MacBook – RAM for late 2008 Macbook

There's one important thing, and only one important thing, about Apple-certified RAM.

If you:

• Buy RAM that isn't Apple-certified
• Install it (or have it installed by a non-Apple tech) in a Mac
• Later have a (non-RAM-related) problem with that Mac and send it to Apple for servicing without taking out the added RAM

Then you may get a little love note in the box when it comes back:

During the testing process, it was determined that a part Apple has not approved for use with your product resulted in your product's failure. When the part was removed, your product successfully passed all Apple diagnostic and reliability tests…

Continued use of this part (or parts) may cause another failure or damage to your Apple product, which Apple will not cover in a subsequent repair.

The part (or parts) that did not pass Apple's diagnostic tests for your product is identified below:

      __X__ RAM Memory
      _____ Other

And yes, I'm speaking from my own personal experience (part one, part two).

Regarding upgrades, as per this answer to a related question, OWC is a reliable resource. Here are their pages on memory - it looks like 16 GB (2 x 8GB modules) will be your max RAM.

Similarly, here's info on hard-drive upgrades. It looks like 1TB is going to be your maximum, though as far as I know that's merely a limitation to what sizes are available in the 2.5-inch form factor that the MacBook Pro (and almost every other laptop in existence) uses. If and when larger 2.5-inch drives are released, an MBP should be able to use one.