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Upgrading MacBook vs MBP

OldMike

OldMike

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 3, 2009
551
251
Dallas, TX
After a couple of months of having to do without a laptop, I'm in the market again. Right now, I am primarily looking at either the MacBook or the MacBook Pro 13" 2.26.

I'm having a hard time seeing the real important differences between the two. I like the fact that the MBP had FW800, but it is not really a deal breaker for me. Other than that, I don't really know what the difference between the two might be.

Regardless of which one I decided to get, I know before I even start the computer I am going to want to install 4 GB RAM, and a 500 GB Hard Drive. I have looked on Apple's site and have found documents for upgrading both memory and hard drive for the MacBook Pro 13", but I haven't located the same documents for the MacBook.

Are both the MacBook and MacBook Pro just as easy to upgrade memory and hard drive? I know that on the MacBook Pro the memory and hard drive is considered 'user upgradeable'. Is this the same for the MacBook?

I'm hoping that there might be a new MacBook released that might nudge me in a particular direction - but for right now I can't really decide between the MacBook and MBP...

Any suggestions or thoughts would be appreciated!
 
The MacBook Pro has tons of cool features like a backlit keyboard, very advanced trackpad where the whole pad is the button, and its made of glass so it doesn't wear out. And the keys are shaped for your fingers. Its made out of one part unlike the MacBook so its cleaner...

I'm getting the MBP.

So anyway, I'm sure you can do memory and HD upgrades just as you can with the MBP.

Good Luck!
 
Hate to post a reply to my own post, but I am also a bit confused by the MacBook white shell vs Aluminum.. Are these the same except for the exterior? Does memory and hard drive upgrade in the same manner or are the guts different??

Sorry for the silly basic questions, but I have always followed the Mac desktops and towers - and have never followed the laptops that closely. I recently had surgery and will be in bed quite a bit, and I am thinking now would be a perfect time for a new laptop!

I was looking only at the 13" MBP, but after looking at the specs of the MB, now I am thinking I might be better off spending a little less...
 
mrsir2009 said:
The MacBook Pro has tons of cool features like a backlit keyboard, very advanced trackpad where the whole pad is the button, and its made of glass so it doesn't wear out. And the keys are shaped for your fingers. Its made out of one part unlike the MacBook so its cleaner...

I'm getting the MBP.

So anyway, I'm sure you can do memory and HD upgrades just as you can with the MBP.

Good Luck!
Click to expand...

Thank you, I wasn't thinking of those differences. Not having looked at a MacBook, I was assuming it had some of those features as well (except for the backlit keyboard).

Thanks..
 
OldMike said:
Thank you, I wasn't thinking of those differences. Not having looked at a MacBook, I was assuming it had some of those features as well (except for the backlit keyboard).

Thanks..
Click to expand...

The MacBook has only the things you need. The MBP has all the luxury stuff :D

And the MBP is more powerful and comes in 13", 15" and 17" while the MB comes only in 13"

Plus the MBP has an optional SSD you can get with it:D
 
13" MBP has led backlit display of better quality, aluminum chassis, multi touch trackpad, fw 800 instead of 400, slightly faster processor, ddr3 with faster fsb speed, slightly larger stock hard drive, sd slot and improved, longer lasting non-replaceable battery.

For basic computing needs, either the mb or mbp should be fine. For extra savings, check out the refurbished mb's and mbp's on the online apple store.

You may be able to snag a unibody macbook on craigslist, which has many of the features of the mbp except firewire, battery, sd slot, and slightly inferior led backlit screen. Use the refurb page as a starting point for price negotiations, and make sure which ever one you get has, or is eligible for, extended applecare.
 
you might just want to wait until after tomorrow. The rumored date for a macbook is tomorrow. It might be like when they last updated the macbook where it was actually faster than the low end macbook unibody for a bit before they updated that to the pro.

