I need help deciding what to buy within a $11,xxx budget.

[Willis]

I've read every post made and I have to say, I'm glad you saw the light in the end. As its been said, start small, earn the cash to pay off the credit, save extra cash from future work, re-invest in yourself. Works out being ALOT easier on yourself.

I wish you all the best with your plans and dont forget to keep us updated!

 

[maccam]

I made $100 in a week doing two 10 minutes typing jobs for my father.

Thats it? Hmm.. Maybe I do have a really good job (I make that in a day, sorry I had to brag ).
Anyway nice setup, you should consider a 7200rpm hard drive though.

 

[trule]

it sounds a lot like he does

Not if he is borrowing it! He has someone else's money, the kind souls who will lend it to him, and in return they will expect payments - each month, on time, no exceptions. Unlike mom and dad they will not be nice if you don't pay up.

Going to be a Debt slave at age 16, wow

See if you can get your credit on your own, if the banks will lend you 11k then your are a sure bet....if you need mom to act as your agent then you ain't ready for the real world. The real world does not pay $100 for 20 minutes typing...your dad paying you $100 is just you're dad being a dad, thats what they do.

Ahhh....to be 16 again

 

[feelthefire]

I think there's a bit of a misunderstanding about credit happening here...if you take the figure apple spits out on the shopping card page, that's telling you the MINIMUM PAYMENT you'd have to make on that amount of money. That is just what you'd have to pay to pay the INTEREST. You could pay that forever and NEVER pay any money towards the actual purchase.

However, an $11,000 loan at 18% over five years would have a monthly payment of $279 and you'd end up paying $16,579. However, most banks won't finance personal loans (which this is) for more than 3 years. So that jacks the real payment made over the useful lifespan of the hardware to $397. That is what you should realistically be paying on a loan this size for something prone to depreciation and obsolesence.

 

[kuebby]

all you people just tell this guy what 2 get 2 make his purchase!!! stop telling him how 2 buy it.

People have offered plenty of help as to what to buy and where to buy it, we just also feel the need to offer advice as to what a bad idea this seems to be.

Am I the only one that keeps coming back to this thread, starts to post and then just shakes my head and moves on...?

No.

 

[matthewp]

Thats it? Hmm.. Maybe I do have a really good job (I make that in a day, sorry I had to brag ).
Anyway nice setup, you should consider a 7200rpm hard drive though.

Dude he's saying he made $100 in a week (during that week he did 2 jobs, total time it took him was 20mins) so $100 in 20minutes. The fact that you make $100 a day is absolutely irrelevant

 

[MacDawg]

Dude he's saying he made $100 in a week (during that week he did 2 jobs, total time it took him was 20mins) so $100 in 20minutes. The fact that you make $100 a day is absolutely irrelevant

I think he said his DAD paid him $100 to type up 2 things... not exactly the same as a "job". Remember, his MOM is supposedly allowing $11,000 worth of credit for him.

Woof, Woof - Dawg

 

[cepler]

I think mom & dad should wait 2 yrs, have you get your OWN credit card and then if you still really want to do it, go for it, with YOUR money. Might learn something about compounding interest, minimum payments, rent, health, car maintenance, food etc

 

[frog3r]

I had somehow a similar doubt

I have to say im very happy for reading MacRumors forums, and that your advices have made this guy make up his mind in a reasonable bought.

I am sure you will be able to pay your MBP and that you will be able to pay it fast. You seem to have finally landed your ideas.

I want to thank all of the users that posted on this thread, for helping visualize my needs as well. It has been a great thread.. im all sentimental now..

 

[Kingsly]

I only read the OP!

I don't want to sound mean, but this kind of behavior is exactly why a huge percentage of Americans will go through life with no credit, no house, and constant debt.

Please, please, please, please, DO NOT DO THIS!!! If you want a good computer, buy a Mac Pro or a MBP for ~3k.

 

[RHeidenreich572]

I see no reason why you shouldn't.


Only if it were a few pounds lighter.


I'm not loading myself with debt. It's a $2xx a month expense which can easily be payed and it will even do good to my mothers credit. I don't have a car, cellphone, or any other expensives.




Do you need a nice car or cell phone? I don't have a car, cell phone, or any other expenses. The $2xx a month will be my only expense and it will even do good to my mothers credit. I wish I could charge this under my own credit.

I'm not the type of person who feels bad about or hates his hardware just because of an update. I will be happy as long as my hardware can do what I need it to. Everything is constantly being updated and I will either be spending too much money or never live a life of comfort if I always wait for the newest thing.

