SSD Upgrade Advice

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My daughter has a mid 2012 MBP running Mojave with the original 500 gb HD and 8gb memory. Laptop is very slow and we want to upgrade to a new ssd. She currently has in the 6+ years of usage less than 50 gb of data on the original hard drive. The MBP is in very good shape and is used for college and social media purposes.
Due to its age and usage would it be in her best interest to purchase a 250 GB SSD instead of the more expensive 500 gb ssd. I am thinking to save $$ maybe she should purchase only a 250 gb ssd due to the fact that after 6+ years that she will not be able to fill a 500 gb ssd before the laptop is either deemed obsolete or before some other issue becomes apparent and we purchase a new MBP.
Or should we just get a 500 gb ssd.
Also when formatting the new drive I noticed that she has APFS Volume:APFS (Encrypted) in viewing disk utility. Should the new drive be formatted as just APFS or APFS (Encrypted).
We will be cloning the original drive to the new SSD via super duper.
Also, since it will be opened up would it be advantageous to upgrade to 16gb memory from the current 8gb or will the upgrade in memory not really be noticed and just leave the memory at 8gb.
Thanks for any and all replies.
 
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Depending on usage, I believe the 8GB memory (rm) should be sufficient for her use, unless she does audio or video production? The 250GB will e fine, if she hasn’t used too much of the 500GB drive.


Bob -

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No audio or video so will leave at 8gb.Noted on the 250 gb ssd since she hasnt used much of the original 500 gb hd.
Can someone please comment on the additional question as well...
Also when formatting the new drive I noticed that she has APFS Volume:APFS (Encrypted) in viewing disk utility.
Should the new drive be formatted as just APFS or APFS (Encrypted).
thanks for the help
 

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My daughter has a mid 2012 MBP running Mojave with the original 500 gb HD and 8gb memory. Laptop is very slow and we want to upgrade to a new ssd. She currently has in the 6+ years of usage less than 50 gb of data on the original hard drive. The MBP is in very good shape and is used for college and social media purposes.
Due to its age and usage would it be in her best interest to purchase a 250 GB SSD instead of the more expensive 500 gb ssd. I am thinking to save $$ maybe she should purchase only a 250 gb ssd due to the fact that after 6+ years that she will not be able to fill a 500 gb ssd before the laptop is either deemed obsolete or before some other issue becomes apparent and we purchase a new MBP.

I hate to have to tell you this...but a 7 year old Mac is already obsolete:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201624
Apple won't touch it if it needs to be repaired. However, you can still run Mojave on it, and just about all modern software. Since the hard drive is the most likely part to fail, replacing it with an SSD will probably allow your daughter's MBP to stay in service for a couple of years more.

Prices on SSD's have come down quite a bit lately. A larger hard drive is very likely to come in handy. (Macs tend to start running poorly when their hard drives are approaching about 80% full.) It might be worth paying a few extra bucks for a larger SSD. Have a look at:

SanDisk Ultra 3D 512GB 3D NAND SATA III 6Gb/s 2.5" Internal Solid State Drive
$75
https://www.microcenter.com/product...-sata-iii-6gb-s-25-internal-solid-state-drive

SanDisk Ultra 3D 256GB 3D NAND SATA III 6Gb/s 2.5" Internal Solid State Drive
$58
https://www.microcenter.com/product...-sata-iii-6gb-s-25-internal-solid-state-drive
 
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Point taken. Realize the MBP is already obsolete. Hence the debate as to whether to upgrade to an ssd with 256 gb as opposed to 500 gb. If she has used only 30 gb of the 500 gb currently installed in the 6+ years of ownership, I am thinking that she will never come close to using or fulfilling a new 500gb ssd. The logic says to save $$ with a lesser gb ssd, gain the speed in the machine with the year(s) left before something else may go wrong. Does this make sense.
 
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APFS will be fine, unless you (or her) prefer more security.
 
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The logic says to save $$ with a lesser gb ssd, gain the speed in the machine with the year(s) left before something else may go wrong. Does this make sense.

As I pointed out, you can get the larger hard drive for about $20. Since Macs run better if your hard drive isn't approaching being full, and since SSD's last longer if they are bigger (I'll explain that some other time), it seems to me that the larger hard drive might be worth the nominal added expense.

But ultimately, you know the use that the computer will be put to better than I. And you understand your finances better. So it's your call.
 

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