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Convincing Parents to buy MBP and various questions

geoffreak

geoffreak

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Feb 8, 2008
2,193
2
Hello there!

I am new to the Mac scene and MacRumors, and I have a bit of a problem.
I am heading off to college this coming fall and I need a laptop. As we all know, Vista sucks and comes with any windows computer, so I have decided to go to the Mac side. After looking at my options, I realized that a MacBook Pro is absolutely what I want. I like the 17" screen and 4 GB of RAM. Processor really doesn't matter as .2 GHz improvement isn't worth $200 in my opinion.
So here's the problem, price. I have more than enough money to buy the computer from Apple with a bit to spare, but $3500 (including student discount) is still a bit absurd for a laptop. I also plan on purchasing Parallels and Windows XP (Parallels offers a copy feature from another computer, but I don't think it copies the OS). This brings my total up to around $3700 :eek:
I've looked all throughout the forums here and on various other sources and found the exact laptop I am wanting for just under $3000. It is unopened box and supposedly is from the latest batch of MacBook Pro's from Apple (I assume that means it is still under warranty, but I need to verify). This is at least slightly more reasonable than Apple's price.
Now the biggest problem of all is how to convince my parents to let me purchase the laptop. The biggest problems they have with it are the price and the fact that so many computers are stolen at a college campus, so I need a way to prove it's worth and come up with a way to make sure it is secure.
Does anyone have any tips or pointers to help me convince them? A cheaper price for the computer would also be helpful (no eBay - I can't be certain when paypal can only cover up to $2000 in case of a problem).
Should I go down a screen size? Should I settle with only 2 GB of RAM? I need to know if they are worth the money.
 
First off, you don't think a Macbook would be a good start? Buy a 22" monitor for $300 if you need more screen real estate. 2nd are you buying the memory from Apple? Cause that is the biggest rip off this side of the World. Buy 3rd Party memory. 2gigs will be fine for you.

You're a freshman not a professor yet, so don't go thinking you need to max everything out quite yet.
EDIT: $3700 for a laptop is retarded. Seriously kid, relax on what you think you need. Seriously, I would love a Octo-Mac Pro, but an iMac still hits the sweet spot very well.
 
MacMall, 17" 2.33MHz (one gen back), $1999 delivered. Will do absolutely everything you want. If you want more memory, upgrade it yourself. It's easy.
 
geoffreak said:
Hello there!

I am new to the Mac scene and MacRumors, and I have a bit of a problem.
I am heading off to college this coming fall and I need a laptop. As we all know, Vista sucks and comes with any windows computer, so I have decided to go to the Mac side. After looking at my options, I realized that a MacBook Pro is absolutely what I want. I like the 17" screen and 4 GB of RAM. Processor really doesn't matter as .2 GHz improvement isn't worth $200 in my opinion.
So here's the problem, price. I have more than enough money to buy the computer from Apple with a bit to spare, but $3500 (including student discount) is still a bit absurd for a laptop. I also plan on purchasing Parallels and Windows XP (Parallels offers a copy feature from another computer, but I don't think it copies the OS). This brings my total up to around $3700 :eek:
I've looked all throughout the forums here and on various other sources and found the exact laptop I am wanting for just under $3000. It is unopened box and supposedly is from the latest batch of MacBook Pro's from Apple (I assume that means it is still under warranty, but I need to verify). This is at least slightly more reasonable than Apple's price.
Now the biggest problem of all is how to convince my parents to let me purchase the laptop. The biggest problems they have with it are the price and the fact that so many computers are stolen at a college campus, so I need a way to prove it's worth and come up with a way to make sure it is secure.
Does anyone have any tips or pointers to help me convince them? A cheaper price for the computer would also be helpful (no eBay - I can't be certain when paypal can only cover up to $2000 in case of a problem).
Should I go down a screen size? Should I settle with only 2 GB of RAM? I need to know if they are worth the money.
Click to expand...

Seriusly, you are way off as a freshman. I'm a Junior with more than enough money and I'm buying just a MacBook. If you insist on a MBP than you need to just buy the entry level 2gb, 15" version. That is more than enough for almost anyone who isn't a professional.
 
Man, I don't own one myself but we have a 15" er at work and it seems like plenty of realestate in my mind! 4g's of RAM? Do you really need all that right away. Why not start with the 2 it comes with and upgrade later w/ 3rd party RAM?

