Upgrade the hard drive on a MacBook Pro (HDD + SSD)

If the original hard drive on your MacBook Pro is getting a little too full you can replace it with a much larger one pretty easily. After all, hard drives have gotten cheap with 1TB drives available for under $100.

If you want to give your aging machine an even bigger boost, I'd strongly suggest opting for a new SSD (flash) drive instead. With your system and apps on it, you can get work done much faster as everything will go from sluggish to snappy.

Either way you go the process is the same and, aside from one long data transfer you can sleep through, it only takes a few minutes.

Step 1: What you need

Here's the small list of hardware you need:
 - new 2.5" HDD or SSD drive
 - external 2.5" USB enclosure ($10)
 - #00 Philips screwdriver
 - T6 screwdriver

And 2 software options
 - Carbon Copy Cloner  - free for 30 days, $40 after
 - SuperDuper!  - free for basic use (all we need here) and $28 for full services

I've used both applications for this and both worked equally well for the basic application of hard drive cloning.

Comments

[kleinzeit10]

Quick question about the HDD title/name.
I've installed a new cloned 1TB HDD, which boots fine, checked in Disk Utility and it's still named 'Untitled' rather than 'Macintosh HD'. Does this matter?
Will it be a problem if I choose to update to OS X 10.9 or whatever follows Mountain Lion?
Thanks for the tutorial - really easy to follow.

[fungus amungus]

Don't think it matters. Easy to change it if you're feeling superstitious, though.

[robertashba]

One question... Where did you find a 1TB SSD for $100?? The only thing I'm finding in that price range is around 64GB.

[fungus amungus]

That's for HDD, not SSD. In HDD, I saw 1TB for $80

[jerryantic]

Can I accomplish this on an Apple Titanium?

[fungus amungus]

Yes, but the opening up process is different.

[jerryantic]

Thank you for your speedy reply.

Is there some site where I can get more instruction on how to open and revise an Apple Titanium to get similar results?

Any info would be very helpful.

Jerryantic

[fungus amungus]

Start here. Select which one you have and then pick hard drive replacement.

[leronb]

Just how difficult is it to upgrade the RAM on a MacBook Pro? Thanks for the tutorial!

[fungus amungus]

Extremely easy. The RAM is held in place by two black plastic tabs. Push both out to side at same time to release the RAM, making it pop up. Pull the RAM out (careful and firm) and put new RAM in (careful and firm again).

[DustySeven7]

Make sure you get ram that is listed as MAC combatiple. The socket is the same but the protocol is slightly different in how they work. found out the hard way on that

[ride on toy dude]

I think that you should explain pros and cons of both hdd and ssd storage systems. I know all of this already so it would be for the benefit of others.

[fungus amungus]

In a nutshell, SSD is way faster and more expensive than HDD. Current prices were about $80-$100 for 1TB HDD and ~$200 for a 256GB SSD.

Since many people are likely thinking that the 256GB is way too small for all their files it's better to move to a 2 disk system. Use SSD for system+applications and the HDD for the files.

I've seen concerns about reliability, but you should be backing up your data no matter what anyway.

[DustySeven7]

You can find a OCZ 60gb ssd for anywhere from 40 to 80 bucks at microcenter. For a primary drive that is good. you can remove the diskdrive and put a second drive there.
http://www.thingsthatmademegowtf.com/2009/08/adventure-in-voiding-my-macbook-pros.html?zx=3ed62e147fe25656

[mattglas]

Where can i get that background?? Its awesome!

[fungus amungus]

It's from this. This wasn't a wallpaper, but a shot while the video was playing.

[JeppeOH]

If you want to boost your SSD read-write speed 20%. Here is a tip.
Put a piece of Antistatic-bag between the SSD and the wire connecting it to the board.
Speed-upgrade around 20%
(my Mackbook - same SSD/upgrade as yours went from 20sec boot to 15sec boot time. I just cut up a old antistatic bag from a motherboard I had purchased.

Explanation:
The samsung SSD emits some electromagnetic noise which the motherboard then has to correct for and the SSDs' plastic-casing isn't enough to shield the wire. The wire isn't shielded since the normal disc is a different type AND also it has a metal casing.

[TheBlackSharpie]

Best upgrade: buy a PC!

[fungus amungus]

I'll build a PC if I need one. My MBP is where I get all my work done and haven't had the need (ie. time to play games) to add a PC back into my collection.

[fotbr]

In response to greenplat0, since the stupid captcha system won't let me actually reply to him:

Make sure it's a standard-height 2.5" drive. Some of the 1TB and larger 2.5" drives are thicker. Depending on your macbook, the thicker ones won't fit.

[fungus amungus]

Interesting, haven't heard that. I briefly installed a 1TB in my MBP and it fit fine. Good advice to double check sizing and reviews, too.

[leronb]

If you have a recent TimeMachine backup on an external drive, couldn't you just use that rather than using CCC or SuperDuper?

[fungus amungus]

You could, but you'll need to use the OS X installer disk.

[phoenixryzin]

I've upgraded to a WD Black 2.5"750GB HDD and I only experienced one problem. Apparently Apple in their great wisdom decided they didn't want people upgrading to non-proprietary parts so on the EFI 1.7 Upgrade they removed the 3GB/s access speeds and reduced them to 1.5GB/s which made my machine bog down. I had to force a downgrade to EFI 1.6 which brought those access speeds back up and it runs fine now. Also note, that upgrading to anything above SnowLeopard will remove your ability to download web content through the ACTIVITY window. FYI

[ride on toy dude]

Nice solid state!!

[thematthatter]

Opening up your MacBook Pro voids your warranty so if that bothers you you can just sit tight with what you have.

I have to disagree.  If Apple (R) did not want you to open their computer they would not put instructions on their website on how to open it.

[ManifoldSky]

This recurring meme that opening up and working on electronics in general, and Macs in specific, voids the warranty is a myth. First, it is clear from reading the warranty (which is readily available online) that these actions do NOT violate any warranty terms. More importantly, any such clause in a warranty would be a violation of federal law (Magnuson-Moss Act) and as such would be unenforcible. If, however, you damage something while mucking about, needless to say the OEM is under no obligation to fix your handiwork.

[fungus amungus]

Hmm, looks like they've relaxed a bit on that front. That wasn't the case in the past. All the same, if there is an issue with your MBP and they can trace it to the RAM, HDD, or SSD you've installed then no luck.

[thematthatter]

save the pieces and just put them back before you go visit the genius

[kelvinmead]

"You'll probably need to use Disk Utility to format the new drive."

format as what?

[fungus amungus]

I used MAC OS Extended (Journaled)

[LeumasYrrep]

I installed a SSD in my 2012 Macbook and it starts up super quick. A cold boot is about the same time as waking from a deep sleep. I couldn't recomend it enough even if you are sacrificing space. I only have 128gb but it holds everything I need with room to spare.

[fungus amungus]

Yeah, I upgraded my recommendation a bit. With a SSD, my computer is way better than new. From login after a cold boot I am in Firefox loading pages within 10-15 seconds. Absurd. Used to take 5 minutes.

[greenplat0]

Is there a certain drive brand I should buy for compatability?

[fungus amungus]

I've used Samsung and WD for drives in the past. As long as it's a laptop drive (2.5" not 3.5") you should be fine. Just check reviews for quality. A hard drive failure easily eats away any price savings in the short run.