Switching to Apple? - NEW QUESTION: When to buy?

[Slache]

In the next 2 years I'm going to have to replace my computer, tablet, phone, and Fitbit. I've been considering switching to Apple since the Windows 10 update and I've always wanted an iPad for school, so now I'm considering a complete switch over. I haven't used a Mac since middle school. What are your thoughts?

 

ETA: If I made this switch when would I buy things? I'm assuming Black Friday? In hopes that my computer makes it that long. Or does it never go on sale so I can make little purchases? I added the following to my cart to price items, I'm not buying anything today:

1. 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display for $1,800 - OUCH! I haven't looked much. I need a good computer with a large screen, don't care about screen quality.
2. 13-inch MacBook Air - Space Gray for $1,000 - I just need something to do google drive, plan school and hold a few workout videos.
3. 10.2-inch iPad Wi-Fi 128GB for $430 - Also ouch! This if for Duolingo so I need an alternative. Might be a kindle fire.
4. Two watches.

 

So, at a cursory glance did I do anything wrong? I would prefer cheaper everything but hubby needs a big screen for work. So when to buy and what else do I need to know?

Edited January 18, 2021 by Slache

[almondbutterandjelly]

We did that for everything except our computers.  Dh wanted our devices to be able to talk to each other easily.  It's been great!  We are PC people though so no switch there.  It's fine.

[Arcadia]

I have numerous iPads from the mini to the pro. I have a iPhone 6 and iPhone 7 Plus. The MacBook in my home is converted to running Fedora Linux because no one liked the MacOS. Our laptops are all on windows 10.

[Katy]

DH has a PC or maybe 2 in the basement.  And we have a few kindles.  But otherwise we're apple people.  It's nice when everything communicates, but it's not as nice as it was 5 years ago.  They've started adding software updates so you can't sync data on other drives, like putting a video on a kindle fire or an old ipad. I'm convinced they do this on purpose to force you to buy a newer ipad.

[Arcadia]

26 minutes ago, Dreamergal said:

Make the switch !! I am an apple person and I love it. I have to use Windows for work and I haaaaaaaate it ! 😫

 

My husband’s company IT has such a big problem with keychains that all those MacBook users who are willing to take a Surface Laptop were given one. My husband is happy to put up with windows as long as work runs smoothly and he gets to finish work earlier. 

I am taking classes at community college for fun now and there is more tech support for Windows and Linux issues just because majority of classmates are on either or both platforms and can help troubleshoot. My kid who has a Linux laptop also has a windows 10 laptop. I just bought a new windows 10 laptop for $650 because my old laptop is almost a decade old. 
 

[Ali in OR]

We've used macs since college (and we're old, so those were the original macs) and have Apple everything. When I have had to used PC's for work, I've always been frustrated that they aren't as intuitive and smooth as the mac. Right now I'm writing geometry lessons for school and I finally got the school to give me a PC (in addition to my chromebook which I can't use with a good math editor), and yet I'm still using my mac as much as possible and will only use the PC if I need to do a lot of cutting and pasting with the snip it tool. Dh wanted to go cheaper when the kids were old enough to need their own tools, but they of course prefer the ease of use of Apple and I advocated strongly for us all to have the same thing.

[MEmama]

We have a mix.

DS prefers anything other than Apple, but he’s a gamer and coder and Apple isn’t conducive to his needs and wants. Our phones used to all be Apple but one by one we are switching to android—less expensive and much better cameras. He likes how customizable they are compared to Apple.

I think in general Apples are best for people who just want their technology to work and not have to think about it, and don’t mind paying for it. PCs are better for people who want to tinker and customize. 
 

I'm not partial either way. 🤷‍♀️

[PeterPan]

4 hours ago, Slache said:

If I made this switch when would I buy things? I'm assuming Black Friday?

https://buyersguide.macrumors.com Each item has it's own timeline for when it is refreshed. You are eligible for education discounts and you can also buy refurbs for a discount. There's no reason to wait unless the product you want is about to be refreshed/released in a new version. You will get that data at this link. Otherwise, just buy. 

4 hours ago, Slache said:

• 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display for $1,800 - OUCH! I haven't looked much. I need a good computer with a large screen, don't care about screen quality.
• 13-inch MacBook Air - Space Gray for $1,000 - I just need something to do google drive, plan school and hold a few workout videos.
• 10.2-inch iPad Wi-Fi 128GB for $430 - Also ouch! This if for Duolingo so I need an alternative. Might be a kindle fire.
• Two watches.

