<p>Does anybody how much of a difference it will make if I buy the 13" MacBook Pro 2.4 Ghz with the 250 GB hard drive at $1,099 and upgrade it to a 320GB (only $45 at checkout).</p>
<p>Does the 2.66Ghz on the $1,399 model really make a difference for what a college kid needs? He's not a gamer but I think the extra hard drive space is a good idea.</p>
<p>Can I save the $250 and go with the entry level one?</p>
<p>I believe that the educational discount is $100 on the MacBook Pros. The processor speed difference is 10%. I don’t know if there are other differences such as L2 cache. The 2.4 Ghz should be more than enough for school work and other routine tasks.</p>
<p>Disk usage depends on the user and can vary widely. The things that take up a lot of space are movies and games and doing heavy-duty development.</p>
<p>Agree, the processor speed is a wash, but a disk fills up no matter how big it is. It sure is nice to have it fill later than sooner! ;)</p>
<p>Go with the lower cost solution and buy an external USB drive. You can get 500GB for less than $100. This will provide closet space, should the internal drive start getting full, and a backup device.</p>
<p>You should consider waiting for a while. Apple has every year offered a student package that has included a free ipod (like the lower level ipod touch). </p>
<p>I agree: buy the slower processor because it makes no difference and you should - emphasize that - buy an external drive. You should use that for backup as well as additional storage. </p>
<p>I use a program called carbon copy cloner. It’s actually free. If you buy a USB drive, you’ll likely need to follow directions to erase and reformat it so it can used as a boot drive for the system. (The Mac will use a Fat32 system but can’t boot off it.) I make a cloned drive, meaning the entire thing, and then do incremental backups. Apple’s Time Machine is very good for backing up files but not if you need to replace your actual hard drive. You also have the weird but sometimes useful option of carrying around your computer on a drive. Just attach it to any Mac and hold down the option as you start it and you’ll have the choice of booting into that drive and thus into your computer.</p>
<p>I use SuperDuper - same thing as Carbon Copy I think. I tried them both and found it easier to get SuperDuper working.</p>
<p>thanks for the input everybody!</p>
<p>Sorry to hijack this thread just a tad …</p>
<p>The educational price for a 13" Macbook vs Macbook Pro is $150. The major differences I can see is the Macbook Pro has: +2 GB memory, SD slot, firewire, illuminated keyboard, lighter by 0.09kg … and has a metal rather than plastic case.</p>
<p>My S will be a dual science major, but not an engineer. He isn’t into heavy gaming or photography/videography. </p>
<p>What factors should be considering in deciding on the MacBook Pro that is more expensive? Right now, he’s used to the faster processing speed and the 4 GB memory that comes with our 21’ iMac.</p>
<p>Is the MacBook Pro just a bit more eye candy, or do the extra elements than come with it make it worthwhile? Note that there will also be money spent (about another $350) for software, 500 GB external hard drive for back up and a wireless mouse … and maybe the Apple Care plan, too.</p>
<p>I’d spend the extra 150. I’ve dropped my pro more than once and I believe that the metal case saved me. No proof but it really is tough. </p>
<p>Also memory is key on a mac and the extra 2gb would cost you around 50 anyway.</p>
<p>Whoa, Findaplace - Do not buy ANY software until you learn what is available (and/or required) from your son’s school. It’s amazing what you can get from the school itself for peanuts, if not free. D1’s MacBook got loaded with antivirus, LoJack, Microsoft Office, and others, all included in her tuition.</p>
<p>hi FAP, we will be going with the 13" pro. She doesn’t want the 15" so the extra $ will go to memory etc, and probably a HD as you mention. The weight difference could be noticed when we did a direct comparison with the non-pro plastic one. When we were browsing in the store the sales guy was pushing software, we will also be holding off until we know the details of what is needed, plus we have microsoft connections to buy their sw (eg office) at a discount.</p>
<p>Hi folks.</p>
<p>We’ve already scoped out what NU will be looking for software wise, by meaning of their nice PDF on the subject plus contacting current students in the program in question. I was very pleased with the info conveyed on the PDF. Since I hail from the PNW, I still have a few buddies who work for Microsoft, and since I haven’t hit them up for software deals in awhile, they may be amenable when I claim "poor parent of a college student attending a private school.) ;)</p>
<p>Metal case makes a difference- as does backit keyboard,faster processor, more RAM,and larger harddrive.</p>
<p>I usually get refurbished, but this last time I bought one through B & H.</p>
<p>Students can buy Office Ultimate for $60 at [Microsoft</a> Office Discount for US Students -The Ultimate Steal- Office 2007 Software for $59.95](<a href=“http://www.microsoft.com/student/discounts/theultimatesteal-us/default.aspx]Microsoft”>http://www.microsoft.com/student/discounts/theultimatesteal-us/default.aspx)</p>
<p>I recall a guy selling software that he bought at The Microsoft Store as an employee. The box had a sticker on it that said not for resale. I suppose employees could make a few bucks off of employee purchase software that way but it’s probably a violation of company policy.</p>
<p>Much of the software that Microsoft sells is available inexpensively or even free to college students these days. Microsoft is probably aware that charging $400 for Office to college students results in a lot of piracy. Might as well get $60 a copy from college students instead of nothing along with kids learning to use unlicensed copies.</p>
<p>Second the suggestion on investigating what the school will provide to students. This is not pirated software, but rather a license agreement that schools have for their students. Students can get free/very inexpensive s/w through their schools’ IT departments. Info usually can be found on the schools’ IT websites for new students.</p>
<p>^^ This is particularly important for more specialized software. For example, the engineering department at NU wants the students to know how to use Matlab, software used for large scale mathematical computations.</p>
<p>FYI: from 5/25 - 9/7, you get an 8gig iPod Touch with any Mac bought with the education discount. That’s $199 retail. Plus of course the $100 printer rebate.</p>
<p>That Office Ultimate deal is not for the Mac version.</p>
<p>Apple’s Back-to-School deal just came out ([Apple</a> Education Store - Find Your School and Shop - Apple Store (U.S.)](<a href=“http://store.apple.com/us-hed/browse/campaigns/back_to_school?mco=MTcwNDAyMjE]Apple”>http://store.apple.com/us-hed/browse/campaigns/back_to_school?mco=MTcwNDAyMjE))
They are offering a free iPod Touch with the purchase of a computer.</p>
<p>Just a rant. I purchased my son’s new laptop for college last Thursday for graduation. At that time they were not offering the free ipod touch. Apple employees did not know for sure if or when Apple would offer a free ipod this year. My son didn’t want a new ipod but really wanted his new laptop. So, I missed the freebie by 5 days 
I would have kept if for myself! Grrrrrr.</p>
<p>My son’s college sells Microsoft Office for macs for $7 once he is registered for classes (in 2 weeks). I couldn’t find anywhere that could touch that price!</p>
<p>momlove:</p>
<p>Get on the phone and call your local Apple Store. I just called where I purchased my S’s MacBook Pro for a grad gift and they said they will honor the free iPod TOuch deal bought for a student, provided I come in with the receipt with 14 days of the purchase. So I plan to stop by sometime this week.</p>
<p>I told the customer rep that I was very pleased with their answer. :)</p>