Upgrading to SSD for 2010 13" MacBook Pro

[ssavanna]

So i'm thinking of doing a couple upgrades but need advice on exactly how I should go about doing so.

So my current 13" MacBook Pro (2.4g) has the stock 4g of ram. As i mentioned in another thread I plan on upgrading to 8g. The Crucial brand was recommended to me.

I am also thinking of ordering a SSD drive also. I am after speed more than anything. Price is important as well though. As far as my storage needs go I would do great with the 128gb drive, but I have also heard of people doing less than that to save money and using an external regular drive for their media needs. Its basically my 80gigs of iTunes media i'm thinking of.

What would be the best balance of affordablitiy, speed, and convenience? Like I said, I don't mind going the external storage route if a huge price savings justified it. But if just saving the time and going for the 128gb would be less of a headache I may consider that as well.

Could you guys give me some suggestions and point me in the right direction for the best brands and speeds? Thanks!

 

[awer25]

So i'm thinking of doing a couple upgrades but need advice on exactly how I should go about doing so.

So my current 13" MacBook Pro (2.4g) has the stock 4g of ram. As i mentioned in another thread I plan on upgrading to 8g. The Crucial brand was recommended to me.

I am also thinking of ordering a SSD drive also. I am after speed more than anything. Price is important as well though. As far as my storage needs go I would do great with the 128gb drive, but I have also heard of people doing less than that to save money and using an external regular drive for their media needs. Its basically my 80gigs of iTunes media i'm thinking of.

What would be the best balance of affordablitiy, speed, and convenience? Like I said, I don't mind going the external storage route if a huge price savings justified it. But if just saving the time and going for the 128gb would be less of a headache I may consider that as well.

Could you guys give me some suggestions and point me in the right direction for the best brands and speeds? Thanks!

I got an 8GB G.Skill kit for $80 from Newegg and it works perfectly (plus it has a 5-egg rating with 177 reviews).

As for the SSD, go with a 120GB if you could b/c IIRC when they get almost full they get slower. You just need an SATA-II drive, and I've had great results with Sandforce drives. Look for a Vertex 2 drive with 34nm NAND memory or one of the other brands like Mushkin which are all 34nm models.

 

[ssavanna]

I got an 8GB G.Skill kit for $80 from Newegg and it works perfectly (plus it has a 5-egg rating with 177 reviews).

As for the SSD, go with a 120GB if you could b/c IIRC when they get almost full they get slower. You just need an SATA-II drive, and I've had great results with Sandforce drives. Look for a Vertex 2 drive with 34nm NAND memory or one of the other brands like Mushkin which are all 34nm models.

Thanks. Do you mind giving me a link to a 34nm model for either Vertex or Mushkin? I am not too knowledgable with this stuff, so trying to choose the best option is a bit over my head. Thanks

 

[jimbo1mcm]

Have you done a search on this and other forums?

There are a bunch of posts on SSD, etc. Have you done a search before just dropping into the forum and asking questions?

 

[Weaselboy]

Here are some threads to help you.