(Part 2) Top products from r/apple

For me it did, these are products I bought (maybe somebody has better recommendations, since I just bought them without doing that much research) :

RAM:
Kingston Technology 8GB Kit (2x4 GB Modules) 1066MHz DDR3

SSD:
Samsung MZ-7TD250BW 840 Series Solid State Drive (SSD) 250 GB Sata 2.5-Inch


RAM had a discount when I bought it, so I was looking at ~$350 dlls investment, if I recall correctly. Needles to say, it was the best investment I have ever made in terms of my computer. My boot-up is in around 12 seconds and apps like word open up instantly.

If you want to keep your computer around for a couple of more years, I really recommend it.

edit: I had a friend help out with it, meaning that pretty much he did it. There are some good tutorials around the web.

I'm coming from a custom-built PC background and looking to make the new iMac with Retina 5K Display (Retina iMac) my first Apple computer. From my research on configuring 32GB memory to order vs upgrading myself, I could not find any evidence that the modules Apple uses are any better than available from third-parties.

• Apple has yet to post a support article with the Retina iMac's user-upgradable memory requirements. Below is last year's spec. Based on the Retina iMac being the same body as the Late 2013 27" iMac and the high-level RAM specification on the Tech Spec product page is the same for both models (DDR3 1600Mhz SO-DIMM, up to 32GB) people have assumed that the exact memory specification for the Retina iMac is unchanged since last year. http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5908
  
  
• From what I've read, you should only upgrade the memory in your MAC if the manual mentions it, so it will not void your warranty. Here's the iMac manual dated 2014, claiming memory is the only user-upgradable component on the Retina iMac. "Your iMac doesn’t have any user-serviceable parts, except for memory, which is user-replaceable in 27-inch models only." https://a248.e.akamai.net/7/248/51/20120908/manuals.info.apple.com/MANUALS/1000/MA1690/en_US/imac_late2014_ipig.pdf
  
  
• Recent model iMacs, MacBook Pros and Mac Minis all use the same DDR3 1600Mhz laptop-size memory, with only the max capacity varying.
  
  
• Since Apple started using Intel chips, the memory spec has become generic PC memory. In at least the last 3 model years, for example, no Mac uses error correction ECC memory except for the professionally-targeted Mac Pro. In consumer Macs, there is nothing about the memory Apple uses that's Mac-specific. The only difference is a third party manufacture like Crucial or OWC may have done additional testing to verify their memory works on a Mac. The extent of testing was probably to install the max amount of memory, see that the Mac boots up properly, no kernel-panics, and the correct amount memory and frequency is displayed in About this Mac.
  
  
• Below is a table of 8GB modules in 1, 2 or 4 module kits (8GB, 16GB, or 32GB) that I have researched that meet the Late 2013 27" memory specification AND with positive reviews (between Amazon, Newegg, Tigerdirect, and BHPhoto) AND are either verified as working on a Mac by the manufacturer OR where multiple reviewers have mentioned success with late model Macs:
  
  
  Product | Verification | Product Page | Buy
  ---|---|----|----
  OWC CL11 | By manufacture | OWC | OWC 4x8GB kit
  Crucial CL11 | By manufacture | Crucial | Amazon 2x8GB kit or [Newegg 2x8GB kit] (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148609)
  Kingston CL11 | By manufacture | Kingston | [Amazon 1x8GB kit] (http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-1600MHz-PC3-12800-KTA-MB1600-8G/dp/B0089MTON0/ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1413945462&sr=1-4&keywords=KTA-MB1600LK2%2F16G) or Amazon 2x8GB kit
  Kingston HyperX CL11 | By manufacture | Kingston | Amazon 2x8GB kit
  Corsair CL9 | By customers | [Corsair] (http://www.corsair.com/en-us/vengeance-16gb-high-performance-laptop-memory-upgrade-kit-cmsx16gx3m2b1600c9) | [Amazon 2x8GB kit] (http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-Performance-1600MHz-CMSX16GX3M2B1600C9/dp/B00EXPNG5Y)
  Corsair CL10 | By customers | [Corsair] (http://www.corsair.com/en-us/vengeance-16gb-high-performance-laptop-memory-upgrade-kit-cmsx16gx3m2a1600c10) | [Amazon 2x8GB kit] (http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-Laptop-Memory-CMSX16GX3M2A1600C10/dp/B0076W9Q5A)
  
  
• With the exception of the Corsair memory above, which are both verified to work only by customer reviews, the rest of the list have a CAS Latency (CL) value of 11. The lower the CL the better. This is where I am currently stuck in my research. Apple does not publish the latency numbers of their memory, nor have review sites like iFixIt included this information in their teardowns/reviews. Since the above products are similarly priced, except OWC which is way more, I am torn whether or not to take a chance on the higher performing Crucial CL9 or go the safe route with a manufacture verified product. And if I start considered non-manufacture verified products that still meet the spec, that would open up to many more possibilities I don't have time to list here.
  
