Thinking of going Mac

Hello all,

I'm contemplating getting my first-ever Mac - would like some feedback from those in the know to help in my decision making process.

Background - I've been using/programming/building computers for a long time, going back to the early 80's with the Atari 400. My father purchased an Apple II+ around the same time, and I spent many an hour programming on it in languages like Logo and Pascal. Today, I'm a full-time I.T. manager in a shop that is all IBM/Windows. I've built close to 150 PCs, along with the associating OS installs, drivers, configuring, and the rest of that time-consuming mess everyone knows and hates.

I stopped by the local Apple store the other day and was just wow'd by the new 27" iMac. I like the fact that I can learn something new, and have the ability to load and run Windows 7 applications when needed and have the horsepower for both today's applications as well as tomorrow's. I don't do any video editing or serious photography, but do need the ability to convert and create video DVDs on occasion.

I know about the video issues going on with the 27" units, and hopefully they will be all ironed out by the time my unit is built.

Questions:

1) I'm thinking of ordering the 27" quad-core base configuration and going with the 2.8 i7 upgrade - worth it? I know I can add memory later, and can't imagine needing more than 1TB of disk space - can I swap out the drive later if needed?

2) Is ordering iWork with the machine a good deal?

3) Should I order AppleCare now, or wait and see what happens during the first year?

4) I am enrolled in a degree program at a college that is listed on Apple's website, but not taking classes at this moment. Do I need to be in an active class in order to take advantage of the education pricing?

Thanks in advance for your feedback.

1) That's exactly what I was thinking of and is a good choice. You can definitely upgrade the memory later on very easily. The hard drive is a different story, you will need to fully dismantle the iMac to get access to the HDD.

3) Due to the screen issues and other things, I think it'd be wise to get AppleCare just to cover yourself..

4) I believe being enrolled is enough to qualify for the education pricing..but someone else might confirm that..

Regards

I would definitely suggest iWork to you.

At first I was hesitant because I loved Microsoft Word, Point etc.

I now prefer all of the iWork products to the Microsoft.

You should really try it out, because it is totally opinion based.

Apple Care is a good investment. You not only get the extended warranty, but also the telephone support service.

Apple's iWorks software is very good. I like it better than MS Office. But I've heard rave reviews for Open Office, which is a free suite of programs that do the same things. If your budget is a concern (and who's isn't?) then at least take a look at Open Office before you spend the $ on iWorks.

A vote for open office. I used it on pc for years and was very happy to find out they built it for Mac ! I really can't say enough about it. Atleast try it before spending the money on iWork Find it here :

OpenOffice.org - The Free and Open Productivity Suite

also some say neooffice is even better I can't say but here it is :

NeoOffice Home

take alook and let us know what you think

Hope this helps
clay

open office always worked exactly as well as microsoft office for me. The main difference in my opinion is brand name vs. knockoff. Are you the type of person who has to have a Polo shirt, or are you just as content with a walmart brand polo which was probably made in the same sweat shop, it just doesn't have the little $90 dollar logo on it.

I did a degree in Computer Science in the 70's and lived with Mac and 68K processors all the way through the 80's and 90's - absolutely loved them. Unfortunately had to switch over to PCs in the mid 90's due to cost pressure and the need to have a computer for each person in the house.
I moved back to Mac two years ago and am in seventh heaven. Things that I have tried to be productive with for the intervening years now all work and I am creating like never before - Video, music production in particular.

I have a copy of iWorks (is that what it's called?) and while I think that the product is great I see no value in having it over MS office as I use that at work. File formats are not a problem - it's just having an addition piece of software to maintain that, I am sorry to say, has no significant advantages over MS office.
My wife runs a home tutoring business and uses PCs (Macs are too expensive for now). She now has 7 PCs and the cost of running MS office on all of them is just getting too high so she is moving over to OpenOffice and I am doing the same on my Mac so that we stay coordinated.
I summary, unless you can get a copy of MS office for Mac for free I'd go for OpenOffice as functionally it is a great product.
Steve

Thank You

Thanks for the replies. I went ahead and ordered the 27" quad-core i7, 4gb ram, 1tb disk, full version of iWork, as well as the AppleCare. I will post my first impressions on here when I get it.

pmac5150 said:

Thanks for the replies. I went ahead and ordered the 27" quad-core i7, 4gb ram, 1tb disk, full version of iWork, as well as the AppleCare. I will post my first impressions on here when I get it.

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I have that same iMac and I love it and I think you will too. Good luck and have fun with your new Mac!

pmac5150 said:

Thanks for the replies. I went ahead and ordered the 27" quad-core i7, ...

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And were you given the education discount? You're not in classes now because of the semester break, right? So, I hope you got it! I mean, a full time student has winter and summer break, and they still qualify. You shouldn't be penalized just because you're a part time student and have a full time job.

Hi everybody!
I really looking forward to hear your impressions about the iMac. I'm looking for the same option. iMac with i7 upgrade and with apple care.
Could you guys please give me a link in this forum where I could read more about this video(or screen) problem?
Cheers

Bajszi said:

Hi everybody!
I really looking forward to hear your impressions about the iMac. I'm looking for the same option. iMac with i7 upgrade and with apple care.
Could you guys please give me a link in this forum where I could read more about this video(or screen) problem?
Cheers

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Just do a google search of iMac Screen Problems and a ton of stuff will come up. Are you referring to the screen flicker or yellow tinge?

Thx for the quick answer. i just read about both here... but I guess I shouldn't be worried too much. The apple care is there for this problem.
I just don't know if the i7 upgrade is worth it for another 200ish bucks. and also 4 gigs ram vs 8 gigs... Are you happy with yours?

Bajszi said:

Thx for the quick answer. i just read about both here... but I guess I shouldn't be worried too much. The apple care is there for this problem.
I just don't know if the i7 upgrade is worth it for another 200ish bucks. and also 4 gigs ram vs 8 gigs... Are you happy with yours?

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I think the i7 upgrade is definitely worth it at $200, even if you don't think you need that much power. If you have $200, I would definitely upgrade to the i7. As for the ram, I think 4 gb is fine for enough people but I got 8 gb as I tend to multitask a ton. If you decide to go from 4 gb to 8 gb, I would recommend not getting it from Apple as they overcharge for ram/hard drive upgrades. Check out crucial.com for ram. They will tell you exactly what models of ram fit into your machine and they are a very reliable company. I am very happy with my iMac. I love it and it has no problems at all. It is super fast and the screen is gorgeous. It's by far the best computer I have ever used/owned. Good luck with whatever you decide to do!