Apple 'Computer' buying advice/recommendations?

[1066familyman]

Thanks all, some really great info for me to look into now. I better stop quoting back individual posts now as that could go on forever. As ever NSC has delivered! I knew I was right to ask here for the best advice

I'm now set on a journey with this thread and learning all about magic mouses, 'i' and 'mac' this that and the other, and some sub something or another port. Wish me luck!, and if I end knowing my arse from my elbow then I'll have gotten a result.

 

[Tom Bombadil]

Yeah, but like a good bike, rather than coming back to you in 2 years time saying she needs a better one, she'll be good for at least 5 or 6 years and beyond. My old MacBookPro is a 2006 model and is still handling some big graphics work my wife does. Still a great machine.

If your machine is nearly 9 years old it's then no it's not really big

 

[Husty]

I do have to ask what these applications are that only exist on a Mac without an equal or superior Windows alternative?

 

[TotallyFreaked]

Sounds like you have got lots of good advice, but just in case you need any more, here is a bit of what I know.

My son is currently studying a music technology and music degree and uses a Macbook pro for his work. For me the Mac is the only way to go as it is much more reliable especially in terms of nothing interrupting during recording such as virus checkers and background apps running. You need to be a bit savy with a pc to get it working well for music apps.

One of the biggest considerations, especially if she is using lots of audio processing and audio samples is to get one with an Ssd card ( this could be relatively small if she is happy having an external hard drive as well to move over archive projects) and lots of ram (at least 8gig but preferably 16gig ram). Most modern processors are more than capable of running a large music project. Also screen size is important, possibly as big as 24in as it is good to have room for your music software such as logic as well as instruments and audio processing tools (does not need to be a retina display)

The cheapest option is a Mac mini with a lovely Magic Mouse and keyboard and then any decent hdmi screen. He does find the portability of his MacBook more useful as he can take it to the studio and also for live use but it depends on what her long term plans are as obviously you do not want to be paying out again in a few years.

Hope some of that advice helps

 

[1066familyman]

I do have to ask what these applications are that only exist on a Mac without an equal or superior Windows alternative?

In a word - Logic.

You could probably get through a Music Composition degree course without access to Logic at home, but it wouldn't half make life a lot simpler to have Logic at home as well as Sibelius and Pro Tools. All the Colleges and Universities use Logic, as well as the other two, so you're tied in really.

 

[clippedgull]

Another tip!

If you plump for an Imac (27inch) go for the lowest spec memory wise. If you wish to add more memory you can do it very easily yourself (you won't invalidate any warranty) and it's considerably cheaper buying memory from anyone but Apple. The Imac 21inch versions are not user friendly memory upgradeable.

 

[Bold Seagull]

If your machine is nearly 9 years old it's then no it's not really big

It translates too!

 

[sebtucknott]

We have 4 Mac minis, 2 iMacs, a Mac Pro and 2 Mac book pros at the office.

I prefer working with two screens so opted for Mac minis for myself + two developers and marketing.

I know you can have additional monitors with iMacs but I like them to match! Also cheaper.

MacBook Pros are very handy for taking your work with you, my sales guy and myself have one. Both with a monitor and keyboard/mouse for better posture when at work. My MacBook is for my standing desk!

You mention "lower spec" for the money. You have to bear in mind that the components (I believe) are higher quality and the operating system is more efficient so it will run faster than a higher spec Pc or so I've found.

Similar to a 1.8l bmw with drive nicer than a 2.0 Suzuki

I'd go for a Mac mini for all round value.

 

[Fef]

Another tip!

If you plump for an Imac (27inch) go for the lowest spec memory wise. If you wish to add more memory you can do it very easily yourself (you won't invalidate any warranty) and it's considerably cheaper buying memory from anyone but Apple. The Imac 21inch versions are not user friendly memory upgradeable.

Good advice!

