How often do you buy a new mac?

[jellybean]

I find myself buying a new mac less than every 12 months Damn you Apple... I buy the latest and greatest mac and am happy with it for a few months then something new comes out which I just must have. (but don't really need!)

I dread to think the amount of money I've spent on macs and mac software/hardware since I switched about 5 years ago. When I was on PCs I would just wait for it to die before looking for a new one...maybe that's why people say PCs are cheaper lol

So how about everyone else? How often do you buy a new mac, and what makes you decide it's time to buy a new one? Performance issues? New "gotta have it" hardware that comes out, etc..

 

[gadgetgirl85]

Hmmm I think there will be a month gap between the mini and the MBP But no this MBP is meant to last me a LONG time.

 

[CyberPrey]

Well, I bought THE macintosh in 1984....

And then the Mac Pro in 2006...

so that boils down to every 22 years......

 

[MattyMac]

I wish I could buy a new mac every year...must be nice

 

[CyberPrey]

Well, I bought THE macintosh in 1984....

And then the Mac Pro in 2006...

so that boils down to every 22 years......

 

[devmage]

Bought my first Mac, an Ibook 5 years ago. Followed by my Rev A Power Mac G5 Dual 2ghz. And now my Mac Pro is on the way!

 

[Applespider]

I buy the latest and greatest mac and am happy with it for a few months then something new comes out which I just must have. (but don't really need!)

Over the past 2 years, there have been several Macs I've wanted but I differ from you in that I don't 'need' them so I don't succumb to the impulse to purchase.

I'm using a 15" Powerbook 1.25Ghz which still does pretty much everything I need to do - albeit that things like iMovie effects take a while but I don't use that on a daily basis. I'll get a new iMac when Leopard comes out

 

[CoMpX]

Well, I bought THE macintosh in 1984....

And then the Mac Pro in 2006...

so that boils down to every 22 years......

Are you serious?

 

[Antares]

Let's see...Macintosh IIsi -> Pismo Powerbook: 8 years; Pismo Powerbook -> Intel iMac: 6 years; Intel iMac -> Mac Pro: maybe 3 years?

 

[eva01]

I say about every 2.5 years for me.

 

[Applespider]

Well, I bought THE macintosh in 1984....

And then the Mac Pro in 2006...

so that boils down to every 22 years......

Chuckle... I bought my first Mac in 1992 and my second Mac in 2004

 

[xfiftyfour]

well i bought my first mac (a powerbook) last august.. and then traded it for a MB this July... i'm not sure if that counts.. heh

 

[MovieCutter]

I buy every update for Power Macs/Mac Pros and Powerbooks/MacBook Pros. Very rarely do I have a machine for longer than 6-8 months.

 

[CyberPrey]

Are you serious?

totally. I bought the First mac and loved it... unfortunatly, apple was not big into games and all big hitters in the field were going pc... so I followed...

Now, with the advent of the Mac Pro, I have returned

 

[miloblithe]

1993, 1999, 2001, 2003... probably 2007.

The only reason 2001 happened was because I was moving to Russia so I needed a portable. Otherwise it would have taken a good bit longer.

 

[ITASOR]

Every time I get a new computer I tell myself "this is going to last 2 years, no exceptions". Got my quicksilver...had it for about 9 months...got my iBook, have had it a little over a year and now selling it. I'm hoping a MacBook will last me over a year...

 

[CoMpX]

totally. I bought the First mac and loved it... unfortunatly, apple was not big into games and all big hitters in the field were going pc... so I followed...

Now, with the advent of the Mac Pro, I have returned

Ohh. I thought you meant that you had the original Macintosh for 22 years. Yikes.

 

[hadleydb]

I find myself buying a new mac less than every 12 months Damn you Apple... I buy the latest and greatest mac and am happy with it for a few months then something new comes out which I just must have. (but don't really need!)

I dread to think the amount of money I've spent on macs and mac software/hardware since I switched about 5 years ago. When I was on PCs I would just wait for it to die before looking for a new one...maybe that's why people say PCs are cheaper lol

So how about everyone else? How often do you buy a new mac, and what makes you decide it's time to buy a new one? Performance issues? New "gotta have it" hardware that comes out, etc..

I have a sickness. I always have to have the latest and greatest mac... My wife is getting ready to divorce me over it. I buy one and use it for a few months then sell it and buy another. Everytime Steve Jobs gets up in front of an audience with a black turtleneck on I lose money. Are there support groups for this?

 

[steve_hill4]

Bought my MacBook Pro in March, got a 2nd hand LCIII shortly after, (from a friend). Next purchase is likely to be in another 12-18 months, hopefully iMac with Conroe and Blu-Ray, but we'll see.

If I was in a career/profession, had more income and around the same level of expenditure as I currently have, I expect it would be at least 1 every 12 months. Of course, that would include Linux and Windows boxes occasionally too for certain tasks, but most would be Macs.

 

[Kernow]

Current rate is every three years - G4 iMac in 2001 and then dual G5 in 2004. If I carry on at the same rate, my next is due at the middle to end of next year, but the current state of my bank account is very much disagreeing with this idea.

The problem is getting rid of old Macs though - I still have the iMac on my desk, even though I've not used it for ages, and I'll probably be the same when I upgrade the G5 too.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

Back in the mid to late 90s (after the clone age) a Mac desktop lasted me 3 good years. Then the 733 G4 with the SuperDrive came out and I HAD to have it even though it cost crazy money...like $3300 or so (Edu price). That is when I really started paying attention to all the rumor sites and such. So before MacWorld NY '01 I sold my 5 month old 733 on eBay for about $300 less than what I paid for it. When I got to MW Steve announced the G4 867 which cost around $2200 (Edu price). So I not only got a speed bump, I actually made money on the deal. That is when I became an upgrade addict.

Since then the only machine I held for more than 6 months was my Jan '05 G5. The only reason I held it was because I thought it was rather pointless to by a PPC with the Intels coming out. Of course I sold it just before WWDC and now have a shiny new Mac Pro 2.66.

 

[hadleydb]

Current rate is every three years - G4 iMac in 2001 and then dual G5 in 2004. If I carry on at the same rate, my next is due at the middle to end of next year, but the current state of my bank account is very much disagreeing with this idea.

The problem is getting rid of old Macs though - I still have the iMac on my desk, even though I've not used it for ages, and I'll probably be the same when I upgrade the G5 too.

The hardest mac I ever had to part with was my Ruby iMac G3... I will never get over that one. If I could buy it back to this day I would. I liked my 12" Powerbook too... Like I said it's a sickness of mine.

 

[KingYaba]

It's been three years since I bought an eMac. Almost 7 since my Pismo. And however long ago it was for the green g3 iMac. And I had a powermactintosh even further back. So I'm due for a new machine here in September.

 

[MRU]

Less than every year, but i'm hoping with counselling I can get it to past the 12 month mark

What happens is I update at least 1 of the 6 macs we have in the household every year, meaning yes, I buy a new mac currently less than 12 months.

 

[iBookG4user]

Well I bought my iBook G4 in early January 2006 and I'm getting a MBP in September so that's every 8 months although I hope that the MBP will last me a while because an almost $3000 purchase is a lot for a jobless 16 year old. (That's over 7 times my previous most expensive purchase )