Should I Wait to Buy The New iMac? (Apple virgin)

[SirLollipopMan]

Hello everyone.

I just got my PC back from the shop after a week of downtime and a ton of headaches. It apparently suffered a system-killing trojan that required a total system restore. Quite frankly, I'm sick and tired of this BS. Every one of the (many!) PCs I've owned have slowed to a crawl within a couple years, and most after 3 or 4 years have just plain died, after giving me nothing but headaches their whole lifespan. I'm sick of it.

Then, while I was waiting for info on my repair, I began playing with an iMac on display. I found the UI incredibly intuitive, and had me constantly blown away with the thought, "That makes so much sense! WHY doesn't Windows do that?!" and so I began thinking about purchasing one.

Then, mere days later, a new line comes out. Now I'm not sure if I should buy now or wait a few months for the bugs to be worked out (also for Lion to be pre-installed, if it comes out in just a few months (?)). I'm not in a huge rush; I'm willing to wait if Macs have a history of having more problems in the first batch.

Also very worth knowing: I'm a professional freelance web designer, and I need a computer that will be reliable day in and day out. A big part of my frustration with PCs/Windows is that I always have to worry about things going to hell and being DOA with a critical job (I do have a backup PC, but it BLOWS).

I would also like to be able to do some moderate music making/recording, and a bit of video editing. I've always wanted to pick up 3D modeling, too. I wonder if that's hard on the system or anything.

TL; DR- I need a dependable, problem free computer for professional use. Should I buy an iMac, or should I wait a few months for kinks to be worked out?

 

[daneoni]

You could wait a month to see how stuff pans out then take the plunge or buy now if you have an Apple store nearby and are willing to spring for AppleCare warranty.

 

[Eudall]

All computers can give you problems and Macs won't be an exception. If you are impressed with what you see, play more, if you do some research and ensure everything you need from a PC can be done on a Mac, make the switch.

My PC went in December last year (during my Christmas holiday no leads), I decided to wait for the new iMac. Did my research and decided it was for me. Waiting my BTO iMac now (hardest wait I have ever had).

 

[SirLollipopMan]

Would you say that Apple is less prone to problems? I say this because I've had nothing BUT problems with every PC I've ever owned. I just want it to work for a change.

 

[daneoni]

Would you say that Apple is less prone to problems? I say this because I've had nothing BUT problems with every PC I've ever owned. I just want it to work for a change.

Apple build both the hardware and software so things are arguably less likely to go wrong.

 

[SantoW]

You could wait a month to see how stuff pans out then take the plunge or buy now if you have an Apple store nearby and are willing to spring for AppleCare warranty.

He'd have a year's Applecare anyway, so no real need to spring for it immediately.

 

[TallManNY]

This is really the third iteration of this design of iMacs. Mainly this is an upgrade to the latest CPU and GPU. Both of these are components that have been out for a while. So I don't think this is one where you need to take a wait and see approach. That said, Lion should be out by July and if you buy now you will have to spend $100 to upgrade the OS. You will probably want to do so, so if you wait, you save that cost and you wait and hear about any problems.

Applecare only extends the 1 year warranty to 3 years, so really only applicable in years 2 and 3.

 

[ZMacintosh]

Well they dont update them within days or quite as frequently. It just happened to be the refresh cycle.

You can try a new one and see if it will pan out, otherwise Apple offers a great deal and discount on Refurbished machines in their refurbish store with the same warranty as a new machine. (Standard 1 year plus applecare extended for 2 additional years).

I have purchased a plenty of refurb Macs, not one had a problem that I encountered. alot of options with Apple if youre not content with springing for brand new-not quite broken in-yet-newtech.

 

[rsted222]

I would buy the previous gen iMac refurb....

...for $929. That's an awesome deal and that computer packs enough punch.

 

[old-wiz]

I wouldn't be too excited about having Lion installed in a new Mac when it is first released; the first release, 10.7.0, is likely to have quite a few bugs and issues with 3rd party software. I'd rather have a new Mac with Snow Leopard and upgrade to Lion when it becomes stable and 3rd party software catches up.

 

[SirLollipopMan]

Yeah, thinking about it, it makes more sense to wait a while to buy Lion anyway. I already love Snow Leopard, so there's no rush.

Here's a question: When Macs have problems, is it usually a factory defect thing that happens early on and is covered under the warranty? I'm willing to deal with that sort of thing. What I can't stand is how every PC I've owned has slowed down significantly after about a year and a half, before crawling into year three and dying. Can the iMac at least last a few years without slowing down significantly? Ideally I would like to use it about 4 years before giving it to my parents and letting them use it for their basic needs without much issue. Oh, also: Is there any significant thing that could happen that wouldn't be covered under (either) warranty?

Thanks.

 

[theSeb]

Yeah, thinking about it, it makes more sense to wait a while to buy Lion anyway. I already love Snow Leopard, so there's no rush.

