Ane2512
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: Should I update my MacBook Pro 3,1 (mid-2007) 4GB from SnowLeopard to Mavericks?

Last year I added 2GB to my old MBP, but I continued to run SnowLeopard due to bad experiences with updating to MountainLion in the past, though that was when I only had 2GB. I'm not sure I can feel the difference from 2GB to 4GB, so I feel like time is running out for my old buddy.. But maybe someone can help me out: 1) Would updating to Snow Leopard would breath some new life into the poor thing? - and furthermore 2) Does it pay of to invest in SSD and perhaps a(nother) new battery rather than starting to save up money for an alternative in the late-spring?

 

Thanks!

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Jan 18, 2016 2:08 PM

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Ane2512

Q: Should I update my MacBook Pro 3,1 (mid-2007) 4GB from SnowLeopard to Mavericks?

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  • Helpful answers

  • by steve359,

    steve359 steve359 Jan 18, 2016 2:20 PM in response to Ane2512
    Level 6 (14,032 points)
    Jan 18, 2016 2:20 PM in response to Ane2512

    My 2011 MBP is running 16 GB RM, which definitely helps.  You have not indicated year or your system.

     

    One of the biggest issues you will face is applications you must update (at cost or not at cost) for higher level OSX ... check out http://roaringapps.com/apps to see what must be updated.

  • by K Shaffer,

    K Shaffer K Shaffer Jan 18, 2016 2:32 PM in response to Ane2512
    Level 6 (14,350 points)
    Desktops
    Jan 18, 2016 2:32 PM in response to Ane2512

    Your MacBook Pro3.1 (there are two so designated, a 15-inch and a 17-inch) can run

     

    Maximum Memory    6.0 GB (Actual) 4.0 GB (Apple)

    Memory Slots    2 - 200-pin PC2-5300 (667MHz) DDR2 SO-DIMM 

     

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

     

    The hard drive upgrade to SSD may be faster at a price; a quicker than stock 7200-RPM

    rotational hard disk drive could be cost effective, as it is faster than 5400 or 4500 RPM.

     

    A new drive, and a new battery, could help. The lack of a good or working battery, or if

    the battery is removed and the unit run from AC power, can make the computer CPU

    run at slower processing cycles and be not as efficient also.

     

    You could upgrade to Mt Lion OS X 10.8(.5) and the path is to buy the download code

    from the Apple Store online to use via the App Store, for the download to occur. Not

    sure if you'd want to venture any newer OS X although some suggest El Capitan may

    run OK in that system configuration. Your older applications would need upgrades, too.

    And that likely means you'd need to purchase via App Store, or from trusted maker sites.

     

    An iFixit guide may help if you sought to upgrade the internal hard drive yourself, there is

    information on how to replace a hard drive online in youtube video at macsales.com.

     

    The slowness may be a combination of older or inappropriate software installed together

    or a fuller than desired hard drive. Among other possible reasons.

     

    Good luck in this matter!

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE Jan 18, 2016 3:47 PM in response to Ane2512
    Level 9 (52,323 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jan 18, 2016 3:47 PM in response to Ane2512

    Unless you have applications that require a newer OSX than Snow Leopard, do not upgrade.  If that is the case, consider running a dual boot system.  Snow Leopard is the most efficient OSX to be produced by Apple. 

     

    An SSD will be faster than a conventional HDD, but be advised that your MBP has SATA1 connectivity and you will not be able to realize the full potential of an SSD.

     

    Ciao.

  • by Lanny,

    Lanny Lanny Jan 18, 2016 4:05 PM in response to Ane2512
    Level 5 (7,952 points)
    Desktops
    Jan 18, 2016 4:05 PM in response to Ane2512

    Technically, Mavericks is no longer available unless you previoulsy downloaded it. Upgrade to El Capitan and increase your RAM to the maximum of 6 Gigs.

  • by Ane2512,

    Ane2512 Ane2512 Jan 19, 2016 5:22 AM in response to steve359
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 19, 2016 5:22 AM in response to steve359

    Dear steve359,
    Thanks for your reply!
    As the title reads my MBP is from mid-2007 and currently has Snow Leopard. I am not sure I have a lot of apps that must be updated - would it include Microsoft Office programmes?

    Thanks again,
    Ane

  • by Ane2512,

    Ane2512 Ane2512 Jan 19, 2016 5:31 AM in response to Ane2512
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 19, 2016 5:31 AM in response to Ane2512

    Thanks for answers, though I am not completely sure where it leaves me - should I invest in a battery, SSD, more GB RAM and update OR should I acknowledge that my MBP has by now served me well? I know it's difficult to decide without knowing specifics, but how long would it buy me? Would I get an as good as new computer?

    A real issue is that by now I simply don't have the money or the heart to buy a new MBP and, therefore, I would opt for a non-mac which I really do not feel like.


    Thanks again for the help so far!


  • by dwb,

    dwb dwb Jan 19, 2016 10:54 AM in response to Ane2512
    Level 7 (24,177 points)
    Notebooks
    Jan 19, 2016 10:54 AM in response to Ane2512

    Unless you have another computer and have downloaded Mavericks to it, you can’t install Mavericks. Your choices are stay with what you have, update El Capitan, or as has been mentioned above, you can purchase Mt Lion. With 4GB  and a standard hard drive, I strongly recommend against upgrading to El Capitan. It is pretty resource hungry and frankly even a new iMac or Mac mini with 8GB or more doesn’t run El Capitan well unless it has an SSD. In recent versions of the  Mac OS having an SSD is even more important than having gobs of memory. Your computer should run 10.8 (Mt Lion) just fine. In some ways I think Snow Leopard and Mt Lion hit the high notes for Apple. Mavericks and El Capitan (for me) have been okay but nothing to get truly excited about.

     

    Another thing to consider when you think about upgrading to OS is what impact that will have on your software. Older Mac software which relied on Rosetta won’t run on any OS newer than Snow Leopard. Even today I have one older computer and an external hard drive with Snow Leopard on it so I can run one program I really don’t want to upgrade.

  • by Allan Jones,

    Allan Jones Allan Jones Jan 19, 2016 11:27 AM in response to Ane2512
    Level 8 (35,151 points)
    iPad
    Jan 19, 2016 11:27 AM in response to Ane2512
    I am not sure I have a lot of apps that must be updated - would it include Microsoft Office programmes?

     

    If you have Office 2008 or later, it will still work. Office 2004 and earlier will not.

     

    I am running 2008 on a 2010 iMac i7 with 10.10.5 (Yosemite) and on a 2012 MacBook Pro with 10.11.2 (El Capitan). The only issue I've encountered was with the mail client MS Entourage, part of Office:Mac prior to v2011. Entourage stopped launching properly from the Dock with Mac OS 10.9 Mavericks. A simply workabout--making an alias on the Entourage app on the desktop and double-clicking it--fixed that.

     

    The other app people lose when leaving 10.6.8 is AppleWorks. You may need to export all your AW files to a format compatible with newer programs. One of our respected forum members, Roger Wilmut, has an excellent tutorial on leaving AppleWorks starting here:

     

    http://rfwilmut.net/notes/aw/page1.html

     

    You can use this site to check for your current programs' compatibility:

     

    http://roaringapps.com/apps

     

    The Filters and Options buttons on the right side of the page allow you to customize the chart to show only Mac OSX or include older Mac OS versions. Ignore the MacKeeper ads that may show up at the top.