I rang an Apple store some time back to ask about increasing memory - the guy literally said 'Don't buy it from us - the memory you can buy on the net is within spec and much cheaper'. I went to Crucial and bought 16Gb for the price of Apple's 8Gb.

 

[Box of Frogs]

I recently upgraded my 2011 MacBook Pro by adding an additional 8Gb RAM and fitting an SSD drive in place of the old HDD disc drive. Apart from not having a retina screen (which I don't need anyway) it is now as good as a new MBP for a fraction of the cost.

 

[tinx]

If I were going to Uni I would be looking at Macbook pros rather than iMac for the portability. A decent spec macbook pro would work fine for the music software she needs, plus you could get a large monitor and connect to it if you wanted to.

I have a 13" Macbook pro for portability and then a 27" LED HD display (Not an apple one as they are crazy prices) for when I need the extra desktop real estate which gives the best of both worlds.

 

[zeetha]

I'm thinking of replacing my (bit broken) Macbook Air but can't decide between the 13" Air and the 13" Macbook Pro with Retina. The Air has the sleeker design and is a bit lighter but the Pro has Retina and an HDMI port (unless I've missed any other major differences!) Anyone have any views either way?

Cheers!

 

[Bozza]

I'm thinking of replacing my (bit broken) Macbook Air but can't decide between the 13" Air and the 13" Macbook Pro with Retina. The Air has the sleeker design and is a bit lighter but the Pro has Retina and an HDMI port (unless I've missed any other major differences!) Anyone have any views either way?

Cheers!

There's a new funky 12" Air that is thought to be close. It might be worth waiting to see what that has.

 

[zeetha]

There's a new funky 12" Air that is thought to be close. It might be worth waiting to see what that has.

Any idea how close? I thought it was due in the summer?

 

[Greg Bobkin]

Thanks all, some really great info for me to look into now. I better stop quoting back individual posts now as that could go on forever. As ever NSC has delivered! I knew I was right to ask here for the best advice

I'm now set on a journey with this thread and learning all about magic mouses, 'i' and 'mac' this that and the other, and some sub something or another port. Wish me luck!, and if I end knowing my arse from my elbow then I'll have gotten a result.

It's really not that difficult to learn the Mac way. I switched over about 15 years ago, having known nothing but PCs, Windows and MS Office. That all went out of the window, and now I'm firmly ensconced in the Mac camp, so much so that I haven't got a clue how to operate Jnr Bobkin's new Windows 8 laptop...

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Here's hoping the font of all wisdom that is NSC can be of assistance.

Having never personally owned an Apple device of any description, and having no intention of ever doing so, we now need to buy one for our eldest. She needs to work with some programs that only Apple do, so her PC will need replacing. I'm totally confused by all their products, 'i' this and 'mac' that and all I know is that they appear to me to be vastly over priced and low on spec for what you have to pay. Unfortunately, because of the programs required our hands are tied.

The music composition programs she needs to run are : Logic, Pro Tools, Soundtrack Pro. Anyone any recommendations or suggestions for the following please?

1) What is the best value tower/monitor, not laptop, model to go for in terms of good usability for the above programs?

2) Where's best to buy from in terms of deals and warranty etc?

3) Is it worth considering refurbs?, if so where best to buy one from?

Being nosey, and into music, what does your eldest do?

 

[Stat Brother]

Wow, I knew my computer was old, after all it occasionally needs a little kick to quieten down.
But I can get a Windows 7 as an upgrade missing an entire operating system

So now I have set the tone of my computing knowledge.
I'm after a little reassurance that it really doesn't matter what I get for less than £100 on the refurb market, it'll still be considerable better than a slow, noisy, Dell, running XP.

For example:-
Windows 7 Dell Optiplex 745 SFF Refurbished Desktop PC Computer Intel Core 2 Duo 2.33 Ghz 2GB 80GB DVD

Means nothing to me, but at £90, by comparison to my old warhorse it's a bargain, right?
With no need to upgrade the OS, memory, Hard Drive, WiFi card, or add a DVD writer.


