How long can this mac last? / SSD/RAM/battery upgrades

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Hi guys,
I posted a question a day or two ago about the ram upgrade in my mid-2010 macbook pro 17" . I went ahead and purchased the 8gb max ram. Now of course I discovered SSD!

I would be willing to upgrade to an SSD, IF and only IF I can also purchase a battery and replace it for this thing later down the line. I'm already at 82% with 431 load cycles. I'm willing to dole out the cash for the SSD, but then I may need a new battery sometime in the future. I have yet to find a definite place to purchase a good battery for this 17" macbook.

Also, I can't afford the 480gb SSD. I could afford either the 128gb or 240gb from OWC. THe thing is storage.. I'll be headed to college this fall, I'm a photo major. I'm required to have TWO 1TB external drives, so it seems that everything is going to be stored on those. Plenty of room. I'd like to go for as much as I can afford, so it looks like I'd go for 240gb.

Is there a speed difference between 128gb and 240gb, or just capacity for file difference? Sorry for the stupid question.

Mid 2010, this thing is already pushing 4 years old. Is it unheard of to spend more money, and upgrade these things to make them last longer? Or should I not bother, leave it be, and upgrade to a new computer? THe thing is I love this 17" macbook.And they have been discontinued. It wasn't cheap when we got it, and for a few hundred more I think I can make it a brand new laptop.

I guess I just don't want to put a lot of money into it, for something else to crap out later.

What do you guys think? How old is your macbook pro?
 

pigoo3

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Mid 2010, this thing is already pushing 4 years old. Is it unheard of to spend more money, and upgrade these things to make them last longer? Or should I not bother, leave it be, and upgrade to a new computer? THe thing is I love this 17" macbook.And they have been discontinued. It wasn't cheap when we got it, and for a few hundred more I think I can make it a brand new laptop.

Your 2010 MacBook Pro will never be like a brand new laptop again (as in "cutting edge" new). Simply because installing a new battery, upgrading the ram., and installing an SSD will in some ways will make it better than what it was when new in 2010...but you are still limited by it's CPU speed, GPU abilitities, and logic board architecture.

I guess I just don't want to put a lot of money into it, for something else to crap out later.

No one can predict the future. All you can do is do what you think is right today...and hope for the best. A 2010 17" MBP is still a pretty good computer. And since you seem to like your 17" MBP...and since Apple no longer makes 17" MBP's...it's not like I can say...buy a new 17" MBP.

But what you can do (if you REALLY want to)...is sell your current 17" MBP. Then buy a used Early 2011 or Late 2011 17" MBP (the last two 17" models Apple made)...then you have an REAL upgrade.

Alternatively. You could sell your 17" MBP...then purchase a new or newer 15" MBP...and use an external display if you need more screen real estate when working at a desk.

What do you guys think? How old is your macbook pro?

This is a loaded question...and you will get all sorts of answers. Different folks have different need levels. A person with less demanding computing needs can get away with using an older computer longer. A person with more demanding computer needs will not be able to use a computer as long.

As far as the upgrades you mentioned. Max out the ram (if you haven't already)...and don't install an SSD larger than 256gig. If you go larger than that...then you'll be possibly spending too much money...which could be spent on a newer computer.

HTH,

- Nick
 

bobtomay

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Any individual computer could last for many, many years.
It could die later on today.

We have folks posting in the forum still using Macs made 10-15 years ago.
The last PC I had to fix was an 11 yr old Dell - now quite happily running Linux for it's owners.

How useful a computer is 5,7,10 years later depends on what you want/need to do on it.
For years, I had to build a new one every year if I wanted to put the latest software on it.
My needs have changed and now a computer is lasting me several years.
 
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Thanks guys. So this is what I would need to correct... ? OWC OWCSSDMX6G240T 240GB Mercury EXTREME Pro 6G SSD... in stock at OWC .

Is there a speed difference between 120 and 240? I'd assume it's simply capacity. I'm trying to think if I could pull off 120GB, if I back up my pictures onto the external drives. I don't do much else, no apps really, just microsoft office and photoshop. Oh that reminds me, how will I transfer microsoft office/photoshop? I'd hate to have to purchase them again.