  Thoughts on CL or which one of the above seems best?
  

Cocoa Programming for Mac OS X is probably your best choice if you know a bit of C or have experience with any programming language. It's a book about Cocoa for Mac OS X, but most of it applies to iPhone app development as well.

Pragmatic Programming's Cocoa Programming: A Quick-Start Guide for Developers is also a good one. It will help you getting started easier and more focused to iOS development than Hillegass book.

My criteria are good (and numerous) reviews, and the best specs for the best price.

I went with this set, but I've used crucial in the past. As long as you go to a known brand your good. The best deal probably depends on the ram you need.

> It's so strange to me that an iPhone can't do that while a "traditional PC" can. Why should I rely on a traditional PC to do something so simple? It's definitely not processing power / memory / etc.
>

Mobile-devices (Apple, Android, WindowsPhone,etc) .... all have some of the same parts (CPU, Memory, Storage, Battery,etc) as a "traditional PC".. but the Operating Systems and code and architecture are different in many significant ways.

Take for example.... Background-Processes. On iOS (iPads, iPhones)... background process are "tomb-stoned" (frozen) to help minimize resource usage and battery drain. That's just 1 example.. but there are probably 100's more. (I'm about halfway through reading this book: http://www.amazon.com/Mac-OS-iOS-Internals-Apples/dp/1118057651 ... which really goes into a lot of depth about how the architectures are similar in some ways and drastically different in others.

Microsoft Windows and Windows Phone have the same type of relationship. They're similar in many ways.. and different in some ways.

> "Is there a good free app (like Paint) that I could leverage to do this?"

On your PC.. or the mobile-devices?... I use Pixelmator on my Mac. I think it's also available for iPad now. You could also use Paint.net on Windows.

Superdrive hard drive caddy: $9.70

120GB SSD: $60

USB Superdrive enclosure: $14

All in all, $84 to extend the life of your $2k laptop by a few more years. Well worth it in my opinion. Also if you're feeling adventurous, enable a fusion drive on your new dual-drive Mac.

BTW, the physical SSD and caddy option are very easy- just follow the take-apart guide on ifixit.com. It takes about one drink's worth of time to do.

Have fun!

This is the cocoa book I have.

Looks like there's not only a kindle edition but a newer one as well.

Best of luck!

Start with a language like Python. After that it is easier for you to learn C, because you will know at least the basic programming constructs like If-statements, loops, variables etc.

I would learn C with the book The C Programming Language. It's the standard bible for C, short and to the point, and one of the best technical books ever. A good C knowledge is IMHO necessary and useful, because sooner or later you have to use C libraries or at least fall back to the C interfaces of Mac OS or iPhone OS to do certain things that aren't there in the Objective-C abstraction layers.

After you have a solid C knowledge, you can learn about Object Oriented Programming and Objective-C. Apple has a good introduction to both topics: Introduction to The Objective-C Programming Language.

After you know the language, you can learn about Cocoa in the Cocoa Fundamentals Guide and do your first graphical Cocoa application with Xcode and Interface Builder with the Cocoa Application Tutorial.

Then buy the book Cocoa Programming for Mac OS X by Aaron Hillegass. You will learn to use some of the most important Cocoa classes. After that you can stay with the Apple docs and reference.

When you know Cocoa, you can do your first steps with iPhone development very easily by watching the peepcode.com introduction videos IPHONE VIEW CONTROLLERS PART I and IPHONE VIEW CONTROLLERS PART II - oh, peepcode has even a Objective-C introduction video OBJECTIVE-C FOR RUBYISTS but it's very ruby-centric...

I've been using the Incase neoprene sleeve.

It's not as heavy duty or robust (plugging in) as that Thule, but it's not quite as expensive either.

If it's just scuffs you're worried about, and you plan on keeping it in a backpack or something, the incase one worked fine for me for the past few years.

There are also those options where it's more like an actual hard case that you generally leave on all the time. This list is what I mean. I haven't used one personally, so I couldn't really tell you what to do on that front. I've seen people using that Speck though, and it seemed pretty clean.

The mid 2012 MBP is the same board design as yours but with an airport cart that supports bluetooth 4.0.
In theory you should be able to swap your card out for the newer one. It is not soldered in.
I don't know anyone who has tried this though.

