So my sister is graduating high school in 3 weeks and i suggested that my parents get her a macbook as a graduation present. I know a macbook will have plenty of power for what she needs. She will basically be doing word processing, internet, music, and hopefully a little iLife. Currently she is a windows user so this will be her switch. Basically im looking for input on what exactly i need to get: Memory, color, hard-drive size, external HD, etc...
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Macbook Graduation present
- Thread starter Rasheem
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great gift idea
Beats the heck out of the Toshiba laptop I got for my highschool graduation 11 years ago...
I think that the basic model with 1 GB RAM would be perfect. It might even work to just get the base model and then put in extra RAM for her (cheaper, and then you can get the RAM as a second gift).
Even a refurb model would work if you can find one.
Beats the heck out of the Toshiba laptop I got for my highschool graduation 11 years ago...
I think that the basic model with 1 GB RAM would be perfect. It might even work to just get the base model and then put in extra RAM for her (cheaper, and then you can get the RAM as a second gift).
Even a refurb model would work if you can find one.
Besides the basic reccomendations (e.g. 1GB of RAM), how are we supposed to know?
Surely you'd know enough about her computer habits to know what to get?
EDIT:
I just checked and the base model Macbook still comes with a Combo Drive.
If she wants to write DVDs you should reccomend the middle model with its default configuration.
Surely you'd know enough about her computer habits to know what to get?
EDIT:
I just checked and the base model Macbook still comes with a Combo Drive.
If she wants to write DVDs you should reccomend the middle model with its default configuration.
The default configuration on the middle one seems like a good pick. It simply doesn't seem economical to pay extra for the HD space on the laptop, when decent external drives are so cheap by comparison. It's possible you might want 2 GB of RAM instead of 1 GB, since the configurations are 2x512MB vs. 2x1GB, so upgrading is more of pain if you get the default config.
I wouldn't get the black one, you're just paying $50 extra for black. I may be a Mac user, but I'm not that shallow
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I wouldn't get the black one, you're just paying $50 extra for black. I may be a Mac user, but I'm not that shallow
.I think you should get a new model, rather than a refurb. I know that the refurbs are good, but I think a new one makes a better gift. You want her to love her new Mac, don't skimp on saving money...highschool graduation is a big deal and she deserves a new gift. Not to mention, it comes in beautiful Apple packaging
I think you should get a new model, rather than a refurb. I know that the refurbs are good, but I think a new one makes a better gift. You want her to love her new Mac, don't skimp on saving money...highschool graduation is a big deal and she deserves a new gift. Not to mention, it comes in beautiful Apple packaging
You guys could also get her a $1000 apple gift card so that she can get the macbook in the summer, in case there are hardware upgrades and also to take advantage of the ipod nano deal, which usually happens every summer (starting about June or so).
Whoa, nice grad prezzie.
Since when did teenagers get such large nice gifts for doing what is expected, which is GRADUATING?
Heck, in my day, we were expected to pass high school. Great marks (like over 85 across the board) might have got you a present. Nothing got you a computer (there weren't even PCs back then) or a car, unless the parentals were really rich.
Since when did teenagers get such large nice gifts for doing what is expected, which is GRADUATING?
Heck, in my day, we were expected to pass high school. Great marks (like over 85 across the board) might have got you a present. Nothing got you a computer (there weren't even PCs back then) or a car, unless the parentals were really rich.
Yeah but nowadays everyone needs a laptop for college and if you're graduating and collegebound, a laptop makes sense as a gift. Besides, if you don't give it as a gift, you'll still need ot buy one as an item off the "school supplies" list.
But for those who don't want to buy a comp for their kids, I recommend a $1000 apple gift card towards the purchase of a computer for college. At least that way, they have to put some of their own money into it.
My younger sister got a G4 iBook when she graduated from high school. That was a 100% gift though.
Wai
I recommend waiting. Many colleges have specific requirements and buying before knowing them could cost you money and cause grief.
They usually have some good pricing on the required product, but don't be surprised if they are Windows not macs.
Fred
I recommend waiting. Many colleges have specific requirements and buying before knowing them could cost you money and cause grief.
