Finally ordered something

[roland.g]

After deliberating for quite some time and quite sure I would order a 24" iMac 2.33 2GB 500HDD 7600GT Wireless BT & KB (my friend who could have saved me $475 couldn't come through), I decided to wait until Spring for Leopard and iTV and possibly a new headless Mac or at least the next revision to the 24" (especially since I have heard so much about DOAs and buzzing issues), all that and I really couldn't afford to max it out like that without the discount.

So I got me a Mac Mini refurb to hold me over. 1.66 512 80 SD for $649.
Ordered a printer with it - $100 rebate, and will upgrade the RAM myself to 2GB. I can sell it in the spring to my dad who needs a new machine or on eBay. Till then I will finally have something to replace my 6 1/2 year old sawtooth.

Thanks to everyone who gave me input over the last couple months. I would love to have that brand new iMac, but I am just so excited about finally having a SD and iLife, mostly for iWeb.

P.S. - does anyone know if the Mini comes with Photobooth? I have an original iSight.

 

[FFTT]

The mini will actually be quite a nice upgrade for you giving you a nice desktop
at home while you still have your PB for portable needs.

These days, there's nothing wrong with buying conservative as long as what you buy will help you to be more productive.

 

[mongoos150]

I honestly do not think there will be an update or price drop in the next six months... perhaps again this time next year? Apple should focus on the portables (though the MBP was just updated). I don't see any iMac upgrades for a long while, the lineup is very solid right now and competitive with PC counterparts w/the C2D chip. Only thing I'd love to see is a better video card option - but I doubt Apple will be offering that any time soon.

 

[roland.g]

The mini will actually be quite a nice upgrade for you giving you a nice desktop
at home while you still have your PB for portable needs.

These days, there's nothing wrong with buying conservative as long as what you buy will help you to be more productive.

Yeah I know, but I was really looking forward to a 24" iMac and will plan on getting it with Leopard. I've played on Minis at the Apple Store and it seems a little underpowered for iMovie and FCE when I eventually move up to it. Not to mention the slower and smaller internal drive 80GB vs 500GB. I have an internal 100 I will hook up via target disk mode on my G4 or get a case for. That will get me through the winter.

And as far as the PB, it's only portable so long as it is plugged in - 30 min battery life

But yes, I still know it's a big jump from what I have, so I will try to be happy.

Oddly enough I ordered the Mini Tuesday and Wednesday my buddy called me to order the 24" iMac. It had already shipped, so I told him I'd call him in the spring.

 

[dmw007]

Congrats on your new Mac Mini roland.g, it should hold you over until you get a 24" iMac this coming spring.


I have to admit, I am in a similar situation as you. I was going to buy either a Mac Pro or a 24" iMac this fall, but now I think that I will wait for Mac OS X 10.5 to be released first. But I can't help but think about buying a Mac Mini to hold me over, since my only computer at the moment is my MacBook Pro (replaced both my iBook G4 and my Power Mac G5) and it would be nice to have a desktop computer. The MacBook Pro is fast enough for my needs (could be better for gaming), but plugging & unplugging it in all the time gets to be a pain.

 

[roland.g]

Congrats on your new Mac Mini roland.g, it should hold you over until you get a 24" iMac this coming spring.


I have to admit, I am in a similar situation as you. I was going to buy either a Mac Pro or a 24" iMac this fall, but now I think that I will wait for Mac OS X 10.5 to be released first. But I can't help but think about buying a Mac Mini to hold me over, since my only computer at the moment is my MacBook Pro (replaced both my iBook G4 and my Power Mac G5) and it would be nice to have a desktop computer. The MacBook Pro is fast enough for my needs (could be better for gaming), but plugging & unplugging it in all the time gets to be a pain.

I ordered a refurbed 1.66 (wanted the superdrive) and it was $649! Also got a printer for $199 and I get the $100 printer rebate. Had to call Apple to clarify but even refurbs qualify for the rebate. I'll see what it comes with. I have heard that sometimes refurbs have better than stock RAM or HDDs because they were BTOs. If it has 1GB RAM I will probably leave it. If it has the stock 512 I will upgrade it myself to 2GB. Probably sell it to my dad when I get the 24".

 

[dmw007]

I ordered a refurbed 1.66 (wanted the superdrive) and it was $649! Also got a printer for $199 and I get the $100 printer rebate. Had to call Apple to clarify but even refurbs qualify for the rebate. I'll see what it comes with. I have heard that sometimes refurbs have better than stock RAM or HDDs because they were BTOs. If it has 1GB RAM I will probably leave it. If it has the stock 512 I will upgrade it myself to 2GB. Probably sell it to my dad when I get the 24".

Well, as a student I can get the 1.66GHz Mac Mini new for $579, so it is even more of a tempting offer for me.

 

[wchong]

congrats on the mac mini. it should be just OK for now. but a couple of months is worth the wait (i myself couldn't wait that long)

 

[pianoman]

the mini shouldn't come with Photobooth unless the previous owner downloaded it. i believe you can download it from Apple's download page, but i'm not positive.

edit: i couldn't find it but i didn't really look that long. you might be able to get it from a friend who has it installed - just copy the app over (it's only 4.7MB on my machine) to your applications folder.

 

[volk]

While the mini isn't necessarily what you had in mind, it is still a very competent computer and might just surprise you. Unless you were planning on doing a lot of gaming, the mini brings a lot of horsepower to the table...plus, it's small size lends itself to all kinds of interesting installs and uses. I want to pick one up somewhere down the line for installing in my Charger...I think a small CD player sized display coupled to a mini with some GPS add ons and iTunes would be an interesting customization in a nearly 40 year old car

 

[AdeFowler]

I know it's wrong, but do a google search for Photobooth torrent. It works flawlessly with my iSight camera.

 

[roland.g]

Well, as a student I can get the 1.66GHz Mac Mini new for $579, so it is even more of a tempting offer for me.

Yeah I could have done the same thing, but I wanted a superdrive and the $779 wasn't worth it for the 1.83. Actually the Apple store near me had a refreshed 1.83 for $719, but it didn't qualify for the printer rebate. I can see how having a SD in your MBP makes that less of a concern.

the mini shouldn't come with Photobooth unless the previous owner downloaded it. i believe you can download it from Apple's download page, but i'm not positive.

edit: i couldn't find it but i didn't really look that long. you might be able to get it from a friend who has it installed - just copy the app over (it's only 4.7MB on my machine) to your applications folder.

I looked on the Apple site and it lists Photobooth on the applications for the newer 1.66/1.83 Minis. But on the refurb page it doesn't list it as an included app for the older 1.66. I kinda doubt that they just started adding it with the speedbump, but I was hoping someone who had an older Mini would know.