Chosen Solution

Have seen 16GB upgrade kits for sale from Data Memory Systems as long as you are running Mac OS X “Mountain Lion’ or the latest release 10.9 “Mavericks’, Even in the popular reference app MacTracker states this possibility, I’m curious if anyone has attempted this upgrade outside of Apples stated limits. I’m already upgraded to 8GB, but remembering the iMac of the same time frame also running a Core 2, could handle 16GB mainly due to the extra space. Now with larger memory modules available, I wonder if it’s true that these machines could run twice the purposed limits? Update Dan, some limits are only seen by slower drives. The limit on my Mac is 3Gb/s thanks to the 7200 RPM drive I installed over the original drive which was held back by the slower rotational speed. A move to a SSD has been something I’ve thought about for a while but I enjoy the extra space by the Scorpio Black and it reports in OS X in the system profiler as 3Gb/s. The noticeable change after swapping out from the original drive was a noticeable improvement in both Macbench and even running the system score in Windows 7 via Parallels. HDD I/O was the highest in the overall score second only to the matched pair of memory sticks installed getting me to 8GB. Concerning the optical drive, I’d prefer to keep it in as some games I play on my system still have a CD/DVD check for the application to boot. While I do have a older USB DVD RW drive that I picked up on eBay. I’d rather not risk it as all the documentation is in Japanese. I bought it for a fraction of the cost of the Apple USB SuperDrive. I have had my intentions of having this computer last me at least six years as my last Mac did rather well longer than I ever had expected. (A PowerBook G4 which still runs on its PATA limited 320GB internal HDD upgrade I performed as well as running its limit of 2GB of memory. Firing it up every so often reminds me how much the difference running on Intel hardware but also some nostalgic look and feel of the design that evolved into the first MBP. Leopard does show it’s age a bit especially on PPC and the 1.5Ghz single G4 it boasts but still eaten alive in general tasks by the original first generation white MacBook. That is until you fired up a game where the Intel GMA was demolished by having the old 128GB dedicated ATi Radeon 9700. Back onto the topic at hand, instead of people telling me “It can’t be done’ by reading documentation by Apple and such, I’m curious of the brave souls who have actually tried doing such a thing by thinking outside the box instead of only reading what specs Apple has posted on my particular MacBook Pro. The main reason I ask is I thought there would be more daring individuals who experiment with “older’ systems just to see how far they can be pushed. If only I could post pictures of my old “Yikes’ PowerMac G4 which was pushed beyond all possible reasonable thought. Just think a old 233Mhz slug getting a real kick in the rear with dual 1Ghz G4 processors. That was only the beginning after being challenged by a PC die-hard saying to me that it was impossible to upgrade a Mac. I certainly had proven him wrong. :-)

Actually ALL 2010 (Core 2 Duo) 13” macbooks (white) and Macbook Pros can run 16GB 1066 Ram. I have run it on both of them with no problem (actually I have installed and run 16GB on over 25 different 2010 13” Macbooks and Macbook Pros.) Also as an update. with Mavericks installed, I upgraded and ran 16GB on a 2010 17” Macbook Pro (2.53Ghz i5 with nVidia GT330M 512MB) which were all previously software limited to only 8GB!!

Yes & No First what is your exact model as you talk about having a Core 2 version Vs a i5 or i7 version of the A1278. Can you supply the last four digits of your serial number so we can be sure here. The Core 2 series of systems are limited to 8 GB of RAM (2 - 4 GB modules). The newer i5/i7 series can run 16 GB of RAM (two - 8 GB modules). In either case you do want to make sure your EFI is at the latest. Follow this Apple TN EFI & SMC firmware updates for Intel-based Macs. I do strongly recommend using a matched pair of modules as I’ve seen some very odd behavior when mixing vendors and speeds or sizes. As for running Mavericks: Review Apples approved models listing TN OS X Mavericks: System Requirements to make sure your system can run it.

It still lives! The 13” MacBook Pro I had asked about so long ago it feels like. “LittleBigMac” is one heck of a soldier and still runs strong with my photo editing in Aperture and Photoshop. I can proudly say that with the latest upgrade to this same MacBook Pro, it’s doing an amazing job running with OS X El Capitan and The latest upgrade in question is a 1GB SSD so I can really benefit the most of what this five year old Mac has to offer. Similar PC’s would have be replaced by now but with a new battery, the 16GB system RAM upgrade, and just good general maintenance, this has been the absolute best laptop I have ever owned. While I am still waiting for the SSD to arrive, I have been backing up my files from my home folder since I wish to do a clean install from it’s initial shipping OS version to boot and then perform a network install just to have a clutter free system directory as I have never had any failure requiring an OS repair, re-install. Many balk at me still rocking an old Mac like mine but it’s never actually failed me ever. Plus the removal of optical drives in current Macs is rather frustrating so some old games I will have to give up on unless I wish to carry a bus powered external Apple SuperDrive and find an adapter if I wish to continue the practical included original MagSafe connector and beauty of the 27” ACD that has been a fantastic monitor. I wish more PC’s would have adopted MiniDisplayPort as a standard for full AV I/O let alone ThunderBolt which seems even less likely. I love my monitor and I feel for any computer of any kind, the best part of your budget should be in the monitor. Sure it’s no 4K or even 5K like the latest iMac models with retina displays. I will invest in a new Mac soon enough once this one I have stops being useful entirely. I’m just amazed at the longevity of Apple hardware and just how some models simply happen to be the best around.

My system is the 2.4Ghz Penryn Core 2 Duo with the Nvidia 320m GPU. Not the latest and greatest but for my photo editing, using my Mac has been a most amazing tool with Aperture. The model of mine is a stock unit (MC47LL/A) that I picked up at Best Buy and upgraded to it’s current specs listed with my HDD and 8GB memory upgrade (Samsung matched originals from Data Memory Systems and has performed extremely well with a improvement overall in comparison to Mountain Lion but working in Photoshop and Aperture has slowed a bit as the apps have grown more complex and file sizes increase. Thanks to the 7200RPM HDD has helped a bit. In all my Macs I have used matched pairs of memory modules as I am very well aware of the issues that running mixed modules can bring. I’m already running OS X Mavericks ever since public release and have had no problems (only a gripe ever since moving on to Lion and losing Front Row as I loved watching my content on my 27" ACD) So the upgrades on my system I have not skimped out on with questionable quality components. As stated before when upgrading to 8GB of memory, both sets of modules were Samsung parts from the 4GB to the upgraded parts. After upgrading, I ran my AHT DVD to make sure my memory were good parts. To make things clear, my machine is more than just a browsing or general use Mac, the real killer has been my GarageBand projects where the extra memory is a godsend along with working in high PPI documents in Illustrator and Photoshop. I have no problem with my CPU and my Mac still looks like new, I’m just wondering if double the memory whilst running Mavericks will improve from my current specs to double the memory without running into the OS compressing my documents in RAM as it is.

hi there i have macbook pro 15 inch mid 2010, is it possible to make it 16 gb ram?