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Buyer's remorse / decision time

V

villager990

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 26, 2006
19
0
Hi guys,

So today in the mail came my 15" HR mbp i7 with 256gb SSD. First, I must say, it's a wonderful computer. There's loads of room on the screen, and the design is just fantastic. I went ahead and picked up the moshi palmguard and the incase 15" hardshell was well.

I'm coming from a 15" penryn pre-unibody 2.4 c2d with the 8600m. That computer was great, until last October, when it started shutting down randomly. It got bad enough lately that when the temperature got above 135 degrees Fahrenheit, it would literally click off. I lost many papers and emails on that computer.

In any event, here's my predicament:

The first mac that I got was a 15" Powerbook G4. It was nice, but six months later Apple released the intel Macbook Pro. My computer was seriously outdated in less than a year; all of the new software just ran so slowly on it. In any event, I learned then that I needed to time my purchases very carefully in order to get the most bang for my buck.

For that reason, I've been waiting since October when my previous computer started messing up to upgrade, figuring that I could limp by (which was very hard to do) until the new core iX computers came out. When they finally were released, I kind of regretted waiting that long, because the changes weren't that substantial.

So, after trying out the new computer for a few hours, I've started wandering down the dangerous path of anticipating the future. My thinking is that since the computer wasn't redesigned with the release of Nehalem (making the unibody design 3 years old), it would most likely be redesigned with Sandy Bridge.

Now when I say redesign, I don't mean different color keys or a nice new trackpad. I mean an entirely different form factor, with what I'm anticipating to be: the inclusion of the sandy bridge chipset (which I have heard blows the socks off of Nehalem), a nix of the internal optical drive in favor of a much sexier form factor and an external one, a total case redesign, much longer battery life, support for 10.7 which, at the time, the Nehalem computers will barely be able to support, and perhaps a multitouch screen. Basically everything I could possibly ever want from the current gen.

Needless to say, if in 8 months time El Jobso stands up there and delivers all of the above, I'll be feeling pretty stupid having spent, all told, some $3,400 on a computer that is almost out of date. I'm a student, and this computer needs to last me at least the next 4-5 years. That's why I'm spending a boatload on this one.

So, I've had a few thoughts..

I could keep my computer and hope that either sandy bridge isn't that great or I just won't use it, seeing as most software is starting to transfer to the cloud anyways.

~or~

I could return the current computer that I have (on the grounds that the battery life is far from what they claim it is (4.5 hours vs 8-9 hours!!)), and then get a bottom line MacBook to last me for the next 8 months or so, after which I would sell that computer for $500-$600 and blow my wad on the latest and greatest Sandy Bridge.

I know some of you all might be tempted to mention the iPad as an option, but in reality it's not for me; I have an iPhone that I need to sync and I need something to do word processing and print stuff.

So, there's my long winded explanation of what I'm thinking. Any thoughts that you very intelligent and always helpful guys might have would be much appreciated.

Best,
villager
 
I think you are worrying about it way too much. If you wanted to wait for the newest hardware in a Mac before you buy, you would never get to buying. By the time the MBP is refreshed with the Sandy Bridge, there will be something bigger and better out there. If you waited for the bigger and better chipset, another would surpass it before a Macintosh release.

Somewhere, the grass will always be greener.

Besides, isn't Apple talking about buying, or even switching over to good 'ol AMD?

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/04/16/apple_in_advanced_discussions_to_adopt_amd_chips.html

Anyways, it's probably best to just be happy with what you have for now. If you want to keep on top of the "specs game", go for a Windows based computer. ;)

Alex :apple:


P.S.

Where did you get the idea that the Nehalem chips will "barely" support 10.7? :confused:

I haven't seen anything indicating that. There's barely any info released on that OS as of now.

I'm sure whenever that is released, a Core2Duo would even run it.
 
You've bought a pretty nice computer there. I would keep it, enjoy it and not look back.

If you downgrade to a MacBook you're loosing 2" in screen size ... so your window to the 'net would be smaller for the next 8 months or more ... do you really want that?
 
I'd just like to add that the unibody design isn't even 2 years old yet...they came out in Oct of 2008 I does believe. Also keep in mind the pre-unibody design also lasted for something like 7 years. But hey, I could be wrong, I sure as hell don't know what Apple's strategy is when it comes to designing the macbook pro line.
 
you will never get away from this perdicimant. you have done all you can do, you bought soon (the i7 MBP was released very recently) and you bought top of the line. that's all you can do. yea, there will be something better in 10 months. but that's what this age of computing IS.
 
