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Upgrading Late 2010 Macbook Pro

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beersst

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 7, 2014
5
0
Hey, I'm brand new to this site so I apologize if this question has been answered several times before. I have a late 2010 Macbook Pro. I'm interested in upgrading it in any way possible to extend its usability. I'm 100% okay with not having the newest and just want to get the most life I can out of what I already have.

My Mac is....

15 inch, Late 2010
2.66 GHz Intel Core i7
4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3
Intel HD Graphics 288 MB

Does this seem worth putting a SSD in and upgrading the RAM? Is there anything else I can do? Do you think I will be able to get use out of this machine for a few more years down the road and continue to upgrade the operating system with new releases? I don't game, I mainly use my Mac for web browsing, iTunes, Office, Adobe Photoshop & Premiere and Garageband. As you can tell, I'm fairly inexperienced so any help or suggestions at all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
 
beersst said:
Hey, I'm brand new to this site so I apologize if this question has been answered several times before. I have a late 2010 Macbook Pro. I'm interested in upgrading it in any way possible to extend its usability. I'm 100% okay with not having the newest and just want to get the most life I can out of what I already have.

My Mac is....

15 inch, Late 2010
2.66 GHz Intel Core i7
4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3
Intel HD Graphics 288 MB

Does this seem worth putting a SSD in and upgrading the RAM? Is there anything else I can do? Do you think I will be able to get use out of this machine for a few more years down the road and continue to upgrade the operating system with new releases? I don't game, I mainly use my Mac for web browsing, iTunes, Office, Adobe Photoshop & Premiere and Garageband. As you can tell, I'm fairly inexperienced so any help or suggestions at all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

I'd definitely suggest putting in a new SSD and 8GB of RAM. That will make a huge difference, and it should only cost $250+, depending on the SSD. Besides that, the only upgrade you can really do is replace the battery. Those alone will add 2+ years to your machine's life, although with you using photoshop you may want to look into upgrading sooner if possible

If possible, go to 'About this Mac' and click 'More info', and make sure it does indeed say 15 inch Late 2010
 
beersst said:
Hey, I'm brand new to this site so I apologize if this question has been answered several times before. I have a late 2010 Macbook Pro. I'm interested in upgrading it in any way possible to extend its usability. I'm 100% okay with not having the newest and just want to get the most life I can out of what I already have.

My Mac is....

15 inch, Late 2010
2.66 GHz Intel Core i7
4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3
Intel HD Graphics 288 MB

Does this seem worth putting a SSD in and upgrading the RAM? Is there anything else I can do? Do you think I will be able to get use out of this machine for a few more years down the road and continue to upgrade the operating system with new releases? I don't game, I mainly use my Mac for web browsing, iTunes, Office, Adobe Photoshop & Premiere and Garageband. As you can tell, I'm fairly inexperienced so any help or suggestions at all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

As you have a 15" one I presume it's also equipped with a nVidia GT 330M. Also, as you say it has 1067 RAM, it may be the SandyBridge model -- that is, it's really the 2010 model.

With the above assumptions, it supports up to 8GB RAM. 16GB of RAM is only supported by the 13" 2010 models.

So, my suggestion is: install a 250/500GB SSD drive like a Crucial MX100/M500/M550 or a Samsung 840EVO. They're the most used in the forum, but you can try other models.

PNY drives, for example, can't downrate to SATA II speed, so it only works in SATA I mode if it finds a SATA II host bus.
 
Awesome! Thanks. Is there any way to tell if I have the SandyBridge model? I just checked in System Information and this is what it reports.

NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M:

Chipset Model: NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M
Type: GPU
Bus: PCIe
PCIe Lane Width: x16
VRAM (Total): 512 MB
Vendor: NVIDIA (0x10de)
Device ID: 0x0a29
Revision ID: 0x00a2
ROM Revision: 3560
gMux Version: 1.9.21

ECC: Disabled
Upgradeable Memory: Yes

BANK 0/DIMM0:

Size: 2 GB
Type: DDR3
Speed: 1067 MHz
Status: OK
Manufacturer: 0x80CE
Part Number: 0x4D34373142353637334648302D4346382020


BANK 1/DIMM0:

Size: 2 GB
Type: DDR3
Speed: 1067 MHz
Status: OK
Manufacturer: 0x80CE
Part Number: 0x4D34373142353637334648302D4346382020
 
What prossesor ?
Do what I did when upgrading , get a cheap 256gb ssd , optibay with a regular HDD, upgrade your ram to 2x4gb you can find 1067mhz really cheap used.
Also i Recommend you replace your battery if it up at 400+ cycles aswell as removing your fan and cleaning it out :)
beersst said:
Awesome! Thanks. Is there any way to tell if I have the SandyBridge model? I just checked in System Information and this is what it reports.

NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M:

Chipset Model: NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M
Type: GPU
Bus: PCIe
PCIe Lane Width: x16
VRAM (Total): 512 MB
Vendor: NVIDIA (0x10de)
Device ID: 0x0a29
Revision ID: 0x00a2
ROM Revision: 3560
gMux Version: 1.9.21

ECC: Disabled
Upgradeable Memory: Yes

BANK 0/DIMM0:

Size: 2 GB
Type: DDR3
Speed: 1067 MHz
Status: OK
Manufacturer: 0x80CE
Part Number: 0x4D34373142353637334648302D4346382020


BANK 1/DIMM0:

Size: 2 GB
Type: DDR3
Speed: 1067 MHz
Status: OK
Manufacturer: 0x80CE
Part Number: 0x4D34373142353637334648302D4346382020
Click to expand...
 
amazinjoey said:
What prossesor ?
Do what I did when upgrading , get a cheap 256gb ssd , optibay with a regular HDD, upgrade your ram to 2x4gb you can find 1067mhz really cheap used.
Also i Recommend you replace your battery if it up at 400+ cycles aswell as removing your fan and cleaning it out :)
Click to expand...

Uh, the cycle count is 632. Might be time for a new one. Ha. Thanks.
 
hardware wise, whatever youngplaya0228 said hahaha

I recently bought a macbook pro 13" 2010 from a friend.

Upgrading the RAM, and 500gb hdd, im going to save up for an SSD later on, the decent ones cost $200++ :eek:

You should definitely get a new battery also, download coconut battery app for your macbook and check the lifespan. although 600+ is alot already, on my macbook im 1200 right now! definitely needs replacement as capacity is less than 50%.

if i had to list it in order of what you should get

1. Replace Battery, many 3rd party sellers out there for cheap. Apple will ask for like $150++, i found a second hand one for 70$, that has around 100 cycles
2. 120GB or higher SSD, whichever you can afford the most
3. 8GBRAM
 
beersst said:
Uh, the cycle count is 632. Might be time for a new one. Ha. Thanks.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't exchange. There are users with batteries with 1000+ cycles which are working like new. It depends on the usage. When you open the computer for installing the upgrades, check if the battery looks stuffed. If so, maybe it's time to buy a new one. Otherwise, it depends on how much time you're getting.

Even new Macs don't last 8-10 hours unplugged as Apple says. With discrete gpu enabled at full time, you'd get way less time than Apple affirms it can get.
 
brdeveloper said:
I wouldn't exchange. There are users with batteries with 1000+ cycles which are working like new. It depends on the usage. When you open the computer for installing the upgrades, check if the battery looks stuffed. If so, maybe it's time to buy a new one. Otherwise, it depends on how much time you're getting.

Even new Macs don't last 8-10 hours unplugged as Apple says. With discrete gpu enabled at full time, you'd get way less time than Apple affirms it can get.
Click to expand...

Okay, I think you're right. I do miss the original battery life but I think I'll hold off on that until I add the SSD and 8GB.
 
brdeveloper said:
I wouldn't exchange. There are users with batteries with 1000+ cycles which are working like new. It depends on the usage. When you open the computer for installing the upgrades, check if the battery looks stuffed. If so, maybe it's time to buy a new one. Otherwise, it depends on how much time you're getting.

Even new Macs don't last 8-10 hours unplugged as Apple says. With discrete gpu enabled at full time, you'd get way less time than Apple affirms it can get.
Click to expand...

mine is 1200+ and its life is less than 50%, i say that needs a change haha, supposedly based on reviews you should get around 6 hours with regular usage. even though mine is less than half, i get around 2 hours worth of battery life on it. id prefer more since there isnt always a plug around to connect to haha
 
I have the same model, and I put in 8 gb of 1066 ram and a samsung 830 256GB SSD. It works well with those upgrades. The Samsung 830 has been replaced by the 840 EVO, 840 Pro, and 850 Pro. Since you are stuck at SATA II speeds, an 840 EVO is going to max that out anyway. I recommend Samsung only because Apple uses that brand in their computers already, so I figure it is for a good reason.
 
lokster said:
mine is 1200+ and its life is less than 50%, i say that needs a change haha, supposedly based on reviews you should get around 6 hours with regular usage. even though mine is less than half, i get around 2 hours worth of battery life on it. id prefer more since there isnt always a plug around to connect to haha
Click to expand...

Depending on how you use your laptop (e.g. a lot of Skype) it's just the brand new battery life. Apple laptops have the best battery life on the market, but they rarely reach the hours that Apple advertises.
 
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