Getting a new Macbook Pro

Okay so things have changed and I returned my Alienware and am now using the money to get a new 15" 2.4ghz Macbook Pro. I just have a few questions before I make the final purchase: I like to play games (WoW, CS:Source, Dawn of War, etc..) Not very demanding games, but games in general. I'm just wondering what these will all play like. Will I be able to turn everything up? Also, I saw a thread on here where some guy took apart his MBP to reveal the cpu and the thermal paste was applied terribly. Is this a common thing? If so, I was wondering if someone could let me know how to get to that so I could replace it with some arctic silver and spread it properly. Another thing, where do I download bootcamp from, would it be better to run these games form OS X or dual boot windows and run from there?

 

It's always better to play the games natively via boot camp than from OS X via some sort of virtualization.

Some games have Mac versions that'll run on OSX as well though - i.e. WoW, and some EA games will soon.

http://www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp/

 

Yeah I know WoW does have a Mac version. Would it be smart just to get that? When running bootcamp am I running two operating systems at the same time or do I choose which one to boot from startup? Also, matte or glossy screen? I've heard matte was better for video editing stuff because glossy can be a bit deceiving. I'll be doing basic editing on this machine and some photoshop. So I'm really not sure which would be a better decision.

 

you choose one at startup, i believe you hit a certain key to boot windows and then the mac os is just by default

 

You hold the option key at startup, and it brings up the OS chooser screen. After you choose one, it's set by default until you option-boot and choose again.

The matte screen is pretty bright and vivid actually. Go into an Apple store and compare them firsthand.

As for WoW, actually the version Blizzard ships should work in either OS, so you don't need to buy a separate version at all.

 

Excellent, thanks. I'm pretty sure I'll be using the notebook outside at times so the matte screen looks like it's right for me. Parallels runs both OS's at the same time, correct?

 

For Parallels, you run OSX natively, and then Parallels runs Windows virtually. There's typically a performance hit for graphic-intensive programs, and it takes a bunch of RAM. On a C2D, Parallels typically takes up one of the cores. This is usually why if you want to play a very demanding Windows game, you should reboot into Windows natively.

 

I don't see the advantage of using parallels over bootcamp. Is it just have a ability to switch between the two OS's on the fly?

 

I find that Crossover works a lot better than Parallels for most of the programs I run (speed, performance, etc). Is there any particular reason to use Parallels over Crossover? I guess since Parallels is an emulation it might be a bit more compatible, but there's not much that I haven't been able to get to run (some games included!) within Crossover 6.1

 

It's just so you can take advantage of both at the same time without rebooting.
Parallels is not free btw, while Boot Camp is.

But for normal applications, it can be very convenient to have them both up at the same time.

 

Alright thanks for the quick responses. I have a couple more questions. First, is the 8600M GT a DX10 card? Secondly, I'm a bit worried about the casing of the Macbook Pro. It's aluminum, correct? If so, how does it stand up to scratching, denting, etc...

Thanks again.

 

Yes 8600M GT is a DX10 card.

 

Excellent, will it be able to handle Crysis well?

Also, does anyone have firsthand knowledge about the casing of the MBP, I'm quite worried about scratching and denting and what not.

 

It should handle Crysis quite well, the 8600 GT is powerful .

As for the casing, there shouldn't be much scratches unless you deliberately make them (like putting keys along with it in your bag ). Dents won't happen unless you drop it and you shouldn't do that to any laptop .

 

Bootcamp is a dual booting mechanism. You can only choose one operating system to boot into at restart. This is best for when you want to run Windows games because there is no performance decrease from having to run two operating systems at the same time.

Parallels simply allows you to run windows INSIDE of the mac osx. For instance, you can run Microsoft Office 2007 while running the mac os without having to boot into windows. You can theoretically play some games through parallels, although there is much more significant performance hit when compared to boot camp. Also, Parallels only supports of to DirectX 8.1 or lower. That means that most modern games wont really work through parallels.

So, bootcamp for games and programs that need lots of performance.
Parallels for less power hungry windows applications that you want to run in mac osx.