I think that that this sounds like a bad idea. Get a card for at least 13g's. Maxing out on first purchase goes against credit scores, second of all opening up a credit card also goes against your credit score for the first initial year usually. Good luck

 

[mavherzog]

Unsecured, revolving credit lines (ala credit cards) are pure evil. I can not stress enough that personally financing a purchase such as a computer on a credit card is a BAD idea. If you can not afford it right now, scrape some jobs together on whatever computer you have available (I assume you posted these messages from SOMETHING!), and then buy once you've saved up enough money.

NEVER having a dime of unsecured debt should be a goal in your life.

 

[Mechcozmo]

Just want to point something out here...

I've had four friends who've worked at Vons. They've all hated it. Two quit in the first week, one stuck with it for a couple months before leaving, and the fourth quit (after) her first day.

Not to mention, the money that gets taken out of your paycheck for being apart of the union, taxes, etc. Do some research into actually being able to make the payments with what you'll be paid.

Random factoid: One of my friends, had he taken a job at some shop, would have had to pay to work there, due to union fees. So, yeah, your paycheck isn't all yours to keep. Far from it.

 

[suneohair]

Unsecured, revolving credit lines (ala credit cards) are pure evil. I can not stress enough that personally financing a purchase such as a computer on a credit card is a BAD idea. If you can not afford it right now, scrape some jobs together on whatever computer you have available (I assume you posted these messages from SOMETHING!), and then buy once you've saved up enough money.

NEVER having a dime of unsecured debt should be a goal in your life.

Credit is a necessary thing. It is quite tough to get along without it. But, in this case, the debt would have (and still may be) the mothers.

 

[A Pittarelli]

sounds like poor use of $11000 to me, imo

 

[FredAkbar]

Okay guys, he said he'd cut it back to just an MBP + display, for those of you who (seemingly) didn't read past the first page .

For the record, I agree that getting both computers was a bad idea. Personally even just getting the MBP like what you're doing now, I'd save up for a bit and not stick the whole thing onto a credit card with practically minimum payments. Getting into that much debt, while tempting, can be a bit of a waste. You'll lose $thousands in interest; paying $thousands to Apple for top-notch computers is one thing but paying more to a credit card company doesn't seem like the best option.

edit: I realize you said you wouldn't buy this for a few months, so I don't mean to sound like you're being completely hasty. Think about it a lot during those few months. Often I think I want a new computer, but put it off for a month or so, and by that time, I realize it isn't really worth it. Who knows, the same could happen to you. Not saying you shouldn't get the MBP at all but maybe you'll decide to save up more first.

 

[kumbaya]

get the high resolution display, too

you never know when HD capability will be useful and you can't put it into a laptop later

wish you the best with your plans!

 

[Sauron's Master]

Someone needs to develop basic business acumen and a conceptualization of economics.

Then again, I also received a very expensive G5 when I was 16 so I probably should be the last one to talk about extravagance.

Nevertheless, borrowing with no business plan and off a credit card are horrible ideas. Don't delude yourself into why you're making purchases; this has nothing to do with improving your mom's credit or improving your design work. It's all about wanting the best and getting the bragging rights.

That and the whole Juniper Visa name dropping smells fishy to me. Or incredibly naive.

 

[monke]

I feel sorry for your future.

16 and spending $11,000 on computers?
I really don't care if you 'break it down' into a month-by-month figure. Spending that much on computers at 16 is a joke. So what if you can spend it now, you might need it down the road.

I could see buying one machine, but not both.

 

[techlover828]

ok, this is really annoying, all of you people only reading the first post are saying now irrelevant things, and it's kind of getting ridiculous, he changed his plan.

 

[dollystereo]

There are a lot of rich people out there...
my 2 cents.

 

[monke]

ok, this is really annoying, all of you people only reading the first post are saying now irrelevant things, and it's kind of getting ridiculous, he changed his plan.

I just noticed that, after posting I read through the entire thread.

Someone missed snack time.

 

[Bow Rekk]

It's still not clever to be spending thousands on a computer you don't need with money you don't have. 3 thousand or 11 thousand, it is still a lot.

I've almost posted in this thread a few times.

 

[bobber205]

Why are you so confident that you will be making such huge sums of money, do you have contracts written up and signed. Looks like you are counting your eggs before they've hatched.

That's what I'm worried about for the OP.

 

[MacDawg]

Time to move along folks... nothing more to see here

Woof, Woof - Dawg