Buy a MacBook now or wait?

I'm currently selling my iBook to buy a new MacBook. The speed boost sounds really promising, FrontRow looks neat and the option to dual-boot Windows is sweet. So, I was really sure I'll buy this thing.
But all I've heard up to now is negative (both for the MBP and the MB): people've been having problems with AirPort, graphic errors and the glossy screen is also not as nice as one could think.
So my question is: Should I buy a MacBook now or should I wait? I mean, those errors will be fixed sooner or later, since it's the new product line and the other lines have been discontinued. But I'm used to Apple computers that run stable and without problems. I don't want to configure my Mac all night long, swapping parts, etc. like I used to with my Windows machines. I simply want a fast laptop. I don't want new technology if it's buggy, especially because I'm not planning on extending the warranty.
So: buy or wait?
iBook G4, 12" Mac OS X (10.4.6)

keep in mind that people that come here are an incredibly small minority, who most likely come to resolve issues and problems
this is basically a troubleshooting forum for people to find help with their machines, so its only natural for a few of the posts to be about problems people are experiencing
in reality, there are probably thousands of people out there right now with macbooks and macbook pros that have no problems whatsoever.
theres even a few on these forums that have no problems with their machines.
no one can garentee that you will get a flawless machine if you order now - but having said that, no one can assure you that you wont in the next revision or the one after that.
if your macbook has a problem, then you can always return it

Similar Messages

Should You Buy An iPhone Now, Or Wait For The Next One?

Great article by HuffPost Tech.
The most common thing I get asked whenever I tell anyone I'm a tech writer is some version of the question: "Should I get a new iPhone now, or should I wait until the next one comes out?" It is as though my business card should read not "Technology Writer," and instead "iPhone Psychic"
Not that I am not happy to prognosticate! And in that spirit, here's a look at the questions on everyone's mind: Should I buy an iPhone now? And if not now, when?
First, let me say that I am fascinated by the peculiar kind of panic that I encounter in people I meet who are deciding on a purchase date for their next Apple phone. I call it the iSenberg Uncertainty Principle: Potential iPhone buyers exist in a constant state of anxiety, perpetually worrying that purchasing an iPhone on any given day will mean that they will miss out on the inevitably cooler version with the mind-blowing new features soon down the road. The Cupertino Sword of Damocles constantly dangles over their heads, threatening to pierce them with unhipness and iShame.
Here is one solid piece of advice I can offer to help you avoid the Sword: Do not buy any new iPhone until September. Apple has an annual media conference each September, and every blog with the word 'Mac' in the title is reporting that Steve Jobs is going to do his black turtleneck thing and introduce some kind of new iPhone there. The September Media conference is generally used to present the new iPods, but as All Things Digital reports, Apple plans to "commandeer" the conference for its official iPhone announcement.
Apple is long overdue to release its new iPhone anyway, if history is any indication. Look at this handy little timeline:
June 2007: original iPhone released
June 2008: iPhone 3G released
June 2009: iPhone 3Gs released
June 2010: iPhone 4 released
June 2011: Nothing!
In other words, the 5th generation iPhone is already a month late, so it makes sense that the rumors are swirling. Apple's tardiness can be explained by the fact they've actually already released two iPhones in 2011 -- the Verizon iPhone in February and the unlocked iPhone 4 in June. Their schedule is all screwy, like a traveler trying to get over jet lag. But all signs point to them getting right with a September Apple iPhone release.
So what jaw-dropping new feature will this iPhone boast? We're hearing that the "iPhone 4S," as it is rumored to be called, won't be the dramatic re-imagining that many of us have come to expect with each new iPhone release. Tech blogThis Is My Next thinks that it will be thinner and lighter, and that it will run on a new chip; the New York Times thinks that it will be the same dimensions as the iPhone 4 but that it will be cheaper. Bloomberg agrees with This Is My Next on the chip and adds that the rear-facing camera will upgrade to 8 megapixels from 5 megapixels.
Now, even if you're just a normal, non-geek iPhone user, who doesn't care if the rear-facing camera doubles its megapixel count, or if Apple has changed the manufacturer of its data processors, or whatever, you still need to at least wait for the alleged iPhone announcement, and here's why: if history is any indicator, the introduction of a newer iPhone model is accompanied by a drop in price of older iPhone models. When the iPhone 3GS was announced, the price of the iPhone 3G dropped by $100; when the iPhone 4 was announced, the price of an iPhone 3GS also dropped by $100. Even if you know that you're not going to drop $400 on whatever iPhone Apple begins peddling in September, there is no sense in paying more money for an iPhone 4 or 3Gs now when the base price of both seem like locks to drop in two months.
But before we start fantasizing, how can we be so certain that Jobs is even going to announce an iPhone in September if Apple hasn't so much as indicated such a thing? How do we know that all of these rumors weren't just started by lonely nerds like me and my co-workers emailing each other from our mother's basements, inciting iPhone rumors all on our own?
Well, first of all, I don't live with my mother; and second of all, the new iPhone rumors have sprung forth from two reliable sources held in high journalistic regard.
The first is esteemed, award-winning tech journalist John Paczkowski of All Things Digital, who blazed iPhone prognostication trails by predicting back in April that an updated iPhone 4 would be unveiled at the September Apple music Conference and has steadfastly maintained the claim is true through June and into July. In fact, he confirmed as recently as July 5 that a shiny new iPhone looked to be in the early stages of supply chain production, and that people close to the company still believe that the new iPhone would be ready for the Jobs treatment in September.
So there is Reliable Source One.
Reliable Source Number Two is the Wall Street Journal, not exactly a one-laptop operation. The paper gives "the end of September" as a target launch date, which squares up with both Paczkowski's prediction of a September announcement and release. This doesn't even mention This Is My Next's separate prediction of a September release, nor 9to5Mac reporting that there are going to be two new iPhones in September, one low-end and high-end. But now we're falling down the rabbit hole and into the basement again, so let's focus:
There is likely to be a new iPhone in September. It will likely affect the price of all the other iPhones. The iPhones available now -- the iPhone 4 and the iPhone 3Gs -- will probably be cheaper in two months. Unless you drop your current iPhone in a pool, a bathtub or a volcano, do not buy an iPhone until Steve Jobs opens his beautiful brilliant mouth at the Apple conference in early September. When the post-turtleneckian dust settles, we'll have a clearer picture of whether or not this rumored new iPhone is worth the money. And then we can talk about--well, whether or not you should buy an iPhone now, or wait until the next one comes out.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/12/iphone-release-5-september_n_896345.html

