Q: Best way to upgrade RAM and HDD
I have a late 2011 13in Macbook Pro, 2.4ghz dual core i5. I am currently looking into upgrading my ram, I do alot of photo and video editing frequently using 2-4 programs at once and it really bogs down my operating speed. I am trying to upgrade to the most available RAM i can get. Through Apple, I see that I am only able to upgrade from my current 4gb (2x 2gb) to 8gb (2x 4gb). After searching some third party sites (i.e Otherworld Computing) I see that they are selling up to 16gb total ram for my computer. this leads me to my question, are these third party upgrades worth the time and money and will there be any interface issues with them or should i just play it safe and stick with the Apple upgrades to 8GB?
Also, I am interested in upgrading my hard-drive, an SSD would be nice but it is not necesary, as I do ALOT of photo and video work the files are really eating at my drive capacity and i am frequently having to empty files onto an external drive. Has anyone out there upgraded their HDD to a higher capacity or switched over to a higher capacity SSD? (I am currently working with a 500gb HDD)
MacBook Pro, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.2)
Posted on Jun 3, 2013 5:27 AM
Your computer can do 16GB without problem. OWC is a good source for RAM as is Crucial. RAM replacement is a cunsumer level activity and upgrading will not affect performance other than to make it better.
Hard drive upgrade/replacement is a consummer level activity as well. Any hard drive or SSD will work as long as it fits. OWC is a good source but you can buy a hard drive or SSD at any online or local computer store.
Posted on Jun 3, 2013 7:05 AM