How Reliable is your Mac??

[Leaver]

Hi there

I Have an intel iMac that seems to crash a lot and i was wondering how evryone else's macs are behaving! i took it back to the mac store and they can find nothing wrong with it - it just hangs every so often and i have to reset it - so frustrating for a mac!

i thought this would be a good place to ask how other intel macs are doing. i am suspecting that this is an intel thing!

Cheers - Dan

[EM87]

Mine is the least reliable computer I have ever used, and I am a long time Windows user.

It frequently freezes on me, often it will not shut down and now it has decided not to boot at all.

Oh the joys of being a Mac user:rolleyes:

Buying a Mac is the worst mistake I have ever made. From now on I am going to stick with Linux and Windows.

[bartelby]

My least reliable Mac was my 7500/100 running OS 7.6. That was horrible!
OS 8.0 was good and 8.6 was ok.



Since using OS X though (since 10.2 was released) I've had 4 kernel panics across a G4 Quicksilver, a G4 PowerBook and a G3 PowerBook.
Hardware wise they all been reliable except the G4 PowerBook that had a Logic Board fail and the Ambient Light Sensors no longer work.

[Scarlet Fever]

It frequently freezes on me, often it will not shut down and now it has decided not to boot at all.

It's still within warranty, so take it back and tell them whats what.

If Apple made hardware which was really that unreliable, they wouldn't be around today.

For those who say the intel systems are unstable now, just hang in there until Leopard comes out. 10.4 for Intel was pretty rushed, and there are a lot of holes to be fixed, which (i believe) is the reason 10.5 has been held out for so long. I reckon it will fly on the Intel machines like you won't believe.

[Blue Velvet]

Extremely reliable. The most reliable computers I've ever used. 1 at home, 8 at work... the work ones don't even need IT support.

For those of you who have had problems, I suggest you try to find out what is wrong with it instead of contributing unsubstantiated and vague complaints about the platform.

So your Mac doesn't boot? Use the diagnostic tools to find out what is wrong with the hard drive. All computers have them, you know.

[EricNau]

My iMac G5 and Core Duo MacBook are completely reliable.

[EM87]

It's still within warranty, so take it back and tell them whats what.

If Apple made hardware which was really that unreliable, they wouldn't be around today.

For those who say the intel systems are unstable now, just hang in there until Leopard comes out. 10.4 for Intel was pretty rushed, and there are a lot of holes to be fixed, which (i believe) is the reason 10.5 has been held out for so long. I reckon it will fly on the Intel machines like you won't believe.

I'm taking it to the Apple Shop tomorrow, hopefully they can fix it. I do like the iMac but it is hard to love it when it is always freezing on you.

Could you please check out my latest thread in this part of the forum, I think you may be able to help me.

[Erasmus]

I am a happy owner of a G4 Cube.

Sure, it sometimes freezes, usually if I leave it for a few hours. It sometimes fails to wake up, and every few days I find myself needing to hold down the power button.

Considering how much freeware I run on it though, it's a wonder it works, let alone works as well as it does!

This computer has been my only computer for over six years now. In that time it has needed a new power supply, and a new hard disk. It came with System 9.1, I think, but it could have been 9.0. Since, I have installed OSX 10.0, 10.2, 10.3, and now 10.4. The screen has never had a dead pixel, and other than a dead HD and PSU, I have never had an issue that a simple restart hasn't fixed, although a good disk format and system reinstall every couple of years seems to keep it running smoothly when it gets too bogged down with the random stuff I run on it.

Although I intend to get a new Apple laptop within the next month or so, I will always keep this computer. My parents both have black G3 Powerbooks which would have to be about 10 years old and still run great, although I can't believe how my Mum puts up with how slow it is.

All in all, I am sorry that you have had such problems with your computers, but you should know that you are certainly in the minority. The vast majority of Mac owners are more than delighted with their machines, which continue to run excellently well past their intended lifetime. It saddens me that you are judging the quality of a brand of computer on one example. You are just unlucky. Take it to an Apple store, and have them look at it. If no joy, back up your data, format the disk and put a fresh system install on it, and see if there are still problems. If not, then make sure you watch what programs you run. If you download random stuff on the net, then you take the chance of destabilising your system, just like any other operating system. If you only use software from reputable sources, and keep your computer's software up-to-date, Apple computers will run for days, if not weeks, and not freeze. Many people on these forums will confirm this.

In conclusion, don't base all your opinions on one piece of bad luck. Beware running badly made applications from non well known sources, and enjoy the computer you have, because there are plenty of Windows to Mac converts that will never look back, and love OSX.

[BoyBach]

I've had my iMac since November 2005 and not had a single problem with it - hardware or software-wise.

In fact, in all of my 'computer-ing life' the only problem that I've had was with the DVD-ReWriter tray 'sticking' on my old Compaq laptop.

I've been lucky with my computers.

:)

[EricNau]

Mine is the least reliable computer I have ever used, and I am a long time Windows user.

It frequently freezes on me, often it will not shut down and now it has decided not to boot at all.

Oh the joys of being a Mac user:rolleyes:

Buying a Mac is the worst mistake I have ever made. From now on I am going to stick with Linux and Windows.
Keep in mind, it was booting just fine until you decided to put Windows on it. ;)

[EM87]

Keep in mind, it was booting just fine until you decided to put Windows on it. ;)

I had thought of that...

Anyway I am really pissed now as I had a assignment on it that is due in 2 days and it was the only full copy I had of it, I did not see a need to save it on my iPod or USB stick as I didn't think OS X would do something like this.

[amiga]

Now they are fixed both my Power Mac G5 and iMac G5 are amazing but they were a nightmare at times :( so much so I wished I could rely on a trusty Amiga...

[sunfast]

My G4 iMac has never missed a beat, it's a superb machine. My MacBook has had battery problems (battery replaced under warranty).

I've had worse experiences with my PCs (when I had some). My VAIO had two replacement hardrives.

[miniConvert]

If your Mac isn't very reliable then it's very broken. If it's just a software thing then it may be that reinstalling OS X solves your problems. If it's a dodgy unit, however, and it's relatively new then I'd push very hard for a replacement.

When folk harp on about how amazingly rock solid their Mac's are they're not lying, but that's not to say that every machine that rolls out of Apple is perfect.