A much cheaper but less clean option is to buy a USB bluetooth 4.0 dongle which is compatible with OSX.
This one uses the same chipset as one of the imac cards i believe, so it's fully supported.
People report it works with OSX. However, i've not seen anyone report on whether continuity works or not yet.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003OC6LWM/ref=oh_o00_s00_i00_details

$9 Mini DisplayPort to HDMI and if you have a new enough Mac, it supports sound through DisplayPort as well. There's a list on the apple webpage for which computers are supported. I bought one and it works great.

Well, Steve Jobs hated the idea of a stylus.

And personally, I think he was right. "God gave us 10 styluses..." adding a stylus took away from the simplistic nature of apple products and Jobs' vision: an easy to use integrated hardware-software bundle that would connect your entire life. And he did A pretty damn good job in my opinion. and now Apple is sticking to their guns with going for simplicity, and cutting the cords on the headphones.

EDIT: In the biographical book, Steve Jobs he even told Isaacson (the author) that he had plans to revolutionize the textbook industry, because he thought it ridiculous that a 21st century society had to carry around heavy textbooks to help with learning; and wanted to make something (an iPad app? a new tablet altogether? I dunno) to make textbook buying and using altogether through apple products. I wonder what it would've looked like because, as a university student, I see a desperate need for change in the textbook industry, but I won't talk about that here.

Also, I don't sponsor the book or author, I genuinely thought it was an excellent book

Can you post a purchasing link to amazon?

Edit: Of course, instead of answering a question down vote the shit out of it, that's helpful.

Edit 2: OP was kind enough to provide me with a link
Whoever wondered what book it is can buy it without asking a bunch of condescending pricks for help.

If you decide to try an SSD to replace the slow 5200rpm hard drive that came in that iMac, I'd recommend checking out the Samsung 840 Evo SSD. Best bang for your buck and an SSD should definitely speed things up.

250GB

500GB

I got this one. Mostly because it stands out from my GPS and AUX cables, so it's super easy to tell at a glance which one I need to plug in. On the down side, it's 6 feet. I would love a 3 foot version of this cable.

I’ve had success with this when it comes to getting a bluetooth 4.0 dongle to work. The one linked to has a chipset that apple supports out of the box, no need to install anything special, though you do need to do some poking to get your mac to use the right bluetooth device (the dongle over the built-in one).

I got this 27" ASUS monitor 5-6 months ago: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009C3M7H0/

I've had a fantastic experience so far. It's very adjustable, has a bevy of ports, and is 1440p. I don't think you'll be able to find a better monitor without spending a lot more money.

I bought the Logitech Easy Switch keyboard thinking it might be cool to switch between my iPad and MBP and it ended up being my favorite keyboard I've ever used. It feels really nice, is similar to the Apple Wireless but has just enough extra consideration and lighted keys to take it over the top. I will actually go out of my way to use it over my MacBook keys.

Oddly enough, you can plug a Mini DisplayPort cable into the Thunderbolt port and it will work (they both use the same port).

I use this cable with my air's thunderbolt port to connect to my monitor. Cheap and works great. They also make Mini DisplayPort to DVI if your monitor doesn't have HDMI. Just search amazon or monoprice for a cheap one.

The Bamboo stylus for iPad is by far the best I've seen. Here's the Amazon link! I've tried a few, and nothing feels as natural as this one.

Is the Thunderbolt Display a good display? Yes. Is the Thunderbolt Display worth the $1000 price tag? No. There are displays with the same specs that are less costly. For example, this.

That being said, Apple will also likely release an updated Thunderbolt Display that has the same 5K panel as the riMac when Thunderbolt 3.0 is released as part of the Skylake generation of processors (maybe this summer).

http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Digital-2-5-Inch-SV300S37A-120G/dp/B00A1ZTZOG/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Looks like it's a bit cheaper right now on Amazon. Not the fastest SSD out there, though for peak sequential reads at least the bottleneck is going to be the Sata II interface in the computer anyway. Looks like the Crucial MX100 is just a few dollars cheaper, too, at a similar capacity.

If you are looking for a good 27'' 1440 monitor, Asus makes a really nice one.

Apple Cinema displays are nice too, but pricey.

Stay away from the cheap Korean ones if money is not an issue.

This Spigen case does, pretty much the same one, just thicker. It's the one I picked up. I prefer the solid, plastic snap-on types.

If you get an external hard drive enclosure to go along with your new drive then you can just plug it in to the computer through USB and then use Carbon Copy


https://www.bombich.com


to clone your existing hard drive to the new drive and you'll have everything exactly the way it is currently. Then just take out the old drive and plug in your new one. Then you can use the external drive enclosure to hold your old hard drive and use it for whatever you please. I would still recommend backing up to time machine regularly anyway as you never know when a drive or machine might fail or be lost/stolen.