Since I got the laptop in 2011, I currently have used 75GB.

Whenever I create a short movie in iMovie, it takes a very long time to transfer files and load everything...I'm hoping a ram upgrade and SSD would speed things up.

I don't see a 256gb option. Anyway...wish there was a cheaper place to find one. Oh well...Any thoughts on a definite source for a battery for this model?

Thanks again.
 
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Thanks guys. So this is what I would need to correct... ? OWC OWCSSDMX6G240T 240GB Mercury EXTREME Pro 6G SSD... in stock at OWC .

Is there a speed difference between 120 and 240? I'd assume it's simply capacity. I'm trying to think if I could pull off 120GB, if I back up my pictures onto the external drives. I don't do much else, no apps really, just microsoft office and photoshop. Oh that reminds me, how will I transfer microsoft office/photoshop? I'd hate to have to purchase them again.

Since I got the laptop in 2011, I currently have used 75GB.

Whenever I create a short movie in iMovie, it takes a very long time to transfer files and load everything...I'm hoping a ram upgrade and SSD would speed things up.

I don't see a 256gb option. Anyway...wish there was a cheaper place to find one. Oh well...Any thoughts on a definite source for a battery for this model?

Thanks again.

120GB is a bit tight, but manageable if you only do office and photoshop and don't stock lots of pictures on your SSD, but more on your external drive.

According to the spec on the macsales website, you won't see a difference in performance between the 120GB and the 240GB version. There can be some differences with some models (and I'm pretty sure there will be a small one here), but according to the manufacturer the performance is the same, so you won't see any difference.

To transfer your files from one drive to the other, the easiest is to use time machine and backup your data on your external hard drive before making the swap.

Also you can get a box in which you can put your current hard drive in order to use it as an external drive, very handy. Mac sales should allow you to buy such a box when buying your SSD. If not, shop around.

As you have a standard macbook pro, you are not limited to OWC drives, you can get a 2.5" SSD from a different brand somewhere else.

Good luck!
 
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No speed difference at all if they are the same drive. OWC makes 3GB/s and 6GB/s SATA II and SATA III. A 2010 MB used SATA II so go with the 3GB model. A 6gb/s model will simply run ay 3GB/s. If you are thinking of changing the MBP in the near future of course go with the 6GB/s. The 3GB version is about fifty bucks cheaper for the 240GB model. Have used Kingston, OWC, G.Skill Falcon and OCZ Vertex SSD
s and found OWC the most reliable:-:-


http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/internal_storage/SSD/Mercury_Electra_3G_Solid_State
 
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Okay, thanks guys. I will go for the 240GB drive. I received the 8GB of ram in the mail. Installed, Works great and I was able to open a TON of programs without a stutter. Nice.

The only thing I'm worried about is getting photoshop and MS office over to the new SSD. Oh, and of course itunes.

Can I really just copy the hard drive onto an external drive, and then move it all to the new drive once it's installed? I don't see how that could work, because wouldn't everyone be sharing photoshop and MS word that way?

Will I need to reinstall OSX lion?

Thanks again.
 
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You can try however Migrating larger applications, particularly MS Office and Adobe generally requires re-activation. You do not have to upgrade to Lion particularly if you are using older software known as PowerPC software. Office 2004 is PowerPC. Snow Leopard OS X.6 runs these using a program called Rosetta, and this was culled with Lion and Mountain lion.
 
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Okay, thanks guys. I will go for the 240GB drive. I received the 8GB of ram in the mail. Installed, Works great and I was able to open a TON of programs without a stutter. Nice.

The only thing I'm worried about is getting photoshop and MS office over to the new SSD. Oh, and of course itunes.

Can I really just copy the hard drive onto an external drive, and then move it all to the new drive once it's installed? I don't see how that could work, because wouldn't everyone be sharing photoshop and MS word that way?

Will I need to reinstall OSX lion?

Thanks again.

Yes you can transfer the data through the migration assistant. You will need to install Lion first and transfer the data once the installation is finished (you will get the option to do so then).
 

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