[pigmode]

Finally going to order a Retina MBP, so correct me if I'm wrong. If my need is 512GB, a 1TB will last twice as long?

[ibook_steve]

That's a very...interesting...way of thinking about it.

The answer is: it depends. What kind of files do you work with? Are you going to start creating bigger files later? Who knows?

I got a 512 GB on my new rMBP. I use external USB 3.0 drives as needed to supplement it. I was worried about the smaller drive size, but I've had no issues. All my music and photos (what previously took up so much space on my internal drive) are now on an external.

Steve

[reader50]

Figure out how much you will have on your SSD. Just like hard drives, SSDs do not work well when they're nearly full. So figure out how much space you'll use today, and get an SSD at least 50% bigger. If you plan to keep the laptop for more than a couple years, you are likely to want more space as time goes by. Which would suggest getting an SSD twice as big as your current usage.

Note that SSDs are dropping rapidly in price, and Apple's drive upgrades tend to be on the expensive side. It is to your advantage to buy what you need now, and upgrade to a 2 TB SSD in a couple years, perhaps for the price of a 512 today.

If you are willing to keep an external drive handy, it is much cheaper storage. And OWC will offer internal SSD upgrades for years to come.

[pigmode]

Thanks! Just ordered my 512GB. Finally!

[pigmode]

I have a new-to-me 2010 15" MBP I want to put to use, but would like to install a 1TB SSD.

Should I order this (below) ,or opt for one of Crucial's more current models?

P.S. Please bear with my simplistic questions-- I've had a TBI and lost grey matter in the right frontal lobe. Have come a long way, but still trying to adjust.

tia

Crucial CT960M500SSD1 960GB / Micron M500 2.5-inch... in stock at OWC

[Mike Wuerthele]

That would work fine. Any 2.5-inch SSD would be fine. We post deals on them all the time on the homepage.

[pigmode]

Thanks, I'll use the homepage as my link.

[jjmcdonald]

I store all photos and songs on a NAS at home. In On the road, they sit on my iPad. For work I use my MBP with VMWare for those pesky applications that don't have equals on the Mac. (Visio and MS Project for project server). I find that, even with MS Office, VMWare, a 10 Gig VM with all of the Office products, and 90 days of e-mail on my machine, I still only need @110 Gig of Space. So a 256 fits me very nicely.
For the Price of Apple's top sized SSD for the Retina Appliance, you can get a decent NAS (Synology for example), hang it off of your home network, and be able to share and or access all of your stuff from anywhere.
I find most people are Packrats, and store stuff they never use or listen to. How many Movies do you need to watch when you are traveling? And cant' you get it with Netflix at the Hotel?
I find that I can fit all of the Project Documents I have needed for the last 3 years on a 32 Gig Aegis Secure Key stick. The "Race for Space" on SSD's is really pretty irrelevent to the professional user. Except for developers (Who should store their work product on a NAS Anyway) most people don't have a need for more then 256 gig. (Once you take out the movies, photos, family albums, and 2000 songs).

[Spheric Harlot]

You don't count media professionals as "professional users"?

[Mike Wuerthele]

Another thing to consider with SSDs is that there is generally a "line in the sand" that where, below X capacity, the drives are slower.

I was constrained (professionally and personally) with 256GB, and I have a home server. 512 is the sweet spot for me.