Best long term investment

right now I am rocking on the 2006 MacBook with upgraded ram, 1GB 533Mhz and the 1.8Ghz Core Duo , 60GB hard drive, OS X 10.4.11 , GMA 950

Needless to say Its falling apart on me virtually and physically, it's over heating and well, like any 3.2 year old computer its time to replace.

Option 1. cash on MacMini. cheaper, not portable.

Option 2. make payments on a MacBook Pro 13in. Pro because I hate plastic.



Things to consider, I do have a newer 20in monitor. I can still use the old macbook when/if I need to be portable.

What I use my computer for?
- playing one specific MMORPG thats not demanding
- Browse internet, youtube
- hobby photoshop


I dont want to get a macmini or mbp and in 3 months something newer and better comes out and I am left in the dust so to speak , all over again. Will the 9400M be enough to satisfy me for years to come? My biggest issues now are flash and video.

If you have it in mind to buy a MBP and make payments, you might want to wait another month or so. An upgrade to the MBP line is about due and the advice from MacWorld and others is to wait.

Just keep on trucking with your old machine until then.

Regards.

appleXcore said:

I dont want to get a macmini or mbp and in 3 months something newer and better comes out and I am left in the dust so to speak , all over again. Will the 9400M be enough to satisfy me for years to come? My biggest issues now are flash and video.

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When it comes to computers...there really is no such thing as a "best long term investment". Ever hear of "Moore's Law"?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moore's_law

For the tasks you listed...I think that the 2006 MacBook you have should be fine. Why not wait until it starts to show its age...then upgrade to something newer.

If it's really physically falling apart...well then maybe that's a reason to upgrade. But as far as it being a 3.2 year old computer & "time to replace"...I don't agree...especially for the tasks you mentioned.

Just my 2 cents

- Nick

its the low frequency ram / chipset combo thats the killer on this thing. Its a struggle to watch youtube, or go to a webiste with flash.

I cant multi task like I used to without jamming and freezing.

about the MBP, good, I would hate to buy a MBP and then next week they release a new one.

appleXcore said:

its the low frequency ram / chipset combo thats the killer on this thing. Its a struggle to watch youtube, or go to a webiste with flash.

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I don't really understand this. I recently owned & sold a 2006 MacBook with a 2.0ghz CPU (only slightly faster than your MacBook) with 1 gig of ram & the same GMA 950 graphics...and it worked GREAT on YouTube.

Your MacBook has a "Core Duo" CPU...mine had a "Core 2 Duo"...but I'm not sure that difference is significant.

- Nick

Another way to look at it you can only own the bleeding edge for less than a year because the next model will be better than what you buy today, so like that was said if you
can wait do so if not what you can get right now will be more than what you have.

How about a refurb 13" MBP from the Apple site? Not much more than a plastic MB...

I have the MacBook you do and I am in a fairly similar quandary to you. My MB just doesn't seem as quick as it used to and feels like it's slowing down a bit and the fan goes mental when watching Flash on YouTube for longer than 5 mins. On the physical side, the Superdrive gave up the ghost and it has the obligatory broken wrist rests as well as minor scratches everywhere. But importantly, it still does everything I want it to do.

But I still want a new Mac, and I'm in the same situation you are regarding what I want to get. I want a long-term investment as well, so I know what you mean. I have a few suggestions that occurred to me while I was thinking about what I wanted to do.

1. Divide the load, get a cheap Mac as a stop-gap - I bought a cheap G4 Cube to take some of the workload from the MB, and it is running like a champ. Obviously it cannot run any video, but it does everything else fine. It acts as an iTunes Jukebox, runs Safari, Transmission and Pages 09 well enough to act as a replacement for all my basic needs. And it was cheap too!

2. MBP - Expensive, but powerful. As chscag said, wait a little while, they are due for an update. Your hard-earned cash will get you even more bang for your buck - the current MBPs are 'only' as powerful as the current Minis. You could use either the MBP or your current MB as a desktop-replacement in clamshell mode (or open) with your monitor while taking the other one out and about. As Jaygray says, you could get a refurb MBP. It would be cheaper than one of the potential updates, but not as good either.

3. Mac Mini - Cheaper, as powerful as the current MBPs, but will be comparatively weak compared to a potential MBP update. A stationary desktop, as you say and less flexible than a MB or MBP. But a very good, solid, small computer.

4. Invest more in the MB before you jump ship - you could double the RAM to 2GB as I did. You will see a serious speed boost. I also think more RAM makes computers heat up less? But don't quote me on that. You could put in a larger, faster HDD. This would speed up the computer if your drive is getting a bit full. With 2GB of RAM you could then upgrade to Leopard or Snow Leopard if you wanted.

That is as far as I've taken mine. Personally, I like to stick with what I have and take it as far as it will go. My final 'upgrade' would be an SSD when they get a bit cheaper, and to take it back to the Apple Store, get the wristpad/keyboard replaced, and perhaps see about a Superdrive. But that's when I have some free, disposable income!

As I see it, if money and time were no object, I'd still upgrade your MB first, then if that was not good enough for your needs, or you just want a new computer in front of you, wait for the MBP update and get one of them.

In reality, I'd take your MB into an Apple Store, just to see if there is anything actually wrong with it. I'd invest in it a little longer - you will see noticeable improvements. That should at least see you through to the MBP update, whenever it it. Then you'll be in a better position to decide whether to buy a refurb C2D MBP, cheaper Mac Mini or new i5, i7 or whatever shiny new MBP comes out.

Sorry for the essay...