Well if you're going to use it for 4-5 years, whatever decision you make, by the time you are done with it it will be beaten up, old and worthless. Keep it if you want or return it and get a entry level Mac (and iPad!) and play the waiting game.
 
Definitely take it back. You'll have to wait till 2023, that's when Intel's roadmap predicts 32-core mobile CPUs. Don't get anything in the meantime either, it'll ruin the experience otherwise.
 
I also hear that Sandy Bridge will provide sexual favours, do your laundry, make dinner with its chef app and actually pay for itself with included robotic arms and money.

Seriously, do you remember "Waiting for Arrandale"? Do you REALLY want to go through that again with Sandy Bridge? You've got a fine machine; enjoy it and stop worrying about what might be coming in the next generation; something better will always be around the corner. (Besides, those things you're speculating on are a tad too extreme to come in one refresh.)
 
villager990 said:
Hi guys,

So today in the mail came my 15" HR mbp i7 with 256gb SSD. First, I must say, it's a wonderful computer. There's loads of room on the screen, and the design is just fantastic. I went ahead and picked up the moshi palmguard and the incase 15" hardshell was well.

I'm coming from a 15" penryn pre-unibody 2.4 c2d with the 8600m. That computer was great, until last October, when it started shutting down randomly. It got bad enough lately that when the temperature got above 135 degrees Fahrenheit, it would literally click off. I lost many papers and emails on that computer.

In any event, here's my predicament:

The first mac that I got was a 15" Powerbook G4. It was nice, but six months later Apple released the intel Macbook Pro. My computer was seriously outdated in less than a year; all of the new software just ran so slowly on it. In any event, I learned then that I needed to time my purchases very carefully in order to get the most bang for my buck.

For that reason, I've been waiting since October when my previous computer started messing up to upgrade, figuring that I could limp by (which was very hard to do) until the new core iX computers came out. When they finally were released, I kind of regretted waiting that long, because the changes weren't that substantial.

So, after trying out the new computer for a few hours, I've started wandering down the dangerous path of anticipating the future. My thinking is that since the computer wasn't redesigned with the release of Nehalem (making the unibody design 3 years old), it would most likely be redesigned with Sandy Bridge.

Now when I say redesign, I don't mean different color keys or a nice new trackpad. I mean an entirely different form factor, with what I'm anticipating to be: the inclusion of the sandy bridge chipset (which I have heard blows the socks off of Nehalem), a nix of the internal optical drive in favor of a much sexier form factor and an external one, a total case redesign, much longer battery life, support for 10.7 which, at the time, the Nehalem computers will barely be able to support, and perhaps a multitouch screen. Basically everything I could possibly ever want from the current gen.

Needless to say, if in 8 months time El Jobso stands up there and delivers all of the above, I'll be feeling pretty stupid having spent, all told, some $3,400 on a computer that is almost out of date. I'm a student, and this computer needs to last me at least the next 4-5 years. That's why I'm spending a boatload on this one.

So, I've had a few thoughts..

I could keep my computer and hope that either sandy bridge isn't that great or I just won't use it, seeing as most software is starting to transfer to the cloud anyways.

~or~

I could return the current computer that I have (on the grounds that the battery life is far from what they claim it is (4.5 hours vs 8-9 hours!!)), and then get a bottom line MacBook to last me for the next 8 months or so, after which I would sell that computer for $500-$600 and blow my wad on the latest and greatest Sandy Bridge.

I know some of you all might be tempted to mention the iPad as an option, but in reality it's not for me; I have an iPhone that I need to sync and I need something to do word processing and print stuff.

So, there's my long winded explanation of what I'm thinking. Any thoughts that you very intelligent and always helpful guys might have would be much appreciated.

Best,
villager
Click to expand...

Whatever you do, get a freaking backup solution. Time machine is awesome. I backup once every day or two and never would have to worry about data loss, you should not either.
 
You really have to ask yourself if this current macbook pro meets your needs. if it does then i wouldn't worry about the next revision. Frankly given Apple's tendency to balance performance with battery life i doubt you are gonna a huge difference with Sandybridge. In fact the arrandale processor is based in the brand new Intel 32nm process.

My advice enjoy your laptop.
 
haha ok guys thanks a ton

I didn't get much sleep last night and I've had a rather taxing day, so I suppose that I'm not thinking very clearly. The more and more that I look at it, the hassle that I would go through returning the thing and all of the 15" accessories to go down to the macbook would be massive. And, I wouldn't have nearly as good of a computer.

