Upgrade from 15" MBP 2.2ghz (June 2007) or wait?

[zombieflanders]

I'm starting to get the upgrade itch again, with the added "pressure" of my cousin looking for a new laptop that will last 2 years or so. She's looking at the $999 MB, but my Santa Rosa 15" MBP with almost a year's worth of Applecare left seems to have roughly the same specs, and I'd sell it to her for ~$500. I'm still trying to figure out of it's a good idea or not, but I'm leaning ever-so-slightly for the new laptop (15" mid/high, possibly 17"). As they say, always put together a pros and cons list, so here's mine:

Pros:
+ I get a new laptop 😉 and help a relative on a tight budget
+ Faster processor (and easier to run 64-bit OSes)
+ Better graphics
+ More HD space
+ Longer battery life
+ Lighter (unless I have to go 17" for anti-glare)

Cons:
- Only 17" has anti-glare (heavier and I'd need a new laptop bag)
- Non-user battery replacement makes me a little twitchy
- I keep on hearing about Arrandale being a big deal
- Don't want to saddle my cousin with potential 8600M problems (although I haven't had any)
- Blu-ray drives possible next year

FWIW, I'm not doing HD video editing or anything like that, most of the power is used for mobile gaming (Steam) under Boot Camp w/Windows 7 RC or video streaming/playback including HD. And I'm not sure what, if any, benefits Arrandale would bring to a more casual user like me. Blu-ray would be cool, but I already have a Blu-ray player for my home theater, although a burner (however unlikely) would be sweet. However, I haven't had much experience with glossy screens, and I've yet to check one out at an Apple Store, but if it ends up being a big deal I'm limited to only the 17". And although my employer provides interest-free "layaway" for Apple purchases, being limited to the top-tier laptop would give me pause.

With all of that in mind, what would you say?

 

[maflynn]

I'd say hold off and wait for the arrandale/clarksfield MBPs

While I did take the plunge myself and replaced my 07 MBP with a unibody MBP it was last year and I think the clock is ticking on when intel releases the mobile versions of the Nehalem processor.

 

[CoreyMac]

The non-removeable battery is not a minus at all. You do realize these batteries last nearly as long as 2 batteries would in your MBP. My Santa Rosa would get a good 3 hours or so on a full charge.....I get 6 hours now no problem with the non-removeable.

I was also itchy for an upgrade so I bought the highest end one so it has the best resale value if next years update is really worthwhile. I bought the 2.8GHz, 4GB, 500GB, 512MB 9600M June 2009 15" UMPB....If next years model comes with the newer cpu's, blu-ray, 9800M's then I'll surely sell this one for $1700 or so and put in the difference....otherwise this is a damn good piece of hardware that I could use for years to come

 

[applebook]

Just wait. The 9600 will not blow away your 8600 in games.

Your CPU is already 64-bit.

You can always upgrade your hard drive for more space.

You will hardly notice any major performance advantage of a faster CPU if you are not doing video encoding and serious number crunching. You would squeeze 10-20% more frames per second in games, but is this really worth the big investment of a new machine? If I still had my SR MBP, I'd hold out for the next major MBP update.

 

[applebook]

I bought the 2.8GHz, 4GB, 500GB, 512MB 9600M June 2009 15" UMPB....If next years model comes with the newer cpu's, blu-ray, 9800M's then I'll surely sell this one for $1700 or so and put in the difference...

That is a pretty optimistic resale value figure.

 

[ortuno2k]

I say wait a bit more. Your MBP is still powerful enough to handle pretty much anything you want to do on it. I'm using a slightly older model than yours (January '07), and it still works great. All I've done is upgrade the RAM to 3GB and the hard disk with one I purchased from Newegg (320 GB).

WoW runs fine, albeit not as nice as one of the faster video cards - but still does the job.
Everything else is fine too. Wait if you can. I know those UB's can look sexy - but wait!
I know I'll wait a year or two more before I replace mine. 🙂

 

[CoreyMac]

That is a pretty optimistic resale value figure.

Not really, because I'd include the 3 year applecare with it......

I just sold a 2.4Ghz, 4GB RAM 2008 AlumBook with AppleCare for $1000. $500 less than I paid for it...and this was after the June 2009 refresh.

 

[pier]

I have exactly the same mbp as you.

I upgraded to 4Gb of RAM (DDR2 667Mhz is pretty cheap those days).

I upgraded the HD to a Seagate 320Gb 7200rpm 16Mb cache. It's very easy. Take a look at ifixit.com. Don't know if it will break your apple care though.

The unibody is sexy, very sexy... but the truth is I won't get such an improvement in power. Of course you get a better battery, screen, and touchpad... but those are not critical.

I'd say patience. Selling that beast for 500$ is sacrilege... and the new intel processors are coming.