Apple has two prototypes out testing now. One is a thinner totally redesigned case. The problem with it is that Foxconn can't seem to build it. Hence the delay. The other prototype uses the existing case, but with updated (read dual core) internals. If they can get production up by September the first phone will be released and will be the iPhone 5. If they cannot, then the second prototype will be released as the iPhone 4GS.

Buy MACBOOK now or wait for newer ?

I'm a student in college right now in need of a laptop and stuff. I'm not really looking for power as much as I'm looking for efficiency. My dilemma arises when I can buy a macbook with like -$100 or -$200 if your in college and stuff + a $300 iPod touch before september 15th or should i wait for the newer version of macbooks, which I heard will be released in mid-late september.
What is your opinion on this one? I can still live by and wait without a laptop as school just barely started so i barely need to talk notes and stuff...

a brody wrote:
Apple has not made any announcements regarding the next release of MacBooks.
Any resource you got saying they might be releasing new ones is pure conjecture.
Don't trust such resources.
Read what I have to say about new Macs:
http://discussions.apple.com/click.jspa?searchID=-1&messageID=7116662
I think that you should not get a new MacBook now, because the fact that you "don't" need it now. Apple has not released any information about anything new, and they just released the new iMacs, MacBook Pros, MacBooks and MacBook Airs so I doubt that Apple will release any new computer products in the near future. Although Apple may surprise you, but I suggest waiting until you really need one, and then purchase it.

Should I buy a MacBook now? Please help!