I'm surprised you're finding such good prices. Things seem to go up as you get them in your cart. How many of these products do you absolutely have to have? Is the imac for your dh and the macbook air for you? Isn't the air being discontinued? I guess check the macrumors and see. I haven't looked in a while but I thought it was. You really only need one good ipad, not an air and an ipad. And frankly even the cheapest ipads are really good these days. You can save all your docs in the cloud. 

Are the stores open right now so you can pet things? I was just at a mall and they had a HUGE line waiting to pick up stuff at the apple store. My two cents would be go to Best Buy, actually put your hands on things. You'll have opinions after that. A kindle fire and an ipad are very different products, lol. I mean, I've got both, but the surfing speed, nothing will be the same. Surely the ipad can do Duolingo??

So I have 3 imacs in this house, obviously I like them a lot. Been on them quite a while now. It is my considered opinion that you want to max out the ram and the video cards, because those will hold back your ability to update and go forward. I also would not buy a refurb of *last* years model. I'm cool with refurbs, sure. But make sure it's a current version. I'm saying this because you're literally cutting a year off the life at the end and you're going to cry. It wasn't worth it. Or maybe it is to you, but I would try to avoid it.

So just going through the macrumors list, it's saying the 27" is new and to wait on the 21". I guess prices things out, see what you can get. It's saying the last refresh on the 21" was March 2019. https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/imac/  And totally new imacs (two sizes) expected in 2021. So that might be worth waiting for. If you want it NOW and wanted the 27", then that's what I would get. But if waiting is an option, I would wait for the new ones, just me. I have a 27" btw as my normal. It's the bomb. I regularly keep 20 browser tabs open across several windows in one browser and do the same thing in a second browser. AND I have probably 30 pdfs open and and. I have this swiping to different desk surfaces, so it's all very tidy. I really like my big screen, lol. But it's big and my ds and dh both work on the 21" with no issues. If budget is an issue, you could transition slowly, buying each thing as you realize what you like.

You have kids, right? Have you thought through tech migration? Buy, hand down.

Ooo look, macbook air was just updated! I don't know why I thought it was gone. You understand this is a very discrete little machine, right? Like it's sweet, but think through what you want to do on it. Make sure you really need an ipad AND air and aren't duplicating. It says just released in Nov 2020, so I would look for a refurb on that or use the education discount. If you know the lower power of it fits your use, that would be a great place to start and get used to the OS. 

Is there a reason watches are on the list but not phones? What are your phones? You know an iphone with an imac is the joy of life, right? 

4 hours ago, Slache said:

phone,

Ok, occasionally I can read, lol. So yes, you're about to have fun! I just got the new iphone 12 max pro. It's heavier than the iphone I was updating from, but it's one slick experience with speed. If you want to blow your mind, people "benchmark" these products. https://browser.geekbench.com/mac-benchmarks  So you can compare objectively the processing power and how you can expect products to function. So if you click the link, you can compare your late 2020 macbook air (single core benchmark 1695) with other devices (a refurb imac, whatever). Actually, I'm blown away. Some of these scores are huge jumps! Ok, thank you, I clicked multi core and now it's making more sense. But anyways, you can geek out with this and see whether a particular version of an imac is "worth" it or has that much power improvement over another version. Sometimes the changes are dramatic and sometimes they aren't.

Yes, like the others in this thread we have a pc around for random occasions. You might find a business class for instance needs you to use a pc, not mac. 

4 hours ago, Slache said:

hubby needs a big screen for work.

Ahhh, so the 27" would be his friend! Some people will run a mac mini or a mac pro and use a special monitor for better color. You can also run multiple monitors. But really, unless he wants you to buy his stuff, I think they can be separate questions. Like you choose yours, he chooses his. The way texting works on a mac, as long as my phone is on, the texts I receive from android phones come through to my imac. So it really doesn't matter whether you and he are on the same systems or not. He can do what he likes and you can do what you like. 

I will warn you, I would expect the price on that imac to go up before you're done, lol. Find out what you can upgrade later. A few years ago they changed things so it's harder to do after market changes. So you end up plunking out upfront and upgrading. If you don't, honestly you might not be happy with the machine. I don't remember what happened with dh's. Like I bought it used on ebay, bought it refurb, I honestly don't remember. For whatever reason it was like oh fine, not $$, that will do. And he's not a power user, so you'd think it wouldn't matter. His imac is the BIGGEST PAIN IN THE BUTT. I swear. Like boat anchor.

