Planning on buying a MBP...just have some questions.

[Matto1020]

Hey guys, I just found this site about a week ago and have been lurking ever since.

I am in the market for a new laptop and am going to go with a mac because I am looking at getting into some photo/design stuff. I am an avid windows user but am ready to make a switch (hey it worked when I switched to an Ipod...why not a mac computer )

Anyways here are my questions.

1. Should I go with the lower end MBP or the middle class MBP? Like I said...I will only be doing design stuff using CS3 and very little film editing. If there will be a difference in speed using the 256mb video card in the middle MBP I may go for that but that would require a stretch of the budget...or would I be just fine with a lower end MBP.

2. I thought I read somewhere that they will be incorporating 7200rpm drives into MBPs now instead of the 5400rpm. When will this happen and should I wait? I techincally don't need the computer until mid August but would like to get it ahead of time to become familliar with it. Also...will there be a price difference?

3. Can I hook any monitor up to the MBP? I just bought a 20" Samsung monitor about 3 months ago and would love to be able to hook it up that way when at home.

4. The requirements say maximum HD space is 250gb...does that count for external HDs? I have a 400GB one that I would like to hook up to it.

Thanks for any and all help guys! I don't know what it is about apple products...but once they get in your system they are like a drug you cannot live without I am anxious as ever to get my hands on a new MBP.

 

[mgargan1]

1. I would suggest getting the lower-end machine. For $500 it doesn't make sense to be for 200MHz, 40GB HD, and 128MB VRAM increase... I would save that money and put it into buying more RAM. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820178165

2. You can custom order your notebook with a 160GB 7200RPM drive for $225

3. You can hook up your notebook to any standard display

4. You can hook up your 400GB HD without any problem

Hope you enjoy it!

 

[xpovos]

Hey guys, I just found this site about a week ago and have been lurking ever since.

I am in the market for a new laptop and am going to go with a mac because I am looking at getting into some photo/design stuff. I am an avid windows user but am ready to make a switch (hey it worked when I switched to an Ipod...why not a mac computer )

Anyways here are my questions.

1. Should I go with the lower end MBP or the middle class MBP? Like I said...I will only be doing design stuff using CS3 and very little film editing. If there will be a difference in speed using the 256mb video card in the middle MBP I may go for that but that would require a stretch of the budget...or would I be just fine with a lower end MBP.

2. I thought I read somewhere that they will be incorporating 7200rpm drives into MBPs now instead of the 5400rpm. When will this happen and should I wait? I techincally don't need the computer until mid August but would like to get it ahead of time to become familliar with it. Also...will there be a price difference?

3. Can I hook any monitor up to the MBP? I just bought a 20" Samsung monitor about 3 months ago and would love to be able to hook it up that way when at home.

4. The requirements say maximum HD space is 250gb...does that count for external HDs? I have a 400GB one that I would like to hook up to it.

Thanks for any and all help guys! I don't know what it is about apple products...but once they get in your system they are like a drug you cannot live without I am anxious as ever to get my hands on a new MBP.

"Low-end" MBP (I shudder calling it low-end, when in the cosmic scheme of things it's a pretty high-end machine) should do well. Unless you get heavy into graphics-intensive gaming, 256MB isn't really necessary. For your stated purpose, 128MB will be fine.

For your purpose, I also doubt the 7200rpm drive would even provide you with a noticeable speed increase. My new 17" has the 7200rpm drive in it, and for just everyday usage I can't tell a difference. In my opinion, there are only a few specific usage scenarios where the user can tangibly benefit from the faster drive. For the record, my "everyday usage" consists mainly of Web design with XHTML, Flash, and Photoshop. I didn't really need 7200rpm.

Chances are your Samsung monitor is DVI, which means it can be hooked directly into the MacBook Pro's DVI-out. If the monitor is VGA, use the DVI-to-VGA adaptor that I believe is still being provided with the MBP. If your monitor is dual-interface, definitely go with the DVI interface when plugging into the MBP.

You can connect any size external HD you want. The stated capacity limitation is for internal drives only.

 

[Matto1020]

Hey thanks for the replies guys!

I wont be doing any gaming what so ever on the machine...thats what the Xbox and Wii are for.

Also...I was just worried that they were going to switch all 5400rpm drives with 7200rpm drives in the near future but if it is a special order thing than that is no worry.

I hope to buy one within the next week or two! Ill be sure to post my about my "first time" with a mac and throw some pictures along with it too!

 

[xpovos]

I was just worried that they were going to switch all 5400rpm drives with 7200rpm drives in the near future but if it is a special order thing than that is no worry.

Nah. They just updated the line, so it'll probably be sometime early next year before they change the standard feature set again. You can go ahead and buy with confidence.