256 GB or 512 GB on new MBP

Question

Level 1

15 points

256 GB or 512 GB on new MBP

I have to replace my beloved MacBook Pro mid 2010. I’ve recently learned it is now vintage. Which explains all the issues I’m having. Pretty sure the CPU is going.

Anyhow, I’m looking at the one that has

256 GB. An extra $200 will get me 512 GB. Mine now has a 250 GB of which only 37 is unused. Is this apples and oranges or clear that I should spend the extra $200 for the 512 GB on the new MBP?

I won't be doing anything different on the new one.

Thanks so much for your help.

MacBook Pro, macOS High Sierra (10.13.3), (15-inch Mid 2010), SSD

Posted on May 18, 2018 2:50 PM

Reply

Answer 1

FoxFifth

Level 10

475,407 points

May 18, 2018 3:06 PM in response to LIZ BUCHER

If you are that close to full on your current one, and you don't have anything significant in size that you are willing to remove, you are going to want the larger storage.

Reply

Answer 2

Lanny

Level 6

13,225 points

May 18, 2018 4:18 PM in response to LIZ BUCHER

Considering that you may want to keep it for the next 5 years, or more, you should consider the 1 TB option. It can't be upgraded later.

Maximize the RAM and the SSD.

Reply

Answer 3

Limnos

Level 10

428,171 points

May 18, 2018 4:03 PM in response to LIZ BUCHER

It used to be that as time passed and computer storage demand increased, so did drive size. Remember when a 10 MB seemed enormous but was fine since all the files you owned fit on a 360k floppy? Then came the time when most of your private files took up maybe 100 MB but that was fine and the new computer models all had 500 MB drives. Then all your files too 1 GB but that was fine because new computer models all had 40 GB drives. Those days are over since now many people are finding they need multi-TB drives but modern computers have smaller drives than yesteryear. So you may wish to reconsider how you manage storage. I know I for one could not possibly live with a modern computer drive and not also have a large capacity external drive (or maybe multiple external drives). Some people get around it by using cloud based media storage to stream (that's the idea behind Apple Music). Okay, if you think having an extra 200 GB is going to be all you will need for the lifetime of this computer then fine. You may instead just want to stick with the smaller internal drive and realize you're condemned to using external storage.

I am also going to take a contrarian view to the need for a newer computer (says the guy who runs a 2008 iMac). It's up to you but it may be possible to troubleshoot and find cures for your 2010's woes.

Reply

Answer 4

y_p_w

Level 6

17,762 points

May 18, 2018 8:18 PM in response to LIZ BUCHER

Your current MBP May still be usable with an SSD to replace the original hard drive. A mechanical hard drive is usually the slowest component, and can have issues with age.

I'd recommend considering an SSD upgrade even if it’s just to keep your current MBP as a backup device.

Reply

Answer 5

y_p_w

Level 6

17,762 points

May 19, 2018 7:19 AM in response to LIZ BUCHER

OK. Have you tried running Etrecheck? It runs a performance report that doesn’t have any personally identifiable info. Whenever someone mentions performance issues, that’s often the first suggestion to try out.

https://etrecheck.com/

The mid-2010 models can still be decent performers - especially the 15/17” models which switched to the Core i5/i7 processors.

Reply

Answer 6

LIZ BUCHER Author

Level 1

15 points

May 18, 2018 3:14 PM in response to FoxFifth

Thank you so much for your quick answer. I just kept thinking it wasn't directly related but it is!!! I'm so glad I asked. Photos takes up most of it. And it seems everytime I do some kind of software update it takes hundreds of MB's.

Have a wonderful weekend...if you have them meaning you're not retired or independently wealthy etc 😁

Reply

Answer 7

LIZ BUCHER Author

Level 1

15 points

May 18, 2018 4:03 PM in response to Limnos

I don't remember that far back...first PC was in 1998...but I do vaguely remember when MB turned into GB and software updates started taking tons of MB when it used to be...well...not so many like you said.

I would love to keep this 2010. A couple of years ago I put in more memory, the SSD, a new battery and a new DVD drive. The speakers are shot so I use an external speaker. The new battery runs down in 2.5 hours now.

I've considered an external drive for the Photos but some have done that and still have crashes. Also, it would be inconvenient since I really do use it as a laptop.

But it just keeps crashing for no good reason. Etracheck says I might have a serious hardware problem, can't remember the details. Recently it's taking a very long time to come back after a crash which is just downright nerve wracking. I read that getting the GPU checked or the Mother board (?) can be very expensive and sometimes not even helpful. A new one is pricey too. It's recently started to feel very hot which I'm starting to make the connection that's sometimes when it crashes. I used to be able to watch movies on AMZN but it crashes after just 5 or so minutes now.

