Mac Pro savings group?

[cr2sh]

I decided the other that night I was going to start saving for a new Mac Pro, in thinking about I wondered if there might be anyone else around here who's in a similar position who might want to track their savings also?

Basically, I want a mac pro and I could just go out and buy one... but I think I'd get a lot more satisfaction from it if I spent the next 6 months saving for it.. and then bought one with my hard earned savings.

The plan is simple... today is December 26th. There's bound to be a new Mac Pro to come out in the next 6 months... so the prices on current machines will come down.. I could go refurbished and get an older or new and cheaper.. I dunno, it depends. Either way, in 6 months or so... I expect that I'll need about $2400 to buy this sweet new machine. The price could vary, it could be less... but that's about how much I'm looking to save. That's about $400 a month. And on average.. about $13 a day.

June 26th or so... I'll be buying a new mac.

So does anyone want to join me?

I'm going to work together a budget for spending that will allow me to meet my savings milestones... basically cut the fat out of stuff I like to do, trim it back and save where I can. Sell a few items on ebay that are just cluttering up my house...

Here's my list so far:

• I'm going to set up an auto savings plan from work to get $100 per pay check dropped into a separate account. I'm going to work an extra half hour every day then I won't miss it at all from my paycheck.
• I'm going to stop drinking diet soda with lunch.. soda is expensive and the caffeine is bad for me.. it'll save me a few bucks a day - plus I'll be healthier.
• No more snacks from the vending machine... again, they're bad for me anyways. I'll have to get a piggy bank at work for the extra coinage.

That's it for now... anyone else have ideas on how to save small amounts of money? Anyone care to join me on this six month journey?

 

[Zman5225]

could you cut back your cable bill for that 6 month timeframe? Like reduce what channels you get or something.

How about rent less videos? ( I don't know if you do or not.)

Coffee? starbucks or whatever your poison is? Skip it.

Make your own lunch, PB&J and some ramen noodles with hot sauce.

How about car pool to work for 2 days out of the week or more if possible.

If any of those are possible, that would increase your savings a lot.

Oh, and if your going to work that extra 30 mins, if you can afford it, deposit that to.

Eat out less if that's in your diet as well. A good home cooked meal will feed you for 2 days with leftovers whereas most restaurant meals go for 1 meal for the average person.

How about cell phone minutes? Cut back that plan for a few months to.

You know, if you lived like this for two months, you'll be accustomed to it, and after you make your purchase, the wise thing to do would be to keep saving the same amount, but move it into a 401k program, or a Roth IRA account.

I spaced out this post on purpose to make it almost like a list.

Goodluck on saving for your MacPro!

 

[phillipjfry]

What I find works best is to give my money to someone else (Mom, gf, someone you can trust!). What money I don't have in my hands, is money I can't spend. So if I were you, I would give the 90$ a week to this person, or piggy bank as you will.

Any money you get (birthday, christmas, etc) put 80% of that in your 'savings' and spend the rest if you want.

I would ebay all kinds of stuff, but I dont trust ebay (from the stories I've heard, seems like more of a headache than benefit).

Check your cellphone bill. Maybe you can downgrade to a slimmer plan and save some change from that.

Drive when you have to (or have someone drive you if you can get away with it ). That saves on gas. You have the right idea on bringing lunches. That stuff adds up.

I, too, am trying to save up for a new iMac 24'' (went to my first Apple store and I absolutely fell hardcore in love with one). I have some random computer parts if anyone wants to buy them from me.

Also I don't know if this matters to you, but tax season is coming up and I'm hoping that a fat tax return will help me make up for the rest.

Sell your plasma (blood, not tv).

Do simple computer work for relatives (charge 10-20$ per computer).

Call up old high school friends and tell them that they still owe you money.
Wow, now that I look back, I've really put a lot of thought into this LOL!

 

[cr2sh]

Heh. A lot of these ideas are good... but they don't really apply to me.

First, I live two miles from my office.. I do drive it because the area can be a bit rough... so I don't carpool. I go home a few days a week to eat lunch. that will likely increase. I'll cut out dining out, that is expensive for sure!

As far as a cell phone goes.. I have a shared plan with my gf.. my part of the bill is $25 a month. It doesn't get much cheaper than that.

I don't have cable tv... just high speed internet, and I have the cheapest plan available for that.

The plasma idea is a really funny idea... and I really want a Mac Pro... but not quite that much. I'll keep my blood cells thank you very much.

The idea of working for relatives is good.. but I make enough per hour now that I might as well just stay at the office for a little bit longer.. rather than get into the robbing my friends/family racket.

 

[phillipjfry]

The plasma idea is a really funny idea... and I really want a Mac Pro... but not quite that much. I'm keep my blood cells thank you very much.

What kind of satisfaction can you have getting such a dream machine if you can't say you didn't put your sweat and blood (almost literally) into saving up for it?

 

[Maxwell Smart]

Hmmm sounds like a good plan. If you stick with it you should be able to make it by June. You seem to have everything set so good luck! Report back to this thread in 6 months so we can see if you made your goal

 

[cr2sh]

Today I sold an old digital camera I didn't need to a MacRumors member.. $70. That's 3% there baby!

I also posted Mac OsX Panther install discs, Quicktime VR studio discs and a 15" ADC display. I am on my way.

 

[mattcube64]

Funny, I'm doing the same thing!

