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Looking to upgrade mid 2012 13.3" Macbook Pro

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Lindamood21

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 13, 2017
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As I stated in the title, I am looking to enhance speed and overall functionality of my swiftly aging 13.3" 2012 MacBook Pro. Through some searching, I have found out that the easier way to do this is by installing an SSD as well as upgrading the RAM. However, will the difference be enough to warrant the cost? Will my MacBook live long enough to make it worth it and will the parts I have even fit correctly as well as give me the opportunity to not lose any of my information at all.


https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SNSKH86/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A23AD5LOJUVSEP

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M8MF4IF/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Here are the links for the RAM upgrade as well as the SSD that I have found. Was wondering if doing such an upgrade on a 5 year old laptop is even worth doing, as well as wondering about my part selection.
Hopefully some people here can help me out.
Thank you!
 
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As regards the SSD, you don't need the bracket that's listed in the link you have. Just the plain drive will do, unless you plan to replace the optical drive, then there's a different bracket that you would need. The 850 Evo is a very good drive. People have had issues with the drive cable - it may work OK with the HDD but not with a SSD. Apple has been replacing these for free when problems crop up. You can buy a cable now, wait and see if there are problems and then go to an Apple store or go to Apple now and see what they say (I don't know if they'll test the computer or just replace the cable if you ask them to).

In terms of memory, the memory in your link looks OK. So you only have 4GB at the present? I would suggest running the Activity Monitor app and see how much memory you use. Do what would be at the high end of what you normally do, while running the Activity Monitor and that should guide you about how much memory to get.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201464
 
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treekram said:
As regards the SSD, you don't need the bracket that's listed in the link you have. Just the plain drive will do, unless you plan to replace the optical drive, then there's a different bracket that you would need. The 850 Evo is a very good drive. People have had issues with the drive cable - it may work OK with the HDD but not with a SSD. Apple has been replacing these for free when problems crop up. You can buy a cable now, wait and see if there are problems and then go to an Apple store or go to Apple now and see what they say (I don't know if they'll test the computer or just replace the cable if you ask them to).

In terms of memory, the memory in your link looks OK. So you only have 4GB at the present? I would suggest running the Activity Monitor app and see how much memory you use. Do what would be at the high end of what you normally do, while running the Activity Monitor and that should guide you about how much memory to get.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201464
Click to expand...
I have 4 GB of RAM at the moment and I am maxed out as far as I can tell. Additionally, I believe my model maxes out at 8 GB so I figured that I would just go ahead and do that.
 
13" mid-2012 can take a maximum of 16 GB of ram. I'm running the same model with 16 gb, a 13" early 2011 with 8 gb, a 13" early 2011 with 10 gb of ram, and a 13" 2010 with 10 gb of ram.
 
Audit13 said:
13" mid-2012 can take a maximum of 16 GB of ram. I'm running the same model with 16 gb, a 13" early 2011 with 8 gb, a 13" early 2011 with 10 gb of ram, and a 13" 2010 with 10 gb of ram.
Click to expand...
oh wow, if 16 will max me out then I'm definitely gonna do that. However, the apple instructions on RAM upgrade says the maximum memory on my model is 8 GB? What would be the best amount of RAM in terms of usage to do that, 2 8GB's?
 
The 13" mid-2012 mbp has 2 ram slots so 16 gb of ram can only be achieved by using 2x8 gb ddr3 1600 ram. People have had good results, me included, with crucial ram.
 
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treekram said:
That looks like the right specs. I also have 16GB in my mid-2012 MBP - it works fine.
Click to expand...
Awesome, thank you! Are there any precautions I need to take when upgrading the RAM or the SSD to avoid losing any information? and what do you recommend I do about drive cable? Just wait until I put the SSD in to see if there are any problems?
 
Lindamood21 said:
Awesome, thank you! Are there any precautions I need to take when upgrading the RAM or the SSD to avoid losing any information? and what do you recommend I do about drive cable? Just wait until I put the SSD in to see if there are any problems?
Click to expand...

If you've done RAM replacement before, the only difference worth noting is that the RAM modules in this model are stacked directly above one another so it's not as easy as when the modules are offset. Follow the guides at iFixit - in terms of the tools need and instructions - I used that. In terms of the cable, it depends on your circumstances. If an Apple Store is convenient to get to, I'd try to have them check out the cable beforehand. If you don't mind having the computer unavailable until you can get to an Apple Store, you can wait to see if problems occur. If you can't get to an Apple Store easily, buying the cable if there are issues is probably the best option.
https://www.ifixit.com/Device/MacBook_Pro_13"_Unibody_Mid_2012

The best strategy to avoid data loss is to get a USB enclosure if you don't already have one. Put the SSD in the enclosure and clone your HDD to the SSD. Make sure the SSD works and is bootable. Move the SSD into the computer. The following is an enclosure that I recently bought and use with a 250GB Evo 850. Others will work as well - get one that supports UASP.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OFJ1UK6

Cloning software (free 30-day trial):
https://bombich.com/
 
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Audit13 said:
There is no need to replace the hard drive cable as the cable used for mechanical and solid state drives is the same.
Click to expand...