My old Notebook just messed up, so I definitely need a new one quite soon.
I had a look at some MacBooks at the store and really liked them.
I would order it online at the Apple Store and choose a bigger harddrive (80gb), so it would definitely be a new built one.
But my main concern is: if I order a MacBook now at the Apple Store, will it eventually suffer all these symptomes that are mentioned here, especially the Random Shutdown?
Or can I assume that these things have been finally fixed by Apple, and newer models (mine would be week 40 or later) wont experience these symptomes?
I really need a new notebook, and as the estimated shipping time is up to 2 weeks, I should order asap.
But I dont want to get one of the last MacBooks that has The RSS.

I would buy it. I've had mine for 3 1/2 months and I think I just had my first random shutdown (don't worry, mine's week 21, an early build). I'm a little apprehensive about finding a place to fix it quickly in Europe, but this is by far and away the best notebook I've ever had, and that doesn't even say enough about it. I trust Apple to fix it, I know they stand behind the quality of their products, and the macbook has been so superior to anything I've ever used...
You should also remember that long-time Apple owners are used to quality approaching perfection, and they can be very demanding - not that there's anything wrong with that! But my previous two VAIOs made a habit of freezing, had loud, constantly-running fans, had letter keys that popped off at random, and the last one - which I used for 4 1/2 years before buying the macbook - had a nasty habit of giving my hands little electric shocks when I touched the palmrests! Even when it was brand new, I had to type with a towel between my hands and the palmrests to avoid pain! And I just accepted ALL of this, didn't even TRY to have it fixed, only sent it in for repairs when the hard-drive crashed, and when it came back from repairs with a crooked hinge, I didn't say anything but was simply glad they had given me the new drive without a problem.
I really think a week 40 is likely to be perfect, but if it isn't, I expect that Apple will work on it until any problem it has is fixed. I wish people would remember that PCs also crash and burn - far more commonly than macs - and when they do, you are generally on your own!

I need an honest opinion on whether or not to buy a macbook now

Here's the deal-- I'm going to college in 4 weeks. I was really looking forward to finally buying a new computer-- my first laptop, my first Mac. I've been following developments in the Macbook line, reading these forums on and off, and I would like your honest opinion: should I buy a Macbook in the next two weeks or so, or do you think that it has too many problems to warrant paying 1500+ dollars?
I'm also going to college in a rather rural location, pretty far away from an Apple Store, so if problems do crop up, I would be basically relying on phone tech support.
My main worry are these reports of Macbooks shutting down without warning. I intend to use this computer for everything, including writing papers, and just the thought of my computer shutting down like that gets me frustrated.
So, do you think Apple has been working to fix these problems that people have been reporting? If you've recently bought a Macbook, are you happy with it? Should I go for this product, or wait until next summer or this Christmas, whenever they release the second generation? (Does anyone have any idea when that will happen, from past product release cycles?)
Thank you for your advice.

Hi there!
I just recently bought my first mac, a white Macbook 2.0 Ghz. I am one of those unfortunate souls who happened to get a mac which turns yellow due to sweet...you can imagine how ****** I was when I noticed the discoloration and read about the problem on these forums. Taking into consideration the money I paid, the problem I am facing, and the fact that its my first mac, I think you can accept my opinion as honest.
I say go for it. Even with the unsolved problem I have at the moment I love my mac. Its extremly practical, so easy to use and ever since I got the nack of it I've been encouraging all my friends to switch. When I purchased I was thinking of maybe selling it if I don't like it or getting windows, but I did neither. How long did it take to get the nack of it? I called a friend after I purchased and asked him to give me some tips. He said the most important is "always think of an easier solution, then in windows". He was so right Once i sat over a problem I had for 30 minutes trying to figure out what to do. Finally I searched these forums and than beat myself with a blunt object when I realized how simple it would have been to do what I was trying to. My friends make fun of me and say I praise mac so much I should work at their PR office.
I wouldn't worry about not being close to a store, because as many people mention on these forums also, using phone assistance is often better. Unless your talking to a genious, people in the store say the stupidest things sometimes...I am going to get my discoloration problem solved over the phone also, its much quicker than talking it to a store, even though I am in NY!
The only reason I think you may want to wait, is because supposedly the new os is coming out in august and you may want to get a mac with the new software, if its only a matter of weeks, but gets some info on that from others, cause I am not sure about the exact release date etc.
Hope all goes well
All the best
Rob

Should I buy an Imac now or wait for update late 2014

I'm thinking of getting an Imac 27" (i7 , 8ram, 3tb fusion drive and 780 gcard) "fully loaded"
Il be using it for FCX and some photoshop. Burning blu rays
Beginner editing, (home movies,) and plan on taking some classes in future and do bigger editing projects.
should I pull the trigger and buy this imac, or wait for the update in mid to late 2014???
Thanks ahead of time to anyone taking the time to responding :)

if you need a new one now, get one. If you can wait, then wait. No matter what, it will be soon "outdated" anyway. Also, no one knows when a new mac will be released until apple say so. anything else is speculation.

