It's my girlfriend's birthday on wed. and I really want to get her an ibook. For many years she asked her parents for a notebook but she never got one. Unfortunately I don't make big money, but on my salary I think I could afford to get her the smallest ibook (12"?). Could you guys point me in the right direction as far as where to get a great deal or maybe even something comparable for cheaper (not cause I'm cheap, because I really make a modest salary). Thanks beforehand.
Apple (mac) users, can you help me out?
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The Take Out Bandit
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I don't know of any places to get a good price on the hardware, but I do know I had nothing but problems dealing with Mac Mall. So I'd suggest avoiding them like the plague.
Just from my personal experience, I'd get it from a brick & mortar; and inspect the unit before you leave. Mac Mall and Apple were both less than helpful when my Powerbook arrived physically damaged - but since it's "cosmetic" they were both unwilling to do anything about it.
That's a big fuck you to Apple / Mac Mall customer service. Maybe if what I paid for this thing were pocket change for my fat American ass, it would be a different story. >:|
Just from my personal experience, I'd get it from a brick & mortar; and inspect the unit before you leave. Mac Mall and Apple were both less than helpful when my Powerbook arrived physically damaged - but since it's "cosmetic" they were both unwilling to do anything about it.
That's a big fuck you to Apple / Mac Mall customer service. Maybe if what I paid for this thing were pocket change for my fat American ass, it would be a different story. >:|
I can only tell you that Apple keeps tight control over prices of its products so it is unlikely to find discounts or deals from retailers. The best bet would probably be to try and get an iBook with an educational discount (or discounts like that) from Apple or go through someone who can.
If you're on a budget, Macs are not your friend. Any Mac you get will be underpowered compared to the same priced PC. However, if your girlfriend is more of a "style over substance" person and does not tend to do anything particularly intensive on computers, then it's a good choice.
Danj said:
She's not a "style over substance" person, and I'm sure she doesn't care what kind of notebook I get her (I just thought Apple was better when it came to notebooks). If there's something comparable on the market that's cheaper than by all means let me know. She would mostly use it for university stuff, but we both work in television so it would be nice to edit video on it as well (I know a good notebook for editing video is very pricey).
newsguy said:
Apple are better when it comes to notebooks and video editing, but not in terms of value for money. I would suggest getting a PC laptop with a decent graphics chip on it (i.e. something by nVidia or ATI, no Intel XTreme, S3 or SiS stuff) and upgrading/opting for higher ram (at least 512mb) and bigger hard drive (at least, say, 60/80GB? Are you likely to be doing DV or HDTV level stuff on there? if so, pick the biggest hard drive you can afford) and you'll have a better deal than an iBook.
Macam said:
Disco Stu said:
Okay, what? I didn't say I hated Macs. I said Macs are more "style over substance" (well okay, that's paraphrasing what I said, but that's what I meant). You surely can't deny that style is more of a factor in the Mac's makeup than value for money. I'd buy a Mac, but they're just too expensive for what you can do with them, and in any case they are moving to Intel chips in a couple of years so there's not much point buying a Mac until then.
Phoenix
Member
I have nothing but good times with Macmall, macsales, and smalldog and highly recommend them myself. If you're really wanting to be cheap, your best bet is ebay to be honest. There is some risk involved if you've never dealt with ebay vendors and don't know how to spot scams, but there are plenty of 'trade-up' mac folks who frequently sell through ebay. I've sold 2 powerbooks that way over the past 4 years.
I would order a Mac from the Apple Online store. It comes with free shipping, and you can select your University from the education link on the right hand side. Even with the discount, get her the 12" iBook with 512MB of RAM and a doubled hard drive (60GB). Macs are worth their price simply because of OS X, and if you're doing video editing, you'll want OS X (however I couldn't tell you whether an iBook would be adequate enough).
Using education discounts, the total would come to $1083.
Using education discounts, the total would come to $1083.
