Who offers good prices on BTO G5 2.5?

[Mr. Anderson]

So it looks like I'm going to be making the plunge on a new machine when the new LCDs come out. I'm going to be getting a BTO G5 - dual 2.5 GHz, ATI Radeon 9800 XT 256 Meg RAM, 250 Gig Drive, Blue Tooth, Airport Extreme, Apple Care, dual 23" LCDs, Super Drive. Since this is a ton of cash, I'd like to be able to get a good deal -

Any help is appreciated, thanks,

D

 

[MrSugar]

So it looks like I'm going to be making the plunge on a new machine when the new LCDs come out. I'm going to be getting a BTO G5 - dual 2.5 GHz, ATI Radeon 9800 XT 256 Meg RAM, 250 Gig Drive, Blue Tooth, Airport Extreme, Apple Care, dual 23" LCDs, Super Drive. Since this is a ton of cash, I'd like to be able to get a good deal -

Any help is appreciated, thanks,

D

My god man. That is a lot of power!

 

[Mr. Anderson]

My god man. That is a lot of power!

the thing is, I'll still bring it to its knees a regular basis doing some complicated 3D animation scenes....but hey, for now, that's the best and the realestate will be nice if those specs on the new 23"s are valid.

But I'd rather not discuss what I'm getting, I want to know where to get it for the best price - I'll get memory elsewhere - I can get a pair of 1 Gig RAM modules for $260 each, so I'm going to go with the 2 - 256 and just replace them eventually. Most likely I'll get 4 gig to start.

D

 

[Soc7777777]

So it looks like I'm going to be making the plunge on a new machine when the new LCDs come out. I'm going to be getting a BTO G5 - dual 2.5 GHz, ATI Radeon 9800 XT 256 Meg RAM, 250 Gig Drive, Blue Tooth, Airport Extreme, Apple Care, dual 23" LCDs, Super Drive. Since this is a ton of cash, I'd like to be able to get a good deal -

Any help is appreciated, thanks,

D

on a machine that expensive i would say do one of a few things...

your best bet would be to find someone (like a nephew or kid or something) to buy the system for you as a gift using the educatoin prices... that alone should save 600 or so dollars on what you are talking about...

that is the best way to go, but if edu pricing isnt for you, then i would say buy from a 3rd party website like macmall, BUT with a purchase like this, you NEED to find a way to avoid sales tax... do you live near a state without sales tax? it might be worth the drive to buy it in a state without sales tax...

Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon are the five states that currently do not impose general sales taxes at the state level. However, numerous boroughs and cities in Alaska have their own local sales taxes. Furthermore, the other four states impose sales-type taxes on specific transactions, such as lodging accommodations.

also, sometimes you can get a good deal through buying from a 3rd party website like macmall because they give you free stuff such as printers to buy from there... but they do not offer edu pricing

 

[FuzzyBallz]

Get an ext. 250GB HD and do the dual Raptor 74GB RAID-0 for boot drive.

 

[2A Batterie]

I'm currently in your same situation and I've been doing some research. I'm still a little confused, but I got the idea that only the Apple Store can sell you a true BTO. Surely try to find a way to get that education discount. I notice that you posted that you were going to get 256mb RAM. If this is the case you really should consider much more, especially if you are doing intesive 3D. I'd suggest a minimum of 2g of RAM, but more like 4g to start with. If you get the 1gb sticks you'll pay more, but it will also give you the option of maxing your G5 out with 8gb later. Due to the fact that you are planning on doing animation, you should keep the 8gb option open for later down the road. I believe Motion (new apple app yet to be released) suggests at least 2gb of RAM. Oh yea, and just be patient till after WWDC... you have no idea what will be released (most likely new HD displays), which may affect what you buy based either on a new product and/or lower prices of old products as a result of the new ones.

 

[Mr. Anderson]

2A Batterie - Read my second post - I'm not going to stay with 2 - 256 megs of RAM, that's just silly And its just as silly to have Apple put the memory in there since they have a huge markup on memory. I can get 2 1 Gig RAM chips for $520 and Apple wants to charge me twice as much ($1050 and that's without the 2 - 256 RAM).

As for waiting, I've been waiting, years actually. I'm planning on making the purchase specifically because new monitors will be coming out and they'll be less expensive than the current 23". Also, if they go to the DVI plugs, you might not need an adapter for the 2nd monitor. So I could save upto $1k on the current price with the old 23" displays, which won't be all that bad at all.

I have bought from General Cybernetics in the past, but things aren't going all that well with them lately, so I don't know. They could always get a great price So I'll be looking at different options - edu discount would be nice, but I'd have to get a nephew or niece buy it for me.

D

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

the thing is, I'll still bring it to its knees a regular basis doing some complicated 3D animation scenes....but hey, for now, that's the best and the realestate will be nice if those specs on the new 23"s are valid.

But I'd rather not discuss what I'm getting, I want to know where to get it for the best price - I'll get memory elsewhere - I can get a pair of 1 Gig RAM modules for $260 each, so I'm going to go with the 2 - 256 and just replace them eventually. Most likely I'll get 4 gig to start.

D

If I can have a OT discussion here. I do ad layouts and DVD movie backups, along with the normal Mac things. I have been tempted by the new dual G5's. IF the single processor iMac's come to market, would I bring it too its knees like Mr. Anderson would?

 

[Mr. Anderson]

If I can have a OT discussion here. I do ad layouts and DVD movie backups, along with the normal Mac things. I have been tempted by the new dual G5's. IF the single processor iMac's come to market, would I bring it too its knees like Mr. Anderson would?

why don't you start a new thread - its a valid topic. I'm also looking at a new G5 iMac for my wife

I really hope that the new price for the 23" is less than $1799 - I know the rumors place it between 1499 and 1799, but for me getting 2 of them thats $400 to $1000 off the current price

D