I got a macbook for my aunt, and the main difference in usuability for me is the larger clicky trackpad with gestures. I can't use the one on the old macbook as well. But like I said we could be singing a different tune when they update it.
 
Back when all Macbook Pros had expresscard slots, that was the defining difference to me.

The difference between being able to run a prosumer firewire audio interface, or a 32-64 channel MADI I/O system with top class converters.

There are so many pro possibilities expresscard opens the machine up to. I think of the new MBPs before the 17" to be big and shiny macbooks. The old ones with expresscard slots are the real pro machines.

Now it looks like the same machine with Pro written on it. They may be shiny and have more processor/GPU options, but without expresscard, a lot of options are closed off.
 
clyde2801 said:
13" MBP has led backlit display of better quality, aluminum chassis, multi touch trackpad, fw 800 instead of 400, slightly faster processor, ddr3 with faster fsb speed, slightly larger stock hard drive, sd slot and improved, longer lasting non-replaceable battery.

For basic computing needs, either the mb or mbp should be fine. For extra savings, check out the refurbished mb's and mbp's on the online apple store.

You may be able to snag a unibody macbook on craigslist, which has many of the features of the mbp except firewire, battery, sd slot, and slightly inferior led backlit screen. Use the refurb page as a starting point for price negotiations, and make sure which ever one you get has, or is eligible for, extended applecare.
Click to expand...


Yah i love the one i got. It converted me from a Windows fanboy.. now I won't ever look back. ahha. I am uber glad my college gave me mine.
 
clyde2801 said:
13" MBP has led backlit display of better quality, aluminum chassis, multi touch trackpad, fw 800 instead of 400, slightly faster processor, ddr3 with faster fsb speed, slightly larger stock hard drive, sd slot and improved, longer lasting non-replaceable battery.

For basic computing needs, either the mb or mbp should be fine. For extra savings, check out the refurbished mb's and mbp's on the online apple store.

You may be able to snag a unibody macbook on craigslist, which has many of the features of the mbp except firewire, battery, sd slot, and slightly inferior led backlit screen. Use the refurb page as a starting point for price negotiations, and make sure which ever one you get has, or is eligible for, extended applecare.
Click to expand...

Hehe as predicted, they updated. All the arguments for the MBP other than firewire, SD card, and aluminum are now moot :) In fact the low end macbook has a 250gb drive. I think you might find it faster than the current low end MBP too due to later hardware revisions :)
 
What ever you get you will love it
signature_smiley3.jpg
 
fibrizo said:
Hehe as predicted, they updated. All the arguments for the MBP other than firewire, SD card, and aluminum are now moot :) In fact the low end macbook has a 250gb drive. I think you might find it faster than the current low end MBP too due to later hardware revisions :)
Click to expand...

New MB dosent have firewire, SD card, Aluminum AND the backlit keyboard. But you can get a refurb MBP for $999.99 and pay like 60$ to upgrade the HD. The MBP is losing it's why to buy.... mhm wonder why apple did this?
 
Diseal3 said:
New MB dosent have firewire, SD card, Aluminum AND the backlit keyboard. But you can get a refurb MBP for $999.99 and pay like 60$ to upgrade the HD. The MBP is losing it's why to buy.... mhm wonder why apple did this?
Click to expand...

The two definitely cross closer paths with each other than ever before, but the Macbook still costs $200 less than the MBP. You get more HD space for your buck but lose the pro advantage of extra RAM expandability with the new Macbook. Also, like the above posters have noted, the MB also doesn't have firewire, SD card slot, and the backlit keyboard. Oddly enough though, the MB is a hair larger and heavier the MBP. Battery life seems to be just as good. Other than these rather minute differences, the base models of the MB is identically the same machine as the MBP under the hood. You won't find any increased performance going up to a MBP unless you specifically go for the higher 2.53 model.

What I'm interested most however, is its screen quality vs. the 13" MBP. I want to see some reviews from hardware sites to see if it uses the same display as the MBP.
 
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