Here's a good guide on how to replace a drive: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Unibody+Late+2008+and+Early+2009+Hard+Drive+Replacement/841


I would not recommend using OWC as their prices are steep compared to other brands and wasn't even as fast as my Samsung SSD. Here is a way better and one of the fastest SSDs on the market for half the price of an OWC 6G SSD: http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Electronics-EVO-Series-2-5-Inch-MZ-7TE500BW/dp/B00E3W19MO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1405796918&sr=8-2&keywords=samsung+ssd+840+evo

You can keep the SSD once you do upgrade though. Here's a 120GB one for $57. Not too bad at all and definitely with the upgrade, even if you won't have the mac for that much longer.

The connection type you want to end up with is called "composite" (assuming you mean the old yellow video cable red/white audio cable). But either that or S-Video, you want something like this: http://www.amazon.com/DisplayPort-Composite-Video-S-Video-Converter/dp/B004VV8R86

Pressure sensitive
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00FC7DOCW?pc_redir=1412316574&robot_redir=1

Non pressure
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004VM0SE6/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?qid=1412385271&sr=8-5&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70

I recommend buying extra tips as I burned through a few when I first started, like $10 for a pack of three? I got better over time but at first I was learning the friction and grip needed, now it's smoother. #musclememory

I'm surprised you've blasted both so concretely without ever having owned or even tried one.

On Amazon the Logictech keyboard scores 4.6/5.0 from people who've actually used one. The Moshi keyboard scores as highly, though with fewer reviews.

In fact both Keyboards score higher than Apple's own keyboards on Apple Store.

I miss Steve!

I'm currently reading Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
a good biography.

You would need something like this...

http://www.amazon.com/DisplayPort-Composite-Video-S-Video-Converter/dp/B004VV8R86

It's a mid-2012 MBP. Would the M550 be okay for that?

Also, what about the Seagates? I'm looking at [this one] (http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Solid-Hybrid-2-5-Inch-ST1000LM014/dp/B00B99JUBQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1415132873&sr=8-1&keywords=macbook+pro+hdd).

Both your links are loading weird, I think maybe mobile. This should load for desktops better. I kind of want this cable, but I don't need this cable for $20 + shipping.

http://www.amazon.com/Bolse®-Certified-Jacketed-Tangle-Free-Lightning/dp/B00LS08VMK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414265349&sr=8-1&keywords=bolse+cable

http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Solid-Hybrid-2-5-Inch-ST1000LM014/dp/B00B99JUBQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417378919&sr=8-1&keywords=seagate+hybrid+1tb

This is the one I used..

will this dongle work for the beta http://www.amazon.com/GMYLE-Bluetooth-Technology-Wireless-Broadcom/dp/B007MKMJGO/ ?
I have a 2011 iMac

Only 8? So this wouldn't work? http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-Laptop-1600MHz-CMSX16GX3M2A1600C10/dp/B0076W9Q5A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1343160973&sr=8-1&keywords=ddr2+ram+16+gb

Check out XtremeMac's InCharge Duo:
http://store.apple.com/us/product/TW101LL/A

Or Griffin's PowerDock
http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/powerdock

You can get two of them for your iPhones and iPod Nano. Then get two iPad docks for your iPads, and then a Dock for your Shuffle. Power them all off a Belkin Mini Surge Protector:

http://amzn.com/B0015DYMVO

Plug the two Dual Chargers and the iPod Shuffle adapter into the AC outlets, and the iPad Docks into the USB ports.

I have this, assuming this is fine to put in the pocket.

I've had a padded InCase sleeve since I bought my MBP almost 5 years ago. It hasn't let me down yet, but it isn't waterproof or anything.

Maybe this?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00JH87ZSQ/ref=redir_mdp_mobile/179-0768398-2131364

Cheap and minimal. Spigen Slim Case

Note: that's $20 USD.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00LRZY74C/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1413994103&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX110_SY165

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1118057651?pc_redir=1397318140&robot_redir=1

To the Apple's Core, a very detailed read that primarily focuses on the software side.

Momentus XT

This one.

$170

http://smile.amazon.com/Bolse%C2%AE-Certified-Jacketed-Tangle-Free-Lightning/dp/B00LS08VMK/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1416729191&sr=1-1&keywords=braided+lightning+cable

That for around $40 or this for $12. I chose the latter last time this was posted. Maybe it's not as elegant, but it's functional.

>Back when I used it last, I don't think it had much handwriting support outside of diagrams (this is okay for me... I hate handwriting on the iPad).

Have you checked out the wacom bamboo pen?

Apple TV wouldn't help anyway, then.

Maybe this: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004VV8R86

The Logitech K811 is bad ass.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0099SMFP2/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_IQeyub068K9RN

I bought a pair of Aduro cables and they both broke within a few months. Total crap, not recommended.

I replaced them with Bolse cables, which are spectacularly well-built. Highly recommended.