What's the best Mac you've ever owned?

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
I know performance is a big deal to most and their current machine is the best in that regard... but what Mac stole your heart?



I love my current 2007 20" iMac... but it has had its share of problems-- HDD crashed, power supply crashed, super drive went kaput.



My real love was for my late 2003 17" iMac G4 1.25GHz. I never once had a hardware problem with it in the 4 years I used it. While the performance boost was awesome when I got my new iMac in early 2008, I was sad to see my old machine go.



How about you?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 16
    SE/30 ... At the time, it was a heck of a machine!



    ...but I think the bondi-Blue original iMac would have to take the cake overall. Excellent form factor, cheap, good performance. I actually used that one daily for a longer time-span than any other computer I've owned.
  • Reply 2 of 16
    MacPlus from 1987.



    Only got rid of it a couple of years ago and it was used right up to the end. Blew the power supply way back when, but then it was in use almost 20 hours a day in hot muggy weather in the South (I seemed to have lived there before the invention of air conditioning) and a key broke off the keyboard when it was dropped, bouncing down two flights of stairs, hitting every hardwood step (survived most of the way, key popped at the last step). Snapped right back in. and continued working flawlessly for another decade.



    Back along the same time, Apple ran magazine ads showing an Apple IIe that had survived a house fire. Something they could never do now.



    Wish they still made them so well.
  • Reply 3 of 16
    Honestly, I absolutely loved my Performa 450, which I upgraded to an LCIII by installing a $19 FPU. I used it for 3 years, without a single problem, constantly keeping updated to the latest OS, customizing my UI up the wazoo... everything. The pizza box design was gorgeous at the time. Performas have a bad name now because of the history of Apple, but those machines really worked.



    My most hated mac was my TiBook 400. It looked so gorgeous when it was new, but once that paint started chiping, the screen started getting permanently marked by the keys when it was closed, and finally the plastic started crumbling apart, I was heartbroken. The power cord also became frayed and had to be replaced, TWICE, and the battery was at about 25% of original capacity, all within 3 years.



    My white MacBook had similar problems, and the battery grew to 2x its original size, cracking the plastic in the process.



    Now, my Late 2009 MacBook Pro is awesome. This is now my favorite Mac ever. It still looks brand new after almost 2 years, and I expect it to last at least another 2.
  • Reply 4 of 16
    Powerbook G4 Titanium. That's the Mac that stole my heart. The iPad - that's the Apple product that blew my mind.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Snowguy716 View Post


    I know performance is a big deal to most and their current machine is the best in that regard... but what Mac stole your heart?



    I love my current 2007 20" iMac... but it has had its share of problems-- HDD crashed, power supply crashed, super drive went kaput.



    My real love was for my late 2003 17" iMac G4 1.25GHz. I never once had a hardware problem with it in the 4 years I used it. While the performance boost was awesome when I got my new iMac in early 2008, I was sad to see my old machine go.



    How about you?



  • Reply 5 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nvidia2008 View Post


    Powerbook G4 Titanium. That's the Mac that stole my heart. The iPad - that's the Apple product that blew my mind.



    Yours didn't fall apart?
  • Reply 6 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tonton View Post


    Performas have a bad name now because of the history of Apple, but those machines really worked.



    How many megs of RAM, Carmine?



    Best Mac I've ever owned? This Gainestown Mac Pro right here.



    Before that, the LC575 in our basement that still works.



    I would have said the multiple Apple ][ that I have, but they don't count as I didn't grow up with them at home, only at school.
  • Reply 7 of 16
    iBook G4 running Panther. That seemed like a golden age for OS X. The UI hadn't been bloated with a million ways to open apps, iTunes looked perfect, and the 6 hour battery life put all other laptops to shame.
  • Reply 8 of 16
    dave k.dave k. Posts: 1,306member
    Beige G3.
  • Reply 9 of 16
    iMac SE G3/400 with graphite case that I bought on clearance in 2000. Used it for 8 years without any problems (I also owned a blue and white during this time plus an Intel iMac... but the iMac SE was my favourite.)



    Worst: iMac G5 white v1 - it overheated like crazy and blew hard drives like crazy; my second worst is the Intel iMac mid 2007 that I'm using right now... but it's a very very very distant second to the G5... all that is wrong with it is a glitch that won't allow me to upgrade the OS beyond 10.6.2 which means I cant really sell it... so I have to keep using it until it burns out...
  • Reply 10 of 16
    Macintosh Plus, Macintosh SE30, Bondi Blue iMac, 27" iMac.
  • Reply 11 of 16
    2002 Quicksilver PowerMacintosh G4 800 Dual; Jaguar to Tiger.



    Only one repair in its lifetime (hardware), still in excellent condition. Still works relatively fast with the mid-noughties software installed, does have trouble with some video loads (notably streamed files).



    I?m very fond of it and still use it sometimes.
  • Reply 12 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tonton View Post


    Yours didn't fall apart?



    I'm still using my TiBook 667. I wont argue she is in pristine condition but she is aging gracefully.
  • Reply 13 of 16
    Early 2009 Mac Pro, still using it, no intention to change this machine at all.



    Bought 32GB of RAM last year and it just never gives me any problems!
  • Reply 14 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nvidia2008 View Post


    Powerbook G4 Titanium. That's the Mac that stole my heart. The iPad - that's the Apple product that blew my mind.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tonton View Post


    Yours didn't fall apart?



    Sold it before it did... I think just about a year or so... It was still holding up
  • Reply 15 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Immanuel Goldstein View Post


    2002 Quicksilver PowerMacintosh G4 800 Dual; Jaguar to Tiger.



    Only one repair in its lifetime (hardware), still in excellent condition. Still works relatively fast with the mid-noughties software installed, does have trouble with some video loads (notably streamed files).



    I?m very fond of it and still use it sometimes.



    Do you find the fans loud? I liked my Mirrored Drive Doors PowerMac G4 (dual 1ghz(?)) but it did get noisy.
  • Reply 16 of 16
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by nvidia2008

    ?Do you find the fans loud? I liked my Mirrored Drive Doors PowerMac G4 (dual 1ghz(?)) but it did get noisy.?



    Well, it can certainly make itself heard and more than it used to be, but not all that loud.
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