Should I buy the iPhone now or wait?

I'm indecisive about whether or not to buy the 3GS. I'm not sure how to gauge the problems cause everyone I talk to who has one loves it. A lot of people on this forum however are having repeated problems, even on multiple returns.
Are they gonna do a recall? Is it necessary? I'd just like some opinions to help me decide.
What are the pros and cons of waiting vs. buying now? Thanks.

songbirdsound wrote:
I'm indecisive about whether or not to buy the 3GS. I'm not sure how to gauge the problems cause everyone I talk to who has one loves it. A lot of people on this forum however are having repeated problems, even on multiple returns.
Of course - this forum is expressly for people with problems - they sold a million phones the first three days - probably 3 million by now -- and there are 1564 problem topics - many duplicates and most simply failure to read the instructions
So the problems are miniscule compared to the number of phones sold - IMHO
Mine works just fine BTW
Are they gonna do a recall?
No one here knows - and speculation about Apple policies os forbidden by the TOS
Is it necessary?
No - a few hundred problems out of a few million phones delivered - why would you even ask?
What are the pros and cons of waiting vs. buying now?
If you buy now you have the latest neat phone now
If you wait you do not get it until later
LN

Buy iphone 5 now or wait to the new one ?

i dont have mush money & i want the new phone , so do i have to pay iphone 5 or wait to the new one if it comes soon ?
can you tell me if i go pay iphone 5 or wait little to the new one ??
i hope to listen your answer soon .
Ammar Agha
Thanks ..
Best regards

Do whatever you like

Should I buy the phone now or wait for 2G?

Hello everyone, I bought the i-phone when it first came out. Returned it within 3 days, because the ring volume and speaker volume was too low for my ears. I keep stopping and asking i-phone users if there has been an upgrade, some say yes, but most say NO. How much has your volume improved? I love the phone and will get on the day the volume issue is fixed......All you i-phone users please give your thoughts on the volume and how many updates have there been to the software? Thanks

Ive had no problems with the volume. The speaker phone could be better, but plug in the headphones that come with, even with one ear in, i can hear in the middle of the city just fine. The volume for the rings has went up, plus now you can make your own custom ringtones which grab your attention pretty fast.

Should i wait to buy a macbook or buy a 12" ibook g4?

im thinking about buying a new laptop and i have decided to make the swich to mac. ive been a pc user all my life. but im not sure if i should buy an ibook now or wait until the macbook comes out. what r ur thoughts about it?
hp a1223w Windows XP

Minor correction on last post, Bootcamp, to run Windows XP, is slated for the next release of OS X called Leopard, not 10.4.5 which is already released.
Since you asked for opinions....I'd tend to buy current technology (and I did with the last of the G4 mac minis). While the new Intel-based macbook will have super specs, it will be first generation on a new platform. While Apple is doing almost realtime revisions to their current Intel-based products, the fact is there are some growing pains (read through any of the Intel-based product discussions). I prefer the growing pains be with someone elses money.
If you buy a current iBook, it's a mature platform, and it will continue to be able to run existing software, as well as any universal software. You don't have to consider running non-universal programs under the emulator (Rosetta is a great tool, but there's a performance hit of up to 50% under emulation mode).
Use the iBook for awhile, and by then Apple will be on the nth generation of the Intel-based macbooks. In any event, you'll be thrilled with the switch to mac.

OSX Leapord: Upgrade now or wait?

Anyone know if Apple has any plans of going with a Vista-like release of "buy now" upgrade later? No reason to drop an additional $129. I'm debating on waiting to buy a MBP now or wait until Leapord comes out.

