Last time
around in Volume
One, I shared that I'll be buying a new
Mac within the next six weeks, and admitted that I'm a little
rusty due to the fact that it's been close to five years since
I've done so. I pointed out that I expect there's a strong
chance that we'll see new eMacs, and at least a decent chance
that we'll see new iMacs as well, before my deadline has arrived.
At least I hope so; I'll have to be buying something
within the next six weeks whether we see new models by that
time or not. But even though I expect to be choosing from
(or at least have the option to choose from) among the new
models, today I want to look at the current Macs on the market
as if they were my only options. Sometimes a theoretical exercise
can help set you straight on what you'll want to do when you
get to the real thing.
I'll go ahead
and kick both the professional desktop and laptop lines to
the curb right off the bat. And that ought to tell you two
things: one is that my budget is finite, and the other is that
I have not yet, in fact, decided whether to go with a desktop
or a laptop (more on that later, I promise). My reason for
ruling out the PowerMac G5 is fairly obvious: while it's the
world's fastest, most powerful computer (there, take that,
Michael Dell), the pricing is ridiculous in comparison to what
I'm looking to spend. And while I really want G5 power and
I could think of several ways in which to put it to good use,
it's not something that I really need.
There is
the matter of the sort-of-discontinued PowerMac G4 that is
still available in limited quantities, and although the machine
is much closer to my price range than its G5 counterpart, it
still makes no sense for me. Since it doesn't come with a monitor,
I'd end up having to pick up one from a third party, and considering
my budget, I'd likely end up with a screen that's not nearly
as good as the one that comes included with the low-end basic
eMac. So all I can say is, thank goodness that the eMac does
indeed come with a built-in monitor. And speaking of built-in
monitors, have you noticed how the entire Mac Web has managed
to shut up about the asinine headless iMac nonsense, ever since
I put the smackdown on the idea last month? But I digress.
Just for
kicks, I glanced at the pricing for used, discontinued, and/or
refurbished PowerBooks, just to see what I was up against,
and I realized that the only PowerBook model that even came
close to my price range was the first-generation 12 incher.
And while it is most certainly the object of my affection (and
has been for some time), I'm afraid that I simply cannot limit
myself to a 12 inch screen for my primary production machine.
So out goes the notion of owning a PowerBook. It's not all
bad, though, because the iBook just happens to sport a G4 processor
these days, meaning that the iBook is one can of aluminum spraypaint
away from being a PowerBook, right?
Alright,
so I'm exaggerating. But if I look at what features the iBook
is missing in comparison to its metallic big brother, I see
a list of features (gigabit ethernet, secondary display option)
that don't do anything for me. Although I must admit that the
idea of buying a 12 inch PowerBook and hooking it up to a second,
larger monitor intrigues me, it's most definitely not in the
budget and I need to quickly forget I said it, before I become
obsessed with the thought. Because on my budget, my "second
monitor"
would be something made by Fisher-Price, and I'm just not going
there. So, if you'll forgive my disappointment at not being
able to rig up something totally pointless for my needs but
oh-so-cool, I'll just mark down on my little chart tablet that
if it's going to be a laptop, it's going to be a 14 inch iBook.
So let's
see, what else is the iBook missing? Oh yeah, a SuperDrive.
Wow, I've got to think about that one. I'd always assumed that
my next Mac would have one, considering what I went through
the last time I constructed an iLife project. So I should
jot down on my little chart tablet that on my budget, going
with a laptop pretty much means settling for a Combo Drive.
Interesting. I'd never thought about it in that way before.
I really want a SuperDrive. But then, I should probably consider
the fact that in my life, I've never owned a computer that
could burn CD's, or even so much as play DVD's,
so perhaps I'm being spoiled in thinking that I need a computer
that burns DVD's. I suppose that's something to sleep
on.
Now that
I know that my options on the laptop side pretty much come
down to a used or refurbished G4 iBook without a SuperDrive,
I should turn my attention back to desktops. I'm not ruling
out a laptop, mind you. I just feel as if I need to play this
out, step by step, until I've eliminated each and every other
possibility and I'm down to only one remaining. You know what?
Maybe this is going to be like and episode of American
Idol after all.
Perish the
thought. Look for "Bill buys a new Mac, volume three" tomorrow,
in which I'll take a crack at the Mac desktop market and see
how much trouble (for myself) I can stir up.
No
Panther user should be without:
