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I want the Macbook Pro. I'm only considering the 13" because I prefer the smaller size. I'm not interested in a PC. I use a computer to surf the internet, upload/edit pictures and videos, write notes/papers, and listen to iTunes (and sync iPhone/iPods). On rare occasions, I may play poker or mahjong. I want the best computer for my needs, but I'm an easy mark for sales representatives and don't want to go overboard.

- Should I get the 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo or the 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo?

How much memory:
- 4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x2GB or
- 8GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x4GB?

Which hard drive:
- 250GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm or
- 320GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm or
- 500GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm or
- 128GB solid-state drive or
- 256GB solid-state drive or
- 512GB solid-state drive?

4GB of RAM should be fine for what you do. How much hard drive space do you use now or think you will need?

bk187 wrote:4GB of RAM should be fine for what you do. How much hard drive space do you use now or think you will need?

Ummm... yeah. I haven't a clue how to answer your question.

Burberry by Burberry wrote:

bk187 wrote:4GB of RAM should be fine for what you do. How much hard drive space do you use now or think you will need?

Ummm... yeah. I haven't a clue how to answer your question.

If you dont have a large music/video collection chances are you will be fine with 250/320gbs. You can always get an external drive if it becomes an issue down the road.

Burberry by Burberry wrote:

bk187 wrote:4GB of RAM should be fine for what you do. How much hard drive space do you use now or think you will need?

Ummm... yeah. I haven't a clue how to answer your question.

lol you should be fine with a 250gb

Burberry by Burberry wrote:

bk187 wrote:4GB of RAM should be fine for what you do. How much hard drive space do you use now or think you will need?

Ummm... yeah. I haven't a clue how to answer your question.

Are you going to be storing lots of (large) files on your laptop? Music, movies, tv shows, etc? If so you'll need to choose the configuration that gives you a larger hard drive, unless you want to get an external hard drive to store all of that (which is what I do).

4Gb and 250 Gb is fine. Solid State drives are very fast and reliable but they are also very pricey.

4gb of ram is enough for your purposes. 250 for drive space is good, but I'd advise to get an external hard drive to back up your files. when it comes to processor speed, of course faster is better (2.66) but I believe that 2.4 is enough for what you need it for. it sounds like you may not even need the macbook pro. you can get all of these things with the regular macbook (at a much cheaper price).

Yeah just get the base model.

4gb/250gb/2.4ghz will be more than fine for what you need

Even the base model is more than overkill for law school purposes.

hmm I'd probably get at least a 320gb hard drive, especially if you plan to partition and install Windows 7

I'd rather have the SSD and keep large media files on an external bus powered 2.5" drive. I think.

(This is probably because I have not yet experienced a SSD as the system drive and would like to.)

Not only is performance supposed to be wicked, it should extend battery life considerably--a big plus for school (especially if you don't have a tight schedule.)

If I were to throw money at it, it'd be for a bigger SSD first--but I'd imagine the largest one carries quite a premium.


As mentioned, stick with the 4GB of RAM for now--you can swap in the 8GB down the road if needed.

I doubt you'll feel a big difference between CPUs unless you're a very intensive multitasker, or do a lot of photo/video work or other number crunching stuff.

Go with base model or upgrade to the 320gb or higher if you have a large music/movie collection. If I were in your shoes, I'd buy the base model and buy the hard drive separately. Also there's no need to upgrade the CPU. A RAM upgrade to 8gb isn't really needed as the only other virtual machine you may ever run is Win7. It's normally the engineers who're running 3 or more OSes at a time who require 8gb or more of RAM.

Be sure to buy the AppleCare warranty. You'll need it.

mpasi wrote:Be sure to buy the AppleCare warranty. You'll need it.

Not necessarily. Applecare only extends the warranty. It adds nothing new except for telephone support. You can purchase it up until the day your factory warranty expires.

I have an SSD in my Mac. It will make everything a general user does go faster than any other upgrade you can get. My computer boots in under 20 seconds. It can load 50 programs in under a minute. You won't be disappointed in this upgrade. 4GB of RAM is fine unless you have a reason for more (database work, etc.).

quakeroats wrote:I have an SSD in my Mac. It will make everything a general user does go faster than any other upgrade you can get. My computer boots in under 20 seconds. It can load 50 programs in under a minute. You won't be disappointed in this upgrade. 4GB of RAM is fine unless you have a reason for more (database work, etc.).

They are pretty pricey though. Even an aftermarket 250Gb SSD is like $500.

buy the applecare on ebay. it's way cheaper.

ProudFather wrote:buy the applecare on ebay. it's way cheaper.

If you do this, I'd make sure you register it ASAP and make sure it hasn't been previously activated on another product.

blowhard wrote:

mpasi wrote:Be sure to buy the AppleCare warranty. You'll need it.

Not necessarily. Applecare only extends the warranty. It adds nothing new except for telephone support. You can purchase it up until the day your factory warranty expires.

Simply having it kept me from having to pay for "out of warranty" repairs on more than one occasion. The Apple Store I go to seems to really respect the fact that I bought it, even if the damage wasn't covered. I'd say it's a critical investment for Apple users.

ProudFather wrote:buy the applecare on ebay. it's way cheaper.

I wish I'd done that, instead of paying a couple hundred for it at the store. It's more than paid for itself, though.

blowhard wrote:

quakeroats wrote:I have an SSD in my Mac. It will make everything a general user does go faster than any other upgrade you can get. My computer boots in under 20 seconds. It can load 50 programs in under a minute. You won't be disappointed in this upgrade. 4GB of RAM is fine unless you have a reason for more (database work, etc.).

They are pretty pricey though. Even an aftermarket 250Gb SSD is like $500.

Common adage floated around these days: "Once you get an SSD, you'll never go back."

mpasi wrote:

ProudFather wrote:buy the applecare on ebay. it's way cheaper.

I wish I'd done that, instead of paying a couple hundred for it at the store. It's more than paid for itself, though.

Caveat: When you buy the Applecare on eBay, make sure you're getting the box and the form with the serial code. The not-so-legit sellers only give you registration keys which can occasionally be invalidated.