Danj said:
I don't want to derail this into some Shog-infested Mac vs. PC thread, but I'll make a few notes:
1. "Style over substance" is wrong and ignorant, if anything. Style may play more of a factor, but it's more akin to "Substance with style". What you can do on a PC, you can do on a Mac.
2. The move to Intel chips shouldn't affect anyone's purchasing decision as the transition to most users will be transparent. Applications will still run and still work with no noticeable difference. For 90% of consumers, this isn't news of any significance.
newsguy: My only concerns with regards to an iBook is what kind of video editing and use your girlfriend does. If it's casual use all around, a 12" iBook should be fine, but as you're aware, a real deal video editing laptop is pricey. The advantage to the iBook or an Apple laptop versus a PC one is that you get a bunch of great, preloaded software including iMovie and iDVD which you won't get on a PC, so do take that into consideration. I'd recommend at least going into an Apple store if there's one nearby and getting some hands-on time with the iBook and grab an Apple rep if possible or just go to a retailer that carries Macs and try it. You know your girlfriend better than anyone here, and I think playing with it firsthand should give you a good idea of what to expect.
I think HDD space is somewhat secondary really to the RAM and graphics card for video editing since you can always grab an external HDD. Unless a lot of the video editing is going to be done in places like a coffee shop and other miscellaneous places, an external HDD shouldn't be much of a hassle if most of the editing will be done at home or the university.
That said, you must have a hell of a girlfriend to buy her a laptop. Congrats.
Macam said:
:lol :lol She is great, I probably don't deserve her to be honest. About the editing, I have a mini-suite at the house with premier pro on it for work stuff. Video editing wouldn't be the first thing she would use it for, but because she's taking post production next semester, I know she's going to want to be able to edit some of those projects on the go. I looked up what CVX said about the student discount, and it is possible to get 60gigs and 512mb ram for about the same price (although they axe the wireless card). The only thing I'm not sure about would be the video card.
StrikerObi
Member
Macs aren't a "style over substance" computer. That's retarded. Think of the computer industry like the car industry. You can go out and buy a Kia or a Toyota and it will work just fine, though it'll probably end up in the shop a few times during its life. Your other option is to spend a little more and get a Lexus or BMW. Sure it costs more, and yes it most certainly does look better, but there is more under the hood. The car is better designed and will have less problems than the Kia or Toyota will. It's also got a lot of fancy features you won't find on a $14,000 car.
Computers are the same way. You can buy the Gateway or the Dell, but it's sure to have problems. Why do you think those companies (much like Kia) talk so much about warranty and customer service? They do so because you actually need to use these features. Instead, you could buy an Apple. A damn fine computer that is well designed and more stable than almost anything else out there. It also comes with a lot of nice features (iMovie, GarageBand) that other computers just don't come with.
Bottom line: You get what you pay for. If you spend the dough on an Apple, you get an Apple, the "top of the line" for personal computers.
Computers are the same way. You can buy the Gateway or the Dell, but it's sure to have problems. Why do you think those companies (much like Kia) talk so much about warranty and customer service? They do so because you actually need to use these features. Instead, you could buy an Apple. A damn fine computer that is well designed and more stable than almost anything else out there. It also comes with a lot of nice features (iMovie, GarageBand) that other computers just don't come with.
Bottom line: You get what you pay for. If you spend the dough on an Apple, you get an Apple, the "top of the line" for personal computers.
Danj said:
You're dangerously close to trolling.
I would say that the value for the money with an iBook pisses all over any comparable PC laptop. It is durable, has excellent battery life, and can do almost anything you throw at it with the exception of games. When you add a lot of the Apple software it makes the gap even wider.
If you can get an Apple educational discount, go for it. It's the best deal out there.
I'd recommend a Mac to any non-gaming, casual computer user simply because you'll likely spend less time fixing things for her. No spyware. No viruses. Apple's "whole-widget" philosophy can save you a lot of headaches.
I'd recommend a Mac to any non-gaming, casual computer user simply because you'll likely spend less time fixing things for her. No spyware. No viruses. Apple's "whole-widget" philosophy can save you a lot of headaches.
