Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

I need help on a choice.

R

Raist14

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 6, 2011
7
0
K here is my deliema. I need to get a laptop so I have decided to get a MacBook pro 15 inch 1700 or whatever that price is.

Now the problem is that I don't have the money upfront t and I need it now so I am looking into the best buy financing card and it sounds like a good idea because I do have a job and could easily make the payments and often double payments and such

I'm 18 need to computer really soon like nowish for college and I wanna know your guys thoughts
And yes I'm deadset on that MacBook :)
Thank you
 
Two very important considerations come to mind

1) The amount of money you have to spend NOW, versus what you have to finance.

2) If you fully realize how much more a Mac costs. A Mac is not a computer you "need" but rather one that you "want" since it doesn't do anything dramatically better than a new Windows 7 PC based Laptop.

I am NOT trying to influence you, just call it to your attention. Here on a Mac Forum people will outright lie to you and say a Mac is not more expensive yet over the life of the computer depending on what you need for software and other considerations you may find it's quite a bit. I know for example that I pay a full $1,000 more for my new MBP as compared to an equally equipped new ThinkPad I also purchased. I work in both PC and Mac environments so I know the costs of each very well.

To your question.

Best Buy is a good business to buy from, and as long as you are willing to pay one heck of a lot of money for the computer and financing, you will get what you want, but pay a big price.
 
Raist14 said:
K here is my deliema. I need to get a laptop so I have decided to get a MacBook pro 15 inch 1700 or whatever that price is.

Now the problem is that I don't have the money upfront t and I need it now so I am looking into the best buy financing card and it sounds like a good idea because I do have a job and could easily make the payments and often double payments and such

I'm 18 need to computer really soon like nowish for college and I wanna know your guys thoughts
And yes I'm deadset on that MacBook :)
Thank you
Click to expand...

As long as your 100% SURE you can have it paid off, or at least pay a bit more than the minimum payments, financing isn't a bad route. I'd suggest financing it and then paying it off in full before the interest sets in, rather than making payments on it. Some places offer 6-12 months with no interest. A few offer 6-12 months with no payment/interest.

I'd go with either BML or Barclay from the Apple site, or Best buy (like you were originally going to do). Crunch your numbers, though. Figure out your monthly income, and subtract your bills. Make sure you'd have enough to pay for it when the time comes.

However, I'm 21. And Best Buy wouldnt approve me a year ago, I had to finance what I purchased through my parents - and that was only my iphone 4. I think they're pretty iffy on approval, though I'm not sure. Bill Me Later has always approved me, even on purchases of up to 2k. I've never tried Barclay.
 
Sounds good to me. Just make sure you do your homework (no pun intended) with which model you're going to purchase. The thing I've learned over the years with computers is I usually buy more than I need and sometimes regret paying hundreds of dollars more than I needed to.

Best Buy usually has 0% financing for at least 6 months on purchases over a certain dollar amount. I haven't looked at their site lately, it may even be 12 months for a puchase that big.
 
Thanks. Best buy right now has the no intrest for 18 months which is nice and I know I dont "need" a mbp but I do want it XD and I feel it could be a nice little way to build a credit score up as I'm getting into the real world now. They told me through an estimated amount a month that it could be 111 a month which isn't bad but I think my big problem would be getting approved since I have a limited credit history.

I planned to pay that double a month to kill it off in nine months. I was curious if there are any hidden things or traps it could lead me into or is it pretty simple? Just pay on time and it's all good?
 
Used/Craigslist

OP: Have you considered buying a refurbished model or one through Craigslist? I'm a total nerd, and I go through computers like jocks go through girlfriends. As such, I spend a lot of time perusing Craigslist. I've bought 7 or so Mac computers on Craigslist, with no problems. Got my current 2.8GHz uMBP for $925 and my current 13" base 2010 MBA for $800, which is about the cost you're prepared to put down for one laptop.

If you're not comfortable with CL, you can get cheaper base model MacBook Pro's refurbished on Apple. The current base 15" MBP is $1529 before taxes: http://store.apple.com/us/product/FC721LL/A?mco=MjIzNjAzMzY.

