Inherited first gen Macbook Pro

Question

Hey everyone, I have a somewhat vague question. I recently swapped computers with my wife, inheriting her first generation Macbook Pro, which has surprisingly withstood the test of time. Right now I'm trying to maximize the performance so that I can make it through to the next product cycle. It can handle basic tasks. Ideally, I would like to be able to run multiple programs (Powerpoint/Keynote, large PDFs, Chrome, Word), but the computer tends to lag down. The specs are in my signature; the hard drive is about 90% full (93 gb capacity), not sure the RPM. Activity monitor typically shows >1 gb of RAM free.
Would you recommend running any diagnostics, new software or hardware? Is there a cost effective way of installing SSD, or am I better off waiting for prices to go down? My goal is to become more Mac savvy and autonomous, so if you can point me towards any good (ideally free) resources, I'd be very appreciative!
Thanks, and happy New Year.

Answer 1

Welcome from me too!
Definitely replace the hard drive with a bigger one--100 GB is just not big enough, and besides, it's likely getting to the end of its useful life as it must be 5 years old now. You can likely look up the specs on the manufacturer's web site using the serial number.
You could try running SMART Utility:
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/systemdiskutilities/smartutility.html
You can download the demo and run it several times for free. It is somewhat more critical than Disk Utility, and may pick up impending hard drive failure sooner.
You can use any SATA drive that is no more than 9.5 mm tall, which means you cannot use any of the 1 TB drives that are 12.5 mm tall. There are many 500 GB drives around, including a hybrid from Seagate which is supposed to be very fast. There are even some 750 GB drives around that are 9.5 mm tall.
If the old drive has your wife's stuff on it, you can just put it in an enclosure and give it back to her. Then you can set up the new drive with your stuff. You might check on OWC's web site--they have drive kits, which includes an enclosure for the old drive. Also check with Newegg and Tiger Direct, as they often have specials on drives.
There's even one on theSeagate hybrid:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148591
Western Digital's Scorpio Black is also an excellent drive, and not nearly as expensive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136692
It seems to be sold out, but I'm sure they will get more in.
Do you want to install the drive yourself? Check out ifixit for step by step directions. If you don't, your local AASP can do it for you.
There is a ton of free resources on the Apple site, including many video tutorials for new Mac users. ifixit and powerbook medic are also free resources if you want to work on your Mac yourself, with lots of step-by-step instructions.
Good luck, and happy New Year to you too!