[RacerX]

All my systems are very reliable... this PowerBook I'm using has been up for 139 days (and would have been up even longer if I had a working battery for it :eek: ).

I try to make it very clear to my clients, crashes/freezes/etc. are not normal for Macs. If you are having problems... you actually have problems, and they need to be addressed.

[Leaver]

Hello again - 14 posts in half an hour - this place is busy :)

Just thought i'd fill you in on the backstory

Bought the mac in sept06 and it would crash (beachball spinning and just hanging) and i would have to hard reset the mac every so often from when i bought it! i thought i had done something to the settings or OS so i tried to diagnosis it myself, i tried all of my peripherals in a different port and with EVERYTHING unplugged even the network but it still crashed so i archive and reinstalled osx - still no better so it went back to the shop, i got it to crash at the genius bar just by using it normally, on an external HD with a completley different OS than mine on it. they kept it for 3 days and couldn't find anything wrong with it. They suggested i reinstall the OS from Scratch so i did that and i only put essential music stuff on it (that's what i bought it for) and it is still crashing - it even crashed half way through typing this! i have had to do this on my windows PC :( - something is wrong, and i was just wondering if it had anything to do with intel and tiger

sorry for the rant but i just want a mac that works!

cheers for the replies - Dan

[daneoni]

Macs have been the most reliable computers for me. Of all the macs i've owned the one that gave me major issues was the 1.5GHz PowerBook simply because it had the most trips to AppleCare due to logic board replacements. All others have been mostly peachy. My current C2D MBP is the same, running smoothly, i've only had to replace a defective battery thus far. Otherwise...peachy.

[Tymmz]

you were asking for intel macs, but i can only refer to my PPC 12'' PB and I must say it is freaking reliable. I think one kernal panic in more than a year. I love that machine!

Sorry to hear about your trouble. Put some friendly pressure on Apple and tell them what's going on with your machine and let them sort it out. Once the hardware is fixed you won't regret the purchase.

good luck

EDIT: lucky me, I never had bad experiences with hardware-purchases, but I'm preparing for the day when I really have to complain to someone.

[siurpeeman]

most of my macs have been fairly reliable. my current macbook and ibook g4 run fabulously (as did my old dual g5), all without a hitch, especially since switching to mac os x. i've had problems in the past, though, with a g3 imac and a g4 cube, so i wouldn't go out of my way to say that macs are more reliable than other pc's out there. the mac is reliable, sure, but i don't think any more so than, say, a vaio.

[Butters]

My intel machine has more reliability issues than my G4 but like others have mentioned I think that's because of 10.4 intel being rushed.

Hopefully Leopard will make it shine

[mattscott306]

I have had my PB since September of '04, since then I have taken 2 trips to procare, the first was to drop of my PB becuase I busted the screen (feel asleep working on a project, mac fell=bad news), the second trip was to pick up the powerbook from said incident. I did have my system freeze up once, it was back when I was running on 126 megabytes of ram, and I decided to open up photoshop, that was a BAD move. Other then that those (both of wich are pretty much my fault) there have been no problems.

[phungy]

I'm I have gotten about 2 freezes and occasionally beach balls of death yet I'm very content with mine.

[rogersmj]

My iMac, my first Mac and now five months old, has been wonderfully reliable. I've had just one kernel panic, and it was when I was screwing around with an odd piece of USB hardware. Other than that, it has never crashed, never locked up on me, never let me down.

[maccam]

my ibook g4 is incredible. :)

[kwajo.com]

I've owned something like 12 Macs over the years and they have all been very reliable. I've probably had 6 kernel panics in the past 7-8 years, and half of those were due to me fiddling around. Now I haven't owned any Intel macs yet so I can't speak on that (I'm waiting for Leopard), but all the machines I've owned are still operational, and really the only bad thing I had happen was one Powerbook arrived DOA, but I got it replaced and never had a single issue.

[iShizzle]

I've recently replaced my old iMac G4 (2003) with an Intel iMac 24".

I haven't experienced any crashes, I'm very impressed with the performance of my Mac, although Tiger for intel do act strangely at times.

I do agree with the fact that Mac crashes are very rare. If they do happen frequently and a fresh system install can't solve the problem then it's probably a hardware issue.

There will always be a number of machines that contain flaws no matter who the manufacturer is.

I recommend never to purchase revision A products (wait for the "casualties" ie. people's experience with the product), and if there's nothing a system restore can't do, consult the respective dealer. It's within your right to get a machine that works!

[spencecb]

For those who say the intel systems are unstable now, just hang in there until Leopard comes out. 10.4 for Intel was pretty rushed, and there are a lot of holes to be fixed, which (i believe) is the reason 10.5 has been held out for so long. I reckon it will fly on the Intel machines like you won't believe.

This is simply not true. Steve Jobs said himself that OS X has been in development for Intel alongside PowerPC since OS X 10.0. So, every change they made for the PowerPC editions, the exact same thing was done for the Intel version. And that means if changes caused problems, then the development team began debugging and sorting the problem.

OS X 10.4 for Intel was not rushed out.

[SBik2]

My first macbook CD was really reliable compared to the Sony Vaio i had before it. Then i broke my first macbook and the new C2D macbook is faster(of course) but for some reason, whenevr i boot, i just hang on a grey screen with no apple. Most of the time it works if i hold the power button just until to the point when it makes that very loud tone noise(not the startup chime) but other than that, everything is better with my macs. I even amazed my 10 year old brother with my mac and now hes getting one when he starts 6th grade.(the same time when i got my vaio)

[brad.c]

The only Mac I ever had a problem with was a 1.25 gHz Mirror-door G4 that was DOA on arriival. Replacement machine worked like a dream.

Last year, I bought one of the first MBPs that came in the store against my better judgment. "Never buy Rev A!", I thought, but couldn't help myself. You know what? It has been every bit as solid and dependable as the other 9 of my previous 10 Macs. I did need to bring it into the Apple Store yesterday, after phone support failed to fix a battery problem. My Genius guy was very good--and very appreciative of the fact I was polite and in a good mood. I feel sorry for these guys.

[CptnJustc]

FWIW, my Mac history:

First one, 20" iMac G5: Worked great for a while, then started getting random heat-related shutdowns (turns out it was dust in non-user-serviceable areas). HD died and was replaced under warranty. A while ago, the power supply died (and it wasn't one of the ones with a known PS problem), and was replaced under Applecare. Since then, has worked pretty well, but doesn't see much action these days....

