[masugu]

Just ordered a 13" MBP from Amazon. Pretty good deal for the top-end / standard config - 750Gig HD. I just could not bring myself to throw down $500 for a 250 Gig SSD...but I thought about it.

My original 2006 Core Duo MacBook is pretty pokey - and no Lion!

A buddy tells me I can swap in a SSD later as they connect in the same way as a HD. Nice to know...but is this the straight scoop???

[SierraDragon]

Yes.

Review this thread, esp. the links in posts:

http://forums.macnn.com/69/mac-noteb...s/#post4125988

In particular the 2 links in the very first line of the OP.

-Allen

[masugu]

Thanks much!

Nice to know I can just hang until prices drop....then switcharoo later.

I may have (for once) made a reasonably astute Mac buying decision.

[mduell]

Stick the 750G in the optical bay (lol optical media) and get a 128G SSD for <$200.

[SierraDragon]

Yup.

[Eriamjh]

I thought I read somehwere that the 2006 CD MBP will NOT support booting an SSD.

Nope. That was booting through the Express34 slot. Carry on.

[chabig]

The computer doesn't even know the difference between a hard disk and an SSD. They both share the same physical and logical interface.

[dura_ace]

I have a MBP 13"

I placed an OCZ Vertec 3 SSD (on sale) 240 (256) GB .....269 USD used as primary HDD
I placed a 500 GB Seagate Momentus XT w/4GB NAND as Secondary HDD cost HHD=89 USD
HDD carrier to fill superdrive spot 17USD (Nimitz on eBay)
I mounted the superdrive in a matching external enclosure 25USD (Nimitz on eBay)
the carriers are duplicates sold by others at higher cost (OWC etc).
It boots in 10 sec to the desktop and Final Cut Studio 3 HD.

BTW with Lion OSX it isnt trim enabled and you need to follow this guide to enable trim:

How To: Enable TRIM Support For All SSDs in OS X Lion | MacTrast
this install is covered at Apples Forums under the MBP; just remember to do a clean install on the SSD, as you dont want t copy bad sectors from a HDD onto your newly minted SSD. If you go that route get a Vertec 3 or equivilent, it's like 525 mb read/write blazing fast.

[Eug]

Originally Posted by chabig 

The computer doesn't even know the difference between a hard disk and an SSD. They both share the same physical and logical interface.

Gotta be careful though. There are SSD incompatibilities reported.

I personally won't buy a Sandforce-based SSD either. Fast, but right now they have a very poor reputation.

[chabig]

Originally Posted by dura_ace 

you dont want t copy bad sectors from a HDD onto your newly minted SSD.

I don't even think that's possible. For all practical purposes, sectors marked as bad don't even exist.

[chabig]

Originally Posted by dura_ace 

BTW with Lion OSX it isnt trim enabled and you need to follow this guide to enable trim...

If you have an OWC SSD, they say trim is not necessary and should not be enabled because the Sandforce controller handles things:

To TRIM or not to TRIM (OWC has the answer) | Other World Computing Blog

[Guy Kuo]

I just installed a 120 GB OWC SSD into a friend's unibody MacBook. The increase in system responsiveness was VERY impressive. It felt like a modern machine.

As far as Sandforce SSD's are concerned, a blanket negative statement by far overstates the reality. I've been using an OWC 250 GB SSD in my main development machine for over a year. It routinely undergoes 4 to 7 GB of writes each day. It has remained speedy and never had any problems at all.

The OWC SSD's are not cheap, but WOW they make as much a difference as a bicycle (hard drive) ---> sports car (SSD)

Recommended. If are still using a hard drive, you are wasting time.

[mduell]

Friends don't let friends buy OWC.

[Waragainstsleep]

I have nothing bad to say about OWC. They've been very good for a very long time.

[chabig]

I have to agree. I've never had a problem with OWC.