Hey, I just got my acceptance letter to MU, and one of the requirements for a journalism major is to pre-purchase an Apple laptop. Hehe, too bad I already have a Macbook! However, this makes it much easier to convince my mom that buying a Mac Pro before heading off to college is a wise investment. She trusts how I spend my money, and I'd really like to get a Mac Pro right before heading off to college. I know once I'm in school, I'll be poor for the next four years, so I'd like to start off with something I know will last me through my time at the university.

Anyways, I'm like you. I'd like to have around $2500 by mid-July. So basically, I need just a little more money, and have just a little more time to get it. I finished all my required classes this past semester for high school, and so I'm only taking three dual-credit (college) classes, and my newspaper class. Basically, I'm getting out of school each day by 11:30. This gives me more time to get hours in at my job. For the last three years I've worked there, flipping burgers, I've put in anywhere from 10 hours on some weeks, to 35 hours on others. I don't want to burn myself out or over-work myself during my final semester of high school, but I do want to take advantage of the opportunity to earn some extra cash. So, I'm thinking I'll work around 25hrs/week. At eight bucks an hour, lol.

After my taxes, I usually net around $7/hr. So, going by that logic, each of my bi-weekly paychecks should end up right around $350. Some of that money will have to go to gas. I already have my insurance paid for and caught up for the next six months.

Currently, I tend to see a movie every weekend, purchase a game atleast twice a month, if not many more, and I like to eat out several times a week with friends even though my mom has a perfectly fine meal ready at home. I'm not gonna pretend that I'm just gonna magically give all this up overnight, but I can certainly cut back.

So, each month I want to bring in around $850 or so (I normally have five paychecks in two months). I'm gonna take away $75 for gas and I'm gonna take away $100 for entertainment. I also want to put back another $75 for another savings account in the case of an emergency. That leaves me with $600 a month.

$600 x 6 Months (J,F,M,A,M,J) = $3600. I should be good to go. However, that's not including the money I should get on my Birthday (Jan 28) or for my graduation (at the end of May). Also, though, that doesn't consider the new car I need to buy. I saved for my current car when I turned 15 by getting the job I still have. It's perfectly fine for local driving, but it isn't reliable. I'd like to get a good, $10K car that's reliable with low miles. That means I need to take out a loan and use my current car as a down payment. In other words, I'll likely have another $150 ATLEAST tacked on to my subtractions. Ugh.

So, wish me luck guys...

 

[Kingsly]

could you cut back your cable bill for that 6 month timeframe? Like reduce what channels you get or something.

How about rent less videos? ( I don't know if you do or not.)

Coffee? starbucks or whatever your poison is? Skip it.

Make your own lunch, PB&J and some ramen noodles with hot sauce.

How about car pool to work for 2 days out of the week or more if possible.

If any of those are possible, that would increase your savings a lot.

Oh, and if your going to work that extra 30 mins, if you can afford it, deposit that to.

Eat out less if that's in your diet as well. A good home cooked meal will feed you for 2 days with leftovers whereas most restaurant meals go for 1 meal for the average person.

How about cell phone minutes? Cut back that plan for a few months to.

You know, if you lived like this for two months, you'll be accustomed to it, and after you make your purchase, the wise thing to do would be to keep saving the same amount, but move it into a 401k program, or a Roth IRA account.

I spaced out this post on purpose to make it almost like a list.

Goodluck on saving for your MacPro!

Wow, someone who shares my economic philosophies!

 

[Zmmyt]

i was thinking about the same thing.


maybe i'll join you in the future, don't know jet. i need to think about it.

i'm not even sure if i shouldn't go with an iMac.

it's not a big deal to save £200-300 a month, but i want to move in march or april, which is priority no. one at the moment.

 

[cr2sh]

i was thinking about the same thing.


maybe i'll join you in the future, don't know jet. i need to think about it.

i'm not even sure if i shouldn't go with an iMac.

it's not a big deal to save £200-300 a month, but i want to move in march or april, which is priority no. one at the moment.

I've got a 20" G5 iMac at 2.1GHz with 2.5GB of ram... its a beautiful machine that really is fast as hell... that will probably go up for sale sooner or later, but I'll want to clear it and backup a lot photos.

That money is ear marked for my new garage though.. not this little venture.

 

[jonkemerer]

I'm new here (first post, go me) but have decided to get a Mac Pro sometime in late spring early summer. My budgeting is more like getting a second job to afford it, but I really want a new computer (and other things) because I'm sick of having to upgrade it all the time.

I've decided on a $2,200 Mac Pro, and if money allows I'll get the 23" Apple cinema display, it depends on how much I can get for my current computer and how much if anything I get back from Uncle Sam in April. But for now, the computer is what I'm after so:

Target: $2,200
Current: $200


I had a Mac Mini before, but sold it after a year because it was so slow and I couldn't find a good image browsiing app. Now I'm back in the hunt because of Bootcamp. Bootcamp sold me, the other things like Crossover and Wine have be interested, too, as I only need to run one program in Windows(ACDSee 7.0).

Hope you get yours, I'm looking forward to getting another Mac.

 

[cr2sh]

I only need to run one program in Windows(ACDSee 7.0).

I've used acdsee a lot... I have to ask, its not that goog... so why on god's name do you have to use it?

 

[jonkemerer]

I've used acdsee a lot... I have to ask, its not that goog... so why on god's name do you have to use it?

It's the only image browsing app that does what I need it to do, organize Photo Gallery on Vista (aside from some really stupid decisions made my MS, as always) and Bridge in CS2 are good ones too. If Bridge on CS3 is perked up a bit I may end up just using that though, it suits my needs well enough to not deal with the hassle of virtual environments, or whatever the heck they are.