Thinking about joining the cult

[DT4K]

So I'm not an apple guy and know next to nothing about macs.
But I'm looking to get into some iphone apps development, so I'm thinking about getting a macbook.
But I can't decide if I should go with a 13 or 15. When I bought my HP last year, I found that the smaller models were more expensive than the larger ones, so I was surprised to see that the macbook pro 15" is about $200 more than the 13" with the same specs. Plus, they charge $349 for AppleCare for the 15 instead of $249 for the 13".

From what I've heard, getting AppleCare is definitely worthwhile, so I'm looking at an extra $300 for a 15" instead of a 13".

For someone who's going to be doing some development, do you think it's worth the extra money for the bigger screen?

Where do you guys like to shop for macs?

Any place have better prices on the computers and on AppleCare?

If I buy AppleCare from a reseller, will I have any issues?

Any other thoughts, tips, or ideas are appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Tegeril]

I'm not sure which models you were looking at, but it's pretty standard for laptops *of the same performance grade* to increase in price as size increases.

As for Applecare, you don't need to buy it immediately. As long as your laptop is within its 1 year warranty, you can pickup Applecare at any time so that cost can be deferred for up to a year.

As for where to shop for Macs, you should just buy them from Apple, you wont find deep discounts anywhere else, unless you can capitalize on some of the Microcenter deals (they have discounts on last gen minis, this gen white macbooks, and imacs).

 

[Kmax82]

I'd also suggest you check out the Refurbished Section on the Apple Store. I got my 15" for around $1500 at the time, and it's been great. Full warranty, and no cosmetic issues whatsoever. A friend also just bought a 17" for $1900 and it was immaculate.

AppleCare can be found super cheap at eBay, or Amazon. Just shop around. Like Tegeril said, you have a year to buy it, so don't worry about getting it right away.

As for screen size, I personally really like the extra real estate of my 15" model. I would get the 17" but I think that'd be just a bit to big to lug around. Take a trip to a Best Buy, or Apple Store, if you live near one and pick the models up, close them, etc.. and just get a feel for which you'd be more comfortable working on.

 

[DT4K]

What I meant was that at the time I bought my HP, the 15" laptops seemed to be the least expensive. Going up to a 17" meant more money, but going down to a 13 or 14 also meant more money.

Is there an advantage to buying direct from Apple?
If I go through Amazon, I pay no sales tax, the base price is a bit cheaper, and AppleCare is quite a bit cheaper.

 

[poopaskoopa]

My g/f has a Macbook, and when she needs a bigger screen she hooks it up to an external monitor. I think you can get AppleCare for less on ebay.

 

[Kmax82]

Originally posted by: DT4K
What I meant was that at the time I bought my HP, the 15" laptops seemed to be the least expensive. Going up to a 17" meant more money, but going down to a 13 or 14 also meant more money.

Is there an advantage to buying direct from Apple?
If I go through Amazon, I pay no sales tax, the base price is a bit cheaper, and AppleCare is quite a bit cheaper.

Yea, that's usually true with Windows based PCs because they're typically smaller form factors, so you're not really paying for the smaller screen, but the smaller build.

As for Amazon, definitely grab one there if you want. No harm, you still get the full warranty, and you're right you don't pay sales tax.

 

[FearoftheNight]

Hey are you a student or involved with education? I think a good deal right now would be to get the educational discount along with free itouch and printer if you can!

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: DT4K
So I'm not an apple guy and know next to nothing about macs.
But I'm looking to get into some iphone apps development, so I'm thinking about getting a macbook.
But I can't decide if I should go with a 13 or 15. When I bought my HP last year, I found that the smaller models were more expensive than the larger ones, so I was surprised to see that the macbook pro 15" is about $200 more than the 13" with the same specs.

That's probably because you're looking at 14" laptops that are targeted at business users and comparing them to 15" laptops that are targeted at consumers. Most sub-15" laptops aren't targeted at consumers. There are 15"+ business laptops, and if you compared them to the 14" laptops they'd probably be more expensive (assuming they're comparable in portability, build quality, specs, etc). Those 15" consumer laptops usually have low-res screens, they're bulky, poor quality construction, etc.

Apple differentiates their business and consumer lines with the "Pro" name. A 15" Macbook Pro is a step up from a 13" Macbook Pro or a 13" Macbook, not a step down like with other manufacturers. Apple doesn't make a laptop that is comparable in quality to the consumer-grade 15" laptops you'd get from most manufacturers.

