First Time Mac User - Planning To Buy MacPro 13inch

Hello everyone,

I am totally new to this forum as well as Mac. Right now I have a Compaq laptop that I bought 5 years ago. At any day now it is bound to die!

Well the time has come for me to switch to Mac and after doing the research I plan to get the Mac Pro 13in. As much as I love the 15in right now it is not within my budget. Hopefully some day I will be able to get the 15in. Right now I just want something to start off with. Hopefully I will be more prosperous down the road; right now the road is good and has left me with money to buy this Mac and room to expand my education.

I should mention that I have a 19in monitor (which I am using to type this message as we speak) to hook up my Mac to. So technically I am not really losing screen size.

Also I should admit that I wanted a laptop with Blue Ray and HD but after reading articles and talking to people it seems like a waste of money. I took into account licensing fees, picture quality ( which to see a difference you would need at least a 40in TV), and there is the issue of a DVD player being able to actually play the DVD at home or on any other computer which is also tied to regional issues on the DVD player. It seems that right now the technology has not matured to make me want to run out and buy it. And if I do want to burn HD or Blue ray there is Roxio for that. This whole Blue Ray and HD is just a bunch of hype to please the masses and is a format war just like VHS and DVD in the beginning. Well not hype but more like something else for consumers to pay money for when it still has flaws.

Does anybody have the latest news for Mac? I was going to buy one tonight but then there is a event on January 27 so I waited. My guess there is going to be updates for the Iphone or tablet.

I hope my rambling did not bore anyone but I wanted to share some good news. Look out Mac here I come!

It could be worth waiting until after the 27 event, but, in saying that, anything new that may come out, if it is such a major tech breakthrough, will also be priced in a whole other ballpark.
The new MacPro's are great, and so are the new MacBooks for that matter.
You should go to Apple.com , click the store tab, scroll down to refurbished in the left column and see what they are offering.
The refurbished units come with full warranty, as well as option to purchase AppleCare (extended warranty and support), and are pretty heavily discounted.
They will also have been more rigorously tested than units straight out of the factory.

In all honesty, there is always gonna be something newer, flashier, etc come out when you buy something, be it a computer, car, boat, etc ....so if you wait for the next best thing, when does the waiting stop?

6string said:

It could be worth waiting until after the 27 event, but, in saying that, anything new that may come out, if it is such a major tech breakthrough, will also be priced in a whole other ballpark.
The new MacPro's are great, and so are the new MacBooks for that matter.
You should go to Apple.com , click the store tab, scroll down to refurbished in the left column and see what they are offering.
The refurbished units come with full warranty, as well as option to purchase AppleCare (extended warranty and support), and are pretty heavily discounted.
They will also have been more rigorously tested than units straight out of the factory.

In all honesty, there is always gonna be something newer, flashier, etc come out when you buy something, be it a computer, car, boat, etc ....so if you wait for the next best thing, when does the waiting stop?

Click to expand...

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply.

I considered getting a refurbished Mac but I prefer to buy from the Mac store. However I will wait after the 27th because I want to be up to date. If it does not relate to the Mac Pro laptop then I will definitely purchase one. But part of me feels like the news will be related to the Iphone or the tablet. If I wait any longer it will hurt me in the end.

Does the Panasonic Lumix with HD video work on the Mac?

Your absolutely right about things always being newer. But when it comes to electronics its so frustrating due to this format war. There are still so many issues surrounding it. I just want to buy the product and enjoy it. The opinions of people who have the fastest HD, Blue Ray laptop does not mean anything to me. And if they have a HD DVD player or Blue Ray player good for them. But till then the 13" is perfect for my needs.

And who knows one day I may be able to afford a 15" or 17."

What matters is the computer being able to do the job.

Plus if I do want to move into HD and Blue Ray there is always Roxio software and my 19in monitor with a matte screen.

I've heard conflicting details re Panasonic Lumix with HD and Mac and also XP.
Apparently it states it the manual that AVCHD motion pictures can not be downloaded to a MAC!
Found a thread though which states you can use Final Cut Express to import AVCHD files from an SD card reader.
Final Cut converts the AVCHD to MOV files.
Also, that you can use iMovie 8.0.3, which comes with iLife 09 which will come preinstalled on your Mac already

Here's a link
http://www.flickr.com/groups/1026475@N24/discuss/72157619279799560/

Congrats on your purchase,

6string said:

I've heard conflicting details re Panasonic Lumix with HD and Mac and also XP.
Apparently it states it the manual that AVCHD motion pictures can not be downloaded to a MAC!
Found a thread though which states you can use Final Cut Express to import AVCHD files from an SD card reader.
Final Cut converts the AVCHD to MOV files.
Also, that you can use iMovie 8.0.3, which comes with iLife 09 which will come preinstalled on your Mac already

Here's a link
Flickr: Discussing AVCHD Lite direct iMovie import on Mac in Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ7 / DMC-ZS3 & DMC-TZ6 / DMC-ZS1

Click to expand...

