Buy 12" PB now or wait till MWSF?
I am looking to buy my first Mac. I wanted to get it before Christmas, but after hearing some rumors about there might be revisions to the powerbook line at MWSF I am skeptical about ordering before Christmas. What do you think the chances are of revisions in the 12" PB line? Also, is there any type of sales exchange thing that I could return my order within a certain amount of time? I am going to custom order my PB online with an educational discount.
Comments
but I do feel sorry for you because you don't have a Mac, life must suck.
Get it now, I highly doubt they'll be updated, they are GREAT machines, my favorite Mac ever except the Color Classic, and maybe PowerBook G3 "Pismo" and Duo. The new revs have good graphics chips unlike the first models which I have too. Not much will be added except a few Mhz next rev and maybe better gfx and lit keyboard.
Some advice: buy a stick of 256 or 512 RAM from www.dealram.com as it is too expensive from Apple but OS X needs more than 256 megs of memory.
Better safe than sorry - I mean if you really need a machine now then grab one, but why not wait?
It's only 22 days away.
The feeling sucked!! 22 days isn't that long a wait. And besides, more credible rumours will probably come out nearer MWSF.
did that make sense?
What matters in the end is what you do with your computer, not a few more Mhz or MB or whatnot. If you don't have that new PowerBook, you won't be able to do anything with it. So get it now, and start doing stuff.
Escher
It *is* inevitable that your purchase will depreciate the moment you walk out of the store with it - but (and this is just for me), the peace of mind, knowing that you investigated "all the options" before commiting to the purchase helps. I'd be livid if I bought now and twenty days or so later a revision was released, especially since that thought is in the back of my mind now, and I chose not to listen to it. It would kind of suck.
I know that it would not make the computer that I purchased any less usable, but in terms of satisfaction, it's nice to know that you didn't "blow your wad o' cash" on a product that was superseded within a week or two of buying it!
Of course, since they were just updated, it seems highly unlikely that there will be another update so soon. However, you and I don't know this, and - personally - I'd be willing to wait it out and have it *confirmed* before I made up my mind to buy ... but that's just me.
So wait another twelve days or so and buy it ten days before MW.
If there's an announcement, return it...if not, keep it.
Originally posted by satchmo
What's Apple return policy? Ten days?
So wait another twelve days or so and buy it ten days before MW.
If there's an announcement, return it...if not, keep it.
I think that policy doesn't apply to a custom order. So, if you do order it custom, you can't do a return for refund of any sort.
Originally posted by b0nehead
I've been wanting edit my film that I have been shooting. It's a real tough decision for me. Also, I want to have something to play with over Christmas break, and if I order around MWSF it will probably take another 2 weeks for it to arrive.
b0nehead: Your circumstances are perfect for ordering your new PowerBook immediately. The likelihood that Apple will update the PowerBooks at MWSF is slim. Assuming there are no new PowerBooks at MWSF, you'll be kicking yourself if you wait. Just think of all the editing you'll be able to do over the holidays. That's exactly the kind of "do something" I was talking about.
Escher
Originally posted by Cake
It's only 22 days away.
We're not counting down, are we?
Originally posted by b0nehead
]I'm really excited about getting a Mac. I have been waiting for 3 months to order, and I will be home from school over Christmas break. I've been wanting edit my film that I have been shooting. It's a real tough decision for me. Also, I want to have something to play with over Christmas break, and if I order around MWSF it will probably take another 2 weeks for it to arrive. I just hate the feeling though of buying a product and then they come out with the newer model right after you buy it at the same price.
bOnehead: I'm presuming that your Christmas break is different to ours in Australia - it's the end of our school year, so we get six weeks off! If you can't bear to wait any longer - and considering that you want to play with the computer over Christmas to edit your movies - then it might be worthwhile springing for the "new toy", so you can use it now! as Escher points out.
However, 2 things:
1) If you custom order a Mac, I don't know how long it will take to arrive at your place - will you actually receive it in time to do any work before heading back to school? If not, then there's no harm in waiting is there?
2) Also, bear in mind what MCQ advised - BTO machines may have a no return policy.
Anyway, I hope that whenever you decide to purchase your PowerBook, you get much enjoyment out of using it and the Mac OS!
Apple has more pressing matters to attend to with their product line. The PowerBooks got a recent revision, and besides, where would they go if they were updated? They just got a new case and new features like Firewire 800, backlit keyboards, Bluetooth, Airport Extreme, and the best mobile graphics chips available, and the G5 generates too much heat to put into a PowerBook. So if they did update the PowerBooks now, you're looking at a very minor increase in clock speed and really nothing else. Much more likely is an update to the consumer desktops at MWSF and a speed bump to the PowerMac G5s in late January or early February. I would guess at PowerBook and iBook revisions around April, May or June.
The moral of my long, rambling post? Buy now, you'll like it.