Laptop Advice

[bax]

Hey guys,

I searched a little bit, but didn't want to derail a thread with my own questions so I figured I could start my own. The motherboard and hard drive recently failed on my 2011 white, basic MacBook so I'm in the market for something new.

The basic MacBook was fine for me as a teenager, but I noticed before it died that it was getting really slow and bogged down. I am by no means a computer whiz, but I would like to buy something that will work for me for the next 4-7 years.

I think I want to stick with Apple, but am opening to hearing other suggestions. The computer will be used for minor stuff (surfing the web, movies, excel, photoshop). I not up to date on whats available with the current Apple line up, but was wondering if anyone here has some advice.

Thanks

[DoubleF]

Well... honestly speaking. What you should do, is to get a solid state drive/hybrid drive and put it in your old mac book and install OSX on it. It will perform amazingly fast. Even faster than you remember it new out of the box. You can even use it with a mechanical drive then compare it with a solid state/hybrid. You'll never go back if at all possible.

If that's not possible, a basic MB and then clone your hard drive to a SSD or hybrid drive should make it much faster. To keep it speedy, every 3-4 years, clone your drive to a faster compatible hard drive. My 7 year old laptop still goes strong and isn't slow and rage inducing like the 2 year old laptop my SO uses because I upgraded the mechanical drive to SSD.

Sorry for sounding like an SSD fanboy, but I seriously don't think anyone needs to get a latest and greatest laptop for a faster experience. Just replace those damn 5400rpm or 7200 rpm spinners with a SSD or hybrid drive. Depending on what you need, a Solid state or hybrid drive shouldn't run you too much more than $150. Better value than a completely replacing a laptop.


In a nutshell, I suggest if you cannot reuse your old MB by replacing hard drive, buy a base macbook and then do research into how to clone your hard drive to a solid state/hybrid (or fresh install to solid state/hybrid)

[MickMcGeough]

7 years is probably a tall order.

You should be able to get 4/5 years out of any new MacBook Pro though. I probably wouldn't consider Photoshop to me "minor" use, however, so if that's an app you use regularly I'd recommend going new(ish) over repairing and upgrading your old MacBook.

bax is right about SSDs though - it's the single biggest perceived performance driver in a modern computer.

What's your budget? You're obviously thinking pretty long-term so I'd recommend going with a new MacBook Pro and getting the extended AppleCare so you won't have to worry about this again for years.

[To Be Quite Honest]

The higher end Asus laptops are my favorite. If you're only using it for everyday use and no gaming an i3 is all you need. The build quality is the only thing that's really different in Mac and PC. Everything is Intel. Just don't get a home class laptop. Business class is where it's at!

[DoubleF]

I guess to circle back. You cannot simply buy a computer and expect perfect performance for 4-7 years. Even 4-5 should be considered great as Mick has alluded to, and even so, you need to maintain it here and there. It's like buying a car and never doing maintenance and replacing it when the vehicle stops performing due to crap tires and dirty engine etc.

An i5 and i7 isn't the main issue in laggy performance in later years of a laptop's life as most processors aren't working at maximum every anyways. It is very likely bottle necked by RAM or hard drive. Getting better versions of these later in the life of a laptop will renew it's lease on life so to speak. Another thing to do is ensure that a laptop isn't constantly overheating and clogged by dust. I believe a hot laptop will slow down its processes in an attempt to self preserve and keep temperatures down. Hotboxing frequently occurs in situations where the vents are blocked (ie: Blankets in a bed)