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Apple Computing Products:
macOS - Notebook Hardware
Need help/advice for hard drive
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<blockquote data-quote="Command Alt Ego" data-source="post: 1333712" data-attributes="member: 158675"><p>Hi. I would recommend OWC for an internal hard drive, for three reasons: first, they make quality drives; second, they offer very clear videos instructing newbies on how to install hard drives on their machines. Third, they also offer good tech support, should you encounter any issues.</p><p></p><p>Your Genius guy was right when he said you would save considerable money by buying and installing the HD yourself. As far as formatting a drive for Mac OS (as opposed to Windows), some hard drives come pre-formatted (it's easy to find out), but if you need to do that yourself, it takes about five clicks of the mouse.</p><p></p><p>If you decide not to go with OWC, there are many other good options for drives. Seagate, WD, Iomega, and Crucial are just some.</p><p></p><p>You mention using Photoshop. That means your computer will be doing some intensive work, and speed is an issue here. Your hard drive makes only a small difference. Some are 5400 RPM (the speed the actual disk spins) vs. 7200; the faster spin means a slightly (but often noticeable) performance. But much more important is the amount of RAM your MacBook Pro has. A good amount of RAM allows your Mac to run apps quickly, and allows you to run several apps simultaneously with less slow-down. If your computer has only 4G of RAM, you might consider upgrading to 8G. Again, you can install it yourself -- it's not that hard. </p><p></p><p>You also mention solid state drives. Yes, you are right that they are faster and more reliable, all things equal, than conventional hard drives. They are also more expensive and have less capacity (you can buy a SSD with decent capacity but it will be very expensive). Photoshop files usually take a lot of space. My recommendation would be to buy a regular 1TB or 2TB external hard drive and store your photo files there. Perhaps consider getting two external drives, or a RAID drive system, if you decide not to keep all your photo files on your actual Mac.</p><p></p><p>Hope this helps. Good luck!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Command Alt Ego, post: 1333712, member: 158675"] Hi. I would recommend OWC for an internal hard drive, for three reasons: first, they make quality drives; second, they offer very clear videos instructing newbies on how to install hard drives on their machines. Third, they also offer good tech support, should you encounter any issues. Your Genius guy was right when he said you would save considerable money by buying and installing the HD yourself. As far as formatting a drive for Mac OS (as opposed to Windows), some hard drives come pre-formatted (it's easy to find out), but if you need to do that yourself, it takes about five clicks of the mouse. If you decide not to go with OWC, there are many other good options for drives. Seagate, WD, Iomega, and Crucial are just some. You mention using Photoshop. That means your computer will be doing some intensive work, and speed is an issue here. Your hard drive makes only a small difference. Some are 5400 RPM (the speed the actual disk spins) vs. 7200; the faster spin means a slightly (but often noticeable) performance. But much more important is the amount of RAM your MacBook Pro has. A good amount of RAM allows your Mac to run apps quickly, and allows you to run several apps simultaneously with less slow-down. If your computer has only 4G of RAM, you might consider upgrading to 8G. Again, you can install it yourself -- it's not that hard. You also mention solid state drives. Yes, you are right that they are faster and more reliable, all things equal, than conventional hard drives. They are also more expensive and have less capacity (you can buy a SSD with decent capacity but it will be very expensive). Photoshop files usually take a lot of space. My recommendation would be to buy a regular 1TB or 2TB external hard drive and store your photo files there. Perhaps consider getting two external drives, or a RAID drive system, if you decide not to keep all your photo files on your actual Mac. Hope this helps. Good luck! [/QUOTE]
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Apple Computing Products:
macOS - Notebook Hardware
Need help/advice for hard drive
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