Gonna buy a Mac - need advice

[tkyes]

OK - I need some help.

I'm a graphic designer and I need to get a computer at home. I'm going to get a Mac. The problem is I don't know what to get. I haven't been on a Mac in 5 years (I'm on a PC at work ).

I'll be using Photoshop, Illustrator and Quark, with large file sizes and a lot of graphics.

So, what should I get? A G4, G5, IMac...

According to the website, the IMacs are 1.25 GHz, the G5s are 1.6, 1.8, and 2 GHz.


Thanks -

Tamie

 

[Dan Murphy]

Originally posted by tkyes
OK - I need some help...........I'm going to get a Mac............

 

[battricia]

if you have the money to get a g5, i'd suggest getting it. It's fully expandable so you can add internal hard drives and whatnot, you can add much more ram, if you ever have the desire to do so. an Imac isn't nearly as expandable as the g5, and only has a g4 processor, but it's still a nice computer, nice monitor, etc.

I have literally one of the first g4's to be produced, I even got a huge poster with it that only went out to the first buyers. That was 5 years ago or so, and the g4 still runs extremely well. Since i have upgraded the ram and os (to panther) and hopefully I'll put in a new hard drive soon. The g5 processor is much much faster than the g4 processor, but in terms of expandability it will be similar, you will be able to do all of that. You can't open up an Imac the way you can a g5 (they are designed for the owner to do this), so you're stuck with external drives and whatnot. This is simply my opinion, and I am no expert, however I've had macs for the past 5 years. (after I got my g4 we got an Imac, then an ibook, and then a powerbook).

tricia.

 

[battricia]

oops, i quoted instead of edited.

tricia.

 

[macs4us]

There are "rumors" that the new PowerMac will be out at the end of March. That means you will have two options: buy the newest thing or buy the "old" version cheaper than you can right now.

The iMac is probably not the way to go, unless it gets upgraded, too. For your applications, I would go with a PowerMac tower if at all possible. You should post at the dealmac.com forum, as the people there are really helpful. MacRumors.com is a good site to keep up with projected new products and their possible release dates. Once you decide, if you need any help at finding a bargain, PM me and I can send you in the right direction - I am helping my sister shop for one, too.

 

[tkyes]

I really would like it ASAP. I should have bought one sooner, but we've been putting it off.

thanks for the links - I'll have to go check those out.

I will most likely just shop at the Mac store, unless you have another suggestion. Keep in mind I don't know exactly what I want / need and want to deal with an actual person who can help me and if I need service or have questions I want a resource I can turn to for that as well.


tamie

 

[floridafam]

I vote for the G5. We have one and LOVE IT!

It is just wonderful. DH said he would not have bought anything else.

He either has the dual 1.8 GHz or the one above it and a cinema display monitor. (I'm not as technical as he is, can you tell?)

Let us know what you buy

Do you take any college courses? He was able to use the educational discount which was nice.

 

[floridafam]

Forgot to add,

We just called Apple and purchased ours over the phone. The closest Apple Store is about an hour away. The people at Apple could not have been more helpful. There were several payment options to choose from-credit card, Apple Loan and check by phone.

 

[caitycaity]

another vote for the G5.

 

[tkyes]

No, I'm done with school.

DH is going for his masters, not in design, but it's still school.

It sounds like a G5 with OSX is the way to go. It would be nice if they were coming out with the newer version sooner, so I could save some money.

tamie

 

[floridafam]

If your DH is getting his masters then you should qualify for the educational discount.

Instead of 1,799/2,499/2,999 educational discount gives you a price of 1,599/2,299/2,699. Just go to the educational part of the online store and find the college or university that he attends.

You can also get the discount on various other Apple Products.

We did not get the discount on Formac but did get about $20 off
isight.

They usually have printer rebates to offer as well. You may not need a printer but you can basically get the $99 one for free.

 

[macs4us]

Originally posted by tkyes


I will most likely just shop at the Mac store, unless you have another suggestion. Keep in mind I don't know exactly what I want / need and want to deal with an actual person who can help me and if I need service or have questions I want a resource I can turn to for that as well.


tamie

Definitely go to the Apple Store and talk to the people there, get a feel for the different machines, but shop around online before you buy - often you can get free RAM upgrades, lower prices, and no sales tax. Compare educational pricing and reseller prices. You can always get advice and help from Apple as long as you buy from them or an authorized reseller. I would recommend Apple Care if you want the added security of longer support and repair - if you buy it when you purchase your machine, it should cover all Apple products on that invoice (Apple display, airport, etc) for two years. I have it, but I have a Powerbook. My niece has an iMac, and messes stuff up sometimes (she's 12 and forgets her passwords) and calls Applecare all of the time.

I have a lot of Macs, and I have only bought two from Apple - my Classic while in college, and my G4 Powerbook, because I wanted it customized. Don't feel you have to buy directly from Apple to get good support.

 

[lucky_bunni]

Originally posted by tkyes
No, I'm done with school.

DH is going for his masters, not in design, but it's still school.

It sounds like a G5 with OSX is the way to go. It would be nice if they were coming out with the newer version sooner, so I could save some money.

tamie

Buy it through your husband. The Apple student discounts are great! You can get the student discount in Apple stores, apple.com, or over the phone w/ Apple.

 

[ammdc7]

Originally posted by lucky_bunni
Buy it through your husband. The Apple student discounts are great! You can get the student discount in Apple stores, apple.com, or over the phone w/ Apple.

Not usually... You usually can only get the educational discount online. I'm not saying that they will not honor it at the store, but they tend to audit these educational purchases, and the best way for them to do that is online. This means that the purchasing student has to follow all the rules and provide some sort of authentication that they attend that school.

 

[KrnB]

I agree with everyone else - you're better off with a G5. If you can time it so that you purchase immediately after newer, faster ones come out, you can get a pretty good deal on the suddenly "old" ones.

Since you are using Photoshop and Illustrator, I would recommend getting the fastest processor and the most amount of memory that you can afford. Adobe makes huge memory hogs, so the more you can get the better.

Also taking advantage of educational discounts is a really good idea. My DH is a student with the U of Phoenix online, and we got a really good deal on the new Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Acrobat and GoLive) from JourneyEd.com . Apparently you can only get the Premium version of the suite at the discount, but I think it is still cheaper than the Standard version (just has PhotoShop, Illustrator and InDesign, which is ally I really wanted) at normal cost. I usually buy my Macs directly from Apple, but for software and other stuff, I shop around.

Enjoy your new Mac!!!

 

[macs4us]

I just received an email from Apple. It sounds like the new Macs will be at the end of March, because they are having a promo on RAM upgrades until March 27th. Here is the link to the discount schedule:
http://www.apple.com/promo/morememory/

The email also has a discount code for $100 off Adobe Creative Suite Premium Edition, and information on rebate promos for a FireWire Zip Drive, Canon LiDE 30 scanner, and Epson Stylus C84 printer. You may want to sign up to receive promo emails, as they often send out special coupons to get you to buy right before they announce new products.

If you aren't tied to paying cash and have a credit card that offers a price guarantee, you could buy a Mac from Apple, and if the price goes down the credit card will refund the difference. I did this on my digital camera a couple of years ago. Just call and ask your credit card company first, as they often have restrictions.