Lost Memory

My MacBook Pro is painfully slow. Starting up, restarting, logging in all take forever. Frequently over five minutes and then often remains slow. I have previously erased the hard disc with little to no effect.

MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2009)
Processor 2.26 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory 2GB 1067 MHz DDR3
Graphics NVIDIA GeForce 9400M 256 MB
OS X Yosemite 10.10.3

A few questions-

Is it simply a memory problem as the Hard Disc is only 25% full?
Does it make economic sense to add more memory?
Is it just time to say goodbye to an old friend?

Any advice would be helpful and very much appreciated.

It isn't that old a machine by Apple standards (my 2007 MBP is doing a nephew sterling service).

Worth a trip if you have a reasonably convenient genius bar - they have various tools to analyse machines. And although I haven't used it for a long time, DiskWarrior was always the default first port of call.

With only 2GB memory I'm not surprised it is slow. I accept that the specs for Yosemite state a minimum RAM requirement is 2GB but you would notice a big improvement with 8GB.

I have a couple of MBPs running Yosemite, one with 8GB and one with 16GB. There is no noticeable performance difference between the two with the latter having quite a bit of free RAM, even running Photoshop and other intensive apps.

Take a look at http://uk.crucial.com/gbr/en/apple-memory for upgrade prices.

I also upgraded to a Crucial SSD on the 16GB model and it really flies.

Edited by deleted (Tue 15-Sep-15 06:36:24)

Your problem is lack of RAM. 2GB just doesn't cut it with modern OSs. At £43 an upgrade to 8GB would be a very worthwhile investment, in my opinion:

http://uk.crucial.com/gbr/en/compatible-upgrade-for/...

Only just looked at this thread but agree with others you probably need to add memory.

I updated a late 2008 13" Macbook to Yosemite in February, and it was hopeless - just as you describe - with its original 2GB of RAM, no idea why Apple says Yosemite can run on 2GB. This Macbook was originally fitted with 2 x 1GB, no spare slots, so I bought 2 x 2GB, total 4GB, from Crucial to replace the original memory, total cost incl. postage: £33.59. Quick delivery.

http://uk.crucial.com/gbr/en has useful tools to advise and/or scan your system in respect of your options. I used their scan tool but you can also phone for advice.

It's a bit fiddly to replace memory in a Macbook, carefully follow instructions. Yosemite is now running OK for most purposes, but would be optimal with more than 4GB in total, if you have the option for more.

From this experience I decided to double the memory in a 2011 iMac when upgrading to Yosemite, from 4GB to 8GB - original specification was 2 x 2GB and 2 empty slots, so bought 2 x 2GB more for the iMac. Same cost for 4GB, £33.59 incl. postage, but a slightly different spec - use the tool on the Crucial site above to determine the precise parts to order. Fitting new RAM to an iMac is easy using instructions, and with a total 8GB it's been fine.

Edited by s_h (Sun 27-Sep-15 16:19:31)

I'm grateful!

Additional memory in the post.