Thank you for replying back.

I know that the Mac Pro does not burn HD but I do there is a way to adjust the resolution so that it has the same feel as HD. And this job can be done through iMovie.

Can a MacPro 13" handle something like Final Cut Express. That is a pretty big file. I also plan on getting an external hard drive soon. Good there is no interest for 18 months.

saam.sadeghi said:

I considered getting a refurbished Mac but I prefer to buy from the Mac store.

Click to expand...

You can purchase refurbished Macintosh computers from the Apple Store...and you get a full 12 month warranty as well.

Refurbished Apple Store:

Refurbished Mac - Apple Store (U.S.)

The inventory changes daily...so the exact model computer you want may not always be available.

- Nick

As a recent convert back to Macs. I will say your decision will not go unrewarded. I purchased a MBP13...bottom end one and I have never been more satisfied. I looked at it this way...

1 you can always upgrade ram yourself and save bucks,
2 you can always install a larger hard drive

Both of which can be done with way less cash than can be done from apple. As for processor speed... there is roughly a 12% increase in the faster 13" MBP..in my opinion not really worth the extra coin but then again depends on intended use. In either case good luck with the decision and enjoy.

I run final cut express on my mbp that has way lower specs than the one you want...you should be fine.

Does anybody know what news is coming out on January 27.

saam.sadeghi said:

Does anybody know what news is coming out on January 27.

Click to expand...

Only Apple knows...... and it is only 2days now, so just wait and see.

6string said:

Only Apple knows...... and it is only 2days now, so just wait and see.

Click to expand...

So very true!

Friday night I will hopefully being buying my first Mac.

How is the warranty on Macs?

Also I am thinking of trying iWork first before purchasing Microsoft Office. I figure iWork does the same stuff as Microsoft Office and I can send the files to a PC.

Does Final Cut Express 4.0 support HD video on the Panasonic Lumix?

the warranty on macs is good.... apple in most instances do their best to look after it's customers, also, there is the option to buy apple care, which you can purchase anytime within the year of your warranty, which gives you 2 extra years warranty and telephone technical support.
iwork is compatible with Microsoft Office, as for the Lumix, I put information there for you early in the thread for you to have a look over.

I'm guessing you won't regret your purchase if you buy an MB or MBP now instead of waiting. However, if there is some new hardware released (some new iPhone or something), you can probably get an old free or very cheap with a MB purchase. That's what I did anyway with my old iPod.

I went bottom end back in 2007 on a Macbook. Only 1G of Ram and 120G hard drive. I upgraded to 4GB via Kingston for $100 and bought a 1.5 TB external for $100. Much cheaper than going through Mac. Since you already have a 19" monitor, just buy whatever adapter you need to plug it in and dual screen it like I do with my old Windows monitor. My Macbook is still running well, and has everything I need.

saam.sadeghi said:

I considered getting a refurbished Mac but I prefer to buy from the Mac store. However I will wait after the 27th because I want to be up to date. If it does not relate to the Mac Pro laptop then I will definitely purchase one. But part of me feels like the news will be related to the Iphone or the tablet. If I wait any longer it will hurt me in the end.

Click to expand...

I bought a refurb 2.26 13 inch MPB right after Christmas and it has been great to me. Unfortunately I'm not extreamly happy with Mac OSX after being a Windows user for so long, but maybe I'll learn to enjoy it a bit more as time goes on.

Like already mentioned, I'd wait until Wednesday to make any decisions, as the MPB line should be updated. However, if I was you I'd probably still end up buying the refurb 2.26

You guys are so awesome! Thank you so so much!

How is final cut express when it comes to HD?

here's a review that should answer you question better than I can
Final Cut Express HD Review | Video | Macworld

6string said:

here's a review that should answer you question better than I can
Final Cut Express HD Review | Video | Macworld

Click to expand...

You always give awesome info! Thank you so much. I just found this tutorial that shows how you can upload video content and adjust the image settings.

Final Cut Express HD Review | Video | Macworld

I really want to try this.

Is it possible to take an audio track at 96kps and up the sound quality with the software pre-installed on the Mac?

I use garageband (which not as good as pro tools) to compress which allows me 64 -320kbps. I send songs to itunes, or create CDs.
I have always managed to get great sound quality.... Indistinguishable from CD quality.
I have also recorded low quality songs from other artists into one track on garageband and increased the sound quality.
Gotta go, calibrating my battery and its about to die.
Will fill in with more detail once I have powered up again.