 

[DT4K]

The 14 and 15 inch models of the HP's I was looking at were both consumer targeted.

I know that the base offering of the 15" macbook pro is a step up from the base model of the 13" macbook pro, but there is a $500 difference between the two. When I configured the 13" to have the same cpu, hdd, etc. as the base 15", the price difference was still about $200.

I'm actually thinking of signing up for a class at the local community college, so I can get the education discount. Definitely a nice deal with the discount plus the free ipod.

Can you get the education discount if you order from Amazon or anywhere else that doesn't charge sales tax? Or is it only directly through Apple?

Even if it's only directly through Apple, it looks like the discount is enough that it's worth paying tax.

 

[Kmax82]

Originally posted by: DT4K
I'm actually thinking of signing up for a class at the local community college, so I can get the education discount. Definitely a nice deal with the discount plus the free ipod.

Can you get the education discount if you order from Amazon or anywhere else that doesn't charge sales tax? Or is it only directly through Apple?

Even if it's only directly through Apple, it looks like the discount is enough that it's worth paying tax.

To my knowledge, I don't believe that Apple will even check that you're enrolled in the college, so if you pick a college that you are near.. you should be fine. You are limited to (1) notebook per year though, so if you try to order more, I'm sure they'd do something about that.

No, you can't get a student discount through Amazon, or Best Buy.. just Apple themselves.

 

[DT4K]

Cool.
I think I'm going to go with the 13". I like the portability and if I find myself wanting a bigger screen while working at home, I've got a 20" LCD I can use.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

You can get the machines at a significant discount at MacConnection.com if you're not eligible for a student discount. I paid $1,399 shipped for my 2.53GHz 13" MBP - this would have been more than $1,600 at my local Apple Store after tax.

You can buy AppleCare for half price or less on eBay. As long as you get it from a seller with good feedback it's a perfectly fine way to buy AC. I bought a retail boxed copy of AC for $115 shipped after Bing 8% rebate - this is the same AC that is sold for $250 at the Apple Store.

 

[DT4K]

I just spent $25 to sign up for a summer class at the local community college and picked up my student ID.

MacConnections charges sales tax for orders to NC. Amazon doesn't, but I'm thinking the education discount, plus the free ipod make it a better deal to just buy from the Apple store.

I'm curious, how do these ebay sellers get these AppleCare packages so cheap?

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

Originally posted by: DT4K
I just spent $25 to sign up for a summer class at the local community college and picked up my student ID.

MacConnections charges sales tax for orders to NC. Amazon doesn't, but I'm thinking the education discount, plus the free ipod make it a better deal to just buy from the Apple store.

I'm curious, how do these ebay sellers get these AppleCare packages so cheap?

I have no idea. It may just be that large a markup at retail. There are many sellers but I chose to buy from one who would send the actual boxed AC. I am told the ones who just sell the code are generally fine as well, as long as they have good feedback.

 

[VinylxScratches]

Get the 13inch Macbook and hook it up to a external monitor when needed.

 

[Zerohm]

As a first time mac owner, I'm very happy with my new 13" MBP. They call it a 13", but the chassis is probably more like a 14" (which is fine because it's thin). But yeah, the new 2.53 GHz MBP at $1499 is a great price point.

This is just my humble opinion, but unless you need a large monitor on the road, I say keep the laptop as small as possible. When it's mobile, it should be light and easy to carry. Then when you are home just hook it up to a big monitor.

Edit:
I forgot to mention one major difference. The 13" pro uses an Nvidia hybrid video card solution. It has a GPU, but the GPU shares 256 MB of memory with your main RAM. The 15 and 17" MBPs have a full video card with dedicated RAM. However, the hybrid GPU is an awesome solution that I expect to see in more performance laptops in the near future.

 

[Ka0t1x]

The new low end 15" uses the same 9400 Mobile chipset, but doesn't include the 9600M GT chipset, as the older 15" MBP's have. Hence the price drop.

I have a 15" MBP and I'll say its easily portable, but I used to carry around a 17" Dell gaming laptop.. And yes as someone else has pointed out, if you need more space, you can easily attach it to an external monitor with a $30 adapter (Monoprice has a cheaper solution).. the 9400M Chipset drives my 24" LCD nicely, and I've never needed to turn on the 9600M GT, but of course I only do coding work, nothing major like video editing or producing.