Consider all your options. The earlier advice about comparing your "needs" and your "wants" is a good point. A 15" MBP is not particularly portable. If you're just doing Office-type work, consider a 13" MPP or MBA. Gaming vs a 15" MBP will suffer with either of these, but for everyday tasks (and taking the sucker from class to class), you'll appreciate the MBA.
 
strwrsfrk said:
OP: Have you considered buying a refurbished model or one through Craigslist? I'm a total nerd, and I go through computers like jocks go through girlfriends. As such, I spend a lot of time perusing Craigslist. I've bought 7 or so Mac computers on Craigslist, with no problems. Got my current 2.8GHz uMBP for $925 and my current 13" base 2010 MBA for $800, which is about the cost you're prepared to put down for one laptop.

If you're not comfortable with CL, you can get cheaper base model MacBook Pro's refurbished on Apple. The current base 15" MBP is $1529 before taxes: http://store.apple.com/us/product/FC721LL/A?mco=MjIzNjAzMzY.

Consider all your options. The earlier advice about comparing your "needs" and your "wants" is a good point. A 15" MBP is not particularly portable. If you're just doing Office-type work, consider a 13" MPP or MBA. Gaming vs a 15" MBP will suffer with either of these, but for everyday tasks (and taking the sucker from class to class), you'll appreciate the MBA.
Click to expand...

This. I was actually just about to suggest bumping down to a 13" MBP, rather than a 15". Unless you absolutely NEED a bigger screen, you can save the 600 bucks for the upgrade. Plus, in my opinion, I can't stand 15" laptop screens anymore now that I've gotten used to 13" screens. I had some troubles even getting my 13" MB inside some of my book bags.
 
That is a good point I guess... I plan for it to be my main and only computer that I plan to do school work and gaming ( somewhat, considering the limited gaming macs can do) would an air have enough room if I were to get games on it like some mmo that was about to come out?
 
DreamscapeRuins said:
This. I was actually just about to suggest bumping down to a 13" MBP, rather than a 15". Unless you absolutely NEED a bigger screen, you can save the 600 bucks for the upgrade. Plus, in my opinion, I can't stand 15" laptop screens anymore now that I've gotten used to 13" screens. I had some troubles even getting my 13" MB inside some of my book bags.
Click to expand...

My focus isn't the screen it's the gb and graphics ability to be honest in a Mac I mean if I went down to a 13 inch which I know would be cheaper how much would it cost to upgrade the graphics card?
 
Ask about education discount.

Raist14 said:
My focus isn't the screen it's the gb and graphics ability to be honest in a Mac I mean if I went down to a 13 inch which I know would be cheaper how much would it cost to upgrade the graphics card?
Click to expand...

Most laptops cannot upgrade graphics card after purchase. Those that can have outrageous prices for upgrades.
 
Gaming

Raist14 said:
That is a good point I guess... I plan for it to be my main and only computer that I plan to do school work and gaming ( somewhat, considering the limited gaming macs can do) would an air have enough room if I were to get games on it like some mmo that was about to come out?
Click to expand...

No lies, the current MBP line is the best line of Apple laptops for gaming. I play some indie games on my MBA, and there are many people on the forums playing things like L4D2 and the like. But if you're not a hardcore gamer, you should be fine with a current MBA.

I find that all of my professional software - Office 2011, iLife 2011, Adobe Suite CS5, XCode, and a few others - takes up about 45GB. On my base model with 128GB, that's more than enough. If you manage to get the 256GB SSD upgrade, it should handle your software and games with ease.

However, it might be limited for media. I keep all of my music, videos, and regular work documents on an SD card to avoid excessive writes to the SSD.
 
No Aftermarket Graphics Upgrades

Also note: The graphics are non-upgradeable for Mac computers (other than the Pro desktop line). Well, perhaps technically they are, but it would not be worth your time and money. Expect to keep what you get. If you have to have blzing fast graphics performance and expect to keep the machine for 5 years, the 2011 15" MBP might not be that bad of an investment. If this is only supposed to last for 2 years or so, think a bit more carefully.
 
Yeah I'm torn because I plan to have this laptop for quite a while and I'm not a hardcore gamer but it's because I haven't really had a computer equipped enough to do so.. The air sounds like it could work out fine but I feel I might use up the gb quickly cuz I tend to haha but it's more portable hmm idk I might just take the plunge on the 15 mbp because it does really do everything want in a way and I won't feel like I'll be wanting more :/ idk tho haha thanks for the advice tho guys I appreciate it any more thoughts feel free to share them to give me some more insight
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back