upgrade hdd - non supported - cycle count issues

[Hujal]

Hey all,

I have an early 2008 MPB and want to upgrade the hard drive. I have seen that I need a 2.5 inch SATA & 9.5mm hdd. However, I became quite worried after reading some threads here and e.g.

http://mymacfixes.blogspot.com/2009/06/how-do-i-stop-clicking-noise-from-hard.html

By reading that hdds that I can buy don't have an optimal firmware for macs and that this may case them to die quite fast.

My Macbook Pro model: Early 2008 model, 15 inch, Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz, 2 GB Ram, Nvidia 8600 GT 256 VRAM, 200 GB hdd - 5400 rpm. I have OS X Leopeard (10.5) which I got together with my mac but I am happy to buy OS X Snow Leopard should it be necessary.

After I buy & install the new hdd, I will dual boot my mac, together with WinXP

I am thinking of buying this model: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Western-Digital-Scorpio-500GB-Internal/dp/B001JSSDGU/ref=cm_cr_pr_pb_t

My questions are:

Q1) Is this drive that is ok with macs (firmware-wise)? if not I would be most thankful for a list of hdds whose firmware is good for macs (no cycle count overhead)?

Q2) which is best OS X Leopard or OS X Snow Leopard, with regard to dealing with the load cycle overhead?

Thank you all in advance

 

[fluffyx]

I promise you don't need a special Mac hard drive.

Any 9.5mm high SATA hard drive will perform nicely.

Customer reviews are almost always based on a small sample, and don't provide an accurate "big picture." For example, you'll hear a lot of folks say: "I've had several Brand X hard drives, but after only a couple months of using this Brand Y, it broke. Brand Y is terrible!" EVERY drive manufacturer has built defective drives. Every single hard drive will fail, and you should always back up your data.

To answer your questions:
1) The hard drive you linked to is just fine. Converting Pounds to US Dollars, the price seems fine as well.
2) If you have the option, go with Snow Leopard rather than Leopard. Don't worry about the load cycle issue.

Also, be careful installing the hard drive. If there's not a Mac repair shop in your area who will perform the work for a reasonable price, it's not a bad idea to invest in some basic tools and equipment. An economical ESD mat and wrist strap can protect your computer from latent damage.

Best wishes.