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Worth Buying a MB?

R

Raptor45

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 10, 2008
6
0
I am a college student going into sophomore year. I currently have a pretty high end desktop, mostly used for gaming, and a year old Lenovo T61 laptop originally worth about $2000.That said, I'm interested in trying a Mac. Although the T61 is powerful and has 3D and everything, its pretty ugly doesn't feel very portable.

I don't really need a lot of power from a laptop, I have my desktop (and T61 I guess) for that. Portability is all I'm looking for mostly, since in classes and such I'm mostly IMing and checking the internet.

I'd love to get a Macbook Air for its portability, but I don't think I can justify the cost when I already have a laptop and I don't really know how I feel about Macs. So that leaves a regular Macbook but they lack some of the more interesting Mac features (multitouch, blacklit keyboard) and are still over $1000. I tried looking for a outdated used Macbook but even those were still expensive, and if I'm spending that kind of money I'd rather just get it new.

Any ideas what I might want to do?
 
I checked ebay, and it seemed like they were going for like $800. For that price I'd rather just get a new one for $1100. Then it would be shiny and new and I wouldn't have the risk.

As far as refurb goes, with the student discount It winds up being the same price for a new one.

Maybe I didn't look long enough.
 
Its partly a money thing. I can technically afford even an Air, but being in college I really shouldn't be throwing the money around like that. That'd basically be all my savings.

Ideally I'd like to find a really cheap mac to see how I like them in general, and if I like it enough upgrade in a couple years. But I can't seem to find that kind of deal; at least on the intel macbooks.
 
From: :apple:'s refurb stock tonight (high turnover, check daily ;))



Don't forget to factor in your AppleCare though... ;)
 

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Get a refurb. It's really got to be what you want. Otherwise, you should definitely wait for the next update
 
I think I can get it new with the student discount for about the same price as a refurb, soo.
 
Thats one of the things that has really gotten me interested in getting a mac... but even so thats $1100 towards a laptop when I already have one; which also doesn't have some of the cooler features.
 
MacBook is easily the best laptop Apple sells. It isn't plagued by the design issues which make the MacBook Pro a loser for me and it isn't as worthless as the MacBook Air.

It's also the cheapest and has the best keyboard.
 
As another posted mentioned, buy new with the edu discount, get the iPod touch and then ebay the touch. You'll end up with a new Macbook for a great price. That's what my brother in law did, although he went the Macbook Pro route, and it saved a bunch.
 
Get MB with dvd burner. It cost more but you may need it sometime and it will help maintain resale value. Apple computers are expensive. I think you are paying for the OS. You are not getting great hardware for your money. You will however love the whole experience and perceive your hardware as the best thing ever.
 
neiltc13 said:
MacBook is easily the best laptop Apple sells. It isn't plagued by the design issues which make the MacBook Pro a loser for me and it isn't as worthless as the MacBook Air.

It's also the cheapest and has the best keyboard.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry, the MacBook is PLAGUED by design problems. The plastic is cheap and prone to cracking and wearing. The viewing angles on MacBooks are ridiculously bad. The MacBook also ages very quickly with the stained plastic and overall cheap build quality.

The MBP and MBA have their own issues, but none of them pertain to poor construction or cheap materials.
 
sammy2066 said:
I'm sorry, the MacBook is PLAGUED by design problems. The plastic is cheap and prone to cracking and wearing. The viewing angles on MacBooks are ridiculously bad. The MacBook also ages very quickly with the stained plastic and overall cheap build quality.

The MBP and MBA have their own issues, but none of them pertain to poor construction or cheap materials.
Click to expand...

Do you own a Macbook? Or are you commenting on what people posted here? I have a white MB, and it's fine. No issues, no cracking. Granted, an HP 8340, or Lenovo TP are better, in terms of how rugged they are. But I carry mine everywhere. You need to remember it's a laptop, not a book you toss around. You treat it well, it'll last a long time. Oh, and I have no idea what you mean by "stains"? Do you wash your hands often? Or eat a lot of Cheetos?
 
My girlfriend's mom got here first mac (white MacBook) and loves it. She's very picky and has been very happy with look, quality and performance.

If you go refurb, I believe the stock is updated at 1:00 AM PST.
 
with the student discount, you can purchase a white macbook for 999 and with the free ipod touch and a printer, sell those on ebay and you'll make 200-300 from that. so it'll cost you 800 for a laptop. pretty good price for me.
 
Yep. $800 for a MacBook is a very nice price. Beats refurb easily.

And it's definitely worth trying to have a Mac! I used to have a Thinkpad (R51) and although the MacBook is not THAT much lighter and not THAT much smaller, it is easily twice more mobile. Stand-by-waiting time, better footprint, thinner, better keyboard, better battery.

Just try it and you'll love it. Sometimes you have to jump in cold water to get over a river. And it'll be worth it.

I mean, even if you absolutely hate it - you can sell it for $1100! You'd even make money if you sold it. Win - win.
 
tmelvin said:
Do you own a Macbook? Or are you commenting on what people posted here? I have a white MB, and it's fine. No issues, no cracking. Granted, an HP 8340, or Lenovo TP are better, in terms of how rugged they are. But I carry mine everywhere. You need to remember it's a laptop, not a book you toss around. You treat it well, it'll last a long time. Oh, and I have no idea what you mean by "stains"? Do you wash your hands often? Or eat a lot of Cheetos?
Click to expand...

I don't own one, but I have worked on many MacBooks as I work for my university's computer department. People keep whining about them all the time. And yes, I an extremely careful with my computer equipment and know how to take care of electronics very well. That is probably why my PowerBook G4 is still serving me well today an is in a pristine condition.
 
And I am not denying the fact that MacBooks are not value for money. They're definitely bang for the buck, but that still does not rule out the fact that Apple is using sub-standard materials to make the MacBook. In fact, Apple's quality control has been consistently going down the toilet in the last few years.
 
I love my Mac Book. Besides the graphics i am surprised at the power of the machine. I can easily run Dreamweaver and Photoshop side by side with no issue while Iming and having a browser open with iTunes playing.

Any laptop that can do that is worth it to me.
 
sammy2066 said:
I don't own one, but I have worked on many MacBooks as I work for my university's computer department. People keep whining about them all the time. And yes, I an extremely careful with my computer equipment and know how to take care of electronics very well. That is probably why my PowerBook G4 is still serving me well today an is in a pristine condition.
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Well, that makes sense. I work in IT, and have been since '91. It makes no difference where you work, or what you give people, they'll complain. My last job we gave out HP 8340 Laptops. They were work horses, and very durable. People always complained, yet no one in IT ever had issues. Same was true at places I worked where DELL were the preferred, or IBM Think Pads.

Put it this way. Would you rather deal with cracks all day, or yellowed hand rests? Or people bitching they have viruses, it keeps locking up, I get BSOD's every time I start <<<PUT YOU APP HERE>>>...
 
tmelvin said:
Well, that makes sense. I work in IT, and have been since '91. It makes no difference where you work, or what you give people, they'll complain. My last job we gave out HP 8340 Laptops. They were work horses, and very durable. People always complained, yet no one in IT ever had issues. Same was true at places I worked where DELL were the preferred, or IBM Think Pads.

Put it this way. Would you rather deal with cracks all day, or yellowed hand rests? Or people bitching they have viruses, it keeps locking up, I get BSOD's every time I start <<<PUT YOU APP HERE>>>...
Click to expand...

Lol, I'd have to agree with you on that point. People just like complaining! :lol:
 
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