As far as security, there's that lojack program though I have no firsthand exp. with it.

Why are you getting parallels? Dual booting with bootcamp won't do it for you?

I say get the base model mbp($1799 w/ student discount), win xp( approx $190 on amazon) and call it quits for now and upgrade your RAM and HD later!!:apple::apple::apple:
 
Dont get too caught up in the mac hype. no freshman needs a $3700 laptop, be real. if u really want a Mac laptop step down to a refurb. 15" (your back will thank you for the less weight) with only 2GB of RAM(not bought from apple) and you will have a better chance convincing you parents.
 
I am a web programmer and I do many things which require a bit of RAM. Having the entire Macromedia Studio MX + Firefox running at the same time is not something my 768mb RAM laptop can do now. (I have to disable my anti-virus to do this otherwise the lag on my computer is too great)
Don't take me for some foolish kid. ;)

Maybe I am going a bit overboard on the RAM and screen size. I can't just hook up a monitor though as I need to transport the computer around a lot.

I'll look back into pricing of this setup.


As for parallels, I have researched this and found that bootcamp just won't suit my needs. I may be a windows user now, but that doesn't mean I don't know what I'm doing around Mac OS X. I plan on using both OS's with very powerful applications which bootcamp can't handle.
 
geoffreak said:
Maybe I am going a bit overboard on the RAM and screen size. I can't just hook up a monitor though as I need to transport the computer around a lot.
Click to expand...

I think a 15" would do better. It's easier to move around, has the same performance as the 17" (aside from the display), and can leave you extra money to buy a nice external for when you need the additional screen space.
 
Get a PC and use Linux? I'm going to be a freshman as well and I've saved up for a MBP. I'm going into engineering and although this may not be the smartest thing to do, I'll bootcamp.

Your needs sound so excessive even for web programming...
 
Listen to the people here. No matter what kind of hotshot you fancy yourself as, you don't need a 17" MBP w/4 gigs of ram/etc to be productive in college. If you want a Mac, get a Macbook. Don't get the MBP unless you explicitly need the graphics card. Since this is your parents' money, and not yours, I'd recommend not wasting it.

And with regards to what you said about bootcamp, there's no such thing as an application too powerful for bootcamp. A bootcamped Mac laptop is a Windows laptop of equivalent specs. That's it. If you can't run an application under bootcamp, it isn't going to work with any kind of virtualization.
 
geoffreak said:
Maybe I am going a bit overboard on the RAM and screen size.
Click to expand...

You aren't necessarily going overboard on RAM, you can just upgrade with third party RAM. And i have heard that the 17" MBP is strenuous on the eyes. So what i would suggest is a 15" with a bigger hard drive, and upgrade the RAM through a 3rd party(whole lot cheaper).
 
Cyroceon said:
Seriusly, you are way off as a freshman. I'm a Junior with more than enough money and I'm buying just a MacBook. If you insist on a MBP than you need to just buy the entry level 2gb, 15" version. That is more than enough for almost anyone who isn't a professional.
Click to expand...

It is also more than enough for a lot of 'professionals'! I use my 2.2 MBP for 'professional' (ie. paid, my living) music writing, production, and live performance.

But yeah, the main difference with a MBP over the MB is the graphics card (except screensize) and connectivity. Are you doing a lot of 3D, gaming, video editing, etc.?
 
geoffreak said:
I plan on using both OS's with very powerful applications which bootcamp can't handle.
Click to expand...

Bootcamp is just a mechanism to get Windows on a Mac, nothing more. Saying Bootcamp can't handle what you want to do is the same as saying Windows can't handle what you want to do.

My advice is to get the 15" MBP, get 4GB of RAM from OWC (or another third party vendor), and if you need the screen size buy an external display/mouse/keyboard. The 17" MBP is HUGE and carrying it around all day isn't much fun. Oh yeah, check the Apple Refurb store and save some cash too.
 
what course are you taking? i think that's the most impt question.. for your parent's sake get a macbook!
you're way over your head dude! i hope that doesn't sound condescending.. but be practical.. are u going to college wit ha student loan??
i'm at a stage right now where i'm done with college, done with medschool and i'm anxious on how the heck will pay all my loans!
be Smart!! don't overspend!
 
kfordham281 said:
Bootcamp is just a mechanism to get Windows on a Mac, nothing more. Saying Bootcamp can't handle what you want to do is the same as saying Windows can't handle what you want to do.
Click to expand...