BestBuy will price match Apple student discounts, but you'll need proof of enrollment.. like a Student ID Card, but you'll get no BestBuy reward zone points. (Around $25 for a $1300 purchase).

I find its better to buy from the Apple Store, simply because, well, its the Apple Store for a reason. eBay could be nice and get a discount but you still suffer from the same downfalls of ...eBay.

Also if you don't care about the packaging and frills of having a 'brand new' machine, wait and get a refurbished. Its a couple months down the road for the brand new MBP's to hit the refurb stream, but it'll save you 15% (no student discounts though). My 15" MBP is a refurb and it came out of the box as perfect as a brand new one.

Edit:
Apple gives discounts for businesses who buy in major (200-300+) orders. That is why you will find deals on Apple hardware all over eBay, they probably even got it 10% less than they list it.

 

[sourceninja]

Originally posted by: Kmax82

Originally posted by: DT4K
I'm actually thinking of signing up for a class at the local community college, so I can get the education discount. Definitely a nice deal with the discount plus the free ipod.

Can you get the education discount if you order from Amazon or anywhere else that doesn't charge sales tax? Or is it only directly through Apple?

Even if it's only directly through Apple, it looks like the discount is enough that it's worth paying tax.

To my knowledge, I don't believe that Apple will even check that you're enrolled in the college, so if you pick a college that you are near.. you should be fine. You are limited to (1) notebook per year though, so if you try to order more, I'm sure they'd do something about that.

No, you can't get a student discount through Amazon, or Best Buy.. just Apple themselves.

I have bought 3 laptops this year from the local apple store using my employee ID for a local college. So that limit isn't enforced either.

 

[DT4K]

I stopped by the local Apple store and pulled the trigger on the 13" MBP for $1099, AppleCare for $180, free ipod touch and free all in one HP printer (after rebate of course).

I know I could have saved a few bucks buying AppleCare on ebay, but with the student discount making it $180, it wasn't enough of a difference for me to worry about it.

I went with the base model. For my purposes, I don't think I'll need the extra cpu speed or bigger hard drive. I can always add memory.

 

[Kmax82]

Originally posted by: DT4K
I stopped by the local Apple store and pulled the trigger on the 13" MBP for $1099, AppleCare for $180, free ipod touch and free all in one HP printer (after rebate of course).

I know I could have saved a few bucks buying AppleCare on ebay, but with the student discount making it $180, it wasn't enough of a difference for me to worry about it.

I went with the base model. For my purposes, I don't think I'll need the extra cpu speed or bigger hard drive. I can always add memory.

Nice! Hope you enjoy it.

 

[Ka0t1x]

You can also replace the hard drive too. Very easily actually... lots easier than the plastic MacBooks or older style MBP's. Turn your current into an external.


Had to edit that out.. adding a hard drive wasn't the greatest terminology..

 

[TheStu]

Originally posted by: Ka0t1x
You can also replace the hard drive too. Very easily actually... lots easier than the plastic MacBooks or older style MBP's. Turn your current into an external.


Had to edit that out.. adding a hard drive wasn't the greatest terminology..

Plastic macbooks was a grand total of 7 screws if you count the 4 on the drive itself.

New MacBook Pros, 12 screws all said and told I believe.

But still far and away easier than the old non-Unibody MBPs, those things were a pain in the ass!

 

[Gooberlx2]

Originally posted by: Kmax82

Originally posted by: DT4K
I'm actually thinking of signing up for a class at the local community college, so I can get the education discount. Definitely a nice deal with the discount plus the free ipod.

Can you get the education discount if you order from Amazon or anywhere else that doesn't charge sales tax? Or is it only directly through Apple?

Even if it's only directly through Apple, it looks like the discount is enough that it's worth paying tax.

To my knowledge, I don't believe that Apple will even check that you're enrolled in the college, so if you pick a college that you are near.. you should be fine. You are limited to (1) notebook per year though, so if you try to order more, I'm sure they'd do something about that.

No, you can't get a student discount through Amazon, or Best Buy.. just Apple themselves.

I just compared cost from a base 13" 2.26 with applecare between apple education a couple other sources.