StrikerObi said:
I agree with what you said but I would take it even further. I don't think you will have an easy time getting the equivalent of an iBook with all of it's built in features and software (802.11g, iLife, firewire) on a decent PC for $999. So I never have felt you are paying more for an Apple laptop. The only crappy thing about the base config is the pathetic amount of RAM. 512 should be considered a bare minimum for OS X.
shantyman said:
Okay, I'm sorry if it seemed like a troll. I do genuinely believe that you can do more with a PC costing the same price as a Mac. That is the only reason I haven't bought one. I agree that they look great, the OS is great, the Apple-provided apps are great, but for me, the price isn't great. I apologise if that seemed trollish to you.
Shogmaster
Member
Danj said:
Dude, don't pay any attention to them. You've done nothing wrong. Pointing out facts to someone else out of concern is not trolling.
If anything, they are the ones trolling, jumping on your post collectively without good cause just because your informed opinion threatens their little culture.
Shogmaster
Member
newsguy said:
Video cards have little to do with any "real" video editing performance. It could be a SIS or Intel built in card and it would be fine (also, having mobile 6800 or X800 card wouldn't make for significant difference).
oh great, shogmaster. :/
i think the ibook is a good choice. if you don't live in california, buy from the apple store on edu discount (this should be the same price your girlfriend's school bookstore will offer and ~10% off). if you do live in california, you may be able to save some money by buying on the edu discount but you're more likely to get around the same price through one of the mail order houses (macmall, macwarehouse, etc. etc. starting reading macintouch, macnn, etc. and find the price engine that lists out shipped prices and current incentive - ok, so the way mac pricing works is apple has very strict price controls, but the dealers are allowed to offer incentives like free hardware or whatever - so that's how you're going to find the best deal).
anyways, the ibook is a decent package for editing because the software end of it is so clean. your gf will probably do some training on final cut, etc. as part of her schoolwork because it's just so accessible. as far as the hardware trimmings, you will end up spending a little more, because you'll need more (and possible faster) storage as well as some memory to keep things rolling. however, i wouldn't recommend a wintel laptop because you're not going to find an equally portable machine that's so suited to her application and as clean software-wise for the same price (if you could spend a little more... maybe.)
oh, video chipset will matter somewhat even for editing because the os x display engine uses the opengl pipeline even for flat 2d renders (since it's all vector). a 9200 will probably be more than competent, though.
i think the ibook is a good choice. if you don't live in california, buy from the apple store on edu discount (this should be the same price your girlfriend's school bookstore will offer and ~10% off). if you do live in california, you may be able to save some money by buying on the edu discount but you're more likely to get around the same price through one of the mail order houses (macmall, macwarehouse, etc. etc. starting reading macintouch, macnn, etc. and find the price engine that lists out shipped prices and current incentive - ok, so the way mac pricing works is apple has very strict price controls, but the dealers are allowed to offer incentives like free hardware or whatever - so that's how you're going to find the best deal).
anyways, the ibook is a decent package for editing because the software end of it is so clean. your gf will probably do some training on final cut, etc. as part of her schoolwork because it's just so accessible. as far as the hardware trimmings, you will end up spending a little more, because you'll need more (and possible faster) storage as well as some memory to keep things rolling. however, i wouldn't recommend a wintel laptop because you're not going to find an equally portable machine that's so suited to her application and as clean software-wise for the same price (if you could spend a little more... maybe.)
oh, video chipset will matter somewhat even for editing because the os x display engine uses the opengl pipeline even for flat 2d renders (since it's all vector). a 9200 will probably be more than competent, though.
Guys, I really appreciate all the replies and in return I want to tell you what I found out when I got the ibook for my gf. It turns out that on top of $100 instant student discount, you get a $100 mail in rebate for being a student as well! So an ibook ends up costing $799 after the savings + free shipping. The way I found out is because I called a sales rep and he told me about it. Just wanted you all to know, the offer ends June 25th.
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