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Question

Best way to upgrade 2008 mbp

Jun 28, 2011 5:38PM PDT

I have a 13" mbp (2008 model, 2 gigs ram, 160 gigs hdd)
The hard drive is nearly full and its very slow.

If I upgrade my hdd to 500 gigs, will i need to upgrade my ram ?

Does the 2008 mbp come with a 2.5" or 3.5" hdd and which ones can I choose from ?
(Because I am under the impression that the hdd has to be in a particular format. I know that can be changed but I don't want the hassle)

If I need a new ram, what companies other than mac can I buy from ?.

I want to convert my current hdd to an ext hdd. Is there a way by which I can read and write on it w/ both windows and mac os ?

I am open to any other suggestions you might have.

Discussion is locked

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Answer
Lot of questions, some answers
Jun 28, 2011 10:04PM PDT

1. If you are going to increase the HDD size, then you may as well max out the RAM while you are at it.
2. 2.5" drive. The 3.5 is thicker than the MBP!
3. Crucial.com, Ramjet.com, in that order
4. Not without the aid of a piece of software on your PC or Mac. This depends on whether you want to keep the stuff currently on the drive. If not, then connect the drive to a Windows machine and format the drive as FAT32. This is how drives normally arrive from the manufacturer. You will need an external enclosure, USB, to house the drive.
Alternatively, you can format the drive as NTFS (Windows default) and use a piece of software called NTFS for MAC, on the Mac.

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More to answer #2
Jun 28, 2011 10:06PM PDT

When you buy the drive it will need to be initialized (Formatted) for the Mac. This is done with Disk Utility

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Answer
Some supplemental info
Jun 28, 2011 11:15PM PDT

Some supplemental info to the answers already given.

You don't NEED to upgrade your RAM at the same time as the HDD. It's probably a good idea, but it is not necessary.

Having run into this recently at work... Check the official specifications page for your system. Find out what the max sized HDD was that could have been in the system from the factory. That is what Apple will consider the maximum tested and supported size drive for your system. Larger capacity drives may, or may not, work. I've had an ongoing issue with a customer at work regarding this basic issue, so I'm just going to try and help manage your expectations a little. Just because you see forum posts about the Internet from people who have gotten this or that to work does NOT mean you will meet with similar good fortune. If you go beyond what the largest CTO option was for your particular model, then there's no real telling what will happen. It may work perfectly, it may work poorly, it may not work at all. Just be prepared for those latter two options, and don't get it in your head that it's always going to work perfectly.

Apple doesn't make RAM, they just buy it from other companies. Any RAM, meeting the same spec as the RAM that came in your computer, will work. Just make sure it's SO-DIMMs for laptops, and not regular DIMMs for desktops. Regular DIMMs are about 2.5X too long.

There was also a recent discussion on one of these Mac forums here at Cnet covering the issue of using a drive with both Windows and Mac OS X. Might be worth perusing.

I also suspect you actually have the aluminum MacBook which later became the Mid-09 13" MBP. Easy mistake to make, I still sometimes do it, and I am a professional Apple repair tech. Either way, when you go to replace the drive, BE CAREFUL! The cable that connects the drive to the logic board is a bit fragile, and can be torn fairly easily if you are not careful. You will have to go to an Apple store or AASP to get your hands on a replacement of one of those, and they may insist on charging labor to put it in for you.

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Answer
Thank you very much
Jun 29, 2011 6:18AM PDT

Your input has been very helpful, except there's one problem.

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As already stated,
Jun 29, 2011 10:12AM PDT

any RAM, if it meets the specifications, will work.

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Answer
Seagate momentus 2.5", 5400 rpm, SATA interface hdd
Jul 23, 2011 9:51PM PDT

Will it work right away with the mbp or will I have to format it or something before i can install it ?

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What you bought
Jul 23, 2011 10:37PM PDT

What you bought is called a bare drive, or OEM drive, in that it's just the drive in an anti-static bag. If you bought a full retail drive, it would probably have come with some software, but for Windows, so you're really not missing out on anything.

You will need to format the drive, as it will come unformatted, but you can do that from Disk Utility at the OS X installer.

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Answer
So I install the new drive and insert the OS X install cd
Jul 24, 2011 4:56PM PDT

Then in what way/how am i to format it ?
I just erase everything ?

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Use Disk Utility
Jul 24, 2011 11:09PM PDT

Use Disk Utility, which is conveniently part of the OS image used for the installer. After you select a language, and the menu bar appears, investigate the mystery that is the Utilities menu. You should be able to take it from there.

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Answer
(NT) gotcha
Jul 25, 2011 12:16AM PDT