Hope that helps!

thank you 613. I enjoyed reading that. I feel my MB is on the side of a fence it can never get back from though. Chipset vs 9400M. Every year websites are getting more flash heavy and the chipsets work harder and harder.

I have a chance to make some extra money at work and will decide after that what I do. I do want to time my purchase to be right after the new MBP release. Hope its in the next few months.

No problem appleXcore.
Flash is becoming a more noticeable problem, I will agree. I've reduced its effect by using a program called ClickToFlash that doesn't load any flash with you clicking on it. It allows sites to load far quicker.

I would tell you not to give up hope on your MacBook just yet, but I know where you are coming from!

I hope Apple release the new MBPs soon. I've got a 21st birthday coming along in a couple months so here's hoping!

David

I think click to flash slowed my system down...

anyway a little more diagnostics for you all. I have World of Warcraft running , I am in que and in the log in screen. Its using 14 - 20% CPU 125MB REAL Memory


In any web browser I am having trouble scrolling and typing and switching tabs. My words are poping up a good 2 - 3 seconds after i type them.

Buying a computer, any computer isn't a long term investment. It is more like buying a car. As soon as you take it and it becomes used the value starts to drop.

So with that in mind buy the one you can afford that does what you need it to do... but don't try to kid yourself and call it an investment its an expense... so try to keep those at a minimum.. which means don't buy one that you think will get you by until you can upgrade it or buy a better one.. that isn't a smart buy its just stretching out your costs which usually costs more than just buying what you need to start with... I've seen people that buy a low end to up grade and after they've upgraded this and that and everything in between they end up with a more expensive machine than if they had just bought the better one to start with.

If you need a portable then buy a portable if you don't and can get buy with a mini then get a mini.... if you need a portable but can't afford one then save your money and get some duct tape for your macbook until you can buy what you need.

thomas998 said:

Buying a computer, any computer isn't a long term investment. It is more like buying a car. As soon as you take it and it becomes used the value starts to drop.

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That's exactly right. You should buy a computer when you think you need it and can afford it. Trying to factor in when and if something better and faster will become available is an exercise in futility, it seems to me, because something better and faster is sure to show up sometime. The rub is, we never know when. It might be next week but it could be next year. Thus, if you decide to wait until the new model shows up, why not wait for the next model after that and the next, and the next . . . .? Well, you get it. My point is that deferring buying a computer you both need and can afford because of vaporware on the horizon doesn't seem to be very sound.

Well I gotta tell ya, I wouldn't even own a MacBook right now if it weren't for Best Buy. I didn't want to have to pay interest on a computer. So I was in there one day and they said they are offering no interest for 18 months on purchases over like $600 or $900 somewhere in that ballpark. So this is definitely an idea? Of course you have to sing up for the credit card to get the no interest. And it's super affordable after buying my mac if I want to pay it off within the 18 months of no interest its only $65 bucks a month! Idk just an idea? Hopefully that helps!

is the GPU removable in the mac mini? If i build my own computer parts would be easily changed out, HD , RAM, GPU, Opticals seems like it would be better to upgrade a GPU and OS every 3 years then a whole computer.

I still have a pair of G4 Powerbooks with 1.0 and 1.5 Ghz processors that work just fine for everything from YouTube to flash sites, etc... I just upgraded the 1.5 Ghz's hard drive to a 5400 RPM and its boot time is only 35 seconds slower from off to desktop up than my MBP 2.5 Ghz with a 7200 RPM hard drive.

Upgrade the speed and capacity of your hard drive, max out the ram and I don't think you'll have any problems. Of course the plastic casings on the Macbook's do tend to physically wear out possibly necessitating replacement, but that's more a cosmetic thing.

AppleFan7 said:

Well I gotta tell ya, I wouldn't even own a MacBook right now if it weren't for Best Buy. I didn't want to have to pay interest on a computer. So I was in there one day and they said they are offering no interest for 18 months on purchases over like $600 or $900 somewhere in that ballpark. So this is definitely an idea? Of course you have to sing up for the credit card to get the no interest. And it's super affordable after buying my mac if I want to pay it off within the 18 months of no interest its only $65 bucks a month! Idk just an idea? Hopefully that helps!

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You have to really read the fine print on the "no interest" deals. Some of them are just deferring the interest (usually close to 24%) until the end of the 18 months... at that point if you haven't paid off the full amount then the interest that was being deferred will magically appear and you will find that borrowing from Vinnie the loan shark would have been cheaper. I had a room mate in college that got caught on one of those deals... The payments he was making each month were the minimum which wasn't enough to pay it all off by the end and then boom when the end came he found that he owed more than when he started... be careful.

The early MB units weren't exactly what I would call durable, I bought a black one on release and it started squeeking and creaking within 1-2 weeks, and I ended up paying a restocking fee just go get rid of the thing and go with an MBP.

I think the newer MB models are better made, but have not owned one, I am thinking of an upgrade to either a new MBP or MB, and for only 400-500 $ more a MBP might not be a bad route to go in yours/my situation.

It seems once they killed the pb line things went down hill as far as design, the newer notebooks just aren't as good looking or enjoyable to use as the older powerbooks were for me, sure the new lines are faster but I think they are still working out kinks in the new body designs.

I would keep what you have for now if it is getting the job done and switch when the time/price are right for you financially and requirements wise.

Funny that some powerbook g4 titaniums are still going for 500-600 $ on ebay, even considering their age and slower cpu speeds. I don't think you will see any macbooks selling for that price in 5-10 years, unless they are still in sealed packages "new".