I want a MacBook, but should I wait?

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I want a MacBook (will be my first Mac), but Leopard is stopping me from purchasing one. I don't need one right away, but it looks like there is no clear time frame when Leopard will be released. My questions is, did they have many issues when Tiger was first released? If so, I may decide to not hold off for Leopard, and upgrade in a year or so after the issues have been worked out. From the looks of Leopard though, not much has changed from Tiger.

Any suggestions/comments?
 
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did they have many issues when Tiger was first released?
Not sure what you mean by "issues", but no there weren't any negative aspects tied to the launch of Tiger.

In my opinion, it is foolish to wait to buy your Mac.
There are only two times a year that anyone should even consider waiting.

The first is if you have the money, have the means, and are thinking of getting your Mac in January. That is the MacWorld Expo. If you are within two weeks of the announced dates for MacWorld, then maybe hold off until it passes. That way, if anything were to be released during the Expo, then you would not have waited in vain.

The second is if you again have the means, the money, and are thinking of getting your Mac in June. That is generally the WWDC. Again, if you are within two weeks of the announced dates, then waiting until it passes can be a good thing.

Otherwise, it is absolutely foolish and wasteful to wait. Waiting for longer than a couple of weeks before a major expo or conference when you already have the money and means won't bring you anything but a longer wait until you actually have your hands on your new Mac. You lose months and months of time where you could be enjoying a new computer while you wait for what can be essentially nothing.

Technology is ever advancing and the machine you buy is always going to be replaced and updated with something new. That is a fact of life. Waiting for something that isn't even out yet will not set you leaps and bounds ahead of the pack, and even if something new does come out, it will be replaced with something in the future.
 
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DONT WAIT!

Its a waste of time "waiting for Leopard". Sure, you save 130 bucks, but you'll eventually waste time waiting for an operating system that doesnt have a definite release date, and thats just naive.
 
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I know, I know. If you want to play, you have to pay. I'm normally not an early adopter. Since this will be my first Mac (and Macs are more expensive), I would rather get the latest/greatest. It would be nice to save the $130 on Leopard. Like I said, I'm not really in a rush. When does Apple normally give hints to a new laptop line coming out?

@Ninjab3ar,

Your avatar looks freaky, do you have a bigger version? :p
 
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I would offer a dissenting opinion here. Leopard has been planned for release in the first half of 2007. There are only three months of that half left, so the maximum wait *should* be about three months, and possibly less. That is not that long to wait. Admitedly, there are no guarantees that Leopard will be released in that time frame, but it is a good bet. I wouldn't be surprised to see it released any day now. I am rather surprised that it is not out already actually.

Secondly, it is not just the $130, but also the time and effort it takes to install the new OS. This is not huge, but depending on your level of comfort with doing this sort of thing, having it come pre loaded could be quite a benefit.

Finally, and this is just a guess on my behalf, I am suspecting that iLife 07 will come along for the ride on new Macs sporting Leopard. This is just a guess, but a reasoned one. If this is the case, waiting for Leopard before buying the new Mac makes quite a bit of sense, since I have heard that, for example, when you buy Tiger, you don't get iLife 06 included - you have to buy it separately. Thus, waiting for Leopard before buying may save you not just the $130 for the OS upgrade, but also the $xx.xx (not sure what the price will be) for the iLife upgrade.

For myself, I am waiting to buy a new MacBook Pro until Leopard comes out, for all these reasons. I realize that this means that I may have to wait for a few months, but I see it as worth it.

In the end, this is a VERY personal call. How badly do you want a new Mac? Getting the Mac now, with Tiger, is not a bad move. We are all of us, by definition, currently using Macs with Tiger on them, and we are all generally very happy with them. There are some perhaps tangible benefits to waiting for Leopard, but these must be weighed against the benefit of having your shiny new Mac right now! As I said, a very personal weighing of priorities is in order I think.
 
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I know, I know. If you want to play, you have to pay. I'm normally not an early adopter. Since this will be my first Mac (and Macs are more expensive), I would rather get the latest/greatest. It would be nice to save the $130 on Leopard. Like I said, I'm not really in a rush. When does Apple normally give hints to a new laptop line coming out?

@Ninjab3ar,

Your avatar looks freaky, do you have a bigger version? :p

I know what you are going through, as I was doing the waiting game as well for Leopard and was getting impatient. What I did is waited for the exact model I wanted to show up on apple's site in the refurbished section. You get the same warranty as a brand new one and the money I saved will pay for Leopard when I decide to upgrade. And this being my first Mac and new computer in a long time; I wanted to have the latest and greatest as well.
 
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I know what you are going through, as I was doing the waiting game as well for Leopard and was getting impatient. What I did is waited for the exact model I wanted to show up on apple's site in the refurbished section. You get the same warranty as a brand new one and the money I saved will pay for Leopard when I decide to upgrade. And this being my first Mac and new computer in a long time; I wanted to have the latest and greatest as well.

Yep, I've been keeping an eye on the Refurb site. There hasn't been any newer models since last week.
 
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@Ninjab3ar,

Your avatar looks freaky, do you have a bigger version? :p

LOL, thanks. I took the picture w/ my iSight and edited it in photoshop for the crazy hair, a little lighting, and the gigantic smile :D .

I used to have a larger version, but I mistakefully deleted it from my computer. All I have left is the thumbnail sized one. :(
 
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Yea I would say that if youre not in a hurry to get it, wait until Leopard.
 
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BUMP.

Now that Leopard is delayed till October, the question is:

Should I wait till June to see if the new MacBook is coming out? What are the chances of this happening?
 
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The question is the same......


.... and so is the answer. ;) :black:
 

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well, you could also wait to see if that new macbook gets a new processor. and by then, there may be a 15" macbook on the horizon. then, while you're waiting for that, OS X Manx will be close to ready...

just get one.
 
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Correct, the question is the same, but the reason to wait is different :)
The reason doesn't really matter. If you have the cash and want a Mac, then now is as good of a time as any to get one.

Like I stated in my earlier post in this thread, there are only two very short windows of time each year when waiting would be adventageous. Now is not either of those times. :black:
 
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I wouldn't wait for Leopard. And yes, there can be and has been issues with new releases. For instance, perhaps some application you use often will have a compatibility problem. I prefer waiting for at least the first patch.

As for when to buy hardware. That is a tough one. I follow the rumor sites and if I have confidence in a rumor of a soon to be new model of interest, then I wait.

There is no HOT rumor right now for laptops. The current Macbook was released in November according to this buyer's guide. Also, there are no REFURB laptops on Apple's US online store. So just maybe we'll see something new soon. My personal interest is in a laptop that can access more than 3GB of ram and of course more performance. But seriously, my first generation MBP, hasn't disappointment me as far as performance goes.
 

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