Kudos to your iMac 2008. I like keeping things a long time. Last car finally bit the dust at 18 years.

I'm sure open to suggestions.

Reply

Answer 8

Limnos

Level 10

428,171 points

May 18, 2018 5:18 PM in response to LIZ BUCHER

I like keeping things a long time. Last car finally bit the dust at 18 years.

We got a new car 2 years ago to substitute for one I have been driving for several decades but I still have my 1981 Toyota in the garage as a hobby car now.

Reply

Answer 9

LIZ BUCHER Author

Level 1

15 points

May 19, 2018 6:47 AM in response to y_p_w

I put in a 250 GB SSD in October 2015. Around the same time a new battery, more memory and a new DVD drive. I have to say I was quite proud of myself 😊 I used online videos and my hands were shaking with each step but by golly the MBP worked each time I turned it on with each new installation.

I just checked the SSD and most is taken with Documents. I had thought it was Photos taking the most. I'm going to do some reading on how to clean out my documents. Would you know of a way other than going through them one at a time?

Reply

Answer 10

LIZ BUCHER Author

Level 1

15 points

May 19, 2018 5:27 PM in response to y_p_w

EtreCheck version: 4.1.4 (4A203)

Report generated: 2018-05-19 20:13:05

Download EtreCheck from https://etrecheck.com

Runtime: 4:23

Performance: Good

Problem: Computer is restarting

Description:

Numerous crashes daily. Battery runs over 100˚.

Major Issues:

Anything that appears on this list needs immediate attention.

System Integrity Protection disabled - System Integrity Protection is disabled. This computer is at risk of malware infection.

Kernel panics - This system has experienced kernel panics. This could be a sign of hardware failure.

Minor Issues:

These issues do not need immediate attention but they may indicate future problems.

Apps crashing - There have been numerous app crashes.

Small backup drive - Time Machine backup drive is too small.

Unsigned files - There is unsigned software installed. They appear to be legitimate but should be reviewed.

Vintage hardware - This machine may be considered vintage.

32-bit Apps - This machine has 32-bits apps that may have problems in the future.

Hardware Information:

MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2010) - Vintage!

MacBook Pro Model: MacBookPro6,2

1 2.4 GHz Intel Core i5 (i5) CPU: 2-core

8 GB RAM At maximum

BANK 0/DIMM0

4 GB DDR3 1067 ok

BANK 1/DIMM0

4 GB DDR3 1067 ok

Battery: Health = Normal - Cycle count = 86

Video Information:

Intel HD Graphics - VRAM: 288 MB

NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M - VRAM: 256 MB

Color LCD 1440 x 900

Drives:

disk0 - Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250GB 250.06 GB (Solid State - TRIM: No)

Internal SATA 3 Gigabit Serial ATA

disk0s1 - EFI (MS-DOS FAT32) [EFI] 210 MB

disk0s2 249.85 GB

disk1s1 - SSD (APFS) 249.85 GB 220.88 GB

disk1s2 - Preboot (APFS) [APFS Preboot] 249.85 GB 19 MB

disk1s3 - Recovery (APFS) [Recovery] 249.85 GB 504 MB

disk1s4 - VM (APFS) [APFS VM] 249.85 GB 4.29 GB

disk2 - MATSHITADVD-R UJ-898 7.65 GB

Internal SATA 1.5 Gigabit Serial ATA

Mounted Volumes:

disk1s1 - SSD 249.85 GB (24.02 GB free)

APFS

Mount point: /

disk1s4 - VM [APFS VM] 249.85 GB (24.02 GB free)

APFS

Mount point: /private/var/vm

Network:

Interface en0: Ethernet

Interface fw0: FireWire

Interface en1: Wi-Fi

802.11 a/b/g/n

One IPv4 address

Interface en2: Bluetooth PAN

iCloud Quota: 198.76 GB available

System Software:

macOS High Sierra 10.13.2 (17C88)

Time since boot: About an hour

System Load: 1.55 (1 min ago) 1.43 (5 min ago) 1.37 (15 min ago)

Security:

System	Status
Gatekeeper	Mac App Store and identified developers
System Integrity Protection	disabled

Unsigned Files:

Launchd: /Library/LaunchAgents/com.brother.LOGINserver.plist

Executable: /Library/Printers/Brother/Utilities/Server/LOGINserver.app/Contents/MacOS/LOGIN server

Details: Exact match found in the whitelist - probably OK

Launchd: /Library/LaunchAgents/com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist

Executable: /Library/Internet Plug-Ins/JavaAppletPlugin.plugin/Contents/Resources/Java Updater.app/Contents/MacOS/Java Updater -bgcheck

Details: Exact match found in the whitelist - probably OK

Launchd: /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist

Executable: /Library/Internet Plug-Ins/JavaAppletPlugin.plugin/Contents/Resources/Helper-Tool

Details: Exact match found in the whitelist - probably OK

Launchd: ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.amazon.music.plist

Executable: /Applications/Amazon Music.app/Contents/MacOS/Amazon Music Helper

Details: Exact match found in the whitelist - probably OK

32-bit Applications:

57 32-bit apps

Kernel Extensions:

/Applications/Boom 2.app

[Loaded] Boom2Device.kext (Global Delight Technologies Pvt. Ltd, 1.2 - SDK 10.10)

System Launch Agents:

[Not Loaded]	10 Apple tasks
[Loaded]	162 Apple tasks
[Running]	118 Apple tasks

System Launch Daemons:

[Not Loaded]	35 Apple tasks
[Loaded]	180 Apple tasks
[Running]	117 Apple tasks

Launch Agents:

[Loaded]	com.google.keystone.agent.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2018-02-03)
[Loaded]	com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist (? 2565e17f - installed 2018-03-28)
[Running]	com.brother.LOGINserver.plist (? a1772de2 - installed 2014-10-09)

Launch Daemons:

[Running]	com.easeus.dataprotectbackup.plist (? 12fff45e - installed 2018-05-19)
[Loaded]	com.malwarebytes.HelperTool.plist (Malwarebytes Corporation - installed 2017-02-14)
[Loaded]	com.adobe.fpsaud.plist (Adobe Systems, Inc. - installed 2018-04-29)
[Loaded]	com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist (? e3fefdd2 - installed 2018-03-28)
[Loaded]	com.google.keystone.daemon.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2018-03-05)

User Launch Agents:

[Loaded]	com.citrixonline.GoToMeeting.G2MUpdate.plist (? 0 - installed 2015-05-27)
[Running]	com.amazon.music.plist (? 0 - installed 2014-09-05)
[Loaded]	com.google.Chrome.framework.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2017-06-19)

User Login Items:

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Tray Application (installed 2018-05-19)

(/Applications/EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard.app/Contents/MacOS/EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Tray.app)

Meteorologist 2 Application

(/Applications/Meteorologist 2.app)

Calculator on Menu Application (Mac App Store

(/Applications/Calculator on Menu.app)

TextExpander 4.3.6 Application

(/Applications/TextExpander 4.3.6.app)

N4RA379GBW.com.busymac.busycal3.alarm SMLoginItem (BusyCal, LLC - installed 2018-05-16)

(/Applications/BusyCal.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/N4RA379GBW.com.busymac.b usycal3.alarm.app)

Boom2Daemon SMLoginItem (Global Delight Technologies Pvt. Ltd - installed 2016-02-12)

(/Applications/Boom 2.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/Boom2Daemon.app)

Internet Plug-ins:

Flip4Mac WMV Plugin: 3.2.0.16 (installed 2013-08-16)

FlashPlayer-10.6: 29.0.0.171 (installed 2018-05-08)

QuickTime Plugin: 7.7.3 (installed 2017-12-01)

Flash Player: 29.0.0.171 (installed 2018-05-08)

iPhotoPhotocast: 7.0 (installed 2010-07-22)

WidevineMediaTransformer: Unknown (installed 2011-09-21)

Google Earth Web Plug-in: 7.1 (installed 2016-08-19)

Silverlight: 5.1.50901.0 (installed 2016-11-06)

JavaAppletPlugin: Java 8 Update 171 build 11 (installed 2018-04-25)

User Internet Plug-ins:

CitrixOnlineWebDeploymentPlugin: 1.0.105 (installed 2013-12-10)

Unity Web Player: UnityPlayer version 2.6.1f3 (installed 2010-10-31)

Safari Extensions:

AdBlock.safariextz - BetaFish, Inc. - https://getadblock.com (installed 2017-11-15)

Make It Short.safariextz - Junecloud LLC - http://juncld.com/e3xR (installed 2014-08-21)

eWallet AutoPass.safariextz - Ilium Software - http://www.iliumsoft.com/ (installed 2018-02-07)

Honey.safariextz - Honey Science Corporation - https://www.joinhoney.com (installed 2018-05-16)

FastestTube.safariextz - Kwizzu - http://fastesttube.kwizzu.com/ (installed 2016-03-03)

3rd Party Preference Panes:

