Help configuring my laptop

[Technique]

I know that most discussions here are for gaming PC's. I got a lot of great advice in building mine but I'm still a noob when it comes to these things. I don't know if this is the right section but it seems most relevant and I'm pretty sure that PC guys (being a PC guy myself my whole life) can answer these questions too.

I'm configuring a Mac right now.
For reference use: http://store.apple.com/us_edu_74029/...ro?mco=MTE4NDY)

Basically there's not much to configure really other than the processor, HD, video card, and memory.

Main Use: I'm a student, Visual Effects/Animation major, and this computer will mostly be for rendering 3D models, etc.

So far, this is what I selected:
Intel Core 2 Duo 2.8 GHz (only got this for the option to get a better video card - +$300)
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M + 9600M GT with 512MB
4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x2GB
500GB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200 rpm (+$45)

Do I really need all this? It's kinda hard because if you change one thing, you have to change the other.

Ideally I'd like to go for a lower priced processor since +$300 for an upgrade just seems stupid. But, then I wont have the option to get the NVidia 9600M GT 512MB Graphics Card. So I guess what it comes down to is, do I really need that 512 MB video card? or can I settle with the 256MB? Also, would I want to upgrade to the 7200 RPM instead of the 5400 RPM HD?

Keep in mind, my main use is for school. I have a gaming desktop so playing video games or not on this laptop isnt really a problem for me.

(Pls no flames why PC is better than Mac and vice versa. I know Mac's are overpriced, but there are no "work-arounds." I need it.)

[glc]

I moved this into the Mac forum.

I see absolutely no reason to go with a higher end video card unless you will be putting XP on it and gaming with it. A 256mb card is plenty good enough for what you are going to be doing. 5400 rpm is plenty good for a laptop. It's a 2.5" drive and the smaller platters make up for the lower speed. I'd say save your money.

[inflames988]

I agree with glc...
I know a kid who spent $1200 on a quad core machine w/ high end graphics card because he wanted his rendering to go faster. At the end of the day, it was faster, but not enough to justify the cost. Rendering 3D is going to take a while if its complex. The faster processor will help a bit, but at the end of the day you're gonna have to wait a while.

A word up apple upgrades:

I have the new 13.3" MacBook pro. I got the "low end" once with the 2.26GHz C2D and 2GB of ram. I benchmarked it against the 2.52 GHz 13.3" MacBook Pro and the results were almost the exact same. The high end MBP 13" gets only 5 points higher (2.5% better performance) in Xbench.

As for RAM and Hard Drive - the other reason i didnt pay the $300 premium for the 'high-end' model is that I can upgrade RAM and HDD myself and save a TON of money. I confirmed with apple that these ARE user servicable parts. Apple upgrade prices are ludicrous. For the price of the high end MBP, I could buy the low end one and install an SSD and 4 gigs of ram, totally blow it out of the water.

Bottom line - between the processor options for the macbook pro, I would go with the cheaper one. It will still be fast.

Just my $0.02