$500 What to do?

So earlier this week my seven year old powerbook finally kicked the bucket, which left me with only $500 from my savings and a need for a laptop.

My parents insist that I save some money and get some HP POS but I really dont want to go back to a Windows system, especially with all my music and back-ups on a hard drive that is formatted for Mac and all the money I have put into Mac compatible applications.

So my question is what would you do?

I have thought about just buying the Windows computer so I have something to use for the next few months and then selling it to get just a baseline Macbook, but Im worried about not getting as much as I would hope for re-sale value.

Any thoughts or ideas would be welcome!

Thanks!!

My first thought and question is: Which part of your Powerbook bit the big one ? If it's just the hard drive, it might be worth simply trying to replace it, instead of investing a lot more cash into something you will only lose more money on and won't get much use out of.

If that's simply not possible and you absolutely must buy a new device, then think about this: You might be able to purchase a used Macbook for nearly around, but likely a bit more than $500. Unless of course it's also several years old, which in that case you might luck out and get one for that price, and still get a couple years use from it.

What have you been using your Powerbook for, and what uses will you have for the new one when you get it? How far along in school are you ?

Doug

It sounds like you're a student on a very strict budget, so in your case I'd always advise to purchase used or refurbished.

I totally agree with Doug!