QFT.

I wish more people would understand this. Parrallels is actually less powerful than using bootcamp.
 
I think it's cool that you've got the extra money to buy that stuff man. If I were you though, I'd rather have the 15" MBP, and spend the rest on a cinema display for the apartment or dorm. 17" is nice real estate, but it's not very portable, especially when you're constantly on the go. I'm not in school, but I am your age, and I am a commercial photographer. I fly around the country about 2 or 3 times a month, and lugging that 17" beast around is such a hassle. I actually just bought a used 12" Powerbook G4 to carry with me when I'm traveling because the 17" is so hard to fit into my carry on luggage.

Just my thoughts. Good luck and welcome to Mac. It's a world of difference.
 
Here's a story about the 17" in college. I graduated from university in May, and I had a G4 17" Powerbook. While it was pretty awesome for watching anything, or having iTunes, Word, and Adium/aim all on the same screen, it was a huge pain in the ass. I carried around a BIG backpack and big-ish messenger bag, and it barely fit. I only had an incase sleeve for it, which caused it to get banged up a lot, since it wouldn't fit easily in other bags. A solid case for it would be huge and heavy. It won't fit easily on your desk in class. I don't know if you're going to college near home, but travelling with it on a plane/train is not easy either. I did manage to travel with it, take it to class, but its size got it knocked around pretty badly, and as a result, it completely died on me this week.

The Pros are cool and the screen size is nice. 13" is just too small. Get the 15", do as people said and throw in a 22" widescreen monitor for as little as $300, and you're set. That's what I'm going to do for grad school next fall.

PS about theft....one advantage of the 17 is that I was one of only two or three people on campus with one, so if mine went missing and I saw someone with it, I'd get VERY suspicious! On the other hand, there were TONS of 15", iBooks, and later, 13" Macbooks
 
Could always get a job my son had one since age 14 ;)

geoffreak said:
Hello there!

I am new to the Mac scene and MacRumors, and I have a bit of a problem.
I am heading off to college this coming fall and I need a laptop. As we all know, Vista sucks and comes with any windows computer, so I have decided to go to the Mac side. After looking at my options, I realized that a MacBook Pro is absolutely what I want. I like the 17" screen and 4 GB of RAM. Processor really doesn't matter as .2 GHz improvement isn't worth $200 in my opinion.
So here's the problem, price. I have more than enough money to buy the computer from Apple with a bit to spare, but $3500 (including student discount) is still a bit absurd for a laptop. I also plan on purchasing Parallels and Windows XP (Parallels offers a copy feature from another computer, but I don't think it copies the OS). This brings my total up to around $3700 :eek:
I've looked all throughout the forums here and on various other sources and found the exact laptop I am wanting for just under $3000. It is unopened box and supposedly is from the latest batch of MacBook Pro's from Apple (I assume that means it is still under warranty, but I need to verify). This is at least slightly more reasonable than Apple's price.
Now the biggest problem of all is how to convince my parents to let me purchase the laptop. The biggest problems they have with it are the price and the fact that so many computers are stolen at a college campus, so I need a way to prove it's worth and come up with a way to make sure it is secure.
Does anyone have any tips or pointers to help me convince them? A cheaper price for the computer would also be helpful (no eBay - I can't be certain when paypal can only cover up to $2000 in case of a problem).
Should I go down a screen size? Should I settle with only 2 GB of RAM? I need to know if they are worth the money.
Click to expand...
 
As everyone has said, you don't need the 17"

I have the 15" (just got it) and it is perfect. I am a law student and needed portability and the graphics card for photo editing and (occasional) gaming. It serves those purposes well.

I think you are getting sucked into the "I have to have the best one mom, otherwise i won't be uber-leet" trap. Its understandable, but you don't need the 17" - it will probably be way more hindering than helping your needs. It is a beast to lug around a 17" screen (as others have said).

Seriously - go with a 15" if you need the graphics card and/or screen space. Most people don't. For most the MB is a better choice.

Install your own ram. Its easy. Its cheap.

And the parallels comment - umm...well...your totally wrong.