12" G4 PowerBook for the SO: Has been pretty flawless since the day it was purchased, as far as I can tell. Not a single issue of any type, by far the most reliable of my Macs. And it was a refurb. ^_-

15" Core Duo MBP: First one was DOA - random gray screens of death. Replaced with a unit that's worked pretty flawlessly, except for the distorted right speaker (sent in to fix, they said they re-set it, sounds the same). Got some bad memory from Crucial, had it replaced and all's well. Very rarely the video will completely freak out while I'm playing WoW (heat-related?), can usually reset it by going in/out of full-screen, but once had to put it to sleep and wake it back up to get video back.

1.66 Core Duo Mini: Had a strange problem in the beginning, where occasionally net services would randomly stop responding, though it would continue accepting connections. After a reinstall, this has been working flawlessly as a server/HTPC. Its current uptime is 61 days, though I guess I'll have to reboot for that darned Daylight Savings Time update.

Overall, from my experience, I have to admit Apple's reliability has been shaky. But I'd consider the Mini and the PB success stories, so far. The MBP has also been doing very well, except of course for the DOA one.

[bbergie]

I know the original poster was inquiring about other mac users' experiences particularly relative to the intoduction of intel processors into the Mac line up, but, I wanted to quickly add that my PowerBook G4, which is nearing 5 years, continues to be reliable in its provision of good, stable service. I've only had to replace the Hard Disk and I've recently puchased a new battery, but otherwise the machine continues to be a great, speedy performer. Those PPC chips aren't so bad.:cool:

[slu]

I bought my iMac G5 in Sept of 2004 and have NEVER had a kernel panic. I have had programs quit or freeze, but have never had a complete crash.

[Legolamb]

I've had a iiSI (my first computer), 8600, G3, PB5300, TiPB, and currently my C2D MBP. Except for the time my AC adapter for my Ti decided to try to self-immolate, I never had any crashes. What ever "freezes" were software related, or when I decided to do weird things in dashcode or QT. I do fix permissions when I'm updating software, generally don't engage in "unsafe" practices;) . I feel for members who have the problems I've been reading about, but you're experiences are not the norm.

[Eraserhead]

I did not see a need to save it on my iPod or USB stick as I didn't think OS X would do something like this.

It's a computer, you always need to backup, especially before installing a new OS, especially with beta drivers (boot camp ;) )

I know I don't back up enough but it's essential.

[wordmunger]

I'd like to see a reliable survey of 10,000-plus computer users asking how often their computer crashes, what OS they use, and how old the computer is. Could be very interesting! But threads like this are only going to attract people with problems.

[volvoben]

Overall, Apple makes good hardware that lasts. There have been some annoying problems (white spots on TiBooks come to mind) but most of the time they're replaced, at least for a certain period of time, free of charge. Apple makes rather expensive hardware, but i trust it somewhat more than the average tossed together dell or HP.

My experiences with mac hardware:

Quicksilver G4 - the computer that woke me up from years of windows haze, it was at my first internship at an ad agency. When I got there it had an uptime of over 200 days, being used constantly by the whole crew of interns. We lost power once, and installed the 10.3.9 update, but until the original HDD failed it never had a single crash/panic or other issue. I was almost glad when my dell laptop fried its motherboard with a short near the DC input, because i could get:

Intel 20" imac CD - had it for a little over a year now, 1 panic when i installed a PPC-only program, otherwise flawless.

iMac G3 DV, bought by a friend during college as a refurb, crashed in os9 daily, but since putting on OSX 5 years ago, it's never had a panic or issue. The HDD bearings are very noisy now and it isn't used often, but it works awfully well.

[Angrist]

I've never had any serious problems with any of my machines that warrant complaint.

iMac -
Runs just like the day I got it, no crashes or KP's ever.

Powerbook -
Battery died, free replacement from the recall.
Dings and dents from living in a bag, scratches on the handrest from use, expected wear and tear.
About a weeks worth of KPs .. traced to a faulty stick of RAM, it happens.

PowerMac -
This machine has given me the most trouble ... mostly because it's overloaded with scavenged and second hand parts.
Boot problems, either a bad HD or controller card. Replaced with a new ATA card for large drive support and the problem went away.
KP's ... bad RAM, thats what I get for buying no-name from ebay.
Recently, more boot problems, doesn't see startup disk. I think the old HD is finally dying, makes a chirping noise. Could be a power supply issue, 4 HDs, burner, upgraded video, TV card, ATA card ... might be overworked.


All in all, the Macs that I've owned have been very reliable. The only major problems have come from my tinkering with and overworking old hardware. Likewise, all the other macs in my family (iBook, MB, G3 iMac, eMac, and assorted pre-G3 stuff) have been similarly stable.

[jzuena]

One quick question, did you install any 3rd party RAM in your Mac? I have an Intel Mini that is just about a year old and have had no problems at all. Not wanting to deal with opening the mini, I got it with 2GB straight from Apple. But if I had gotten an iMac I am sure I would have done the RAM upgrade myself. I have heard from others that the Intel Macs are picky about what RAM they will work with. Incompatible RAM could cause the problems you are seeing.

[smwatson]

After a year of owning my first Mac, I can say its very reliable.

Sure, there are software crashes, but as long as its all up to date its fine.

I just dont want to replace it but can feel the days of Intel-only fast approaching me :(



P.S. On delivery had logic board failure, but was replaced nicely, now works like a charm.

1 stuck pixel.
The almost high pitched grinding noise that these iMacs seem to have.

Easy to live with though.
Love it.

[AL2TEACH]

also had this cube since 9.x and only had 1 kernel panic in X and had to force a shutdown due to a kink in other software maybe 3x's. I also clean the puter weekly with onyx, applejack, or mainmenu. jzuena mentioned the ram issue which is a major cause of kernel panics, slow downs and hangups may be due to the system needing some cleaning out and repairing permissions.

[dopey220]

I find that Intel iMacs can be a bit touchy. The ones in the labs here at school sometimes freeze when I'm logging in. Also, it may be your software; Non-universal apps like Adobe CS2 can be quite "crashy."

