Buying new Mac

Hello,
My G5 imac has died, too costly to fix so I am considering the new 24" 2.66 GHz, any thoughts, cautions?
Deb

I'm also considering buying a new Mac and have been watching these forums to see what issues people have been having. It would be worthwhile spending some time doing the same. There are lots of helpful people on here and I have learnt a few good tips. Mainly though, there are a couple of things to be aware of:
Migrating from PPC to Macintel can cause hiccups with software and prefs. Some older software won't run at all under Intel. Others will run more slowly (eg Adobe CS2). You'll need to reinstall software from the discs rather than cloning it over. More here:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=435350&tstart=0
You don't get a numeric keypad unless you order on-line and ask for one. Whether this bothers you depends on how much you use the number pad and whether you like shopping on-line.
Some people don't like the glossy screen. It depends what you use the Mac for, and what light source you have nearby that might cause glare. Also there has been a lot of discussion about the quality of these screens and/or video cards:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1580232&tstart=0
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1446926&tstart=0
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1939620&tstart=0
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1943049&start=0&tstart=15
and even the logic board:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1516765&tstart=0
Now, as this is a help forum, obviously most people who post on here are the ones who have problems, and all those those happy owners with perfect macs have no reason to come in here. I would not be worried if all I was seeing were people with software glitches who just needed help to reset the PRAM or SMC or whatever. However, some of the threads on here point to serious hardware issues, either due to build quality, integrity of video cards, or design (eg problems due to excessive heat build-up). The number of posts that have a similar theme, and the length of these threads is worrying enough. What's more worrying is that in some of the threads, people are saying that Apple are denying there's a problem and refusing to help, leaving loyal customers with expensive glorified paperweights. I've been using Mac for many many years, and have had very very few problems with any of my machines (my G4 tower is still going), but I'm really put off by what I've read. Maybe the chance of getting a bad one is statistically lower than looking on this forum would suggest, but I depend on my Mac for work and can't afford to be without it. At some point I'll have to update when I'm forced to by the software requirements, but right now I feel decidedly unsure whether I should buy one. Also, having extolled the virtues of Apple to all my friends and family for years, imagine the combined embarrassment and disappointment if it turns out to have serious problems that Apple won't fix! I won't switch to PC though… I'm just going to hang on for signs of reassurance. I hope at least some of that has been helpful rather than off-putting.

Similar Messages

I intend to buy new mac pro, is it better to wait for the new OS X mountain, or can buy it and we can update it without affecting its performance?

I intended to buy new mac pro, is it better to wait for new OS X moutain or can buy it now and update it later as it will not affect its performance???

khalid.mktaka76 wrote:
I intended to buy new mac pro, is it better to wait for new OS X moutain or can buy it now and update it later as it will not affect its performance???
If you can wait about a 3 months after 10.8 is released this summer and upon new hardware you should be in excellent shape to have not only a fastest latest machine, but a OS X version that all the bugs have been worked out. Plus the three free months of Apple hand holding while they figure out what they did wrong with the new OS version.
If you need a new machine now you'll have to get what you need obviously, but 10.8 should run on it just fine. However know that Apple tweaks things with more currently sellling hardware first, then later gets to the previous released models.
It's been my guestimation that your good for about two year old hardware with very recent OS X release, three years or older hardware you may want to reconsider sticking with the previous OS X version as your hardware is getting dated and likely has only a year left to go anyway (4 year average), so why bother mucking it up, slowing it down and having to buy all new/updated software and third party hardware because they won't make drivers for your new OS version?

I'm in the process of buying new Mac. Old one died in Jan. What specs do I need to dowload CC again?

I'm in the process of buying new Mac. Old one died in Jan. What specs do I need to download CC again? Money is an issue and cannot afford to buy a new Mac so I'm on Ebay and other sites looking at Macbooks, pro's, Air.
Thanks
Lew
[personal information removed... Mod - https://forums.adobe.com/docs/DOC-3731]
[This is an open forum, not Adobe support, please do not post personal information]
[If you are posting using email, please turn your 'sig file' function OFF for posting]

Requirements vary by program.. scroll down and check each program
-http://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/system-requirements.html

NEED HELP... Buying new MAC today.....