Classic isn't running the computer's hardware, OS X is doing that. I think the deal is that a new computer has new innards, some of which may not have existed when an older system was built, and thus the older OS would not have some necessary code to make the newer innards work. So, for instance, you can't install Jaguar or Panther, or even the commercial version of Tiger, on a brand new MacBook, you can only install the system that is on the disks that came with your new MacBook. My understanding of various virtual machine solutions is that the virtual machine runs a very old OS, or an OS such as Windows, in a kind of emulation mode, or in a new "layer" on top of the native OS. The efficiency of doing this varies rather dramatically, from excellent with Parallels and Windows, to dismal with SheepShaver for OS 9.
Francine
Francine
Schwieder

Buy new Macbook Pro now or wait until 2015

Hi!
I'm currently trying to decide between buying a new Macbook Pro 15" right now, or waiting for any possible releases next year.
I'm totally dependent upon my laptop for both school and work. I heavily use programs such as Photoshop, Xcode, and others on an everyday basis. My current laptop is a summer '09 unibody Macbook Pro 13" (the cheapest version), with upgraded aftermarket storage and ram (two years ago). It works surprisingly well, and I could probably go on living perfectly fine with it. However, I find myself every day swearing over how annoyed I am by it. I often resort to turning it off and back on due to it freezing or lagging. But by all means, I can live with it.
I was planning on buying a new Mac last winter, but I decided to wait for a possible upgrade this summer (2014). But when that was released I couldn't buy it until September because I was abroad. When I finally got back, I reluctantly decided to wait for a larger upgrade this October (heard something about Broadwell processors), but that didn't come.
I figured since I waited that long, I might as well just wait a bit longer (until January). However yesterday my charger stopped working (Apple gave me a new one free of charge), and I realized how fragile and old my laptop is. I better trade it in before anything serious goes wrong.
So now I'm trying to decided whether I should wait for a possible upgrade or buy a new one now. I don't think whatever upgrade is coming will be large enough for it to be worth it, but I just don't wanna splurge $2500 on a new mcbp if it's gonna be outdated soon. When I'm buying something I like it to be just after it was released, to avoid situations where I'm left with a brand new outdated product.
I'm scared that if I buy it now I will regret it if a new version comes out soon. However, I'm scared that if I don't buy it now I'll end up waiting indefinitely (or just until next summer).
It'd be stupid of me to waste time now using my old Mac when I'm clearly in need of a new one. But again, I wouldn't be able to live with myself if they release a new major update in early 2015.
So hopefully someone understands my problem. My question is: what do you guys think is the right thing to do? What updates can we expect to see to the Macbook Pro line, and when can we expect to see them? Are we talking about minor upgrades like this past summer, or are we talking massive design changes, lighter and thinner body, better screen and performance? And would we see this in early (Q1, Q2) 2015 or as late as 2016? I know you can't give any definite answers, but at least you can make better assumptions than me haha.
Thanks!

We don't know. We have no more insight into Apple's plans for 2015 than you do. Making your decisions for you is not the purpose of these forums, so please do your own research and make your own decisions. If you have a technical problem with an Apple product then that is a proper use of these forums.
Apple Support Communities - Terms of Use

Should I buy the Retina MacBook Pro 13" 2.6 GHz now or wait?

Should I buy the Retina MacBook Pro 13" 2.6 GHz now or wait?
Are there any widespread problems with it?

buy it today, Apple has black Friday sales
Apple Store
Apple's online Black Friday sale continues until tonight with gift cards ranging from $50-$150 depending on model.
- iPad Air: $75 gift card
- iPad mini: $50 gift card on non-Retina models, no gift card on Retina models
- iPad 2: $50 gift card
- iPod touch: $50 gift card
- iPod nano: $25 gift card
- MacBook Air: $150 gift card
- MacBook Pro: $150 gift card for both Retina and non-Retina models
- iMac: $150 gift card
- Apple TV: $25 gift card
- AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule: $50 gift card

HT203421 i buy a macbook air with my friend and i changed the apple id also.at first i can update the application but now its impossible to update the application.when i clock to update it shows the id of my fren andsomebody do you have idea to solve this

i buy a macbook air with my friend and i changed the apple id also.at first i can update the application but now its impossible to update the application.when i clock to update it shows the id of my fren andsomebody do you have idea to solve this problem.