Worst case scenario, say if Mac.Gruber's "sexual favours" prediction comes through, I could always sell what I've got for ~$2000 and spend a little change to upgrade. :rolleyes:

I've got some time to think about it, so I'll mull it over some more, but I'm sorry you guys had to witness a panic attack from yours truly. You guys are great to be there for me in one of my many moments of weakness.
 
The waiting game is an everlasting one that basically has a person living in fear. I for one waited, and waited, and waited for the new core i7 MacBook Pros. There comes a time when you pass a point from waiting for an expected update to simply being scared to move and enjoy yourself. I read that the next "big thing" for the MacBooks is a new processor, but that's nothing but speculation.

Just be happy. Unless the newest down-the-road MacBooks will have a 10 second boot time or play the Crysis 100 frames per second, any upgrade isn't going to be a huge difference from what we have now. These latest core i5/i7 MacBook Pros are only about 15% better than the Core Duos. And as for a totally new redesigned body, Apple just patented the unibody processes. They're not going to change that. I can only foresee different colors.

So enjoy what you have. Be happy you have a great machine. Technology is always moving. If a person is to be afraid to buy something because of what's coming around the corner, then people would never by an iPod or iPhone since Apple updates those every single year.
 
my last post was a joke obviously, but you get the idea - waiting is acceptable only to a point, the one thing you can rely on with technology is that there is ALWAYS something bigger and better around the corner. And I need to echo what the others have said in reference to the waiting for arrandale thread - jesus effing christ what a nightmare that was. seriously keep what you have and enjoy it, for all we know Apple is going to stop making notebooks altogether and replace them with dumbed down, underpowered iDevices. (that was sarcasm too...I hope.)
 
If you need the computer now, which seems like the case with your failing MBP, then you made the right choice in purchasing the new updated machines. If you place yourself on the "new and better" update path, you're never going to settle because something new is always going to be on the horizon. The current machines will definitely be able to last you many years of productive investment, and to me that makes the purchase justifiable.

Enjoy the moment and be proud of your purchase especially on a student's budget. I know many people who would nut in their pants for your exact machine. Life is too short to be fussing over prospective technology updates.
 
I remember this sort of thing last year around this time. I ended up buying and very much enjoying my 17" MBP in June after the slight update. If I waited the 10-11 months until now I wouldn't have had anything to work on other than my own nerves. I bought what I needed, I have gotten what I needed done and then some and I'm still more than happy as are those that needed my services. If you really feel the need to you can always sell once the newer models come around, months later and get things done in the mean time. By then, SSD should be more affordable, USB/FW will have advanced and the rest of the industry will have caught up by then, hopefully.
You have a great machine that some folks would really hope and wish for, just enjoy it. I know my MBP isn't feeling a hurt because new models are out and about now and neither is my work ;)
 
plan B sounds better. Send it back: the next model will be upgraded.

cheers!
 
Didn't Jobs himself say several years back that "if you can buy it, it's already outdated"? You purchased the same machine I did and I have zero regrets. That thing WILL last you 4-5 years, which is also my plan.
 
villager990 said:
I've got some time to think about it, so I'll mull it over some more, but I'm sorry you guys had to witness a panic attack from yours truly. You guys are great to be there for me in one of my many moments of weakness.
Click to expand...


Computers are simply not worth panicking over, even if it is a mac.

Your first experience was a bad one mainly because you bought your first machine right before the big Intel switchover. That was a huge change in architecture and a gigantic shift for everyone in that time period. it's unlikely we'll see anything like that again for quite a while. Even if Apple does switch to AMD, the architecture will remain compatible (AMD did create the 64-bit instruction sets that our current Intel Core chips are running, anyway).

And if there is a sudden shift, consider this: you still had 3-4 good years on G4-based systems after the transition, and if you have one that runs Leopard, the OS is still being supported by Apple. And G4 Powerbooks are still fetching $300 bids on eBay. That's not bad for a four-year-old laptop.

Right now is as good a time as any to buy. If you aren't getting your new system now because you're afraid of the future, then you never will.
 
Yeah take it back. I'm still using my VT52 terminal attached to a PDP-10, Tops 20 machine. Sure it's a pain to lug around and the graphics aren't much cop but it gets the job done, eventually, after I've flicked a few switches.

You've purchased a decent machine yesterday.... but who knows you'll regret not having a 3D screen next year... and usb3 ... and ..... the list will be endless.

Enjoy your interrupt processing machine today.
 
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