My imac on the other hand I've had since like I don't know, before 2012. It's the thick older style with cd drives, haha. This thing is a TANK. I was teling you how much I keep open. It just goes and goes. Now it's no longer going to run Lightroom or Photoshop or something well because it will get hot. You really have to crank up EVERYTHING when you want to do that and don't skimp. 

When I have heard people unhappy, then went on the low end and skimped on the specs for their imacs. Just saying. I'm not so much of a fangirl that I'm going to say it can't happen. If you want it fast and you're like a speed demon, impatient, drive 90 kinda person, then don't skimp. You've been warned, lol. 

It's going to last a while, so max things out that matter and you'll be very happy. 

I use the extended keyboard with numeric keypad. I don't like the pettable mice, I do like the trackpads. I prefer a wacom bamboo pad because it's larger, so that's what I use instead. In other words, see things in person, get what you like. 

No opinion on the watches, as I don't use them. I think if you're wanting to save money, buy once and buy well. Apple is not an economy product. If you go with the cheapest you're going to be complaining pretty soon. I would buy one thing but get it exactly as you wanted, with the specs you need to do the jobs you need it to do. Then buy the next thing. Ease into it. They'll ship you your stuff in like 2 days. 

[PeterPan]

4 hours ago, Slache said:

• 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display for $1,800 - OUCH! I haven't looked much. I need a good computer with a large screen, don't care about screen quality.
• 13-inch MacBook Air - Space Gray for $1,000 - I just need something to do google drive, plan school and hold a few workout videos.

If these were both for you, is it possible there's another piece of tech you need? Those workout videos, where do you watch them? Maybe that's something a $35 fire tv drive thing could solve, kwim? Make sure you're not duplicating tech here. Even "good computer" is relative. I'm going through the options, and they are offering RAM up to 64 and 128GB. I'm running I think 32GB in mine and back when I got my computer x years ago that was considered an obscene amount. But it's definitely part of why my machine is still sweet, kwim? But "good" is relative to what you want to do. 

If you were getting it down to one computer, what would that device look like? Maybe an ipad pro? Or a macbook pro?

[Moonhawk]

5 hours ago, Slache said:

ETA: If I made this switch when would I buy things? I'm assuming Black Friday? In hopes that my computer makes it that long. Or does it never go on sale so I can make little purchases? I added the following to my cart to price items, I'm not buying anything today:

1. 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display for $1,800 - OUCH! I haven't looked much. I need a good computer with a large screen, don't care about screen quality.
2. 13-inch MacBook Air - Space Gray for $1,000 - I just need something to do google drive, plan school and hold a few workout videos.
3. 10.2-inch iPad Wi-Fi 128GB for $430 - Also ouch! This if for Duolingo so I need an alternative. Might be a kindle fire.
4. Two watches.

 

So, at a cursory glance did I do anything wrong? I would prefer cheaper everything but hubby needs a big screen for work. So when to buy and what else do I need to know?

For when to buy, you can check https://buyersguide.macrumors.com to see if an update is expected soon or not, so that way you don't buy something and then 2 weeks later the new version is released. Of course, if you need it now, you need it now. We bought an iMac on Black Friday from Best Buy; the price wasn't appreciably lower but they had a special on their credit card offer that we did to bring down the price. Typically the price for Apple do not fluctuate much.

1. The 27" iMac is beautiful with the screen. I know it doesn't seem like it would matter if you don't care about screens, but it's beautiful. And when the screen is that big, if he's going to stare at it multiple hours, the quality makes a difference. 
2. MacBook Air I love love love. It will work fine for what you're thinking. I've pushed mine much harder and while it can't hold up to heavy work it can handle "normal" use. Plus if you get the new M1 chip version I hear the performance is *stunning*!
3. Can't speak for their newer iPads, we still just have 2nd generation. These you can usually find on the used market in good shape for much less, if you want to have the compatibility but not the price tag.
4. Watches can also be found used, then buy a new band. But, I'd probably buy those new since the price tag is smaller and they are at higher risk of damage so you want to get Apple Care on them. 

