New eMac Buyers - Use Apple Ram

[brhmac]

For new eMac buyers.... using the Apple store.

1 gig of ram for a new eMac at the Apple store = $225 installed

1 gig of ram for a new eMac from crucial.com = $240 + you install it yourself

 

[Kirk]

For new eMac buyers.... using the Apple store.

1 gig of ram for a new eMac at the Apple store = $225 installed

1 gig of ram for a new eMac from crucial.com = $240 + you install it yourself

I think you forget that the $225 from Apple just pays for the extra 768 MB RAM. You still pay $150 for 512 MB RAM at Apple vs. $ 119.99 at Crucial.

 

[brhmac]

D'oh! Good point.

Fair enough.

Bumping the eMac to 1 gig @ Apple = $225

Bumping the eMac to 1 gig @ crucial.com = $190

The point mainly was to counter the unsubstantiated claims on this board that anyone who buys ram from Apple is being grossly overcharged. For anyone nervous about installing ram or concerned about buying bad ram that might not work, the difference in price may be worth it. Also, you get to use your Mac right out of the box vs. messing with its innards (sp?) first.

 

[atari1356]

Fair enough.

Bumping the eMac to 1 gig @ Apple = $225

Bumping the eMac to 1 gig @ crucial.com = $190

In this case, I'd definitely pay the extra $35 to have Apple install it... especially since I'd also have it built to order with Airport Extreme, bluetooth, and a 160 gig hard drive.

It's sad how much of a better value the eMacs are over the new PowerBooks. I really want a new PowerBook, but don't think I can justify the price right now. The eMac is very tempting though.

 

[Mantat]

It's sad how much of a better value the eMacs are over the new PowerBooks. I really want a new PowerBook, but don't think I can justify the price right now. The eMac is very tempting though.

IT all comes down to this: do you need portability or not? the additional 1000$ is the price of portability. Its also because they are targeted at two different group, eMac are for home user while the PB line is for pros on the run.
I bought a 12" and now regret it. Not because the machine is bad, simply because I dont move around enought to justify having a laptop. For me, a tower would have been much better.

So unless you travel a lot, dont get a PB, you better invest in a full upgraded eMac and buy yourself a nice digital camera...

 

[JamesDPS]

Apple's RAM promo makes it a much closer call -- for example, buying a dual 1.8 G5 with 4GB RAM from Apple: $3,549 (normally $4,249). Buy a dual 1.8 from macconnection then install crucial RAM to upgrade to 4GB: $3,445.89 (more than $100 less) plus you can ebay the 2 modules of 256mb you take out, and if you're from CA you save on sales tax (about $280, not to mention other rebate offers for free printers and stuff).

Bottom line: even with an academic discount and the memory promo, someone in CA is still better off buying normally from macconnection.com (or macmall or any of the others, probably...) When the memory promo ends, it's not even close.

 

[Kirk]

I Just wonder if the new eMac will accept 1gb PC2700 RAM. In that case I would only buy 512 MB RAM from Apple.

 

[micvog]

For eMac buyers - and iBook buyers - Apple is reasonably competitive. This isn't always true, especially among other products. Take a look at the new 12" PowerBook. A 512MB module from Apple - $270; from Crucial - $116.

 

[Sun Baked]

For new eMac buyers.... using the Apple store.

1 gig of ram for a new eMac at the Apple store = $225 installed

1 gig of ram for a new eMac from crucial.com = $240 + you install it yourself

But it's TWO dimms at Apple for that price, if you're doing the crucial upgrade you'll still be needing 2 dimms -- but you'll have a spare 256MB dimm for another machine (just like Apple is doing).

However if you want to add a 1GB dimm it's still a few $s.