MacBook Pro 5,5 Upgrades SSD/RAM

Question

Hello, I'm new to DYI upgrades and am looking to update my mid 2009 MBP's HD and RAM. Here are my currents specs:
  Model Identifier:          MacBookPro5,5
  Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
  Processor Speed:          2.53 GHz
  Number Of Processors:          1
  Total Number Of Cores:          2
  L2 Cache:          3 MB
  Memory:          4 GB
  Bus Speed:          1.07 GHz
2x Stock RAM cards
  Size:          2 GB
  Type:          DDR3
  Speed:          1067 MHz
HDD: 250GB
  Vendor:          NVidia
  Product:          MCP79 AHCI
  Link Speed:          3 Gigabit
  Negotiated Link Speed:          1.5 Gigabit
  Description:          AHCI Version 1.20 Supported
If more information is needed, please ask, I am unsure if I have supplied enough. This computer is mostly base specs without upgrades. The upgrade options I have posted below the questions are some examples of what I'm interested in. This computer is used mostly for word processesing, web browsing, music storage/playback, and some gaming. Nothing too intense, but I can tell the computer is much slower now and I'd like to get it back up to speed.
My current hard drive is begining to run very slow, even after a full wipe and reinstall of only necessary files. Should I just update to a new HDD? Is it worth upgrading to a SSD for added speed? Also, can a SSD @ 6GB/s speed have any compatibility issues with my computers 3GB/s limit? Any recommendations for hard drives? Further, is my RAM selection compatible and are there other companies / options in general you would suggest when it comes to RAM? Can I exceed my 1067MHz speed without issues?
The products I have looked into include the following:
RAM
http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Technology-Notebook-KTA-MB1066K2-8G/dp/B001PS9UKW /ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1388091404&sr=8-1&keywords=Kingston+8GB+%282+x+4GB%29+DD R3+1066
SSD
http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-Extreme-2-5-Inch-Solid-SDSSDXP-480G-G25/dp/B00COF7 E1W/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1388090155&sr=8-3&keywords=SanDisk+Extreme+II+SSD
Please let me know if any further information would help with a suggestion!
Thanks for the read,
Zach

Answer 1

Hey Dana,
  Yes, I ended up going with a Crucial M500 240GB. In the end, I was between the M500 and the Samsung Evo 840 250GB. The Evo has higher read/write speeds and is an overall praised peice of hardware! I personally chose the M500 because they were pretty cheap on amazon at the time (about $90 during after holiday sales.)
http://www.crucial.com/usa/en/storage-ssd-m500
http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-240GB-2-5-Inch-Internal-CT240M500SSD1/dp/B00BQ8RM1 A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402909537&sr=8-1&keywords=m500
The 250GB Evo comes in at around $135 with barely higher read speeds, but double the write speeds. What swayed me away from the Samung was the fact that a few Evos had encountered issues with particular Mac models and wouldn't work, also some Evos had a hard time performing at advertised rates when in Macs. Knowing little, I went with the safe (and cheaper) bet, Crucial. I wouldn't doubt most of the time the Evos would be fine though.
Seagate drives have good advertising specs and great price points, but every longevity test I could find was terrible for them! Avoid Seagate if you can!
1 Seagate example posted back in January when I was looking around:
http://www.neowin.net/news/seagate-hard-drives-exhibit-surprisingly-high-failure s-rates-in-reliability-test-hitachi-leads-the-pack
I like the M500 and have had no problems or issues, and the computer is noticably faster! In addition to the SSD I upgraded to 8GB of Crucial RAM. The RAM was cheap and SUPER easy to install, although the HD/SSD swap was very easy as well. Youtube has very clear, easy to follow instructional videos, some posted by the manufacturers of the drives! The SSD + RAM made me certain that this 2009 computer will last as a mobile compainon for the next 2-5+ years for all my on-the-go computing needs! Definitely worth the money for my situation!
If just starting your search, I would recommend looking up your comp model on everymac.com and see what compatible parts they suggest as a starting point, they also have great info such as the following max RAM cap chart:
http://www.everymac.com/systems/by_capability/actual-maximum-ram-capacity-of-mac s.html
Please feel free to ask any questions, I'll help if I can, or point you to the right place for information, but as user clitonfrombirmingham pointed out, if you start your own thread with your specific computer specs, I'm sure you'll get detailed info on what is best for your rig!  Hope this helped! Have a good one,
Zach