13 inch macbook late 2008

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Level 1

0 points

13 inch macbook late 2008

I have a macbook which I purchased in 2008 - and it has been absolutley brilliant. However recently it has become very slow and lags a lot - with the fan making a lot of noise and producing a lot of heat.

I am wondering what upgrade/replacement parts routes I could go down to improve the performance for a long term solution.

I have already maxed out the RAM, and was researching into a possible upgrade to an SSD.

and also the battery life has become very poor.

what would be the suggestions for a long term high performance solution?

Or would it be worth putting the money towards a new macbook?

MacBook, OS X Yosemite (10.10.2)

Posted on Mar 30, 2015 10:02 AM

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Answer 1

Mar 30, 2015 10:06 AM in response to ted_105

Please check the article below and post results of the test.

Using EtreCheck

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Answer 2

OldGnome

Level 3

813 points

Mar 30, 2015 10:09 AM in response to ted_105

My opinion is that you should put the money you would spend on an SSD toward a new MacBook. Since you have already maxed out the RAM, that is the best place to seek performance gains and your MacBook is already six years old. It has given you a good run in that time.

I have both a MacBook Air and a MacBookPro with the Retina display that my employer provided me with. I greatly prefer the Retina display and plan to replace my Air in a few years with a laptop that has that feature. I would also buy the most RAM and biggest drive I could afford - that will maximize the useful life of any computer.

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Answer 3

ted_105 Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 30, 2015 10:17 AM in response to OldGnome

Thanks for your opinion - I was thinking that a new laptop would ideally be very nice. But the one thing that is holding me back is budget constraints - and I was starting to think that I could get revamp this laptop to improve it and make it last for a while longer - on a smaller budget than a new laptop

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Answer 4

OldGnome

Level 3

813 points

Mar 30, 2015 10:19 AM in response to ted_105

I understand the need to stick within a budget. Please follow the link that stedman1 posted and let us know the results.

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Answer 5

ted_105 Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 30, 2015 10:20 AM in response to OldGnome

Okay - I will run that now then, thank you!

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Answer 6

ted_105 Author

Level 1

0 points

Mar 30, 2015 10:30 AM in response to ted_105

Problem description:

Very slow running and bad battery life

EtreCheck version: 2.1.8 (121)

Report generated 30 March 2015 18:26:13 BST

Download EtreCheck from http://etresoft.com/etrecheck

Click the [Click for support] links for help with non-Apple products.

Click the [Click for details] links for more information about that line.

Hardware Information: ℹ️

MacBook (13-inch, Aluminum, Late 2008) (Technical Specifications)

MacBook - model: MacBook5,1

1 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2-core

4 GB RAM Upgradeable

BANK 0/DIMM0

2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

BANK 0/DIMM1

2 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok

Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported

Wireless: en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n

Battery Health: Normal - Cycle count 1283

Video Information: ℹ️

NVIDIA GeForce 9400M - VRAM: 256 MB

Color LCD 1280 x 800

System Software: ℹ️

OS X 10.10.2 (14C109) - Time since boot: 40 days 7:58:31

Disk Information: ℹ️

FUJITSU MHZ2160BH FFS G1 disk0 : (160.04 GB)

EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB

Macintosh HD (disk0s2) / : 159.18 GB (100.69 GB free)

Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted> [Recovery]: 650 MB

HL-DT-ST DVDRW GS21N

USB Information: ℹ️

Apple Inc. Built-in iSight

Apple, Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad

Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver

Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

Gatekeeper: ℹ️

Mac App Store and identified developers

Problem System Launch Agents: ℹ️

[killed] com.apple.CallHistoryPluginHelper.plist

[killed] com.apple.CallHistorySyncHelper.plist

[killed] com.apple.coreservices.appleid.authentication.plist

[killed] com.apple.icloud.fmfd.plist

[killed] com.apple.rcd.plist

[killed] com.apple.scopedbookmarkagent.xpc.plist

6 processes killed due to memory pressure

Problem System Launch Daemons: ℹ️

[killed] com.apple.AssetCacheLocatorService.plist

[killed] com.apple.awdd.plist

[killed] com.apple.ctkd.plist

[killed] com.apple.nehelper.plist

[killed] com.apple.periodic-monthly.plist

[killed] com.apple.periodic-weekly.plist

[killed] com.apple.sandboxd.plist

[killed] com.apple.wdhelper.plist

8 processes killed due to memory pressure

Launch Agents: ℹ️

[running] com.kodak.BonjourAgent.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.trusteer.rapport.rapportd.plist [Click for support]