[dllavaneras]

Very reliable. Sure, it's starting to show it's age, but it's reliable as ever. I've never lost a paper, project or important work. Sure, it's painfully slow sometimes, but I think I just push it too hard :p

[rknabe]

I bought an iMac G3 (Strawberry) on ebay about a year and a half ago ($100). I cleaned it up, and put in a 30GB drive and some memory I had laying around (384MB), and put OS X.4 on. I'm constantly amazed that it keeps purring along. Hardware-wise, it's like new (circa 1999-2000). I've had a couple of application freezes, but that's about it. Never lost any data or anything. My wife and kids use it all the time to surf, email, etc.

I get the feeling from reading in forums like this though, that there has been much less consistent quality on the intel-based notebooks. Understandable, since so much was redesigned at the motherboard level in a short amount of time. Good evidence of this is that there have been several hardware revs in about a year.

It seems the iMacs have maintained a better consistency, though.

[wizwaz3]

I had my C2D act weird only once. It froze in the middle of web surfing, I couldn't click anything, but everything else responded (frontrow, dock magnification, etc.). Even after rebooting a few times, nothing. I finally waited long enough and it was fine. I figured out that it had been downloading the updates and that's what was hanging it up. But only once!

[Erasmus]

I might add that I find it hard to believe that the quality issues are Apple's fault. It seems to me that Apple make the case, and buy the innards. Apple would probably trust the quality control of whoever they buy parts off.

It seems to me that any problems that cause kernel panics on a regular basis would be a result of slight defects in the hardware. I should think that damage caused in putting the computer together would be far more likely to make the computer not work at all.

So... Not Apple's fault. Every computer manufacturer has this problem, and as Apple is now using more technologically cutting edge parts than the old G4 and G5 were at the time, (this is arguable I suppose) more faults are to be expected.

[Zwhaler]

My iMac G5 and Core Duo MacBook are completely reliable.

Same with my current C2D iMac.

[iJawn108]

my macbook has been great.

[eRondeau]

I have a 1GHz iBook G4 which I purchased new on November 14, 2003. Believe it or not, it has been running *continously* since then -- 3+ years -- without a hiccup! It has only been restarted for software updates (I started with 10.2.2) and a battery replacement about 6-months ago. This is absolutely the most reliable computer I've ever had. In 3+ years of daily "moderate-to-heavy" use I have never seen a system crash, period. Refrigerators should be this reliable!

Having said that -- the new Macbooks do seem a little on the "cheap" side to me. I don't own one, but I've played with them in the stores. The keyboard seems a little chintzy, and the trackpad button especially seems a little flimsy. Of course, my iBook was $2399 (CDN) when I bought it, and now you can get a Macbook that's five times as powerful for half the price. So I guess there's no free ride.

[srf4real]

Totally. I have never had to repair / replace anything on any of my macs. I have a 9 year old g3 powerbook and a 9 year old g3 iMac, and a 20 month old g4 mini... never a single virus, hardware failure, nothing. Used to have to repair permissions alot when using sKetchy free apps... that's it. Every one of my macs has been on within the last week and worked fine.:)

[nagromme]

Rock solid. (Intel iMac.) I run a zillion things at once.

No computer maker can offer zero failures, but Apple's failure rates have long been the lowest in the industry. (Consumer Reports, among others, tracks that data.)

If you want to hear the horror stories of my LEAST reliable machine ever, I will tell you about my eMachines :o

[FadeToBlack]

I've owned a lot of different Macs since switching in December '04.

eMac 1.25GHz G4
PowerBook G3 "Lombard" 333
iBook G3 366
Power Mac G4 Dual 867 MDD
TiBook 667
Mac mini Core Duo
12" PowerBook 867

Out of all of these Macs, the only one that gave me any serious trouble was the 12" PowerBook. I never got to pinpoint the problem, as the eBay seller gave me a refund, but it would kernel panic when booting from the CD and the wireless didn't work.

Other than that, though, aside from me being annoyed by the trackpads on some of the laptops, (I was new to using a laptop at the time and the trackpads were "jerky." Honestly, it was probably just me not being used to using a laptop.) the Macs I've had have been rock solid. Out of all of those Macs, the only one I ever seen kernel panic was the 12" PowerBook.

Yes, you can get a defective machine, but that's the way it is when you buy anything. The only reason you here about so many defective machines is because people get online and talk about it and try to get help when they have problems.

[kerpow]

Mine is extremely slow. Typically I login in as myself and my wife does as well and we use fast user switching. Maybe this uses alot more memory. Still, 768mb to run iTunes, iPhoto. Mail and Firefox each should be enough.

I've done everything imaginable; Onyx, disk permissions etc. Haven't completely reinstalled the OS as it would be a major pain.

I expect I'll replace it soon with an iMac.

[joelovesapple]

Mine is a joy to own and run - and I can say this because it just behaves itself - unlike the majority of computers. I don't even have to tempt it with any more RAM! (Has 2GB anyway which is fine for now).:)

[Father Jack]

Rock steady.

I don't know why I kept using crap PC's for so long :mad:


Mac's rule ..... O.K.


FJ

[twoodcc]

my macs have been much more reliable than any windows machine that i ever used or owned.

i've started with a mini, then powerbook, then imac (intel), then macbook, then mac pro, and then macbook pro

sold or traded all except the mac pro and macbook pro :cool: :apple:

[Gosh]

Hi there

i thought this would be a good place to ask how other intel macs are doing. i am suspecting that this is an intel thing!

Cheers - Dan

You maintain it yeah? http://www.atomicbird.com/macaroni

Verify disk and permissions yeah?

Sorry if you already do these but you might expect problems if you don't!

Hope you get sorted and get your faith back!

[nsbio]

I have owned two laptops: a 1998 Dell Inspiron 3500 (RIP) and my current 15'' 1.5Ghz PB. The Dell lasted six years with no failure of electronics; however, the plastic case fell apart after three years, rendering it a stationary machine.

The PB, in two years of ownership, has had two hardware failures, both related to the logic board (an ambient light sensor failure and the dreaded lower memory slot). Both times the machine was fixed under warranty. The case is holding on solid, and I do not expect it to fall apart as the Dell did.

Softwarewise, the PB (10.3.9) has had one kernel panic and a couple of crashes in two years. The average uptime between reboots is about 30 days.

In addition, two G5 Imacs at work running Tiger, a little over a year old, have been flawless.