The first thing to do with a second-hand computer is to erase the internal drive and install a clean copy of OS X. You — not the previous owner — must do that. How you do it depends on the model, and on whether you already own another Mac. If you're not sure of the model, enter the serial number on this page. Then find the model on this page to see what OS version was originally installed.
1. You don't own another Mac.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.4 or 10.5, you need a boxed and shrink-wrapped retail Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6) installation disc from the Apple Store or a reputable reseller — not from eBay or anything of the kind. If the machine has less than 1 GB of memory, you'll need to add more in order to install 10.6. Preferably, install as much memory as it can take, according to the technical specifications.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.6, you need the installation media that came with it: gray installation discs, or a USB flash drive for some MacBook Air models. For early MBA models, you may need a USB optical drive or Remote Disc. You should have received the media from the previous owner, but if you didn't, order replacements from Apple. A retail disc, or the gray discs from another model, will not work.
To boot from an optical disc or a flash drive, insert it, then reboot and hold down the C key at the startup chime. Release the key when you see the gray Apple logo on the screen.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.7 or later, you don't need media. It should boot into Internet Recovery mode when you hold down the key combination option-command-R at the startup chime. Release the keys when you see a spinning globe.
2. You do own another Mac.
If you already own another Mac that was upgraded in the App Store to the version of OS X that you want to install, and if the new Mac is compatible with it, then you can install it. Use Recovery Disk Assistant to create a bootable USB device and boot the new Mac from it by holding down the C key at the startup chime. Alternatively, if you have a Time Machine backup of OS X 10.7.3 or later on an external hard drive (not a Time Capsule or other network device), you can boot from that by holding down the option key and selecting it from the row of icons that appears. Note that if your other Mac was never upgraded in the App Store, you can't use this method.
Once booted in Recovery, launch Disk Utility and select the icon of the internal drive — not any of the volume icons nested beneath it. In the Partition tab, select the default options: a GUID partition table with one data volume in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format. This operation will permanently remove all existing data on the drive.
After partitioning, quit Disk Utility and run the OS X Installer. You will need the Apple ID and password that you used to upgrade. When the installation is done, the system will automatically reboot into the Setup Assistant, which will prompt you to transfer the data from another Mac, its backups, or from a Windows computer. If you have any data to transfer, this is usually the best time to do it.
Then run Software Update and install all available system updates from Apple. To upgrade to a major version of OS X newer than 10.6, get it from the Mac App Store. Note that you can't keep an upgraded version that was installed by the previous owner. He or she can't legally transfer it to you, and without the Apple ID you won't be able to update it in Software Update or reinstall, if that becomes necessary. The same goes for any App Store products that the previous owner installed — you have to repurchase them.
If the previous owner "accepted" the bundled iLife applications (iPhoto, iMovie, and Garage Band) in the App Store so that he or she could update them, then they're linked to that Apple ID and you won't be able to download them without buying them. Reportedly, Apple customer service has sometimes issued redemption codes for these apps to second owners who asked.
If the previous owner didn't deauthorize the computer in the iTunes Store under his Apple ID, you wont be able to authorize it immediately under your ID. In that case, you'll either have to wait up to 90 days or contact iTunes Support.

Should I buy a MacBook Air now?

I am in the market for a new machine. I want to get a MacBook Air, but considering the fact they are due for a refresh, is now a good time to buy one? If the refresh is simple internal upgrades, then I don´t mind. If it is major overhauls like significantly improved battery, or better physical design, I might not be so pleased, as this is a very long term investment. What would you guys do? Is the current Macbook Air, good enough to stand its own on whatever might replace it?

If you need a MacBook Air now, buy it now. If you want to wait because you are afraid of a new generation, do it at your own risk, because it may or may not be launched soon. Nobody knows that.
The actual MacBook Air is a very good computer for home tasks, fast, thin and light. Of course, if you want a computer for professional use with applications like Final Cut Pro, Photoshop..., don't buy the MacBook Air because it's not good enough. Instead, I recommend the 15-inch MacBook Pro

Buy a MacBook now or wait?

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