Macbook Pro Processor Speeds for video editing

I'm looking to get a new Macbook Pro for Christmas and I am pretty decided on everything but processing speed. I will be using my laptop for web design (Adobe Creative Suite CS4-sometimes multiple programs at same time), video editing (Adobe Premiere CS4, Final Cut Pro) and possibly sometime in the next 3-4 years, animation (Maya). I have two 2 TB hard drives and I'd be editing with video footage on them most of the time. Not playing any games. I'm pretty decided on getting a 15" (have one now and like the size for traveling+editing), 320 GB 7200rpm hard drive and 8 GB memory. However I have no idea what processor speed would be best for me between 2.56, 2.66 and 2.8. My budget is $1000 to $3000(ish) although cheaper is always better but I want to make sure I get the most bang for my buck especially since I'll be using this laptop for 3-4 years.

What processor do you think would be best for me? Is there a big difference between the three making the higher ones worth the money? Is there anything in my current setup that I should change for optimal results?

Also, you can get a spare battery and use it as a second battery right? I'll be traveling a lot (like round the world) so extra battery time will be needed.

 

Right off the bat an extra battery is not gonna work, its built in. Luckily MBPs have great battery life.

Also when do you need this laptop? Its very close to a refresh and you may want the new Arrandales that will be hitting the MBP, especially since you will be using it for 3-4 years.

If you are thinking about a processor upgrade either stick with the 2.56 or go all the way to 2.8. 2.6 is such a miniscule upgrade over the base

EDIT:

If I were you I would stick with 4gb setup. 8GB is prohibitively expensive. Also I would get a fast 500gb hdd. The externals are nice for space, but it won't be faster than what you have internally.

 

CS4, FCP or Maya is going to eat battery life REALLY fast. this is where the old removable batteries were a real asset ... flip side you are going to want as much performance on the CPU/GPU side especially if you ever plan on doing large renders in Maya

 

you can get spare external batteries... in very large capacities... like HyperMac ( http://www.hypershop.com/HyperMac-External-MacBook-Battery-and-Car-Charger-s/91.htm)..

nothing like getting over 20 hours before having to plug into a wall.

 

Thanks for all the advice. I do need one RIGHT now so I bought the computer today, decided to go with the 2.53 so as not to spend so much money (especially when you add the tax to it). Thank you so much for the battery link, doh123, that is EXACTLY what I need! 24 hours of extra battery life, perfection.

 

if you intend to do maya in 3-4 years, it was a wise choice to buy as cheap a laptop as possible.

you will want a new one by the time you start working with maya.

 

I've edited an entire HD infomercial campaign of about 3 hours total on a 2.53 ghz processor using adobe premiere pro and ran into no issues. The only wait time was the encoding to an HD format which took a day on my machine. So such a machine would be fully capable of editing video...however....on a time crunch of a few days in between, then you should be looking at something more high end.