[NTLK] OT I need some advice on buying a Mac

[Ken Whitcomb]

Hi Matt,
If budget is a primary factor, I would purchase an iMac, a Mac Mini,  
or a MacBook. You'll have several choices of processor speed, RAM, and  
storage space. I concur with the refurb recommendation earlier if  
you're willing to take one off the shelf rather than build to order,  
you can find some good pricing if you're willing to live with only a 1  
year warranty, and a brown box as opposed to the retail 1 year  
warranty and a white box with pictures on it. Hey, I guess the only  
difference is the box and the price!

If your daughter is working as or aspires to work as a creative, then  
it is worth mentioning that the Apple displays have different specs  
than entry-price point displays sold in the pc market. There is a  
difference that creatives (whether working with video, photos, or  
vector art) will all attest to. IT people typically don't have the  
eyes to see the difference so don't write the Apple displays off as  
just over-priced eye candy. You can find comparable specs in displays  
in non-Apple hardware, but you won't find a 24" for $180 either (like  
I just saw at Tiger Direct this morning from an unmemorable  
manufacturer).

If budget is not a consideration, the new Mac Pro is an amazing box of  
performance, but bring your checkbook. To get the 12 core version you  
need $5000 to get the base configuration. Excuse me, I was drooling a  
bit there.

advice from Holland to Flint (all MI of course),

ken

On Feb 1, 2011, at 12:09 PM, L.W. Brown wrote:

> Based on budget, the (1) fastest, (2) most RAM, & (3) largest screen  
> affordable, in that order.
> One way to save is to buy a Mac Mini, max it out, and get a PC- 
> priced screen & keyboard.
>
> Sent from my ¡Brick...
> ;-]
>
> On Feb 1, 2011, at 11:21, Matt Howe <matthowe at comcast.net> wrote:
>
>> My daughter is a graphic designer and professional photographer.  
>> Although
>> she learned Creative Suite on a Mac in college, because we are a PC  
>> family,
>> she bought a PC as her first computer. That PC now needs replacing  
>> and she
>> wants to go back to a Mac. She comes to her software developer  
>> father for
>> advice on her next computer, knowing I deal with Apple hardware  
>> (Newtons).
>> So my question is, What would you advise a young professional power  
>> user,
>> fresh out of college on a limited budget, buy in the way of a Mac  
>> to use
>> Creative Suite?
>>
>> Matt (Ducky) Howe
>> Owner of a MP2000U and an Emate
>> SantaMatt at Gmail.com (Android LG Vortex)
>> matthowe at comcast.net (Desktop)
>> http://home.comcast.net/~mhowe41/
>> http://SantaMatt.blogspot.com
>>
>>
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