Need help choosing a Mac to experiment with
I'm by definition a Windows person. But, I want to experiment with OS X. The problem is that I don't want to invest a lot of money only to find out that I don't like the OS or something like that. I'm cheap (almost a hobo by Apple's pricing) and even the $600 for a Mac Mini is expensive when you're someone who has become used to the idea of building a PC just as good or better for less. I'm not saying OS X and the Mac is bad, other than the pricing, just that I'm having a hard time of figuring out how I can get a good cheap Mac that can fully utilize all that OS X can do. The main stuff I want to mess around with is all of the iLife stuff but also networking stuff since I'm studying Computer Networking and Systems Administration in college. I looked on eBay and found iBooks for like $200 but once I did some research I discovered that the iBooks (dual USB)were, for lack of a better word, were crap. I'm having a hard time figuring out what is a good Mac to get to experiment with the OS. I'm honestly not sure what specs I need to run OS X and run it well. I've considered trying out the OSx86 Project but after reading into it I've found that it's probably more of a pain than it might be worth and I don't know if I could even get it to work. Can I just borrow somebodies Mac? lol
Thanks
P.S. My budget is probably somewhere like $300 or less for either a laptop or desktop. I don't want have to upgrade a used computer and have it cost the same as a Mini and is only like half as good.
Thanks
P.S. My budget is probably somewhere like $300 or less for either a laptop or desktop. I don't want have to upgrade a used computer and have it cost the same as a Mini and is only like half as good.
Comments
I'm by definition a Windows person. But, I want to experiment with OS X. The problem is that I don't want to invest a lot of money only to find out that I don't like the OS or something like that.
Na na na na. If you want it bad enough, you gotta pay
We Mac users had to suffer that when we had the PPC platform - we could have tried Windows but it meant new hardware. Anyway, if you don't like the OS, you can run Windows on a new Mac and before you say it, there is a point to doing so. It's no different from running it on a PC.
even the $600 for a Mac Mini is expensive when you're someone who has become used to the idea of building a PC just as good or better for less. I'm not saying OS X and the Mac is bad, other than the pricing
You're never going to find any hardware with Apple if you take the stance of building machines as a comparison. Both Apple and every other manufacturer have a markup for building it for you and designing it well and Apple are competitive with the other manufacturers who do the same.
P.S. My budget is probably somewhere like $300 or less for either a laptop or desktop. I don't want have to upgrade a used computer and have it cost the same as a Mini and is only like half as good.
The Mini would be nearer $675 because you don't want to experience OS X with less than 1GB Ram. I would strongly advise against a PPC machine with the exception of a G5 but they don't give you the ability to run Windows if you find you don't like OS X.
I would say that the Mini is a good fit for you and you have to remember, they do come with Core Duo chips. How cheaply could you build a PC with Core Duo 1.66 laptop CPU, 1 GB Ram, 60GB HD etc? I found a Core Duo chipset online just now selling for an average of about $350:
http://www.shopbot.com.au/p-17846-468932.html
So with $300, you have to get a HD, 1GB Ram, Bluetooth, wifi, a motherboard, a fan, a case, an operating system and a GPU.
aaaaand go *starts stopwatch*. The Mini would be delivered in a couple of days remember.
If you only want to "try" Mac OS X to see what it is like, get a cheap G4 iMac (lamp-style) from eBay for example. Then, shortly after, you'll see that OS X is great. Then think about what "real" machine you want to buy (Intel iMac or a MacBook or whatever) and sell the G4 iMac (and also your PC?). You won't lose much money by doing this.
Also, G4 eMac (all in one like a small TV) may be cheaper on eBay.
... If you're living off of fish food right now to make ends meet, then I think having the latest computer is the least of your worries...
Unless you need *some computer* to get more money and to eat less fish food
I've got some allowance (disability - bipolar) right now and my work situation is fracked, I'm really looking hard at how best to spend that. Living with parents and aunt at the moment. I once owned, in the space of 2001-2004, iBook G3 500mhz, PowerBook G4 Titanium, PowerMac Dualie MirroredDriveDoor dual 1.x ghz G4, PowerMac G5 single 1.6 or so ghz, PowerBook G4 Aluminium, eMac G4, iMac G3... now... nothing *sigh*... just my parents' iBook G4 933mhz luckily to stay barely within grasp of the Mac magic. Yeah, there's that bipolar undiagnosed manic spending thingy.
If you only want to "try" Mac OS X to see what it is like, get a cheap G4 iMac (lamp-style) from eBay for example. Then, shortly after, you'll see that OS X is great. Then think about what "real" machine you want to buy (Intel iMac or a MacBook or whatever) and sell the G4 iMac (and also your PC?). You won't lose much money by doing this.
Stealing OSX is evil and wrong and bad and all that, but I did "research" a VMWare image of 10.4 hacked OSX86 running on WinXP2pro... Not everything really worked, but it did give one a bit of a chance to "try" OSX.