Here's a question: When Macs have problems, is it usually a factory defect thing that happens early on and is covered under the warranty? I'm willing to deal with that sort of thing. What I can't stand is how every PC I've owned has slowed down significantly after about a year and a half, before crawling into year three and dying. Can the iMac at least last a few years without slowing down significantly? Ideally I would like to use it about 4 years before giving it to my parents and letting them use it for their basic needs without much issue. Oh, also: Is there any significant thing that could happen that wouldn't be covered under (either) warranty?

Thanks.

You're asking two different questions here.

1. If your iMac hardware fails, then yes, you can return it.

All Apple hardware comes with a one-year limited warranty and up to 90 days of complimentary telephone technical support*. To extend your coverage further, purchase the AppleCare Protection Plan.

2. Your computer slowing down has nothing to do with the hardware, but it is a software problem. What you're experiencing is what I, and others, call "Windows bloat".

Basically what happens is that with time Windows slows down due to various reasons, but mainly because of the registry becoming bloated and corrupt as you install and uninstall applications. This leads to invalid registry entries, left behind DLL files and other problems. Other factors such as malware, viruses and trojans can contribute to this as well. You can find registry cleaners to help, but they don't do a perfect job and some of them cause more harm. The only way to stop this is to reinstall windows every 6 months or so.

I've been using windows since version 3.1 so I've wasted quite a lot of my time reinstalling windows. I would have to add a caveat that Windows 7 seems a bit more resilient when it comes to this problem, but it is still not perfect.


I've been using Mac OSX since 2009. I have not reinstalled and my system works as perfectly and fast as the day I got it. So to answer your question , no, unless your hardware is failing, you will not experience the slowing down that you've seen on Windows.

 

[dizmonk]

My biggest issue with PCs is the constant reformatting of Windows. In essence to get my computer to function properly I've often resorted to reinstalling Windows every few months. In addition there's WAY too many viruses and trojans which slip through AV software.


I plan on getting an IMac just not for a while...

 

[stellardream]

you will have to spend $100 to upgrade the OS.

Apple doesn't charge $100 for OSX upgrades. I expect it to be $29.95. That was the case with 10.6, 10.5, 10.4, etc.

 

[sine-nomine]

Apple doesn't charge $100 for OSX upgrades. I expect it to be $29.95. That was the case with 10.6, 10.5, 10.4, etc.

Actually, of those three, only 10.6 was $29. I paid $129 for Tiger, and later $129 for Leopard. Education pricing would have dropped Tiger down to $89, but I didn't know that until I'd already bought it at regular price.

 

[Stealthipad]

Apple makes some of the best hardware you will fine. Buy a copy of Win7 Pro and install it via boot camp and you will never look back! Windows has run like it is on fire and I have even booted MAC in over 6 months!

 

[Sodner]

As mentioned I might be more concerned about the stability of Lion with third party apps then any problems with this new model of iMac. Its just a spec bump.

Take the plunge, the waters wonderful!

 

[stellardream]

Actually, of those three, only 10.6 was $29. I paid $129 for Tiger, and later $129 for Leopard. Education pricing would have dropped Tiger down to $89, but I didn't know that until I'd already bought it at regular price.

I stand corrected . It's been so long I forget. Not bad.

pple makes some of the best hardware you will fine. Buy a copy of Win7 Pro and install it via boot camp and you will never look back! Windows has run like it is on fire and I have even booted MAC in over 6 months!

Ewww... Windows... Heretic!

 

[adnoh]

Wait for Lion, its only a few months away but you will want the extra functionality.

When you switch to mac say bye bye to viruses/trojans and AV software.

 

[DeaconGraves]

If you're hesitant, you might want to wait a month to make sure there are no rampant defects in the new iMacs (I haven't heard any so far on here, so that's a good sign). But other than that, there's no reason to wait.

I would honestly not wait until Lion (or at least wait for Lion). 10.x.0 versions are always a little buggy and may cause some problems. I made a huge mistake upgrading to Leopard on launch day and lost compatibility with a lot of the software that I needed. It would be best to wait for 10.7.2 or so, but that might be six months or so after launch.

 

[Mikey86uk]

Im also an Apple newbie, although i have had a macbook pro for a year

This is my first desktop iMac and i went with the base 27" and im sooo glad i waited for the refresh.

i pretty much love everything about it, i love, and the screen is awesome

The only thing im currently disliking is the magic mouse, but im sure i will get used to it, and i will pick up the track pad in a few months.

If you have the funds, i would seriously go out and pick one up.

Im in love!

 

[clyde2801]

Im also an Apple newbie, although i have had a macbook pro for a year

This is my first desktop iMac and i went with the base 27" and im sooo glad i waited for the refresh.

i pretty much love everything about it, i love, and the screen is awesome

The only thing im currently disliking is the magic mouse, but im sure i will get used to it, and i will pick up the track pad in a few months.

If you have the funds, i would seriously go out and pick one up.

Im in love!

Loving mine as well. Office manager is going to cut his teeth on my white c2d imac now (RHIP). Trackpad's not bad, still 'meh' about the magic mouse. Even a lot of hard core, die hard apple fanatics aren't wild about apple mice in general. Thankfully, most good 3rd party mice on the windows side have mac drivers as well.