[Shotgun OS]

My G5 iMac 20" has been very reliable. It kernel panic'd once, after I had left it on for a few months, then decided to rip 10 cds. It also had a problem with the fan being clogged, which wuld force the computer to force-sleep. I just took it to an apple authorized place and they cleaned it for me.

The programs it hangs on are Garageband (when I have more than 5 apps open) and Firefox, which takes years of bouncing to open.

Other than that, its been great. Best computer I've ever used.

[Quillz]

Hi there

I Have an intel iMac that seems to crash a lot and i was wondering how evryone else's macs are behaving! i took it back to the mac store and they can find nothing wrong with it - it just hangs every so often and i have to reset it - so frustrating for a mac!

i thought this would be a good place to ask how other intel macs are doing. i am suspecting that this is an intel thing!

Cheers - Dan
I've had my iMac for two weeks now, and it hasn't crashed or slowed down on me yet. Note that since I've had it, I've never turned it off or even rebooted. I love Mac OS X!

[JackAxe]

Very reliable. My Macs require very little maintanance and I can always count on them working, even after they've been asleep. My PC(s) require more of my attention to keep them working smoothly for the most part. I've been using PCs since the eighties and Macs every day since 95. As long as there's not a bad memory chip, or other defective component, OS X runs very stable, where as XP still finds a way to annoy me. :)

I generaly avoid first rev Macs, or any hardware or software for that matter, so this has certainly contributed to my comp's reliablity.

<]=)

[Mr Mac Newbie]

Just a question about support on the mac's. If you buy from the online apple store and you get problems, can youtake it to an apple store in your local town?

Do you have to buy applecare when you buy a mac or can you buy it anytime before the 1 year warrenty runs out (Uk warrenty)

[FadeToBlack]

Just a question about support on the mac's. If you buy from the online apple store and you get problems, can youtake it to an apple store in your local town?

Do you have to buy applecare when you buy a mac or can you buy it anytime before the 1 year warrenty runs out (Uk warrenty)

Yeah, you can take it in for service at any Apple Store.

With AppleCare, you can buy it any time before the warranty runs out.

[bmcgrath]

All the macs I have are have no issues at all. Imac and Macbook Pro. Even the ole clamshell Ibook G3 still works. :)

[risc]

iMac Core 2 Duo 20" = 100% reliable
Mac mini Core Duo = 100%
iMac G5 = 80 % - had to go back twice for issues
MacBook Pro Core Duo 15" = 10 % - worst notebook I have ever owned. Too many issues to mention
PowerBook G4 = 100 %
Power Mac Dual G5 = 100 %
iBook G4 = 70 % - had to go back for the same issue 3 times, Apple didn't replace it

That's all I've owned. Like I said the MacBook Pro is the worst notebook I have ever owned.

[Dunnart]

I'm disappointed to say that my 24 iMac isn't as good as it should be and will probably be going in for service pretty soon.

Problems include; hanging up while shutting down, unable to delete files and folders because of some missing data (error code 36), hanging when importing photos into Aperture. All these indicate HDD issues, but the hardware test and a surface scan using techtools can find no errors or problems. I'm ringing Apple support tomorrow for more suggestions but i feel my machine is probably one of the few unreliable ones :(

Its a shame, its a lovely machine and I want it for many years to come.

Cheers

Steve

[Kernow]

All my macs have been very reliable. I have been a Mac user for about 6 years, and in that time I have had maybe 4-5 kernel panics, and haven't lost a single document through a crash. My Windows laptop on the other hand...

[e12a]

I am going to bring up the response that is in every "reliability" or "how do you like your mac" thread:
a great number of people here are the ones with problems. People who dont have problems wont have a reason to post on forums like macrumors.

as for me, my first mac, a C2D MBP hasnt given me too much trouble *knock on wood*. maybe a few slow start ups where the screen would remain black for 10 or so seconds before the grey screen appears...its locked up on me once last year...i dont remember how that occurred. zero kernel panics so far.

[Attonine]

My HD died after about 7 months on my current MBP, Apple fixed in-store the same day after some long telephone calls. 2 Kernal panics since I've had this machine (about 10 months).

I can't give any quantitative evidence, but compared to my colleagues 5 -6 yr old G4 Ti powerbook, my intel machine does seem less reliable. I do seem to have to re-boot more than he does, but then I do fiddle around with settings and software and try things I've read about on Macrumors (for example), whereas he just makes collages in photoshop.

[shakastange]

Mine wasn't very. When it worked it did so brilliantly. But issues cropped up regularly. Dead motherboard. Faulty Screens etc. Now it is packed away in a corner awaiting a logic board replacement. Powerbook G4 DVI. Instead of fixing, I am waiting on the next round of iMacs. I may fix in the future as my windows laptop only has a PIII processor. And it runs Windows.

[FF_productions]

Every Mac I've owned over the years has been super reliable, which would include:
Performa
PowerMac G3
iMac G5
Dual G4 PowerMac MDD
PowerBook G4

and my MacBook Pro.

The lone PC that my family has owned for 5 years has had a bunch of problems including broken mouse, distorted display, 2 dead internal cd/dvd drives, a couple of BSODS, AND HP didn't include a Windows Xp re-install CD so when it crashed, we couldn't do nothing about it.

[dukeblue91]

I'm disappointed to say that my 24 iMac isn't as good as it should be and will probably be going in for service pretty soon.

Problems include; hanging up while shutting down, unable to delete files and folders because of some missing data (error code 36), hanging when importing photos into Aperture. All these indicate HDD issues, but the hardware test and a surface scan using techtools can find no errors or problems. I'm ringing Apple support tomorrow for more suggestions but i feel my machine is probably one of the few unreliable ones :(

Its a shame, its a lovely machine and I want it for many years to come.

Cheers

Steve

Steve
If you haven't already you should either reinstall OSX or get your hands on TechTool Pro or DiskWarrior.
This should fix most if not all of your problems.
Good luck!

