Which MacBook Pro configuration is best for me?

[jazzspot]

I'm new to the Apple hardware products, but I'm looking at the 17" MacBook Pro for using Final Cut Studio 3 line of applications as well as Adobe CS4 Collection of apps. My question is will the 2.8GHz version with a 5400 RPM hard drive and 4GB of memory get the job done for me? I will likely increase the ram to 8GB, but my primary concern is the processor and to a lesser extent the 5400 rpm hard drive.
Please point me in the right direction as to which hardware specs I should use for my purposes with a MacBook Pro.
Thanks much!!

 

[Gata]

With stuff you do (such as Adobe CS4), you should be more concerned about the RAM than anything else. CS4 needs RAM more than CPU. Trust me, the 2.8GHZ C2D should be enough.

 

[jazzspot]

Thanks Gata. As I said, upgrading the memory to 8GB would be the primary upgrade that I could/would do. But upgrading the CPU myself is not possible after buying the MacBook Pro with the 2.8GHz processor. I also figured that upgrading the hard drive to 7200 RPM would also be helpful.

 

[Thunder82]

I suppose it depends on what your doing with CS4, but an SSD would also be something to consider - especially if your working with larger files. The stock Apple SSDs are decent, although you can upgrade at any time as the hard drives in these notebooks are easily user replaceable. (an Intel X25m or anything with an Indilinx or Sandforce controller will blow the Apple SSD out of the water too)