My powerbook is getting a bit old and slow...
and I need a new MAC...
I am just an average user.... I do nothing special... I just LOVE my MAC and
the ease of it..... I just use mostly for downloading movies/ music.... and e-mail and surfing... etc...
BUT... I live in Sweden so my options are limited and VERY expensive...
so I have decided I like the white Macbook...
but.... all I can find new is a 2.1 Ghr 1 gig ram... 120 HHD... for $1,241
or a used one that is 1 year old....
hardly used... 2.4 Ghz... 2 gigs ram... 120 HDD... for $931.
What would you do????
I welcome all the info I can get....
Thank you...
Cheers from across the pond...
Just a Gurl from Seattle who lives in Sweden

Thank you both for your replies....
here in Sweden, I have been unable to find the refurbished MACs...
however here in Sweden we get an automatic 2 year government mandatory warranty (lucky aren't we) so the used mac that I have found will still have a year on it.... and he bought it last Christmas, so I can still get Apple care for it.... however Apple care here costs about $250... maybe even more....
I was so bummed to find that the white Macbook used to come with the 2.4 Ghz and now comes with the 2.1 Ghz...
and I really want speed.... that is the most important to me....
So I am wondering if I will notice the difference between the 2.4 and the 2.1 Ghz
as far as speed goes????
and is the new one the 2.1 Ghz better than the 2.4 Ghz for some reason that I am not seeing????
Why did they go from 2.4 to 2.1 Ghz on this model????
is there anything I should know when buying a used MAC from somebody????
things I should ask or look for????
again... thank you for your help...
Regards,
Rhonda

Buy new mac w/free upgrade to Leopard?

Hello,
I know this is a long shot but if I buy a new Mac now is there any possibility that Apple will do a free upgrade to Leopard when it comes out? I know that Microsoft does this with it's operating system when you buy a computer nearing the date of the new OS arrival.
Thanks,
David

David, in the past Apple has offered a reduced upgrade to a new OS when you've bought a new Mac within a short window of time prior to the announcement. For example, Tiger's release was announced 25 days after I bought my PowerBook so I wound up getting a Tiger upgrade for $20 if I remember correctly.
But there's no guarantee Apple will do that with Leopard and, of course, we don't know when Apple will announce Leopard. My standard answer is always this: If you need the computer now, buy it. Waiting is a fool's game, you can always find a reason to delay your purchase. I had a friend who kept finding a reason to wait another month and that went on for 6 years!

To upgrade or buy new mac.

i need to get some opinion from u guys out there. i'm using an 12.1" ibook g4 512ram for 2 years. Things are fine but lately i feels it is getting slow (maybe the softwares are getting more demanding). I thinking should i up the ram to 1.5 and add in the leopard software or should i sell the ibook and get a new mac. upgrading the ibook will cost about ~1000 rm. trading the ibook can fetch about 2000rm so i cant really decide. it is cheaper to upgrade but in the long run? can anyone give their opinion here

That sounds like a good option--there is nothing wrong with Tiger, and there have been some problems with Leopard--just peruse the Leopard forum some time. You may as well do your mobil computing and not be worrying about which printers will work or whether or not your menu bar is translucent and all of that stuff. After I upgraded my MBP to Leopard, the free printer that I got with the MBP would no longer work. Eventually I imagine there will be a driver, but I have encountered more than one 3rd party that is not yet up to date on OS 10.5, and I imagine that others will take a while too. So it could be a hassle if you have a lot of older software. As for free upgrades, I have no idea, but I think the problem would be waiting for them to have upgrades available.
One thing you can do is to use the free application WhatSize to check on what is using up your hard drive space.
http://www.id-design.com/software/whatsize/
Sometimes logs and caches can get out of hand and use up space and slow you down. But the additional RAM should give you a big boost in performance.
As to iMac vs. a MacBook, that's hard to say. It's really up to you. But since you need to save up a few bucks first, you will have time to mull it over. You might browse both of those forums for a while and then maybe ask your question on one of them if you are still undecided.
Good luck!

