upgrade pricing?

[stevo8]

ok so excuse me if I sound like I dont know much about what im talking about cause well. I dont. anyways my mbp had a problem loading discs and it turns out that its the drive and it needs to be replaced. Its no longer in warrenty so I have to come out of pocket for it. There is a place here in town that quoted me $650 for the drive and 2gigs of ram installed. I plan to get final cut and already use PS a bit. I also am going to run windows for a couple things. my current specs are

Model Identifier: MacBookPro1,1
Processor Name: Intel Core Duo
Processor Speed: 2 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache (per processor): 2 MB
Memory: 1 GB
Bus Speed: 667 MHz
Boot ROM Version: MBP11.0055.B08
SMC Version: 1.2f10

Now I would like to get 4gigs but they are telling me that its a extra $200 because it only has two spots for ram so my 1gig would be obsolete. Would it be worth it to get the 4gigs or is $200 a waist for just a gig? Most of my time on my computer is spent watching video/dvds and surfing the web but I just figured that it would be wise to do it while its being worked on. Also does that sound like a fair price and is there anything else I should upgrade while its down?

 

[iBookG4user]

ok so excuse me if I sound like I dont know much about what im talking about cause well. I dont. anyways my mbp had a problem loading discs and it turns out that its the drive and it needs to be replaced. Its no longer in warrenty so I have to come out of pocket for it. There is a place here in town that quoted me $650 for the drive and 2gigs of ram installed. I plan to get final cut and already use PS a bit. I also am going to run windows for a couple things. my current specs are

Model Identifier: MacBookPro1,1
Processor Name: Intel Core Duo
Processor Speed: 2 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache (per processor): 2 MB
Memory: 1 GB
Bus Speed: 667 MHz
Boot ROM Version: MBP11.0055.B08
SMC Version: 1.2f10

Now I would like to get 4gigs but they are telling me that its a extra $200 because it only has two spots for ram so my 1gig would be obsolete. Would it be worth it to get the 4gigs or is $200 a waist for just a gig? Most of my time on my computer is spent watching video/dvds and surfing the web but I just figured that it would be wise to do it while its being worked on. Also does that sound like a fair price and is there anything else I should upgrade while its down?

The MacBook pro you have would not be able to register anymore RAM than 2GB, so it would be a waste of money. $650 sounds too much for what they are doing, I suggest you look elsewhere to see if you can get it cheaper.

 

[deadpixels]

This superdrive is only 170$ if you feel like doing the install yourself, you'll save a lot of money

 

[CanadaRAM]

First of all, where are you?
Australian Dollars, Canadian Dollars or US Dollars - makes a difference.

Rule #1: If they know exactly what machine you have (a Core Duo MacBook) and they are still offering to sell you 4 Gb - then this is an seller to avoid, They don't know their Macs and are just out for the sale.

Your machine can go to 2 Gb RAM total with 2 x 1 Gb modues (Your 2 x 512 Mb are gonna have to come out in any case) - in quality RAM this should run you about US$ 90 - 100 or CAN$120 - $130, depending on brand and seller.

Your machine needs a SATA 2.5" hard drive. You can go to 100 to 160 Gb in a 7200 RPM drive, or up to 250 Gb in 5400 RPM. The top end of this range are fairly expensive and in short supply. But a 100 GB 7200 would be a decent choice, or a 120 - 160 Gb 5400 RPM. These will be in the range of US$80 - 120 or CAN $95-$140.

You can expect to pay labour for the installation. The physical install isn't that time consuming, but transferring your data to the new drive can take time, and will add up if you are having someone doing it.

EDit: OK - optical drive, not hard drive. Scratch the SATA hard drive info above. THe Superdrive is a bit harder to source and will be pricier. But $650 is way out of the ballpark. Shop around.

 

[stevo8]

wow sounds kind of like a bunch of bs to me. im in santa rosa CA oddly enough, and the guy looked at my computer and said that I could do 3gigs or even 4 if I wanted to.Is it possible that he thought it was the newer version mbp or something? There is another place about 15 minutes from me that works on macs so i will check them out tomorrow. Is 2gigs going to be enough for wha I want to do or would I be best off selling it and upgrading to a core 2 duo with 3-4gigs?

 

[CanadaRAM]

wow sounds kind of like a bunch of bs to me. im in santa rosa CA oddly enough, and the guy looked at my computer and said that I could do 3gigs or even 4 if I wanted to.Is it possible that he thought it was the newer version mbp or something?

Well, yeah, it could, but it also means that he is a corner cutter and willing to sell without checking the facts. If an auto mechanic told you that he could replace all 6 cylinders in your motor for you for only $650, and you have a 4 cylinder car, you;d make tracks out of there, wouldn't you?

There is another place about 15 minutes from me that works on macs so i will check them out tomorrow. Is 2gigs going to be enough for wha I want to do or would I be best off selling it and upgrading to a core 2 duo with 3-4gigs?

2 Gb is fine for DVDs and web, and most programs. If you are wanting to do intense graphics, video production or audio production, then you might consider stepping up.