They usually have some good pricing on the required product, but don't be surprised if they are Windows not macs.
Fred
Never heard of any money and grief stories related to mac.
At my university freshman year during orientation, however, before they gave us our network accounts, they sorted us into 2 groups: mac users and pc users. My roomate and I were mac users and go to skip the whole service line. SP2 or some other service pack was mandatory and my school also had a set of anti virus software that was mandatory before any PC could be let onto the network.
I've also never heard of "requirements" for computers for just general liberal arts schools. You can buy whatever you want unless you're in some special program.
The gift that'll keep on giving...
Good bro, you are...
I'd say:
Macbook, refurb, black or white.
Unless you know she's devoted to interests in video editing / hard core graphic manipulation, etc. anything above this would be overkill, and waste of $.
I say refurb, b/c (don't know how deep your parents pockets are) but the reduced price may hook them to your suggestion over say a Gap gift cert. And based on what I've reviewed there's far more reasons to go refurb than to not to.
Whatever ram comes with it will be good for her (unless devoted to intensive interests listed above)
~misc
-USB 2 button mouse
-blank DVD-r's and CD-r's
-Protective notebook carrying case
-iWork - can produce documents in the expected M$Word format, but so nice to use, and does dandy presentations too
-something like OS X - The Missing Manual
http://www.amazon.com/Mac-OS-Tiger-Missing-Manual/dp/0596009410
-SECURITY CABLE for the Mac -find one with good reviews, don't cheap on this
That's my two cents; as for HD add-on, I think it'd be safe to wait until that need is crucial rather than getting one now; unless she loads it up with movie-files, most of what a first year college student will be up to wouldn't fill up the HD too soon... that goes w/extra ram too.
nf
Good bro, you are...
I'd say:
Macbook, refurb, black or white.
Unless you know she's devoted to interests in video editing / hard core graphic manipulation, etc. anything above this would be overkill, and waste of $.
I say refurb, b/c (don't know how deep your parents pockets are) but the reduced price may hook them to your suggestion over say a Gap gift cert. And based on what I've reviewed there's far more reasons to go refurb than to not to.
Whatever ram comes with it will be good for her (unless devoted to intensive interests listed above)
~misc
-USB 2 button mouse
-blank DVD-r's and CD-r's
-Protective notebook carrying case
-iWork - can produce documents in the expected M$Word format, but so nice to use, and does dandy presentations too
-something like OS X - The Missing Manual
http://www.amazon.com/Mac-OS-Tiger-Missing-Manual/dp/0596009410
-SECURITY CABLE for the Mac -find one with good reviews, don't cheap on this
That's my two cents; as for HD add-on, I think it'd be safe to wait until that need is crucial rather than getting one now; unless she loads it up with movie-files, most of what a first year college student will be up to wouldn't fill up the HD too soon... that goes w/extra ram too.
nf
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Yeah, I mean, my school requires a laptop, and pushes the IBM Thinkpads pretty hard, but there aren't any actual requirements. It'd be pretty hard to do that anyways, considering most kids buy their laptop as incoming freshmen and keep it all four years. If you have "requirements", how do you differentiate seniors from freshmen? Do you require seniors to start replacing their aging laptops with newer ones that meet the newer reqs?
My school doesn't officially support macs, but my major (graphic communications) most certainly does - again, it gets hard to mandate even platforms, considering it's going to change from major to major.
That said, I'd probably still hold off, just in case there are updates in June (there will most certainly be some this summer at some point). Even if the current model would meet her needs, it's still a shame to buy her a laptop now, only to have it outdated by the time she actually goes to college. I also agree that a refurb isn't really the way to go, IMO. I mean, it's kind of shabby to give as a gift and also, the refurb discount isn't very much more than the student discount she could get for herself on a brand new one. I think a gift card as someone else suggested would be the best route - that way she could A) get her student discount, B) pick what she liked, and C) opt to get the free nano if she wanted. Just my $.2 tho.
