02-28-2012, 02:40 PM

I have a 13-inch white macbook from Early 2008

2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor
4 GB 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM

The original HDD was a 250GB. I have confirmed that it has failed. Fortunately I was able to retrieve almost all of my data. Now the question: is it worth it to just replace the drive? Perhaps with a bigger one? I really don't have the money to drop on a new machine at the moment so if it's easy to replace and relatively cheap I will probably go that route.

What is the best place to get new drives? What brands/styles would be best? What kind of price range am I going to be looking at? And how can I find out which specific drive will work best in my machine?

Thanks for any and all advice.

02-28-2012, 03:03 PM

If the machine worked fine before the hard drive failure, then yeah, it is completely worth replacing the drive.

Personally, I prefer Western Digital drives, but all you need is a 2.5in SATA drive. It will probably be formatted for windows when you buy it so you'll have to reformat for Mac, then reinstall the system.

02-28-2012, 03:05 PM

That's still a very good machine. I still own mine (same model as yours) and replaced the hard drive with a WD 320 GB 7200 RPM model some time ago.

The cost of internal SATA hard drives has gone up somewhat since the flooding in Thailand last year but prices have been coming down again. Unless you want to buy on line, you can probably find what you need from Best Buy, Staples, Fry's, etc. Basically, you need a 2.5" x 9.5mm SATA drive either 5400 or 7200 RPM.

On line, I recommend Other World Computing. Here's the LINK. You can also (if you have the extra $$) buy a SSD instead.

02-28-2012, 03:11 PM

I have the same MBP. I put in an SSD and love it.
It was pricey though.
My HDD was and is fine. I use it as my Time Machine backup.

02-28-2012, 03:13 PM

Totally worth replacing the the HD...especially if you can do the work yourself!

Replacing an HD in a computer is like replacing worn out tires on a automobile...no reason to "junk the car"...just because it needs new tires!

- Nick

02-28-2012, 04:09 PM

Great advice. Thanks everyone. I think I'm definitely going to replace the HDD.

Now the question is SATA or SSD.

Would someone please explain the difference and pros and cons?

Also some price range differences would be very helpful.

I just need to decide exactly what I want and find the best/cheapest place online to order it.

Thanks again.

02-28-2012, 04:27 PM

Looks like I can get a 256GB SSD from Crucial for around $360.

I've dealt with them before and had good experiences.

Anybody know of cheaper options?

02-28-2012, 04:30 PM

SATA is the connection type. You have to get a SATA drive otherwise it won't work.

You need to choose between a HDD or SSD. HDD are higher capacity, cheaper per GB but a little slower. SSDs are expensive, and small 60GB is $130, and it only goes up. But they are seriously fast.

02-28-2012, 05:11 PM

Originally Posted by Stretch

SATA is the connection type. You have to get a SATA drive otherwise it won't work.

You need to choose between a HDD or SSD. HDD are higher capacity, cheaper per GB but a little slower. SSDs are expensive, and small 60GB is $130, and it only goes up. But they are seriously fast.

Thanks for that clarification.

I find two similar drives on crucial. One with a Data transfer kit and one without. Can anyone explain the difference?

02-28-2012, 08:15 PM

So after some research I'm leaning towards this seafarer momentus hybrid drive.

Seagate Technology ST95005620AS 500GB Seagate... in stock at OWC

I have seen some bad feedback but that seems to be concentrated on early models.

Anybody else have feedback on these?