There MAY NOT be a need to replace the HDD cable, but it's well known that the MBP HDD cable from this time period is problematical. And more than a few people have reported that a working HDD cable doesn't work with a SSD replacement, but does work with a new cable. There was a post some months back where the OP was having chronic HDD issues. The OP called Apple Tech Support and it led to the OP taking in their mid-2012 MBP to an Apple Store to get the cable replaced (for free). It's pretty clear that the "script" that's been given to the Tech Support people for HDD issues for the mid-2012 MBP puts HDD cable replacement pretty high on the list of possible solutions. (No, it didn't solve the OP's issues but if one followed that thread, it was pretty clear that something's not quite right with the HDD.)
 
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I understand that the 13" mid-2012 mbp cable may be a problem, even with the 13" 2010 and 13" 2011.

I encountered a bad cable in a 13" 2010 mbp. I could not partition a mechanical or solid state drive. After changing the cable, erasing, partitioning, and installing Sierra was perfect.

When I switched from a mechanical to ssd in an early 2011, mid-2012, and late 2011, I had no problem swapping the mechanical for ssd. I think that a cable that works properly with a mechanical drive should work properly with an ssd.
 
Audit13 said:
I understand that the 13" mid-2012 mbp cable may be a problem, even with the 13" 2010 and 13" 2011.

I encountered a bad cable in a 13" 2010 mbp. I could not partition a mechanical or solid state drive. After changing the cable, erasing, partitioning, and installing Sierra was perfect.

When I switched from a mechanical to ssd in an early 2011, mid-2012, and late 2011, I had no problem swapping the mechanical for ssd. I think that a cable that works properly with a mechanical drive should work properly with an ssd.
Click to expand...

I would agree with your observation. A good REPLACED cable that works with a HDD should work with a SSD. But what we are talking about here (unless the OP hasn't mentioned it) is the original HDD cable from a vintage 2012 MBP. There have been multiple instances on this forum of people whose original HDD cable worked fine with the HDD but upon installing a SSD, it didn't work, only to have it work again with a replaced cable. It may very well be that handling the cable while replacing the HDD causes the issue. But the issue is there. And my advice was clear not to spend money on a cable (if a trip to the Apple store to get a free replacement was difficult) until there was an observed problem.
 
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With the exception of the 13" 2010 mbp, the 2012 and 2011 are running fine with the original HDD cable, thank goodness.

It would probably be best to get there machine with an ssd to check for problems. Your post contains several valid points.
 
My motivation in being persnickety in this issue is to prepare the OP for this possible issue. When I do hardware replacement and it doesn't work, I freak out a little so I always like to be informed of possible issues. I just had a computer where a PCIe SSD died a couple days after I got it. I don't have another PCIe SSD or another computer that can fit a PCIe without an adapter card. Was it the SSD? Was it the computer? Should I buy a PCIe adapter to test the SSD in another computer? Well, if I had done more research beforehand, I would have known it was likely the SSD as there were multiple buyers on Amazon who had the same issue. My anxiety level would have also been reduced if I had known this. So your forbearance in this matter is appreciated.
 
Yes - Apple actually still sells your computer. Whiles its graphics are a bit dated, the processor and RAM are still plenty capable in 2017. With a SSD, it will feel like a brand new computer. From a design perspective, your system is rugged, upgradable, and time-tested & proven reliable. For general usage, it is still a great machine.

I agree that when you do the SSD upgrade you should be aware of the problem with the SATA cable. If you are having an Apple Authorized Service Provider perform the install, if you ask nicely they will probably replace the cable free of charge when they do the install as a preventive measure.

You do not need the mounting bundle with the SSD. Pricing up the Crucial MX300 against the Samsung EVO may be worthwhile, as this is another TLC drive of good quality. The SanDisk Ultra II and SSD Plus could also be contenders. If you can find one of the SanDisk Extreme PRO's on closeout, this is IMO a better drive than all of the above and one that has been available for less money. If you want to save some more money, you could go to a 256 GB size instead of a 512 depending how much disk space you currently use.

I do not have experience with Hynix RAM, but they are very common and I have had good experiences with their MLC mSATA SSDs. With Macs I almost always use Crucial RAM by personal preference and because I like their support.
 
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