Flash Player (installed 2018-04-29)

Flip4Mac WMV (installed 2013-03-29)

Java (installed 2018-04-25)

Time Machine:

Skip System Files: No

Mobile backups: Yes

Auto backup: Yes

Volumes being backed up:

SSD: Disk size: 249.85 GB - Disk used: 225.83 GB

Destinations:

J*******7 [Local]

Total size: 249.75 GB

Total number of backups: 5

Oldest backup: 2017-07-02 23:28:12

Last backup: 2017-12-10 09:47:45

B*****************D [Local] (Last used)

Total size: 249.88 GB

Total number of backups: 2

Oldest backup: 2018-03-04 18:15:57

Last backup: 2018-04-01 19:51:51

M********8 [Local]

Total size: 124.81 GB

Total number of backups: 0

Oldest backup:

Last backup:

Top Processes by CPU:

Process (count)	Source	% of CPU
WindowServer	Apple	7
kernel_task	Apple	3
coreaudiod	Apple	1
hidd	Apple	0
Meteorologist	0

Top Processes by Memory:

Process (count)	Source	RAM usage
kernel_task	Apple	747 MB
Safari	Apple	696 MB
mdworker (7)	Apple	428 MB
mds_stores	Apple	180 MB
com.apple.WebKit.WebContent (2)	Apple	144 MB

Top Processes by Network Use:

Process	Source	Input	Output
ocspd	Apple	2 MB	396 B
mDNSResponder	Apple	85 KB	73 KB
Mail	Apple	50 KB	22 KB
apsd	Apple	12 KB	11 KB
netbiosd	Apple	6 KB	4 KB

Top Processes by Energy Use:

Process (count)	Source	Energy usage (0-100)
WindowServer	Apple	4
ocspd	Apple	3
coreaudiod	Apple	2
launchd	Apple	1
Boom 2	Global Delight Technologies Pvt. Ltd	0

Virtual Memory Information:

Available RAM	2.94 GB
Free RAM	19 MB
Used RAM	5.06 GB
Cached files	2.92 GB
Swap Used	0 B

Software Installs (past 30 days):

Name	Version	Install Date
Bible Study	6.0.15	2018-04-29
Duplicate File Finder	5.3	2018-05-11

Diagnostics Information (past 7 days):

2018-05-19 19:12:30 Kindle.app Crash (once)

2018-05-19 12:33:17 coreaudiod Crash (3 times)

abort() called

*** error for object 0x7f95ed73a7f8: pointer being freed was not allocated

2018-05-19 09:59:24 cloudd Crash (2 times)

*** Terminating app due to uncaught exception 'NSInternalInconsistencyException', reason: 'Path /Users/USER/Library/Caches/*/MMCS deleted/renamed, crashing.'

terminating with uncaught exception of type NSException

abort() called

2018-05-18 14:42:22 Kernel Kernel Panic (18 times)

3rd Party Kernel Extensions:

com.globaldelight.driver.Boom2Device 1.1

2018-05-16 18:43:17 coreservicesd CPU (once)

2018-05-15 19:42:38 com.apple.WebKit.WebContent CPU (4 times)

2018-05-14 22:09:29 Firefox.app Crash (20 times)

End of report

Reply

Answer 11

y_p_w

Level 6

17,762 points

May 19, 2018 5:49 PM in response to LIZ BUCHER

LIZ BUCHER wrote:

As already noted, I did run Etracheck which said I might have some serious hardware problems. I will run it again later and post the results. Mine is the i5.

Sorry. I kind of did a quick search for "etrecheck" and didn't see any match in the entire topic.

Reply

Answer 12

LIZ BUCHER Author

Level 1

15 points

May 18, 2018 4:29 PM in response to Lanny

I do intend to keep it as long as possible. So I will consider that! Thanks!

Reply

Answer 13

LIZ BUCHER Author

Level 1

15 points

May 19, 2018 6:36 AM in response to Limnos

You are my kind of guy...or gal....can never tell from board names 😉

Reply

Answer 14

LIZ BUCHER Author

Level 1

15 points

May 19, 2018 7:47 AM in response to y_p_w

As already noted, I did run Etracheck which said I might have some serious hardware problems. I will run it again later and post the results. Mine is the i5.

Thanks so much!

Reply

Answer 15

LIZ BUCHER Author

Level 1

15 points

May 19, 2018 6:47 PM in response to y_p_w

UGH, is there an emoji for 'egg on my face'. That's because I misspelled it. So sorry but I did learn something...didn't know about the search option. Good to know, thanks!

Reply

256 GB or 512 GB on new MBP

Similar questions