Some advice - about to buy new Mac Mini.

Hi everyone - I'm hoping that someone can help me out with some advice.
I'm a former blackberry user and not a mac user, so I hope I'm clear in my explanation.
My mother is a PC user currently and owns a Blackberry Curve 8900. Actually, she and my dad both do, and currently use the PC to sync their (shared) calendar and contacts from one login in Windows XP to both of their blackberries. Yep, they're at that stage where they really don't need independent contacts or calendar. They sync with USB and curerntly use Outlook -- so no Exchange integration is needed for push email/etc.
Anyway, the PC is on its absolute last legs and I was thinking of migrating them over to a new Mac Mini since she's never really gotten the hang of Windows XP and I'm guessing that she'll do better on the Mac OS. Plus her friends all use Macs and I'm hoping they can help her. I'm guessing we'll just get them the latest version of Entourage with their new Mac.
I've been holding off migrating them to this until the Blackberry Desktop Manager for Mac was available because the Blackberry Desktop Manager on their PC is one of the few things that works really well for them. They're used to the interface, and it just works.
So, now that it's available I was looking through the forums here and it looks like there might be some issues with it that are persistent? I've seen references to 32 bit vs 64 bit and other sorts of stuff that I don't quite get.
Can anyone tell me if the new system for them would just work? Maybe someone out there has a similar configuration?
Or should I hold off or just consider moving them to a new Windows PC instead?
So it would be:
* 2 Blackberry Curve 8900s syncing to a single shared set of contacts and calendar using Blackberry Desktop Manager. They don't do email sync and probably won't make much use of audio sync. Images, though, yes.
* Brand new Mac Mini, which evidently comes with Mac OS X 10.6 (I don't know if it is 32 bit or 64 or what??)
* Sync to Entourage from Office 2008
thanks in advance,Aaron

Let me respond. First 10.6 (known as Snow Leopard) enables 64 bit technology...you can read this for more info:
http://www.apple.com/macosx/technology/
Now as far as sync goes...Unfortunately there is no perfect solution. Why? BB, Entourage, Mac Address Book & iCal do not share identical "fields". So it is impossible to get them to all have the same info. The truth of the matter is, I do not think your parents will need to constantly sync the contacts...seriously how many new people do they met to add to their contact list? It is probably a one time...let me get all of their contacts on the computer and the devices. Now the calendar does need to be synced regularly. Some have had no issues with the sync between iCal and BB...others...well a different story. I migrated my parents (both sets) to Mac about 8-10 years ago. Why, because Mac software (OS included) is so much easier for them to understand and use. I also do the technical support (which I can do remotely with screen sharing) which is easier for me (and there are not many issues). I use mobile me and we have contacts and calendars synced across the family...all automated (if I make a change they get it within seconds). Hope this helps.
4.6.1.305 hybrid
Mac Pro 2X2.8 Quad SL

Update to Leopard/Buying new Mac

Hi,
I would like to buy a Mac sometime before I start college in the fall, but since it is so close to the release of Leopard, I'm wondering when I should buy it. Should I wait till after the release of Leopard? Or is there something where Apple will give you a free update if you buy the computer nearer to the release date of leopard?
Thanks in advance,
Daniel

Hi Daniel, and Welcome to Apple Discussions.
If it were me, I'd wait. If you purchase the Mac now, it will have Tiger pre-installed and you would have to upgrade to Leopard. And Apple being Apple, no one will know what the price will be for the upgrade until the day it hits the street. I honestly don't know if Apple would offer a free update if you buy so close to the release of Leopard... given their history, I kinda doubt it. One thing you can do is read more. The most recent issue of MacWorld magazine (July) in my mailbox today and there are several articles regarding Leopard.
If you buy a Mac now and being a student you qualify for a free iPod Nano! Read here: http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore
Anyway... that's my two cents.
Carolyn