 

I bought my WoW at Gamestop, they said all WoWs are the same, so you dont need to go pay $50 at the apple store or online apple store for a game that only costs $20 at Target, Circuit City, or Bestbuy

 

Well that's definitely nice to hear. GG Blizzard... I don't really think I'm going to bother with parallels that much, it seems like a waste to me... I'm excited for my new Macbook Pro, sadly I'm still torn between the matte or glossy screen. Hopefully I'll resolve this controversy tomorrow when I plan to order as I need this machine by mid August at the latest, the 4-6 estimated ship time is worrying me. I need at least a week to get acquainted with it...

 

you should see where the nearest apple store is. if it's less than 2 hours away i'd just go buy one.

 

There are two Apple stores within 45 minutes of my house. Only one is an official Apple store. The other is called Mac Lover or something, I've never been there personally but I hear they offer everything a regular Mac store would. I'm a bit weary about buying from the store. Can I get the education discount still? What about applecare? I guess I'll have to go down and see for myself if they even have the new MBPs in stock there yet. I don't know why I feel more comfortable purchasing online, but I do. I will definitely go down and check it out though. If they offer everything the online store does and I can get the MBP how I want it configured I will purchase it there on the spot.

 

ya you had me worried there with the 4-6 weeks comment, then i realized that was for the 7200 rpm hd. they might have them in stock at the official apple store but somehow i doubt it.

 

Yeah it makes me wanna order it without the 7200 rpm drive but whatever it's worth the wait in my opinion. I also doubt that the stores will have them in stock with the 7200s.

 

My local Apple store at least did not carry any customized models. All they had were stock models.

I ordered a couple of weeks ago, and my est. delivery date is still the end of July

Ah well, it's worth the wait

 

Okay so I just returned from the Apple store. They don't have any MBPs with the 7200 rpm hard drive and they only have one 2.4ghz, 15", 5400rpm machine in stock. They guy said that there is something going on with the 7200's that prevents them from shipping before the end up July. He was then very puzzled when I showed him the est. ship date for the 17" was still 2-4 days even with the 7200rpm hard drive. Regardless, I'm stuck with this situation still. How much more battery life will the 7200 eat up in comparison to the 5400? How much heat? What is your personal opinion on what I should do?

 

Hows about you get the 5400 now, see what you make of it then upgrade to the 7200 yourself if you feel you really need it? Will save a lot of cash that way to, the upgrade price with apple is ridiculous.

 

This is true, $150 is a bit steep. I have yet to find any 7200rpm mobile hard drives that are bigger than 100gb though. I have an external but I like to have a lot of room in the actual machine too. If anyone could point me toward one that would be appreciated. I'll definitely consider that though, thanks a lot for the thought.

 

I hear that the more mature/larger 5400 RPM drives (120 and 160 gb) are only slightly slower that the first generation 7200 drives. 5-10% difference.

Plus less heat and battery wear.

 

Yeah I heard this too but the size is the same (160gb for each). I'm assuming the 7200 would be noticeably faster. My logic tells me to just wait it out and have the 7200 by early August, when it would ship. Everything else tells me to get the 5400 now just to have it and upgrade later if I feel the need. Damn you Apple...

 

My dell has a 7200 rpm drive and I dont notice any difference using my macbook pro.

 

Update: I went to this store about 25 minutes away from my house called Mac Outfitters. I asked if they had any 15" Santa Rosa Macbook Pros in stock. The tech guy said they currently had one in stock. 2.4ghz, 2gb ram, 5400rpm HD. He also told me that I shouldn't expect any 7200rpm HDs in until late July. I asked him if it would be possible for them to upgrade me to 4gb ram and what the cost would be. He said the he could do the upgrade for $300 dollars (half of what Apple charges) I realized this and immediately jumped on it. Anyway, I walked out of the store carrying my brand new 15" Macbook Pro with 4gb ram and 2.4ghz cpu for only $2770.60. That is roughly $479 cheaper than I would've paid through Apple. Although I didn't end up with the 7200 rpm drive I think the money saved more than justifies my decision. It has been working fine since I booted up and the speed hasn't caused me any pain just yet. Oh in case you were wondering, it only came in matte, so my decision was simple...

 

That's still $100 extra. You can get 2 sticks of 2GB for around 200.

Out of curiosity, did they let you keep the old 2GB of RAM that you had replaced?

 

Wow..that's a *RIP OFF*. You should get 2X2G stick from outpost.com for $180.
and then ebay the 2 1G stick. You have lost at least $150.

 

Yeah they let me keep the original 2gb.