Buy iMac now or wait?

[derekjd]

Hello all,

I'm a newbie to the Mac scene, but have prior usage of PCs, Sun Sparcs and Amiga computers. I'm looking at buying an iMac 20" soon although I've been reading that MacWorld is coming up and prices may be adjusted or computers announced. I'm feeling quite anxious since my main PC is being sold (money for the Mac) and I'll have time to play with it since a long weekend or two is coming up with the holidays. Should I bother waiting? Are any new enhancements or computers coming out? Do prices usually drop during this time? Any help would be appreciated so I don't end up screwing myself over....

Thanks,
Derek

 

[SilentPanda]

Nobody here knows for sure if new iMacs are coming out at Macworld. The current iMacs are really nice... of course if they release new ones at Macworld you'll wish you would have waited but if they don't you'll wish you hadn't. It's really up to you.

The current ones are top notch and the newer ones if released at Macworld will probably just be better of the same.

Me personally... I would wait if I didn't need it. But if I did need it getting one now wouldn't be bad.

 

[aristobrat]

Look towards the top of this page in your web browser for the "Buyer's Guide" link. It shows the relative frequency that Apple updates its products. I think once you see the iMac section, you can make a relatively good assumption as to whether or not its statistically likely to be upgraded soon. 😉

 

[Irish Dave]

Hello all,

I'm a newbie to the Mac scene, but have prior usage of PCs, Sun Sparcs and Amiga computers. I'm looking at buying an iMac 20" soon although I've been reading that MacWorld is coming up and prices may be adjusted or computers announced. I'm feeling quite anxious since my main PC is being sold (money for the Mac) and I'll have time to play with it since a long weekend or two is coming up with the holidays. Should I bother waiting? Are any new enhancements or computers coming out? Do prices usually drop during this time? Any help would be appreciated so I don't end up screwing myself over....

Thanks,
Derek

Buy now and enjoy it over the Christmas holiday.

I don't think the iMac range will change soon.

Cheers

Dave 🙂

 

[mkrishnan]

One more note is that prices don't really drop. Apple very, very rarely reduces prices on existing new computers. If anything, they add features. The only times prices really change downward is occasionally when the mix of product levels changes during an overhaul of a line (like the basement price of the notebooks changed when they went iBook -> Macbook, the basement price of the iMac changed when they added the one that replaces the eMac, etc).

I'd say you're fairly safe buying most Macs, but buy based on how ready you are to use. Of course, if you wait six months, you will probably get Leopard, a faster processor, a better GPU, etc, etc. But you won't get those six months back.