Apple Education store:
13" Macbook Pro 2.26 base: $1099.00
Applcare: $183.00
Free iPod Touch: $229 - $229 MIR
Tax: $98.97 (macbook/applecare) + $17.68 (iPod Touch)
Shipping: $0
--------------
Total: $1398.65 ($1627.65 before MIR)

Amazon+Ebay:
13" Macbook Pro 2.26 base: $1159.30 (Amazon)
Applcare: $118.00 (Ebay)
Tax: $0
Shipping: $0
--------------
Total: $1277.30

$121.35 advantage over Apple
$107.65 advantage to Apple w/ iPod Touch

PCConnection+Bing Cashback+Ebay:
13" Macbook Pro 2.26 base: $1169.00 (PCConnections)
MIR: -$50
Bing Cashback: -$22.38
Applcare: $118.00 (Ebay)
Tax: $0
Shipping: $0
--------------
Total: $1214.62 ($1264.62 before MIR)

$184.03 advantage over Apple
$62.68 advantage over Amazon
$44.97 advantage to Apple w/ iPod Touch

If you want an iPod touch, AppleStore is obviously the way to go. The initial $229 hit hurts though. Personally, I don't need an iPod Touch, and I'd rather spend $1265 out the gate, instead of $1628

edit:
Didn't read through that OP had already purchased...oh well, that info might be useful for other people.

 

[BrianP]

Originally posted by: Gooberlx2

Originally posted by: Kmax82

Originally posted by: DT4K
I'm actually thinking of signing up for a class at the local community college, so I can get the education discount. Definitely a nice deal with the discount plus the free ipod.

Can you get the education discount if you order from Amazon or anywhere else that doesn't charge sales tax? Or is it only directly through Apple?

Even if it's only directly through Apple, it looks like the discount is enough that it's worth paying tax.

To my knowledge, I don't believe that Apple will even check that you're enrolled in the college, so if you pick a college that you are near.. you should be fine. You are limited to (1) notebook per year though, so if you try to order more, I'm sure they'd do something about that.

No, you can't get a student discount through Amazon, or Best Buy.. just Apple themselves.

I just compared cost from a base 13" 2.26 with applecare between apple education a couple other sources.

Apple Education store:
13" Macbook Pro 2.26 base: $1099.00
Applcare: $183.00
Free iPod Touch: $229 - $229 MIR
Tax: $98.97 (macbook/applecare) + $17.68 (iPod Touch)
Shipping: $0
--------------
Total: $1398.65 ($1627.65 before MIR)

Amazon+Ebay:
13" Macbook Pro 2.26 base: $1159.30 (Amazon)
Applcare: $118.00 (Ebay)
Tax: $0
Shipping: $0
--------------
Total: $1277.30

$121.35 advantage over Apple
$107.65 advantage to Apple w/ iPod Touch

PCConnection+Bing Cashback+Ebay:
13" Macbook Pro 2.26 base: $1169.00 (PCConnections)
MIR: -$50
Bing Cashback: -$22.38
Applcare: $118.00 (Ebay)
Tax: $0
Shipping: $0
--------------
Total: $1214.62 ($1264.62 before MIR)

$184.03 advantage over Apple
$62.68 advantage over Amazon
$44.97 advantage to Apple w/ iPod Touch

If you want an iPod touch, AppleStore is obviously the way to go. The initial $229 hit hurts though. Personally, I don't need an iPod Touch, and I'd rather spend $1265 out the gate, instead of $1628

edit:
Didn't read through that OP had already purchased...oh well, that info might be useful for other people.

Why not buy the applecare from ebay even when buying the computer from the Apple store? You should be waiting until the end of your 1 year warranty before buying the extended anyways.

Also, the apple rebates aren't mail-in, they are online and typically arrive within a week (in my experience). If you buy on a credit card then it's almost like they are loaning YOU money. You're also not counting the free printer from the Apple store.

I just wanted to make sure all the facts are here. Your analysis looks useful for anyone contemplating a purchase.

 

[Tyranicus]

Originally posted by: TheStu

Originally posted by: Ka0t1x
You can also replace the hard drive too. Very easily actually... lots easier than the plastic MacBooks or older style MBP's. Turn your current into an external.


Had to edit that out.. adding a hard drive wasn't the greatest terminology..

Plastic macbooks was a grand total of 7 screws if you count the 4 on the drive itself.

New MacBook Pros, 12 screws all said and told I believe.

But still far and away easier than the old non-Unibody MBPs, those things were a pain in the ass!

And the easiest of all is the first unibody MBP. 5 screws, counting the 4 on the drive.