09-05-2011, 12:31 AM

Hello!

In a bit of impulsiveness, I have just acquired a Apple laptop: a lightly used Macbook 7.1 (released mid-2010 and discontinued, 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo). This is my first Apple computer!

I want to upgrade just a wee bit to squeeze a bit more performance out of what is currently probably a mid to low end laptop. Two questions:

1) I know this Macbook takes 1066 MHz DDR memory. But I have two 2 GB sticks of 1333 MHz PC3-10600 DDR3 SODIMM. Can I put those in? Or do I have to get 1066 sticks?

2) I'd like to put a 7200 rpm hdd in it. Will there be any potential issues with heat? (I'm assuming a 7200rpm drive generates more heat than a 5400rpm drive.)

Thanks!!!!

09-05-2011, 02:49 AM

1) I know this Macbook takes 1066 MHz DDR memory. But I have two 2 GB sticks of 1333 MHz PC3-10600 DDR3 SODIMM. Can I put those in? Or do I have to get 1066 sticks?

No. Stick with the memory designed for your model. Faster memory can lead to problems and might not work. Macs are fussy about memory.

2) I'd like to put a 7200 rpm hdd in it. Will there be any potential issues with heat? (I'm assuming a 7200rpm drive generates more heat than a 5400rpm drive.)

Should be no problem. I've been running a 7200 RPM drive in my 2008 MacBook for well over two years now. No overheating and not much difference in battery up time as far as I can tell.

09-05-2011, 04:38 AM

thanks!

one more thing...regarding the memory upgrade, is Crucial a brand I can trust?

09-05-2011, 08:59 PM

Originally Posted by michiganitis

thanks!

one more thing...regarding the memory upgrade, is Crucial a brand I can trust?

Yes. Crucial and Other World Computing are the two most recommended suppliers of memory.