A little help please...

pb1300 · August 12, 2006 8:22PM

Im new here, and Im going to be a first time Mac owner. I currently have a PC running windows, but Im tired of all the issues Im having with it. Ive always been a fan of Mac, and Im not as novice as others when it comes to using a Mac. My question is which machine I want/should go with. All I really want to do is burn CDs/DVDs, do some basic music samples, surf the web, and work on my photos. I was looking at the following:

Mini mac 1.66 dual, 1gb ram, 100GB HD

or

Macbook Pro 2ghz 1gb ram, 100GBHD

or

Macbook 2ghz, 1gb ram, 100GB HD

Now I was thinking about the Mac Mini cause I thought it has pretty much what I need. I have a 37 inch LCD and a 21 inch LCD I could hook it up to, and the with its size, and the size of the wireless KB and mouse, could really give me some more space in my room. And BTW, I already have a Toshiba laptop (windows blah) that is only a few months old and is obviously mobile for me.

I like the Apple laptops though. I know that the Pro has the backlit keyboard, which wouldnt be important to me at my house cause I would still get the wireless KB/mouse. But Im not familiar with the big difference/s between the Macbook and the Pro.

All Im looking for from everyone is some advice/experiences/opinions. Im definately going to be getting a Mac in the next few days, but there is a price difference between the three, and I dont know if its real beneficial to go to a Macbook/pro when I could get similar features in the Mac Mini...or is it that much of a difference?

a_greer · August 12, 2006 8:38PM

Go for the Mini; if you feel comfortable opening it up, buy and install 2GB ram in the aftermarket, it is literaly going from a stock V8 to a Nascar V8...(eccept you will not burn a gallon of gas a minute to run the bloody thing

) If you dont feel comnfortable opening it, AT LEAST order the 1 gig upgrade option: 512 in a moddern Mac is like ripping 4 of the spark-plug wires out of the afore mentioned stock V8

As to your laptop; sounds like a classic case of not taking the time to and/or knowing how to remove the crap that comes all over stock PCs...I say find a trustworthy "geek" friend and offer them a little cash for a "tune-up" you will be surprised how little it takes to run XP FAST, and really problem free so long as you run a NON-IE browser; any computer guy/gal should be able to do this for ya no sweat.

axc51 · August 12, 2006 9:11PM

It's kind of comparing apples to oranges. The MacBook Pro (MBP) will be faster than both the MacBook (MB) and Mac Mini, hence the price differences between them. If you plan on working on your photos in a professional way (Photoshop CS, Aperture, etc) I would go with the MBP config you listed, or even the MB. Otherwise if you plan on using simply iPhoto then the Mini is fine.

Choosing between the Mini and the MB / MBP is simple... do you plan on traveling with it? If so, get the laptop, otherwise the Mini is fine for home use. Yes it's small, but unless you have easy access to a monitor everywhere you go it's not really portable (if you know what I mean).

Choosing between the MB and the MBP is not as easy. It depends on if you plan on doing movies, video editing, etc. The MB has an onboard graphics card which uses shared memory, whereas the MBP has it's own graphics card. The larger screen on the MBP is also a pretty obvious difference between the two. There are also other differences which you can see on Apple.com or reading some other threads here in the forums. I wouldn't get the MBP simply for the backlit keyboard... because the MB is a very capable computer. Since the price difference between the two is rather large, only you can access what you plan on using your computer for.

It's also important to figure out what applications you use, since some are CPU intensive, while others are RAM intensive or HD intensive. Balancing those factors out can get you the best system for your needs for a good price.

pb1300 · August 12, 2006 10:17PM

http://cgi.ebay.com/Macbook-Pro-LOAD...QQcmdZViewItem

Found this one on Ebay. What does everyone think?

axc51 · August 12, 2006 10:20PM

Looks good to me.

almightymac · August 12, 2006 10:21PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pb1300

http://cgi.ebay.com/Macbook-Pro-LOAD...QQcmdZViewItem

Found this one on Ebay. What does everyone think?

I'd suggest getting it direct from apple. You can't really trust e-bay most of the time. And If you're looking to get a deal buy a refurbished one from the apple site. Also make sure you get applecare. It's worth every penny in case something were to go wrong.

pb1300 · August 12, 2006 11:16PM

I think Im going to go with the refurb from Apple. Its a Macbook pro, 2ghz, 1gb ram, 100 GB HD, 256 graphics card. Its 1949. Not bad.

pb1300 · August 13, 2006 3:43PM

Or I can go with an IMac with all upgrades. Its so confusing, trying to figure out what to get. Ive decided against the Mac Mini for the simple fact that it doesnt have a video card. It all comes down to either the IMac or the MacBook pro, and whether I want to be portable or not. Hmmmmmmmmm...

imacfan · August 13, 2006 3:58PM

If you don't need portablity, the iMac is by far the best bang for your buck. A decent graphics card, larger screen and a desktop HD make it the best Mac after the Mac Pro.

David

meelash · August 14, 2006 12:09PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iMacfan

If you don't need portablity, the iMac is by far the best bang for your buck. A decent graphics card, larger screen and a desktop HD make it the best Mac after the Mac Pro.

David

Decisions, decisions, decisions....

As far as I can tell I agree with this. The iMac is an awesome bargain (even better that the mini IMO). If you don't need mobility and don't need some custom screen size that's the machine for you.

A little help please...

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