eMac Purhcase - which revision to purchase

[EXV]

Following the advice of a few members, I looked into purchasing the eMac and found few deals on the Internet.

Some sellers offer the M8951LL/A and Z074BLL/A
models which I belive are from May 2003 while other sellers offer the more recent M8951LL/B models which I believe are from October 2003. All models are new (in the box).

The earlier models appear to carry lower prices; older OS (JAG); and prior version of iLife. However, my concern is the display issues that many eMacs suffered from. To minimize the possibility of having the display issues, should I avoid the ealier model eMacs? Is there any other reason to avoid the earlier model eMacs?


Thank you.

 

[HexMonkey]

I think the display problems were fixed before May 2003. However if you buy one and there are problems, it will be covered under warranty.
There are no major differences between the two groups of models, basically Apple simplified it from three models to two, without any upgrades. I have a May 2003 eMac, and haven't had any problems with it that wouldn't happen to other Macs. Whatever model you get though, I'd recommend upgrading your RAM to at least 512 MB, it makes a big difference in speed.

 

[applebum]

Following the advice of a few members, I looked into purchasing the eMac and found few deals on the Internet.

Some sellers offer the M8951LL/A and Z074BLL/A
models which I belive are from May 2003 while other sellers offer the more recent M8951LL/B models which I believe are from October 2003. All models are new (in the box).

The earlier models appear to carry lower prices; older OS (JAG); and prior version of iLife. However, my concern is the display issues that many eMacs suffered from. To minimize the possibility of having the display issues, should I avoid the ealier model eMacs? Is there any other reason to avoid the earlier model eMacs?


Thank you.

I got my eMac in Feb from smalldog.com. I got it and a printer for cheaper than I could have gotten the eMac through Apple with the Edu discount. Mine has a slight display problem in that it will flicker if I play music (fairly loudly) through the internal speakers. I think it has to do with the vibration from those speakers. Iif I hook up external speakers or headphones, this problem goes away - totally. I use my Soundsticks and have no problem. The internal speakers sound pretty crappy anyway, so just get some external speakers and you should have no problem.

 

[QCassidy352]

I believe that the 2 models you are talking about are essentially the same. Maybe they changed HD size or something, but mostly it was just a price drop, not a real revision. I'd go for the new one, even if it costs a little more, because panther is worth it over Jag. If the price difference is larger than the cost of Panther, just get the "old" model and buy panther. Really, there are no differences.

 

[Sun Baked]

The newest "revision" deleted OS 9 bootability, so if that is important to you -- don't get the new ones.

I don't think the hardware changed, probably just a firmware change and lack of the bootable volume on the drive.

 

[CubeHacker]

There are 2 revisions of the eMac - the original 2002 model, with a 100mhz bus and a Geforce2MX graphics chip which came in 700 and 800mhz versions, and the newer May 2003 Model with a 133mhz bus and a Radeon 7500 graphics chip which comes in 800mhz and 1ghz speeds.

I would highly recommend you stick with the 2003 edition eMacs as they have a lot less problems than the older ones, and are also considerably faster. Luckly, Apple no longer sells the old 2002 version. If you are looking to purchase an eMac from a 3rd party, simply check what graphics chip is in it. Its the easiest way to determine the revision.

Also, there are no technical changes between the May 2003 and October 2003 versions. The only real difference is that in October the 800mhz version was dropped and the price of the 1ghz was lowered.

 

[EXV]

Thank you everyone. I appreciate the advice!