MacBook Pro - spec needed for VMware Fusion 3

Hello all, first time poster here.

Am keen to get a 13" MacBook Pro, but not sure which spec to get. There is quite a price jump (250 GBP) between the basic spec and the high spec, and the only difference is the processor speed (2.66Hz vs 2.4GHz) and a larger HDD. Is the difference in performance really worth the price jump?

I want to run Windows XP via VMWare Fusion 3, specifically to run software for academic work, namely Windows MS Office 2007, Endnote, SPSS and GraphPad Prism. I will use Mac OS X for everything else, namely internet, email, iTunes, iPhoto and iMovie.

Will the basic spec 13" MBP be quick enough for all of the above? Would the 2.66GHz offer any noticebale increase in performance?

Thanks for any advice!

Will the basic spec 13" MBP be quick enough for all of the above? Would the 2.66GHz offer any noticebale increase in performance?

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Yes, most definitely. And later on at your leisure and affordability ;D you can add memory and swap out the HDD for a larger and faster one. The CPU of the lower end MBP 13" has plenty of HP for what you'll be doing.

Regards.