Launch Daemons: ℹ️

[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist [Click for support]

[loaded] com.oracle.java.JavaUpdateHelper.plist [Click for support]

[running] com.trusteer.rooks.rooksd.plist [Click for support]

[not loaded] org.eyebeam.SelfControl.plist [Click for support]

User Launch Agents: ℹ️

[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist [Click for support]

[running] com.spotify.webhelper.plist [Click for support]

User Login Items: ℹ️

iTunesHelper Application (/Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunesHelper.app)

Dropbox Application (/Applications/Dropbox.app)

.dat00a3.031 UNKNOWN (missing value)

Spotify Application Hidden (/Applications/Spotify.app)

Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️

AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin1017277: Version: Unknown

Default Browser: Version: 600 - SDK 10.10

OfficeLiveBrowserPlugin: Version: 12.3.2 [Click for support]

AdobePDFViewerNPAPI: Version: 10.1.10 [Click for support]

FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 17.0.0.134 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

Silverlight: Version: 5.1.30317.0 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

Flash Player: Version: 17.0.0.134 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

AmazonMP3DownloaderPlugin101737: Version: Unknown

QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3

iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0

AdobePDFViewer: Version: 10.1.10 [Click for support]

GarminGpsControl: Version: 4.2.0.0 - SDK 10.8 [Click for support]

SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.4.4 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]

JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 7 Update 71 Check version

3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️

Flash Player [Click for support]

Java [Click for support]

Rapport [Click for support]

Time Machine: ℹ️

Skip System Files: NO

Mobile backups: OFF

Auto backup: YES

Volumes being backed up:

Macintosh HD: Disk size: 159.18 GB Disk used: 58.49 GB

Destinations:

My Passport [Local]

Total size: 999.48 GB

Total number of backups: 1

Oldest backup: 2015-01-18 20:37:37 +0000

Last backup: 2015-01-18 20:37:37 +0000

Size of backup disk: Excellent

Backup size 999.48 GB > (Disk size 159.18 GB X 3)

Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️

17% mds

7% WindowServer

3% Google Chrome

0% ocspd

0% Dropbox

Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️

200 MB com.apple.WebKit.WebContent

103 MB Google Chrome

99 MB WindowServer

86 MB softwareupdated

86 MB Safari

Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️

32 MB Free RAM

1.40 GB Active RAM

1.39 GB Inactive RAM

684 MB Wired RAM

96.37 GB Page-ins

4.39 GB Page-outs

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Answer 7

OGELTHORPE

Level 9

57,305 points

Mar 30, 2015 11:17 AM in response to ted_105

If you do not have Windows, rid the Mac of Trusteer. Google Chrome is known to have compatibility problems with OSX. I suggest Safari, Opera or Firefox instead.

Regarding the heat issue, open the Macbook up and see if there is ant dirt an debris inside. If so. clean it out. If not, you might install iStat menus and see what level temperatures are being generated and if they are of concern or not.

http://bjango.com/mac/istatmenus/

Ciao.

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Answer 8

K Shaffer

Level 7

34,972 points

Mar 30, 2015 11:51 AM in response to ted_105

The MacBook5.1 (13-inch, Aluminum, Late 2008) can support a RAM upgrade

according to specs seen in http://mactracker.ca specification database app:

Maximum Memory 8.0 GB (Actual) 4.0 GB (Apple)

Memory Slots 2 - 204-pin PC3-8500 (1066 MHz) DDR3 SO-DIMM

This says the computer was tested by experts who used quality RAM to upgrade

the computer past what Apple spec said it was capable of using when new. So

the official spec may still relate to that older number. If you upgrade, choose a

highly reputable source of correct spec RAM for the computer, from one of a few

known quality suppliers, such as macsales.com or crucial.com.

•MacBook: How to remove or install memory - Apple Support

Also, the internal hard disk drive may be due for an upgrade, perhaps to a newer

7200-RPM model of higher capacity; or maybe an SSD if one is desired. See the

OWC site for several choices of quality replacement & upgrade parts. Although I

have never ordered anything from them, and have no association, others have

given them great reviews over decades of supporting the Mac community.

Good luck & happy computing! 🙂

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