[dukeblue91]

Hello again - 14 posts in half an hour - this place is busy :)

Just thought i'd fill you in on the backstory

Bought the mac in sept06 and it would crash (beachball spinning and just hanging) and i would have to hard reset the mac every so often from when i bought it! i thought i had done something to the settings or OS so i tried to diagnosis it myself, i tried all of my peripherals in a different port and with EVERYTHING unplugged even the network but it still crashed so i archive and reinstalled osx - still no better so it went back to the shop, i got it to crash at the genius bar just by using it normally, on an external HD with a completley different OS than mine on it. they kept it for 3 days and couldn't find anything wrong with it. They suggested i reinstall the OS from Scratch so i did that and i only put essential music stuff on it (that's what i bought it for) and it is still crashing - it even crashed half way through typing this! i have had to do this on my windows PC :( - something is wrong, and i was just wondering if it had anything to do with intel and tiger

sorry for the rant but i just want a mac that works!

cheers for the replies - Dan

Dan,
If you have done all the stuff you said you did, one could only think that you are having a Ram problem.
If you did or had installed any extra ram I would take that out and try again.
Good luck!

PS.
All but a G3 iBook which had a few logic-board problems and got replaced with a shiny new G4 iBook by Apple, all my systems have been 99% rock solid.
I run 3 Mac's at all times for 24/7 and only restart for updates.

[SuperCompu2]

My PowerMac's been rock solid, as well as my PowerBook (funny, i bought it supposedly dead and it worked perfectly upon arrival and has ever since). The only problem I have ever had was with an iMac G3, which will not start up or some strange reason I could not figure out.

It's been unplugged for weeks, might as well give it a shot out of sheer boredom.

[superleccy]

My iBook G4 (see sig) has been rock solid for two years and four months. It's a real trooper, and it's as fast as it was (or faster) when it was new. I've never had to re-install the OS, and hell, up until the Quicktime Update a few days ago, I hadn't rebooted it for a couple of months. Sure I've had odd problems here and there but I've always found a solution on the Apple website or (usually) this forum.

I had a BT mighty mouse die on me once, but otherwise all the Apple kit I've used has been totally reliable.

SL

[Kingsly]

Like a well maintained 1983 Mercedes-Benz 300TD... on steroids.


Basically: Reliable. Really, really reliable. :D

[rstorm]

All Intel Mac's I have at the office have been rock solid. Only issue is with Quark and Suitcase.

15" MBP 2.0 CD
15" MBP 2.13 C2D

My G4 is still going strong but I am jealous when I do have to do minor maintenance. April can not come quick enough for me!

[Schnebar]

My Intel iMac crashes some programs alot. But never all at once.

I think it is just rosetta problems because all that crashes is word (bad program to randomly crash) and Netscape under rosetta running shockwave games because it is not universal yett. (as far as i know)

But I guess firefox crashes some times too and that is native.

But It is never that big of a deal because just the program quits

[dpaanlka]

All of mine = extremely reliable. Never had a problem that I couldn't fix.

[bonafide]

Now they are fixed both my Power Mac G5 and iMac G5 are amazing but they were a nightmare at times :( so much so I wished I could rely on a trusty Amiga...

Agreed.

[Cult Follower]

Mine has been perfectly reliable except for a few Safari crashes.

[infz]

so much so I wished I could rely on a trusty Amiga...

Software Failure. Press left mouse button to continue.
Guru Meditation #00000004.0000A0AC

[ppnkg]

My iMac has crashed just three times since I bought it in August 2005. I can recall the exact number because these were such exceptional events. Two times Word crashed, and the other was a kernel panic at startup, if I remember correctly.

So practically speaking I never had any problems with my imac. It works, and, very minor issues apart, which are likely to be corrected with OS updates, it works exactly the way I want it to work.

I am very much aware that serious concerns may occur and are always likely to occur with computers, just as with any machine, but I think the best approach to them would be to just call Apple as soon as you detect the problem.

[FullCollapse]

only had my imac for about 2 months, but so far so good. i think firefox has crashed a couple of times but that's really been it.

[ironic23]

my MBP core duo hasnt been the most reliable. the screen buzzes just like a fuzzy tv at times and most times it doesnt output the video signal to my 23" ACD. on top of that, it gets extremely hot and has the buzzing sound. USB ports dont work at times. i think apple hardware has declined in quality so far, contrary to fortune's report.

[iPod Shuffle]

Have never had any problems with my PM (although it may be time to open that iBook soon...getting pretty darn slow at anything.)

[APPLENEWBIE]

mac mini g4: bullet proof
G3 powermac 400: bullet proof
g4 ibook 1.33: bullet proof
macbook 1.83: bullet proof (more or less)
imac intel c2d: was a bit hinky after I bought/installed some centon ram 512mb. Computer got really unreliable until I took it out. Replaced it with pny ram. Now imac is bulletproof.

One reason I switched to mac was the unbelievable reliability problems I experienced on 4 windows machines. Since i switched to mac... life is good.

[volk]

My Mac experience has been excellent over the years. So far I have owned a Performa 5300, PowerMac G3, and a 24" iMac.

The breakdown:

1. Performa 5300 is going on 12 years old. During that time, the only repair needed was when it was brand new. The monitor that shipped with it from Apple was damaged and lost it's red output. Once that was fixed, no issues at all with hardware of any kind. System 7.5 had some moments of unreliability, but once I moved to system 8, the machine has been virtually bulletproof. My Dad still uses this machine daily for all his invoice and billing needs for his business.

2. PowerMac G3 266 beige. A very fast computer in it's day, and very capable. This was my learning machine and experienced a ton of dabbling hardware wise. I swapped out hard drives, added internal SCSI CD-RW, maxed the RAM, created a slave HD setup, and added an internal ATI card. The only failure this machine experienced was a bad IDE cable (my fault) that would sometimes cause the drive not to be recognized on boot. This machine still runs great, but was replaced because the cost of upgrading it any further was greater than getting a newer machine. It was also very marginal for handling OS X.

3. iMac 24". In some respects, this machine has been the most reliable and the most unreliable Mac I have owned all at once. OS X has been a rock. I have experienced two application quits, none of which have brought down the OS, and have had only one issue that "hung" the OS, but it was while using Chicken of the VNC and experiencing a power failure. A reboot cured it. On the hardware front, everything is very solid, but there are a few quibbles. I can hear the dreaded screen whine and have a fan that seems to vibrate excessively. On occassion my Mac will sleep the screen and not the entire system, but it's pretty rare. Overall, I love this machine.

I wish my Windows XP box at work would be this reliable. Any change with USB devices will either kernal panic the computer, force a reboot, or reset my keyboard repeat settings. I have lost a drive, and had 3 power supply replacements. Overall, it's about on the average with every other Windows experience I have had.

