Real-world difference between 2010/2011 MBP?

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DamienThorn

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I'm presently looking to purchase a 15" MBP, and have the option of buying a 2010 2.4 GHz base model for $1,319 or a 2011 2.0 GHz base model for $1,599. The key thing that I'm interested in is the monitor size (I'm losing the office space I presently inhabit, and the 24" screen accompanying it) but I'm also interested in getting the best value for money that I can. I'll be putting my current SSD into whichever MBP I upgrade to, so I'm really interested in:

(1) do people actually enjoy a better/worse battery life with the 2011 model?
(2) any known problems with either the 2010 or 2011 models I should know about?
(3) subjectively, do people find the differences between to 2010 and 2011 models worth an almost $300 dollar price gap?
 
The Sandy Bridge Macs are so much faster than the previous generation. Well worth the money.

No problems with mine. Battery life is excellent.
 
Any problems with Sandforce (OCZ Vertex 2 240GB drive) controllers in the 2011 models?
 
I'm glad this thread popped up, I was actually looking at the refurbished 15" MBPs vs. The 2011s. Came to the conclusion that Thunderbolt will be awesome when companies actually start making products that will utilize it.

So now my dilemma is, 2011 15" MBP, or 2011 MBA? The MBP may be more practical, considering I will (hopefully) be doing a lot of router/network administration in the near future. The MBA has a USB - Ethernet adaptor... But that may be more trouble than it's worth.
 
DamienThorn said:
(2) any known problems with either the 2010 or 2011 models I should know about?
(3) subjectively, do people find the differences between to 2010 and 2011 models worth an almost $300 dollar price gap?
Click to expand...

2) Yeah, there are a couple of (somewhat) known issues. Some seem to run much warmer than others. Some seem to lockup under heavy use. I don't have a link to the Apple forum where this is discussed at the moment.

3) For a $300 price difference go with the newer model.
 
KENNYB said:
2) Yeah, there are a couple of (somewhat) known issues. Some seem to run much warmer than others. Some seem to lockup under heavy use. I don't have a link to the Apple forum where this is discussed at the moment.

3) For a $300 price difference go with the newer model.
Click to expand...

I thought the lockup problem was resolved a while ago
 
DamienThorn said:
Any problems with Sandforce (OCZ Vertex 2 240GB drive) controllers in the 2011 models?
Click to expand...

AFAIK only the SATA3 drives (Crucial C300/m4, Intel 510 series, Vertex 3) have issues. I seen only few Vertex 3 problem reports on the internet, but Crucial C300/m4/Intel 510 are known to be problematic in 2011 Macbooks. I personally use a X25-M in it (with the TRIM hack).
 
I have a G.Skill Phoenix Pro, which uses the SandForce similar to the Vertex 2, in my 2011 2.2 Quad MBP and have no issues aside from not being able to come out of hibernation if the battery dies which is a known issue with most SSDs.
 
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