Buying new mac to deal with fcp issue

I have a power book g4 and was running FCP HD and decided to upgrade my camera to HD. However my mAc would not capture the footage from the camera. Having been into the Mac store I was informed of two choices. Either purchase the new
version of FC Studio or buy FC express. However I was adivsed that my machine was not powerful enough to run the new FC Studio.
So I bought FC Express. But capturing my footage form the camera was a horribly slow process. I am used the capture happening in close to real time. Now it can take 2 mins to capture a 30 seconds clip. Is this becuase the footage is HD or is it because Im running FC Express?
If I buy a new machine with new version of FC Studio will I solve this problem?
Also will my old FCP files load into the new version of FC Studio?
Any reccomendations for which machine to buy for a bugdet around £1000 maybe a bit more?
Oh and one last thing, how short do you think I need to make my HD movies to fit them onto a DVD given Apple dont support Bluray?

Your single processor laptop grade G4 is probably slowing you down considerably when dealing with the realities of HD requirements. That and disk speed. FC Express is probably not the bottleneck.
You haven't said what flavour of HD you're dealing with, but whichever it is, a G4 powerbook is seriously underpowered to handle it.
As to an upgrade, for right around a thousand pounds - roughly $1950 American - you can pick up a refurbished 2.8 Ghz Quadcore Mac Pro. Dunno if it holds true for the British Apple store.
GAH! - just checked and with VAT, it's £1,499.00 in the UK Apple store.
OH - and as to your question about DVD, since standard DVDs only support SD, you'll have to downconvert and the storage requirements are the same.
Patrick

Advice buying new mac pro

Im in process in buying mac laptop-mac pro 15 or 17 inch-new for business
I have never owned apple software/hardware. CUrrently have sony vaio laptop and also pc desktop with adsl broadband.
wondering about few queries.
1. will mac pro work in my existing wireless internet home (considering net/modem (external) are linked to pc desktop)?
2. stability of running PC software if needed on mac pro?
how effective, stable are parellels an bootcamp?
3. when is the leopard operating system available (in Australia?) ? should i wait till its released so its already part of bundle?
4 mac pro laptop compatibility with PDA phones (DOPOD? JASJAM--I mate)? --which are windows based platform phone/ORGANIZERS?
hoping for some honest answers--I have never used mac before. Just heard good things about them.
Cheers

+1. will mac pro work in my existing wireless internet home (considering net/modem (external) are linked to pc desktop)?+
It should, assuming your home wireless is a standard 802.11 type of thing.
+2. stability of running PC software if needed on mac pro?+
+how effective, stable are parellels an bootcamp?+
In Boot Camp, software should be exactly the same as on a PC.
In Parallels, software should generally be fine unless it makes use of more exotic features or hardware, like special display modes.
+3. when is the leopard operating system available (in Australia?) ? should i wait till its released so its already part of bundle?+
The official line is October, as with elsewhere in the world. If you have need of a Mac now, then it makes no sense to wait. If it's more of a "can survive for now" situation, then it's really personal choice.
+4 mac pro laptop compatibility with PDA phones (DOPOD? JASJAM--I mate)? --which are windows based platform phone/ORGANIZERS?+
I think this would depend on the particular device, but in general don't expect features like synchronisation to work in OS X if they rely on Windows software (such as Outlook).

Sell G5 Quad to buy new Mac Pro?

I am considering selling my current G5 Quad and getting a Mac Pro Quad 2.66. I would like some opinions from people either for or against. Basically I need help making up my mind.
The G5 Quad has 3 gig of memory and 500 Gig drive.The video card is a GeForce 7800GT.
This computer is used for Final Cut Express, and Photoshop. Along with a bunch of less demanding applications. No gaming.
The reasons I want to do this upgrade are;
Migrate my XP PC onto the intel based Mac and in doing so clear up some desk space.
Keep current with Mac technology.
Get a bit more crunch power.
The main concern I have is that the video card that comes with the Mac Pro is a NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT. Am I going to notice a difference with the applications that I use?
Currently I can get an OK price for my G5. I have been watching the prices on ebay.
So what do people think. Is this a good idea? Any shortcomings?
I will also cross post this in the Mac Pro forum.
thanks