The Mac isn't perfect, but it has been light years better than anything I have had on the PC side.

[queshy]

24" iMac pretty reliable...MSN has crashed 2 or 3 times, but I suspect it's because of buggy software...and when it crashes, it relaunches instantly, and my other stuff is unaffected.

[queshy]

My Mac experience has been excellent over the years. So far I have owned a Performa 5300, PowerMac G3, and a 24" iMac.

The breakdown:

1. Performa 5300 is going on 12 years old. During that time, the only repair needed was when it was brand new. The monitor that shipped with it from Apple was damaged and lost it's red output. Once that was fixed, no issues at all with hardware of any kind. System 7.5 had some moments of unreliability, but once I moved to system 8, the machine has been virtually bulletproof. My Dad still uses this machine daily for all his invoice and billing needs for his business.

2. PowerMac G3 266 beige. A very fast computer in it's day, and very capable. This was my learning machine and experienced a ton of dabbling hardware wise. I swapped out hard drives, added internal SCSI CD-RW, maxed the RAM, created a slave HD setup, and added an internal ATI card. The only failure this machine experienced was a bad IDE cable (my fault) that would sometimes cause the drive not to be recognized on boot. This machine still runs great, but was replaced because the cost of upgrading it any further was greater than getting a newer machine. It was also very marginal for handling OS X.

3. iMac 24". In some respects, this machine has been the most reliable and the most unreliable Mac I have owned all at once. OS X has been a rock. I have experienced two application quits, none of which have brought down the OS, and have had only one issue that "hung" the OS, but it was while using Chicken of the VNC and experiencing a power failure. A reboot cured it. On the hardware front, everything is very solid, but there are a few quibbles. I can hear the dreaded screen whine and have a fan that seems to vibrate excessively. On occassion my Mac will sleep the screen and not the entire system, but it's pretty rare. Overall, I love this machine.

I wish my Windows XP box at work would be this reliable. Any change with USB devices will either kernal panic the computer, force a reboot, or reset my keyboard repeat settings. I have lost a drive, and had 3 power supply replacements. Overall, it's about on the average with every other Windows experience I have had.

The Mac isn't perfect, but it has been light years better than anything I have had on the PC side.

Sorry for the double post, but I dont know how to edit a post by with a quote. Do you only have the screen whine on lower brightness levels? And how loud are the fans? I really dont know how quiet the iMac should be. Out of 5 iMacs, I have yet to have a "completely silent" one as some users put it. I think it's very subjective..it may seems silent to one person but loud to another.

[cwedl]

99.9% up time - 0.01% used to restart computer computer after updates

[volk]

Sorry for the double post, but I dont know how to edit a post by with a quote. Do you only have the screen whine on lower brightness levels? And how loud are the fans? I really dont know how quiet the iMac should be. Out of 5 iMacs, I have yet to have a "completely silent" one as some users put it. I think it's very subjective..it may seems silent to one person but loud to another.


I notice the whine at all times, but I don't run the screen at full brightness. The fan issue is a little different...it is somewhat eratic. Mostly it just seems that one of the fans is causing some vibration. That vibration seems louder than anything else.

As to how loud it is, I can only tell you that I hear it and my wife doesn't. She can hear it at times, but considers it completely unobtrusive. I work with audio all day at work, so I really notice it. Even at that, it is still only a minor quible...it's not like a PC box with fans roaring away under the desk or anything. If the tv is on or something else is going on at all, it disappears into the background completely.

[Cybergypsy]

G4 and below Great!!! Macbook and imac...not at all

[Sesshi]

I drafted quite a long reply to this, but Textedit is now beachballing. This is a MBP with a less than week-old OS X installation.

That just about sums it up really.

[spicyapple]

My mac has been rock solid for as long as I can remember.

I did have to replace the Superdrive at one point, but other than that, even with an internal SATA RAID, non-Apple RAM and USB peripherals out the wazoo, it's been quite the workhorse for me.

[Sesshi]

My mac has been rock solid for as long as I can remember.

I did have to replace the Superdrive at one point, but other than that, even with an internal SATA RAID, non-Apple RAM and USB peripherals out the wazoo, it's been quite the workhorse for me.

Intel Mac?

[EricNau]

I'm going to revise this statement...
My iMac G5 and Core Duo MacBook are completely reliable.

Now it is:

My iMac G5 is completely reliable. My MacBook, a totally different story. :rolleyes:

[Tommyjolly]

.

[aafuss1]

My Mac mini (1.5GHz Core Solo) is extremely reliable-the only problem I've had with it was the audio board which was replaced under warranty, other than that it's been stable.

[dhc]

Coincidentally, I was just discussing with my wife that no matter how fast and powerful my 1.83 CD MBP is, my Rev A (:eek:) G5 iMac was noticeably more stable. It's not like the MBP is hideously problematic, but the benchmark was set high by the G5, and it shows. I'm shortly going to be buying a 20" intel iMac, and hope to get close to the PPC's stability.

The better half's got a final revision iBook which is solid, and I've offered to buy her a C2D Macbook, but she's a little discouraged by the 'quirks' of my intel machine, and not at all convinced. :(

[dartzorichalcos]

My PowerMac has been like a tank, rock solid.

[Cybergypsy]

My sig line sez it all :(

[phantasmagoria]

I switched to Apple last year and have a refurb iMac and a new MacBook Pro.

I haven't had any problems with the iMac, other than the fact that it's stopped going to sleep unless I manually select the option.

The MacBook Pro, which I bought in November, has had it's logic board, top case and bluetooth module all replaced already. It used to crash daily, but has been better since the transplants, though it's still not what I'd call reliable compared to my PC. Despite that fact, for some reason I've fallen for it completely and it's my daily work-horse now... despite the problems I believe I get a huge overall increase in productivity using it, and wouldn't swap it for the world now!

[NickD]

My iMac works great in general. I've been having some slow-down problems recently, but am quickly on the road to fixing them. Overall, very reliable.

-NickD-

[psycoswimmer]

99%. I do get the occasional need to force quit, though.

[dopey220]

MY Macs (see sig) are very reliable. The ones I use at school, not so much (CD iMacs and Mac Pros). Not exactly sure why that is. They often freeze up when I log in, and sometimes the Dock freezes.

[BilltheCat]

only 4 months so far but completely reliable! quiet, cool, and always works.

