MacAuthority store available - reputation?

Hi all - not sure where to put this question but I am 'switching' to Apple products - have owned an iPad 2 & older iPod Touch for a while. Just purchased an iPad Mini for my wife & a MBPro w/ retina display for myself (arrived earlier this week, so a new experience). I ordered these two items online from Apple.

The closest Apple Store is in another city about 45 minutes away, so not a great local option for us, BUT just discovered that a new place called MacAuthority opened at our local mall (10 mins from my house) - we made a visit to purchase an iPad Mini case - they had a lot of accessories and also an entire line of Macs and laptops - also do AppleCare (which I bought w/ my MBP). Once I learn OS X, I plan to replace our old Dell DT computer w/ an iMac - my easiest option is to just visit this place and get to know the people.

Just curious about the reputation of this small chain of stores out of Nashville, TN - a number of places in TN, one in Louisville, KT, and the one in my locale, i.e. Winston-Salem, NC - thanks for any comments. Dave

They are an authorized Mac Specialist shop as well as Apple Authorized Service Providers. I have not personally visited their store in NC but I did once stop by the Nashville one for a chat. You can probably rest assured that they would strive to provide the best experience they can short of being an Apple Store, since their licensing rides on it. Seems like it would be a good option for you.

Thanks Chas_m - my feelings, also - I talked to them about the Apple Care contract on my new MBP and they would handle any issues. SO, we'll probably return next month and pick out an iMac - planning on getting the fusion drive, may up the RAM, but debating on the monitor size? I love the 27" but this will be my wife's computer mainly - she's working on a Dell 19" set at low/medium resolution - the 21.5" Mac monitor will give her nearly 30% more area (my quick calculation) and higher resolution - should be just fine for her. Dave

You may want to check the price of a 21.5" iMac with memory upgrade from Apple against the 27" with memory from Crucial. Apple charge a lot of money for RAM and you may find that price difference is very small.
It is about £250 here in the UK

What docx is saying is that the RAM in the 21.5" iMac isn't upgradable.

Also, you may want to more closely assess why your wife is using the Dell in a lower resolution -- higher-res screens (even much bigger ones) may actually be LESS pleasant for her because of vision issues. Our eyes get older just like the rest of us (he said, typing this at 12 point type because 10 point it too small for him now) and the answer isn't just "get a bigger screen."

Thanks guys for the comments - believe that we'll have to visit MacAuthority or the Apple Store in Greensboro and have her try out both screens @ different resolutions - we are in our 60s now and seeing 'small' type on monitors is more difficult, as expected - believe that we just need to put the monitors to a test for our eyes - thanks again! Dave

What might help for you and the wife is to have your Optometrist give you a prescription for "computer reading" glasses. They're designed to focus correctly at normal computer screen viewing distance. I use a pair and have my 21.5" iMac set for its native resolution (1920 x 1080) which results in small writing on the screen. However, with these glasses everything is clear and easy to read.

chscag said:

What might help for you and the wife is to have your Optometrist give you a prescription for "computer reading" glasses. They're designed to focus correctly at normal computer screen viewing distance. I use a pair and have my 21.5" iMac set for its native resolution (1920 x 1080) which results in small writing on the screen. However, with these glasses everything is clear and easy to read.

Click to expand...

Great idea chscag

chscag said:

What might help for you and the wife is to have your Optometrist give you a prescription for "computer reading" glasses. They're designed to focus correctly at normal computer screen viewing distance. I use a pair and have my 21.5" iMac set for its native resolution (1920 x 1080) which results in small writing on the screen. However, with these glasses everything is clear and easy to read.

Click to expand...

Thanks Chscag - like I said, we'll pay a visit to one of our local Apple places and test out the 21.5" monitor - if a problem, then we will obtain some 'computer glasses' - I actually attach a pair of knitting magnifiers to my regular glasses when reading really small print, like in CD booklets. Dave