Purchasing a MAC. Update post #48

[pintamino]

Bump Still needing to know if I'm agreeing to more than what I need? I have to make this purchase TODAY b/c I have to update our sales & expense reports, build ads for remainder of season, etc... I would LOVE to wait on a deal, but we need it yesterday :/ thanks!

One of the things I'm wondering about is the "500GB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200 rpm" do I need that? He talked me into it --for faster speeds . TIA!

Might as well go for the HD speed, especially if you're running CS and still want to multitask or do video. I assume you have a reason for needing CS? That's some heavy duty software.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

[snip]
AppleCare Protection Plan for MacBook Pro (w/or w/o Display) - Auto-enroll $ 239.00 $ 239.00 [snip]

Do you need AppleCare? If you are buying with a credit card, it may add a year to the 1 year Apple warranty. Even if you do decide you need it, I understand that you can buy it at any time prior to the expiration of your warranty. -- Suzanne

 

[Kate and Pete]

Might as well go for the HD speed, especially if you're running CS and still want to multitask or do video. I assume you have a reason for needing CS? That's some heavy duty software.

I had the same question about CS. Also, Micro Office? Is there a specific reason for needing this? Your new Mac will have pages, keynote (like Powerpoint), and a spread sheet program like Excel.

 

[Swimalie]

I too am curious if you need CS. That's a very expensive bundle of software that is usually for graphic artists.

 

[pintamino]

I had the same question about CS. Also, Micro Office? Is there a specific reason for needing this? Your new Mac will have pages, keynote (like Powerpoint), and a spread sheet program like Excel.

Do iMacs come with pages et. Al? My macbook and my roommate's macbook pro didn't, it had to be bought separately (I like office more as a productivity suite).

 

[LilSweetPeaPhoto]

Make sure you TOTALLY get Applecare, though you have a year to buy it! On my macbook I've had 2 batteries replaced for free, which MORE then covered the cost. But last month I had to have a $1k repair done!!! My display was shot.

All covered by applecare! LOVE IT! And I'd be outside ANY credit card warranty at this point!

 

[honugirl]

I had the same question about CS. Also, Micro Office? Is there a specific reason for needing this? Your new Mac will have pages, keynote (like Powerpoint), and a spread sheet program like Excel.

My macbook pro did not come with pages, keynote, or any of that stuff. I had to add it on later. I got my macbook last August.

 

[weHEARTmickey]

Thanks for all the input! I did get a MacBook Pro. I love it so far, although I'm still learning everything. To answer some of your questions: I do TONS of graphic design for my husband's business. I design our newspaper ads, flyers, business cards, & much more. I also do alot of the graphic design for our church. I'm used to Quark, but I'm trying to transfer over to InDesign. I must say: I'm COMPLETELY lost! So, it may take a while. I use Photoshop for pictures & graphic design. I would like to build a website for our business, although I don't know what program to use, or where to start.

I wanted MS Office because ALL of our sales reports, expense reports, & several other reports are in Excel. And most people use Word, so I just like to have it. Unfortunately, NONE of my files were able to convert over to MAC, even though I'd saved them on an external hard drive. Looks like I'll have to buy a new HD to save them in a different format TOTAL nightmare!

I did get the 3 yr Apple Care. We don't own credit cards, so I paid with a debit card. It hurt me <<bad>> that I couldn't hold out for the tax-free weekend + ipod. Oh well. I'm just thankful we're in the position to buy things like this when they're needed. Thanks for all of your help. God bless!!

 

[mtblujeans]

I bought a 13 inch MBP in August. It was one of the best purchases I ever made. My kids are constantly wanting to use my laptop vs. theirs (my old handed down Windows laptops). I would definitely get a MBP versus the MB or Air- for me, the backlit keyboard is incredible. Also, the battery life is amazing- I consistently get 8-10 hours out of a charge. I've worked solely from laptops for about the past 5-6 years; I greatly prefer the flexibility of the laptops over the desktops.

If you can wait to buy between May-August, you get a credit towards any iPod of about $229. You have to pay for the iPod when you buy the computer, but then get the money refunded. It was a smooth process for me.

Education discount on the MBP's is $100-200 depending on the model purchased. In most cases, if you're a parent, student, or educator, you can qualify for the education pricing with very little questions asked. This holds true for both the hardware and software in my experience.

You can run Windows on a Mac if needed for software, but I have yet to really want or need to do so. For the programs I use, I've found that the software is typically a bit cheaper for the Mac version than the Windows version. There's a good book called Switching to the Mac by David Pogue that you may find helpful- I believe it's under $20 at Amazon.

Waiting and watching for this great sale....

 

[deannanb]

I'm used to Quark, but I'm trying to transfer over to InDesign. they do make Quark for the Mac - probably not in your budget right now - but it is out there.

I wanted MS Office because ALL of our sales reports, expense reports, & several other reports are in Excel. And most people use Word, so I just like to have it. Unfortunately, NONE of my files were able to convert over to MAC, even though I'd saved them on an external hard drive. Looks like I'll have to buy a new HD to save them in a different format TOTAL nightmare!Did the people at the Apple store help you? I haven't used a pc in years - but I do remember opening files on my MAC from a hard drive which had been saved from a PC

I did get the 3 yr Apple Care. We don't own credit cards, so I paid with a debit card. It hurt me <<bad>> that I couldn't hold out for the tax-free weekend + ipod. Oh well. I'm just thankful we're in the position to buy things like this when they're needed. Thanks for all of your help. God bless!!

If you needed the computer now, then waiting until tax-free weekend would have been more painful! and you did the right thing with the apple care. we always buy them - sometimes nothing happens - and sometimes you are thankful that your husband bought it for your laptop and it gets fixed for *free* (well, free enough).

Enjoy using your new computer!

 

[auralia]

try openoffice.org for your file opening problems