How well do Apple computers hold their value?

[eflat]

So as I'm sure you have all figured out by the gazillion questions I've asked around here I am starting a computer business.

One thing unique about it is that I am determined to run every creative aspect of it myself.

So I've already composed a lot of the music (hope to get it onto the computer with iGarage) and am in the process of getting a high def. video recorder to start making some commercials..

So do you guys think a G5 would be a good investment? Do Apple computers hold their value well? I know IPods do so I would imagine these would too.. I just don't want to buy a $200 computer and have it tank in value in no time flat like an expensive PC would..

 

[FoBoT]

no computers hold value
they are commodities

keep it , use it , throw it away when it gets old

 

[mchammer]

You mean buy a $3000 computer and have it tank in value like a PC would

 

[Steve]

Tank in value? That's been covered above.


How about you ask yourself this: Why do I want to get a Mac? What advantage does it have over a PC for what I want to do? Aside from the value idea you mentioned.

 

[Sureshot324]

They do hold their value better than pcs, but you are getting so much less computer for the money a pc is still a better investment unless you really like OS X.

 

[sniperruff]

computers do not hold any value. period. much like most new cars.

 

[Trygve]

If you can really get a G5 for $200, that'll be a decent enough investment. If you have to pay the regular price, it'll hold up better than a PC for a little while, at least until Apple switches architectures and drops all support for their older platforms like they've done in the past.

 

[eflat]

Originally posted by: Trygve
If you can really get a G5 for $200, that'll be a decent enough investment. If you have to pay the regular price, it'll hold up better than a PC for a little while, at least until Apple switches architectures and drops all support for their older platforms like they've done in the past.

Ha $2000, not $200.

 

[eflat]

Originally posted by: Sureshot324
They do hold their value better than pcs, but you are getting so much less computer for the money a pc is still a better investment unless you really like OS X.

I absolutely love OS X. I'm enamored by it.

iPhoto is terrific. iMovie is terrific. iGarage is wonderful.

All three of those programs are worth $2000 to me because there are none that are more simple and better suited to my style.

You know why artists love Macs? It's not because they look pretty -- it's because a severely retarded person (like myself) could sit down at one and be making professional quality music and video productions in 5 minutes. There is like NO learning curve.

I'm big on simplicity and to me OS X is pure genious. As is Steve Jobs I guess.

 

[HomerSapien]

I bought a g4 667 mhz tibook 4 years ago for $3000. ($350 went to sevice plan i never used)

Last month i saw a tibook g4 450 model for for $700 on ebay and a tibook 667 with upgraded hard drive and ram go for $1000. I am not sure how that compares to pc laptops built at the same time.

 

[remagavon]

They hold their value really well compared to PCs. New software will run on G4/G5 macs for at least the next 3 years, and probably more after that. I'm looking into purchasing a brand new Dual 2ghz Powermac (revision A) for $1900 with applecare. OSX is wonderful, I just hate using it on my relatively slow mac mini.

 

[vegetation]

As mentioned, computers in general do not hold their value very well. In the case of Apple, it's been much better but I believe that will change in the future when the first x86 Apples roll off the assembly line. That's when existing Macs are going to tank dramatically on the used market arena.

 

[eflat]

Originally posted by: remagavon
They hold their value really well compared to PCs. New software will run on G4/G5 macs for at least the next 3 years, and probably more after that. I'm looking into purchasing a brand new Dual 2ghz Powermac (revision A) for $1900 with applecare. OSX is wonderful, I just hate using it on my relatively slow mac mini.

Yeah that is the same computer I am planning on getting. I was really close to getting a mac mini like you but canceled my order and realized I was going to want a powermac for the video editing I was doing.

 

[thirdlegstump]

They definitely hold value very well as already been mentioned that new software often run perfectly fine even on 5 year old machines without stuttering. That $3000 G5 will sell for $1500 3 years down the line. You can't even get $200 for a similarly priced PC.

