2010
128
0
Hey..
Been debating for awhile but have finally decided to get one.
Always had a pc so this will be something new. I just had a few questions about it before I actually go get one.

I was thinking of getting 4gb instead of 2gb...Is it worth it?
I'd only be really surfing the web, email(if that with iphone), playing WoW (Anybody play?), and yea.. nothing with intense programs.

Also, how is the screen? Is it small? Right now I have a 15.4.

Also, what is the best place to buy it from? I'd love to buy in person so I can get it right away. But if I "was" going to upgrade to 4gb...I would have to order it online since I want to customize huh? Or do Apple stores in best buy and such have any configured ones since 2 to 4 is pretty common right?

I'm sure I'll think of some more questions but this is all I got for right now.

Thanks. :)
 
Jukes316 said:
Hey..
Been debating for awhile but have finally decided to get one.
Always had a pc so this will be something new. I just had a few questions about it before I actually go get one.

I was thinking of getting 4gb instead of 2gb...Is it worth it?
I'd only be really surfing the web, email(if that with iphone), playing WoW (Anybody play?), and yea.. nothing with intense programs.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. 4 GB is a must in my book. You will notice a very big performance increase when running multiple applications.

Also, how is the screen? Is it small? Right now I have a 15.4.
Click to expand...

I have a 13" MBP, and I love the screen size. It's the perfect size screen for a laptop IMO.

Also, what is the best place to buy it from? I'd love to buy in person so I can get it right away. But if I "was" going to upgrade to 4gb...I would have to order it online since I want to customize huh? Or do Apple stores in best buy and such have any configured ones since 2 to 4 is pretty common right?
Click to expand...

Buy the MacBook wherever you can find the best price. DO NOT buy the RAM from Apple. You can buy the RAM yourself (Amazon, NewEgg, OWC) and install it yourself. It is very easy to install: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1651 If you do it yourself, you will save some $$$.

I'm sure I'll think of some more questions but this is all I got for right now.

Thanks. :)
Click to expand...

Hope that was helpful.....
 
I just became a mac user a few months ago. I had a pc my hole life and wanted something new. I love my 13" MBP. This thing is a blast to use and learning the in's and out's of osx has been fun. I would say it's a reall good transistion. I have had no problems switching all my stuff over. It's up to you however if you want to buy now or wait for the new ones. That could be in a few days or a few months though.. :rolleyes: Good luck!
 
Thanks for the quick reply guys.
Very helpful.
Few more.
So is it really that much cheaper? it's a hundred bucks online. And I was going to do the educational discount. So that should sort of cover the upgrade right?
Also do they do the discount in stores as well or just online?
And yes I'm getting a mb not mbp. Mbp is just too expensive for me or I would.
 
Jukes316 said:
Thanks for the quick reply guys.
Very helpful.
Few more.
So is it really that much cheaper? it's a hundred bucks online. And I was going to do the educational discount. So that should sort of cover the upgrade right?
Also do they do the discount in stores as well or just online?
And yes I'm getting a mb not mbp. Mbp is just too expensive for me or I would.
Click to expand...

Yeah, online is much cheaper. Best buy will run you 125 for each RAM module, wheres online you can get both 2GB modules for 120.

Oh, and I play WoW of my MB and it works great. It does get a little warm after a while, just make sure you have a nice flat surface for the machine so it can vent properly.
 
microcenter is a good place to buy. they have the white macbook for 799.00 at the moment. You can get the ram there for a preety good price too.
 
Jukes316 said:
Thanks for the quick reply guys.
Very helpful.
Few more.
So is it really that much cheaper? it's a hundred bucks online..
Click to expand...

In the past, upgrading RAM from Apple was the expensive route as opposed to buying RAM from a third-party and installing it yourself. It seems that the third-party prices have risen and Apple's have not making Apple's upgrade attractive. The advantage of a third-party purchase would be you would buy new RAM and keep the old so you'd own 2 sets. Upgrading from Apple would yield just the 1 installed set. The downside of a third-party purchase is that someone may get into an installation nightmare if they run into unforeseen problems like stripped screws or fumbling mishaps.

With this in mind, it's really not a bad idea right now to upgrade through Apple online. If you want to purchase and upgrade at the store, you might call first to make sure that they can do it there.

btw... the same scenario does not hold true for Hard Drive upgrades. Using a third-party is still attractive right now.
 
The white unibody macbook is very nice. The more I play around with it at the stores, the more I like it. The screen is superb. If you have a microcenter in your town, it's $799 + tax - the best price around (no rebates, simply pay 799 and pick it up).
 
Alright, I'll probably call a store today and see if theyre are 1. Able to add the 4gb at the store... 2. If I can still do a school discount at the store or if that is only online.
If these are only online I guess i'll have to go through online and pay 15 bucks so i can get it in 1-3 days.. cause I don't know if I can wait 7-10 days or whatever it is to have a MB! lol.

Pricej - What settings are you able to play at? And are you able to have shadows on a little? My laptop right now can't have any or the FPS drops mad.


Thanks again for all the replys, been much help and can't wait to get mine.
 
Jukes316 said:
Pricej - What settings are you able to play at? And are you able to have shadows on a little? My laptop right now can't have any or the FPS drops mad.
Click to expand...

Honestly, I didn't change any settings at all at and it runs smooth, never had any issues. Shadows are on at low quality. I'm not sure if these are the default settings or if it automatically detects what it can run properly, but it sounds like going to a MB should be an upgrade for you in regards to WoW.
 
Alright, sounds good.
Now just want to get off work and go to the store!
 
Not sure about the education discount but I got my government discount in an Apple store, so maybe they can do your discount too. And I didn't even have to show ID :D.
 
Don't matter now, I just ordered it online. I wanted to get 4gb too...so was easier online I guess. Did the express shipping so hopefully it'll get out of the factory quick.

::sits and waits::
 
I got my macbook!
It feels weird and awesome at the same time. Going to have to get used to it for sure, I downloaded aim and took me about 5 minutes to find it haha.

Anything I should do first now that I have it?
Is there any way to transfer all my songs over from my itunes on my pc? I don't have wifi so don't know if you need that to transfer it all.
 
Download Adium it's one of the best apps for AIM, you can also have facebook im, etc hooked to it.

Also try out spaces, I like it because I can have chrome in one window and itunes always pop up in the right one along with lightroom.
 
It doesn't seem like there is any bloatware like my other laptop when I first got it, but I feel like asking.
Is there anything on the mac that needs can be deleted?
Also what is the program that shows how your mac is running? Someone posted it on a different thread but I can't remember it.
 
Jukes316 said:
It doesn't seem like there is any bloatware like my other laptop when I first got it, but I feel like asking.
Is there anything on the mac that needs can be deleted?
Also what is the program that shows how your mac is running? Someone posted it on a different thread but I can't remember it.
Click to expand...

no programs need to be deleted. :) Almost every program included on my Mac, I've used within the 8 months I've had it.

That widget is called iStat. iStat nano is free.

ALSO in addition to Adium, another MUST HAVE for any Mac user is Perian. It's a codec pack that makes Quicktime even more versatile.
 
Alright, I downloaded iStat
Is there anyway so it stays up all the time? I probably won't be able to see it since screen is small and usually always taken up. But yea.
Might be a way to fit it all.
 
Should I be trying to get some sort of Norton or AVG program for macs? Or do they have there own sort of protection?
 
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