For theft - I spent about $20 on a laptop lock - not much protection but would probably work in a dorm room. It is combination and clips into the security hole on a laptop and around whatever object (desk most likely) on the other end. Well worth it.

My .02
 
You asked us for suggestions on how to convince your parents to let you buy a Macbook Pro. The OP has received many such suggestions, and I think they will work. Now the question is.... will you take our advice?

(Note: that lugging around a 17" MBP isn't exactly easy)
 
geoffreak said:
I am a web programmer and I do many things which require a bit of RAM. Having the entire Macromedia Studio MX + Firefox running at the same time is not something my 768mb RAM laptop can do now. (I have to disable my anti-virus to do this otherwise the lag on my computer is too great)
Don't take me for some foolish kid. ;)
Click to expand...

Dude, you're better off getting a MacBook (pro is STILL overkill and a 17"? you will be kicking yourself every time you have to take it anywhere).

Here's the issue - MX Studio is not a universal suite (emulated). Therefore, not only does it eat up a ton of memory, and it's slow as hell. Lower your computer and spend some on updating the suite to CS3, and even if you get a slower computer, the performance will probably be about 30% better with the newer suite.

You can get CS3 for cheap from your school too or from Adobe's EDU store.
 
Depending on your situation, it may be worth pointing out that you almost can't even open up a 17" MBP on an airplane. I can't imagine it would be that stable on a classroom desk, either. A 17" notebook is really only a good choice for someone who someone who's going to leave it sitting on the desk at home almost all the time, but who still needs to move it around occasionally. You're going to be packing up and hauling this thing several times a day, every day.

I have a 15" MBP which I love, but if I were about to head off to college (where I'd be carrying it around 10 times as much as I do now), I'd probably go for the Macbook. If I had the money, I'd spring for the new Macbook Air. You can't believe the difference even a couple of pounds makes when you're hauling a laptop around all day, every day.
 
whatever size/configuration you decide upon (i'm with most people here... 17"/maxed out is a 'bit overkill') DEFINITELY check out apple's refurb site. i think a few people above have suggested as well - but its REALLY worth the savings. my old roommate just ordered the blackbook from the refurb site after someone stomped on his powerbook on accident. no one could tell the difference between his and a brand new one from an apple store, ONLY difference is that it comes in a generic brown box, not the apple retail packaging. and if you're not hell bent on getting the 'rumored' MBP update due in the next :confused:2 weeks - 6 months:confused: you might catch an even better deal in the refurb store when those are released.

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore?node=home/specialdeals/mac

good luck!;)
 
geoffreak said:
Hello there!

I am new to the Mac scene and MacRumors, and I have a bit of a problem.
I am heading off to college this coming fall and I need a laptop. As we all know, Vista sucks and comes with any windows computer, so I have decided to go to the Mac side. After looking at my options, I realized that a MacBook Pro is absolutely what I want. I like the 17" screen and 4 GB of RAM. Processor really doesn't matter as .2 GHz improvement isn't worth $200 in my opinion.
So here's the problem, price. I have more than enough money to buy the computer from Apple with a bit to spare, but $3500 (including student discount) is still a bit absurd for a laptop. I also plan on purchasing Parallels and Windows XP (Parallels offers a copy feature from another computer, but I don't think it copies the OS). This brings my total up to around $3700 :eek:
I've looked all throughout the forums here and on various other sources and found the exact laptop I am wanting for just under $3000. It is unopened box and supposedly is from the latest batch of MacBook Pro's from Apple (I assume that means it is still under warranty, but I need to verify). This is at least slightly more reasonable than Apple's price.
Now the biggest problem of all is how to convince my parents to let me purchase the laptop. The biggest problems they have with it are the price and the fact that so many computers are stolen at a college campus, so I need a way to prove it's worth and come up with a way to make sure it is secure.
Does anyone have any tips or pointers to help me convince them? A cheaper price for the computer would also be helpful (no eBay - I can't be certain when paypal can only cover up to $2000 in case of a problem).
Should I go down a screen size? Should I settle with only 2 GB of RAM? I need to know if they are worth the money.
Click to expand...

Dude just buy a 15". I think you will hate lugging that 17" around to class. Also...people on eBay are selling 2.2GHz MBP brand new for $1650. I just got one.
 
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