Yeah, my school really pushes Dell. eww.. My parents are dumb, and they pretty much forced me to order a dell because the school was supposed to have onsite support for it. what a load of ****. my wifi card was ****ed and they didnt even look at it lol so i bought an iBook
anyways for grad, she'll probably get money from other people as well (I got ~$2000 in cash from all my relatives combined) so a giftcard would probably be good. That way, if she ended up with enough money and wanted to go for the pro she could. Plus by the time she gets all her money and stuff, the new santa rosa ones should be out.
anyways for grad, she'll probably get money from other people as well (I got ~$2000 in cash from all my relatives combined) so a giftcard would probably be good. That way, if she ended up with enough money and wanted to go for the pro she could. Plus by the time she gets all her money and stuff, the new santa rosa ones should be out.
Yes, it seems like a laptop/notebook is very necessary for many entry college students. Even if they don't walk around with them to every class.. they will definitely use it in their dorms. Mobility is key when your a college student, for myself since I do not dorm.. I'm always moving around.
With that said, it would be a great idea for your parental units to get your sister a laptop/notebook.. but specifically a MacBook. She will fall in love with all of the the features I'm sure. Down the line, it will be well worth the money.
Snag her a Apple Gift Card or just wait til the end of the summer to get the special student discount, in anyway just get a MacBook before Fall semester. Cheers!
With that said, it would be a great idea for your parental units to get your sister a laptop/notebook.. but specifically a MacBook. She will fall in love with all of the the features I'm sure. Down the line, it will be well worth the money.
Snag her a Apple Gift Card or just wait til the end of the summer to get the special student discount, in anyway just get a MacBook before Fall semester. Cheers!
You don't need mobility. There are computers everywhere at universities. If you have a good desktop then you don't have to worry about anything. You don't need a laptop at all. You may want one so you can play games and talk on AIM during class, but that's about all I've seen people do with them in class in my four years at school.
Many schools are now requiring laptops. You can take them to class and take notes, and some of my teachers even require us to take them to class to do assignments.
Additionally, if you're working in the library or something, you're definitely better off with a laptop. In my school, the few computer stations they have are almost always full.
Also, when you're in the dorms, you'll be hanging out in friends rooms and stuff and you'll want to be on your computer to talk on AIM/Facebook and listen to music and ****. Plus, dorms have very little space, so a desktop is going to take up way more room than a macbook.
Finally, an iMac and a Macbook would be the same price, so there is absolutely no reason why you would buy a desktop instead of a laptop. It's just plain foolish.
When and where did you go to school?!
People do take notes with their laptops at my school although occasionally in an exceptionally boring class, students (myself included) will play games or surf the internet.
And there's nothing wrong with that either. You'll be thankful you're not bored to death.
Also a laptop in a class with internet can be really useful. For an astronomy course, I would download the charts from the Prof's website and put them inline with my notes, which made them great for studying.
And generally, people type faster than they write, which can be useful.
I'm graduating from my university now in Michigan. I'm going to medical school next year. Yeah I can type faster than I can write, but it's not the easiest thing to do for biology. Diagrams can't be drawn into a word processing programs during lectures. Sure words are good, but when the professors have powerpoints the best thing to do is make notes on a hard copy. It annoys me when two people in front of me are playing some game or chatting on AIM. When you are watching some video in a dark classroom a big bright laptop screen to your front right and left is the focus of your attention rather than the projector screen. Even if they are taking notes during a lecture the clicking of keys is also very annoying. A whole classful of that would be horrendous. In general, if going to lectures is a waste of time and if you are just going to play on your laptop don't come.
Some schools do require laptops, which in that case there's no debate. However, most schools do not have this requirement.
I'd take an iMac over a Macbook because it's far more powerful. In terms of space it takes up a dorm... An iMac is not a large machine and saves a lot of room. It's not that much different than the macbook just wider and taller. In addition, the iMac is going to last longer than a macbook and is a better investment.
Some schools do require laptops, which in that case there's no debate. However, most schools do not have this requirement.
I'd take an iMac over a Macbook because it's far more powerful. In terms of space it takes up a dorm... An iMac is not a large machine and saves a lot of room. It's not that much different than the macbook just wider and taller. In addition, the iMac is going to last longer than a macbook and is a better investment.