Advice on MBP

[orb1692]

Hi I am currently pursuing my Associate's Degree in Sciences and i have one more academic year to complete before i head off to University for a 3 year Computer engineering Bachelor's Degree and also a course in Graphic designing.
Now here's the thing...I do not have a mac and I was thinking of buying one from Canada in 3 weeks when I go or waiting till next year about this same time to buy one.The reason I want to buy next year is because I will not really be using at as much seeing as i have a very capable computer for normal day to day computing including games.However my friends who have mac's tell me that it makes sense to buy now so that i can "get used to a Mac".Seeing as I have never actually used one by myself i was wondering if it is that much of a change from a PC and is the hardware/software in the MBP including the OS going to be so much better that I will be actually getting a way better deal?And also need the MBP to last me throughout and until i complete my Bachelor's Degree.Will it last more than 3 years typically,obviously its not specific and not all last the same amount of time but i mean typically.

The MBP specs that i am looking at is the base US$2499 15" model with the 2.66GHz processor.One of the main reasons that i ambuying one is because of its battery life and also it was recommended to me by an actual teacher at the University that is scouting me,for the graphics design.

Any suggestions or thoughts would be highly appreciated!!

Cheers!

 

[jmccullough108]

Get it, will be one of the best investments you ever make. Especially with the degree you are pursuing, will help you out tremendously.

 

[orb1692]

Get it, will be one of the best investments you ever make. Especially with the degree you are pursuing, will help you out tremendously.

Well you see its not a question of if to get one if i was not clear.It is the question of when to get one

 

[Scottsdale]

Hi I am currently pursuing my Associate's Degree in Sciences and i have one more academic year to complete before i head off to University for a 3 year Computer engineering Bachelor's Degree and also a course in Graphic designing.
Now here's the thing...I do not have a mac and I was thinking of buying one from Canada in 3 weeks when I go or waiting till next year about this same time to buy one.The reason I want to buy next year is because I will not really be using at as much seeing as i have a very capable computer for normal day to day computing including games.However my friends who have mac's tell me that it makes sense to buy now so that i can "get used to a Mac".Seeing as I have never actually used one by myself i was wondering if it is that much of a change from a PC and is the hardware/software in the MBP including the OS going to be so much better that I will be actually getting a way better deal?And also need the MBP to last me throughout and until i complete my Bachelor's Degree.Will it last more than 3 years typically,obviously its not specific and not all last the same amount of time but i mean typically.

The MBP specs that i am looking at is the base US$2499 15" model with the 2.66GHz processor.One of the main reasons that i ambuying one is because of its battery life and also it was recommended to me by an actual teacher at the University that is scouting me,for the graphics design.

Any suggestions or thoughts would be highly appreciated!!

Cheers!

I highly recommend you wait a few months. There are rumors about a possible update before WWDC in June. An update to the MBP will probably include a small speed bump to CPU, possibly better graphics card, and without a doubt in my mind the new battery technology as used in the 17" MBP. Other reasons to wait, potential for Apple's full support of 8 GB of RAM in a 15" MBP, and possibility of other BTO option like anti-glare display.

If you don't want to wait, you could consider a 17" MBP. It has the extended life battery and lasts eight hours between charges. But, I really believe it will come in the next update to the 15" MBP. Also, you may not need or want 8 GB of RAM now, but a year or two down the road, for $150 you may be able to buy 8 GB of RAM which will prolong the useful life of your MBP by an extra year or two even.

Lastly, Snow Leopard is expected to be released between now and September. So waiting could save you $129 as it will be included with your MBP instead of an extra cost.

Maybe the right thing to do would be pick up a cheap MacBook for $849 refurbished with the Nvidia GPU at Apple.com. Use that for a year until you need it for school. Probably get $800 for it a year later, and use the money to get a MBP at that time.

Figure this. A month or two may yield new battery and 8 GB of RAM support which is worth the wait. Waiting four months may yield that plus Snow Leopard. Waiting until the first quarter 2010 may yield Arrandale CPU which is advanced and much better graphics.

At the same time, if you need it now, just buy it. And if you have the money, just buy it. You could wait a long time for things that may never happen. However, you are at Mac RUMORS so the info here is sketchy at best. A lot of people can foresee what the next update will probably include with natural evolution of Macs, but nobody ever foresees WHEN a particular Mac is ever released with any certainty. So some rumors say before WWDC in June, others say it will be more like September before we see updates.

Last thing. The Mac notebooks have been updated approximately every six months for the last three years. It is exactly six months old right now.

Good luck with whatever you do.

 

[bumzo1]

Last thing. The Mac notebooks have been updated approximately every six months for the last three years. It is exactly six months old right now.

The MBP was updated in March to accommodate the 2.66Ghz and 2.93Ghz processors found in the 17" version

 

[orb1692]

I highly recommend you wait a few months. There are rumors about a possible update before WWDC in June. An update to the MBP will probably include a small speed bump to CPU, possibly better graphics card, and without a doubt in my mind the new battery technology as used in the 17" MBP. Other reasons to wait, potential for Apple's full support of 8 GB of RAM in a 15" MBP, and possibility of other BTO option like anti-glare display.

If you don't want to wait, you could consider a 17" MBP. It has the extended life battery and lasts eight hours between charges. But, I really believe it will come in the next update to the 15" MBP. Also, you may not need or want 8 GB of RAM now, but a year or two down the road, for $150 you may be able to buy 8 GB of RAM which will prolong the useful life of your MBP by an extra year or two even.

Lastly, Snow Leopard is expected to be released between now and September. So waiting could save you $129 as it will be included with your MBP instead of an extra cost.

Maybe the right thing to do would be pick up a cheap MacBook for $849 refurbished with the Nvidia GPU at Apple.com. Use that for a year until you need it for school. Probably get $800 for it a year later, and use the money to get a MBP at that time.

Figure this. A month or two may yield new battery and 8 GB of RAM support which is worth the wait. Waiting four months may yield that plus Snow Leopard. Waiting until the first quarter 2010 may yield Arrandale CPU which is advanced and much better graphics.

At the same time, if you need it now, just buy it. And if you have the money, just buy it. You could wait a long time for things that may never happen. However, you are at Mac RUMORS so the info here is sketchy at best. A lot of people can foresee what the next update will probably include with natural evolution of Macs, but nobody ever foresees WHEN a particular Mac is ever released with any certainty. So some rumors say before WWDC in June, others say it will be more like September before we see updates.

Last thing. The Mac notebooks have been updated approximately every six months for the last three years. It is exactly six months old right now.

Good luck with whatever you do.

I like the thought of a longer battery for sure but as for the 8GB,it really isn't that important to me.But I've also heard that when a brand new OS X is released that its need to get some fixes before its really good which could take months so wouldn't it be better to wait until either next year or buy now,rather than when it is first released?Also i don't think the 17" will be portable enough for me as i will be traveling around on a campus

 

[Scottsdale]

The MBP was updated in March to accommodate the 2.66Ghz and 2.93Ghz processors found in the 17" version

That isn't a real/normal update of sorts. It also allowed a 256 GB SSD BTO option at the time. It was not a revision update. It still lists it as the exact same MBP rev. A real update is coming, and I definitely believe it will include at least a battery change and RAM will officially be supported to 8 GB in all MBPs at that time.

Definitely believe it based on three years of Apple updates to Mac notebooks. Definitely believe it based on usual patterns of changes to 17" MBP then the 15" MBP. Apple just seems to update in this manner. Maybe it will not happen before WWDC in June, but I think it will. Whenever the update happens, it will include the battery and 8 GB of RAM. I will bet money.