Sorry for the hijack 1066.

 

[1066familyman]

Sounds like you have got lots of good advice, but just in case you need any more, here is a bit of what I know.

My son is currently studying a music technology and music degree and uses a Macbook pro for his work. For me the Mac is the only way to go as it is much more reliable especially in terms of nothing interrupting during recording such as virus checkers and background apps running. You need to be a bit savy with a pc to get it working well for music apps.

One of the biggest considerations, especially if she is using lots of audio processing and audio samples is to get one with an Ssd card ( this could be relatively small if she is happy having an external hard drive as well to move over archive projects) and lots of ram (at least 8gig but preferably 16gig ram). Most modern processors are more than capable of running a large music project. Also screen size is important, possibly as big as 24in as it is good to have room for your music software such as logic as well as instruments and audio processing tools (does not need to be a retina display)

The cheapest option is a Mac mini with a lovely Magic Mouse and keyboard and then any decent hdmi screen. He does find the portability of his MacBook more useful as he can take it to the studio and also for live use but it depends on what her long term plans are as obviously you do not want to be paying out again in a few years.

Hope some of that advice helps

Good advice!

I rang an Apple store some time back to ask about increasing memory - the guy literally said 'Don't buy it from us - the memory you can buy on the net is within spec and much cheaper'. I went to Crucial and bought 16Gb for the price of Apple's 8Gb.

Ok, having done research thanks to everyone on here, listened to all the advice, and finally decided on what's going to be the best option all round, we'll be opting for a macbook pro.

We'd get the 15 inch as she'd probably rarely hook it up to a bigger monitor and it'll be easier to handle and move from home to Uni etc. A 13" will be a bit too small to work on all the time, particularly with Logic. It's a long term investment so might as well get it right first time around. Also, the 15" has better processor and ram spec. Not quite so bothered by storage as if she does end up needing more then an external hard drive can be added in future.

Having looked at both the refurb link and student discount (seems you can't get student discount on refurb?), there's some juggling to be considered. Might end up going 8gb refurb and possibly adding another 8gb from elsewhere ( as suggested above) if it really does represent better value than new through student discount. Have to factor warranty length in as well.

My question is this - Can I easily add 8gb ram on top of the 8gb all ready in the machine?

From Apple's own site it seems about as easy to do as putting a sim card into a phone - which is great if true. Have I got it right that there's two slots so you can put in another 'card' -another 8gb on top of the 8gb already there for instance? If this is the case then I'm inclined towards the 8gb, see how it goes, and if as TotallyFreaked suggests, she finds herself needing the other 8gb I'd add that in at the extra £60.

 

[8ace]

It depends on the exact model - the 8GB could be comprised of two 4GB banks.

 

[1066familyman]

Wow, I knew my computer was old, after all it occasionally needs a little kick to quieten down.
But I can get a Windows 7 as an upgrade missing an entire operating system

So now I have set the tone of my computing knowledge.
I'm after a little reassurance that it really doesn't matter what I get for less than £100 on the refurb market, it'll still be considerable better than a slow, noisy, Dell, running XP.

For example:-
Windows 7 Dell Optiplex 745 SFF Refurbished Desktop PC Computer Intel Core 2 Duo 2.33 Ghz 2GB 80GB DVD

Means nothing to me, but at £90, by comparison to my old warhorse it's a bargain, right?
With no need to upgrade the OS, memory, Hard Drive, WiFi card, or add a DVD writer.


Sorry for the hijack 1066.

Yeah yeah, of course you're sorry.

Just rubbing it in that forking out the princely sum of £90 will have you sorted. We're still on Vista in this household in the main and it works fine for us. I have no intention of getting anything else by Apple if I don't have to, but not a lot of choice really on this one.

Anyway, enjoy it while you can, your time will come I'm sure.