I just upgraded ram to 2 gigs and it still runs perfectly. iMac was the best decision I have made in computers since I sold the atari 800!

[wildwonderful]

I love my iMac, it has been solid as a rock. jm

[jesteraver]

Key problem was: defected hard drives (4x in 3 years)
Accent problem was: SMU (1st time it happened to me ever since i had my iMac G5)

[jesteraver]

99%. I do get the occasional need to force quit, though.

Only happens to me when something slows down to a dead stop lol mostly Safari.

[k2k koos]

Actually, no real reliability problems, but my PB G4 sometimes does not want to start up after I shut it down (when running on batteries). Usually, removing the battery, putting it back, and holding the power button for 5 seconds solves it (although sometimes that results in two start up chimes)

Other than that, all my macs, ever since the Macintosh Classic, have never failed on me (okay, an original iMac with a failed hard drive..., and after 9 years of service a fading screen, attached an external LCD, and it's still going strong :-) )

:apple:

[k2k koos]

I switched to Apple last year and have a refurb iMac and a new MacBook Pro.

I haven't had any problems with the iMac, other than the fact that it's stopped going to sleep unless I manually select the option.

The MacBook Pro, which I bought in November, has had it's logic board, top case and bluetooth module all replaced already. It used to crash daily, but has been better since the transplants, though it's still not what I'd call reliable compared to my PC. Despite that fact, for some reason I've fallen for it completely and it's my daily work-horse now... despite the problems I believe I get a huge overall increase in productivity using it, and wouldn't swap it for the world now!


Silly question: Is the sleep option actually activated in the control panels?

Second: Love affairs with Macs are common place, why this is has been discussed in many forums and articles, and not one of these has been able to give a complete all covering answer, but one thing is certain, it has a lot to do with the build, the execution, and design of both software and hardware...
oh, and that illuminated icon on the lid has only made it worse.....:apple:

[JNB]

The computers, not me. :rolleyes:

Absolutely bulletproof, and that goes for every Apple I've had in my sig. Most of 'em were upgraded in their lifespan, ran nearly 24/7, and were working perfectly when they were retired. Never had a single warantee repair or replacement, which is why I just I keep buying 'em.

Now that I've completely jinxed myself...

[kiwi-in-uk]

17" PB G4 (1.33) faultless since I got rid of Norton (switcher's folly).
17" iMac CD was freezing but replaced Mighty Mouse with a cheap Logitech and it has been faultless since then.

[tominated]

pretty reliable. no kernel panics, but every now and the UT2k4 crashes (could bee the mods i have for it). Mind you i have a lot of things like uno, shapeshifter and cleardock.

[Griffindor73]

G4 iBook- amazingly reliable.:)

G5 iMac- not too bad, but has small program crashes- mainly blame in on the fact Tiger is not as stable as Panther (iBook still runs on Panther):mad:

Old G3 iMac (no longer with us, bless) Amazinglt reliable when I had it. Crashed all the time in OS9, but then the wonder that was 10.3 came along and it was a good chap all the time.:)

Here's hoping that 10.5 will make my G5 finally behave itself. Shan't upgrade the iBook until I've tested 10.5 on the iMac.:D

[jesteraver]

my iMac G5 is not reliable anymore. Reset the SMU 2x today and 5x yesterday keeps shutting off on me. Time to get a replacement from Apple

[Fretbuzzer]

I have an iMac G5 20" (Rev.A) that has seen quite a number of trips to the Apple store. Two power supplies, two hard drives, three logic boards, failed memory and it is now starting to hang after waking up from sleep and the fan runs constantly. Time to go back to the genius bar!

My MB is flawless without a single issue and my old G3 grape imac running 10.3 never fails.

My wife hates the 20" imac and has started to compare it to our dreaded Comcrap that we had before we became a mac only family. :eek:

[matthew24]

PM dual G5 2Ghz, PB 1,25Ghz
Indestructible.:)

[ascender]

I ahve a 24" C2D iMac which has been great apart from the problem with the wireless NIC which was recently fixed with an OS X update.

[mad jew]

Mine is more reliable than me. I fall asleep well before my Mac, and neither of us crash all that often. The only time I panic is when I can't find my keys, ten minutes before I need to be at work. My Mac never panics, but I guess it never has to drive to work either.

[wngraham]

My iMac G5 has had a couple of kernal panics, but only when working it too hard (multiple CPU intensive applications running at once, etc.). Otherwise it's been fine.

My MacBook has literally been a rock. No freezes, panics, random shutdowns, nothing.

2 best computers I've ever owned.

[beingme]

I own two mac minis and one macbook and they seem reliable to me. More reliable than my previous dell computers. ew just saying the name make me sick

[dukebound85]

i would say both macs and pcs fail on me equally. macs arent thaaaat great in terms of reliability when compared to windows.

[slooksterPSV]

I have a PPC Mac and it runs like a charm. Its not the fastest mac out there, but it gets what I need done, done, upgrading my RAM was the best choice I made, especially when running Photoshop and other software entities.

How long have I had my iBook? For about... lets see October of 2005, two years in October. It still runs what I need it to very well.
Good luck with your iMac.

[Artful Dodger]

Best computer yet! My 20" iMac and when I had a 17" iMac have been great :D I did have a rough start getting a 20" that was what I bought (too long of a story to tell now) but now some of my friends ask to use it to get stuff done without problems.
I was going to sell it to get a 24" iMac but I think I'm waiting until the end of the year or just before Christmas to sell/buy. My only complaint is that I thought that "I" would never need a screen bigger than a 20" :o I guess I thought wrong again but I'm still very happy :apple:

[Cybergypsy]

I have been with mac for 20 years and not a single bad one in the bunch.. I have had 6 macs in the last year, and must say I have switched back to Vista and I am loving it......QC Apple QC!!!!

[Variant]

Looks like my iMac will have to go back to Apple for the 3rd time this month... :rolleyes: If I end up getting another bad Apple after this, it'll be back to Dell for me...

[MalcolmJID]

99%. I do get the occasional need to force quit, though.

Only happens to me when something slows down to a dead stop lol mostly Safari.

Same here. Had this MacBook since 10th Oct '06, no problems at all (apart from a replaced top case for discolouration). Been plodding along on 512Mb RAM, though hopefully upgrading in the coming week!:D