It's hard to say, Grashuepfer. One of the advantages to buying a new computer now is that you'll be able to have the latest hardware which will be able take full advantage of the latest updates and be able to run Windows apps and OS X almost equally well. That' something the G5 can't do. Marvelous machines, but they have their limitations & sooner or later, Apple and 3rd party manufacturers'll drop support for it. For example, I think it'll get harder to find high end video cards for the G5 pretty soon. So if you want to upgrade it with a better card, now's the time to do it, because they may not make them next year. However, there are and will be far more upgrade options for the Intel Macs. They'll be supported for a much longer time.
As for the G5 I bought, so far it works like a charm. I guess it was one of those which came off the assembly line right. Computers are very quirky. They're just like cars. If the workers were havin' a good day, then you get a good model. However, if the foreman had an argument with the spouse, then maybe the 'puter you got is a dud. I dunno. It's all very problematic. No guarantee of anything. No model, PC or Mac, is immune from defects, bugs, etc. You just have to get lucky. But it seems that if something's gonna go wrong with a computer, the quad core will potentially have more problems than the lower end model I've got. Mine's more simple, but yours would be a lot more complicated. I'm sure of that. Hope you bought the AppleCare. Anyway, hope ya find the machine yer after. Take care.

ICloud useable as server instead of buying new Mac for that purpose?

If I buy a new iPad Air will I be able to abandon my 4year old Sony laptop, and use the former's full access to iCloud as the server for my 2 older iPads (1 & 3 models)?
Such things as iTunes and iBooks come to mind.
Thanks in advance,
Ian

In theory, you do not need a computer at all in order to use an iPad and yes you can use iCloud exclusively as a backup solution. What you cannot use iCloud for is an external storage area from which you can upload or download selective content. In other words, you cannot upload 3 photos to iCloud nd then download two of them back to the device. You cannot download any one backed file from iCloud either.
iCloud backups everything on your iPad that you purchase from the iStores and all of the data that is associated with those apps. iCloud will not store non iTunes purchased videos, synced photos from your computer, and content of that type.
You can use iCloud with the original iPad and the iPad 3. Those are the two iPads that I happen to own and I can use iCloud with both of them.

Where do I go to buy new Mac OS X Installation disks?

Our beautiful little Labrador Retriever helped herself to my Mac OS X Installation disks (and my credit card, driver's license, and wallet). I've been on Ebay and Amazon. There is one selling on ebay for the 10.5.2 but our iMac is 10.5.8. What will work, what won't work, and where do I go to buy?

Hi,
You can get replacement System Install & Restore CD/DVDs from Apple's Customer Support - in the US, (800) 767-2775 - for a nominal S&H fee. You'll need to have the model and/or serial number of your Mac available.
Do not get the discs from eBay. Apple only. From eBay you do not know what you are getting. Amazon sells retail discs, not Apple installation discs.
Carolyn

Advice on buying new Mac Pro

How big of a difference is there between the 8-core 2.8 and the 3.0. Is it really worth the extra buck. Also, does anyone see any sign of blueray players coming standard in the mac pro? I know that cheap sony laptops are comming standard with BD players.

You can see the differences here...
http://www.barefeats.com/harper.html
No word on the BlueRay yet. I have seen and read about people using them on MacPros though.
Here is one http://silverado.cc/shop/product.php?productid=1037&cat=1&page=1
Here is another one http://www.mcetech.com/blu-ray/

After buying new Mac Pro (late 2013) model, undo command in Photoshop CC is behaving strange. It stops working and takes a few extra pen strokes to be able to get it to work

I tried un/reinstalling my Cintiq 21 UX tablet and un/reinstalling Photoshop CC. Neither worked. Please help! thanks

removed spotify and this fixed the problem...

Buying new Mac

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for