 

[randumb]

they hold value very well compared to PCs. it astounds me the prices that people are willing to pay for old macs.

 

[mchammer]

Originally posted by: randumb
they hold value very well compared to PCs. it astounds me the prices that retarded people are willing to pay for old macs.

fixed

 

[Slew Foot]

I just checked ebay, the old Radio Shack TRS-80 my dad bought for ~$1000 (i think) back in 1982, goes for about $80 shipped. Looks like Radio Shack computers hold their value pretty well.

 

[eflat]

Originally posted by: deathkoba
They definitely hold value very well as already been mentioned that new software often run perfectly fine even on 5 year old machines without stuttering. That $3000 G5 will sell for $1500 3 years down the line. You can't even get $200 for a similarly priced PC.

Yeah that is what I figured. I am so ordering a dual processor G5 on Monday..

The school is actually saving me $300 on it too. wOOt

 

[eflat]

Originally posted by: CitizenDoug

Originally posted by: deathkoba
They definitely hold value very well as already been mentioned that new software often run perfectly fine even on 5 year old machines without stuttering. That $3000 G5 will sell for $1500 3 years down the line. You can't even get $200 for a similarly priced PC.

Yeah that is what I figured. I am so ordering a dual processor G5 on Monday..

The school is actually saving me $300 on it too. wOOt

Just can't decide if I should spend the extra $200 for the "Applecare" 3 year protection plan. Any thoughts? It would really be worth it if I get a display but I don't think I'm going to. Would you guys pay $200 to extend the warranty and get free tech support? Anyone know if they have good tech support? (they better!)

 

[JinLien]

Get a mid/high range PC for 1~1.5K that do video/photoshop, and purchase a new PC in 2 years for the task. In the long run you get more out of your 3K than put it into one single purchase today.

Apple core...err...I mean "Applecare". You don't really needed because most help can be find on forums.

 

[Wahsapa]

applecare extends your warrenty from one year to 3. you can buy apple care up until the day before that runs out.

 

[swatX]

Originally posted by: CitizenDoug
So as I'm sure you have all figured out by the gazillion questions I've asked around here I am starting a computer business.

One thing unique about it is that I am determined to run every creative aspect of it myself.

So I've already composed a lot of the music (hope to get it onto the computer with iGarage) and am in the process of getting a high def. video recorder to start making some commercials..

So do you guys think a G5 would be a good investment? Do Apple computers hold their value well? I know IPods do so I would imagine these would too.. I just don't want to buy a $200 computer and have it tank in value in no time flat like an expensive PC would..

g5 wont hold any value after 1-2 years of use. if you are spending 2000$, why not just build a mid-high end PC. you might save few $$ that u can use for other equipment

 

[HomerSapien]

Originally posted by: CitizenDoug

Just can't decide if I should spend the extra $200 for the "Applecare" 3 year protection plan. Any thoughts? It would really be worth it if I get a display but I don't think I'm going to. Would you guys pay $200 to extend the warranty and get free tech support? Anyone know if they have good tech support? (they better!)

Get it. I didnt use mine, but my friend had world of warcraft kill two laptops and apple replaced each one. Yeah, you could say he was addicted to the game. He had a 15" powerbook with basic options (512MBram or 60GB harddrive) and they sent him a brand new one with upgrades (backlit keyboard, processor speed increase, 1gb ram, 80 gb hdd). He just sent it in for the second repair. The first case, it was bad ram which led to the hard drive dying. The second time, the hard drive kept overheating. He did not have it on a stand while he played.

 

[jspeicher]

boil 'em mash 'em stick 'em in a stew

 

[remagavon]

Originally posted by: Wahsapa
applecare extends your warrenty from one year to 3. you can buy apple care up until the day before that runs out.

It is only effective from the date of purchase, however. If you buy a mac on 1/1/2005, and buy applecare on 12/31/2005, then your warranty still runs out on 1/1/2008. Some people don't understand this so it's really important to mention.