Pro's and con' of buying a 5 yr old iMac

[CrimsonRequiem]

Hmm.. You guys really think an older Intel would be a bad idea for the OP? Seems like it would see "light" use IMHO.

Tech advances really quickly. You can buy old just not 5 years old. Especially considering people tend to keep their PCs for 2-5 years on average. You want it to last at least that long.

 

[nickyr]

You and the OP are in completely different situations. While I'm not saying a 2007 iMac won't get the "job done" in 2012...you bought this iMac new 5 years ago...the OP is looking to purchase a 5 year-old iMac now.

My point is...would you feel the same way about this 2007 iMac if you were the one doing the buying now?? I'm guessing that if you were doing the buying now...you would probably either want a brand new iMac...or at least one that was newer than 5 years old.

- Nick

I absolutely agree - but I may be in a more fortunate financial position than the OP.

My point was raised just to balance the argument that a 5 year old Mac is past it!!

I still hope to get a few more years out of this machine as well. But then I know it's been well looked after and everything kept up to date when it should have been.

 

[chas_m]

As I said above, quite a number of people can coax more than five years out of a Mac without too much difficulty, but it is an unavoidable fact that you will work harder and have to be more select in what you want to do as time goes on. The lighter your use and needs, the easier it will probably be ... but beyond five years you're also likely out of the loop on security updates as well.

I'm writing this on a 2009 MBP that I fully expect will continue to do what I want it to for another couple of years (which is not to say that I actually plan on keeping it that long), but my demands are not much more advanced than the average user (apart from some Photoshop and some video editing).

If someone said "I want to buy a used Mac for budget reasons, which one should I get?" I certainly wouldn't recommend anything older than 2009 at this point.

 

[ChrisMan287]

Tech advances really quickly. You can buy old just not 5 years old. Especially considering people tend to keep their PCs for 2-5 years on average. You want it to last at least that long.

Hmm.. I honestly think he'd be fine with at least a mid '07 that can run Mountain Lion.

 

[chas_m]

You're right that he'd be fine with it NOW. And probably into next year.

But to expect that machine to last ANOTHER five years when it is ALREADY five years old is asking a heck of a lot unless his needs basically start and stop and word processing, FB and email.

 

[bobtomay]

^^^^ that

As fast as Apple puts out new operating systems, recommending a 5 yr old Mac to someone that wants to use it as their primary system from now and for his kids from "primary" through "secondary" schooling would be like recommending a 1999 computer running Win 98SE or ME to someone today.

Those kids would be able to do nothing but basic word documents on that machine today. ANY software they might need for their classwork would be hopeless. And hope the printer they bought with it doesn't die in the meantime, because they will surely be out of luck trying to turn in one of those papers they wrote.

A 5 yr old Mac today, expecting it to last another 5-7 years and be able to take care of current requirements - no way.

Computers have come a long way since the 80s. During the 90s you needed a new one once every 12-18 months to be able to use the newest software. We're up to the 5-6 maybe 7 year range right now. Another couple of years we may be at that 10-12 year useful life expectancy, we're just not there yet.

 

[pigoo3]

The one aspect that hasn't really been discussed here is price. If the OP can purchase a 5 year-old iMac (presumably in good working condition)…for a good/fair price (Mac2Sell says a 2.4ghz C2D 20" iMac is worth about $400)….then it's a situation of "You get what you pay for."

The older it is..the less it is worth…and possibly the less "useful life" it has remaining (in terms of being able to accomplish the average computer users daily tasks in 2012+). Of course that same $400 could be put towards a brand new Mac-Mini ($599 new...or less refurbished).

I'm certainly a "fan" of older used computers! The OP needs to carefully evaluate their situation (financial & current/future computing needs)…and decide if the $$$ spent on a 5 year-old computer now will seem well spent (versus spending a bit more $$$ now…and getting something newer).

The OP certainly doesn't want to spend $400 now…then in 1-2 years realize that this 5 year-old computer just isn't cutting it…then spending another $400-$600 on another used computer ($800-$1000 total)…which also may only be useful for another 1-2 years (of course some of this money can be recouped by selling the previous computer).

- Nick

 

[ChrisMan287]

You're right that he'd be fine with it NOW. And probably into next year. But to expect that machine to last ANOTHER five years when it is ALREADY five years old is asking a heck of a lot unless his needs basically start and stop and word processing, FB and email.

That's what it sounds like it'll be used for to me lol Except for the "design" thing mentioned. We need more details.

 

[chas_m]

A budget of $400 will get you a very old Mac. Nice, perfectly fine for now probably (unless it PPC) ... but useless looking to the long term.

A doubling of that budget ($800) gets you a BRAND SPANKING NEW Mac mini ... an incredibly capable computer. A little less ($600-700) gets you a recent refurbished model ... either of which would last you quite capably for years to come.