[Moonhawk]

35 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

It is my considered opinion that you want to max out the ram and the video cards, because those will hold back your ability to update and go forward.

You can buy after-market ram at lower prices and upgrade yourself on the iMac, this saves significant money. Just make suer you get the type of ram for your model. It's the one thing you're able to upgrade yourself on the iMac. Agree about the rest of the upgrading innards: if you want the computer to last a while it has to have growing room, so to speak.

[Moonhawk]

I actually think the 2nd-tier iMac right now is really good; this latest release is MUCH better than the previous year. It doesn't have the heat problems that the 2013-2017~ ones did (prediction, anyway).

@PeterPan I'm using a fan app to manually control for overheating; DH is a power user and he wore this iMac into the ground. He got the 2020 iMac and I inherited this one since I don't require as much usually, but I still manage the heat thing myself because yeah it will run hot now. 

I agree about the upgrading up, to a point; my 2013 (and later 2015 model, which is what I'm on now) were both upgraded up to the hilt. We had i7 processors, highest graphics, etc. HOWEVER, this later contributed to problems with the overheating, because the rest of the computer hadn't really been designed to work with those higher upgrades -- yes they technically worked, and yes they were sold as options, but I don't think the rest of the machine was optimized for that level and so it overheated even more than normal for these models and ran into more problems. 

So, yes to upgrades, but I would watch a lot of reviews and benchmark tests before getting the highest version; we chose 2nd -tier this time around based on reviews and figuring we need it to last 6 years at least, which this should do (with the eternal SSD and extra RAM).

I agree on the wired numeric keyboard; and I use a gaming mouse instead of the Magic Mouse (which I like, but doesn't work for my hand for long periods of time). 

We did a very in-depth price comparison of iMac -vs- MacPro -vs- MacMini + nice screen -vs- PC set up -vs- a few options with all of them. The iMac turned out, for our needs, to be the most economical. DH needs a hi-res screen, fast performance, lots of Ram, and pushes 14 hours a day. 2nd-tier iMac + after market RAM + external SSD was the best option for us price-wise. 

Edited January 19, 2021 by Moonhawk

[Slache]

So much information! I have to read this later. We do need two computers because we work together on the same project at the same time, but we currently have two computers. I'm just going to buy things as I need them but things are ending their life span, especially our tablet and phones, so I was considering just beginning the changeover when that happens.

[PeterPan]

2 hours ago, Moonhawk said:

You can buy after-market ram at lower prices and upgrade yourself on the iMac

For a while there the imacs were soldered and not letting you. Mine I could upgrade, dh's you cannot. So are the current kind upgradeable? If they are, it's excellent advice. I was looking at that max 128 and the price is pretty WOW to get there. I agree, as long as they are currently upgradable, super good advice.

[PeterPan]

2 hours ago, Moonhawk said:

I'm using a fan app to manually control for overheating

Yup, that's what I do too. I melted the hard drive because I wasn't careful enough. 

[Moonhawk]

1 minute ago, PeterPan said:

For a while there the imacs were soldered and not letting you. Mine I could upgrade, dh's you cannot. So are the current kind upgradeable? If they are, it's excellent advice. I was looking at that max 128 and the price is pretty WOW to get there. I agree, as long as they are currently upgradable, super good advice.

What year is your DH's? I think all the ones we have are upgradeable, we currently have 4 iMacs. Maybe it's a 21" vs 27" difference? I had assumed it had been this way for all models, that's good to know! I will have to look into that.

I know the 2020 model is upgradeable though because my DH promised he could go a month with the basic ram before upgrading.... but that lasted about 4 days before he put in an upgrade order, lol. The performance upgraded and he was much happier and I got to grumble a couple days. 🙂 

[PeterPan]

2 hours ago, Moonhawk said:

problems with the overheating,

What you're saying makes sense, but does the super slim form also contribute? Honestly I haven't kept up with the discussions. Mine just keeps going and going. I think I get headaches from the resolution. It's not as good as the two newer imacs and I don't seem to get headaches on those. But it just keeps going and going, hahaha. Actually I think I did the LAST UPGRADE. It's at the point where the browsers will stop being supported in a few years, and then that will be the end, sigh. So that's what I was thinking of is just that hard line. 

 

2 hours ago, Moonhawk said:

we need it to last 6 years at least

Mine is a mid-2010, still going strong.  I'll cry when I have to replace it. But then I'll probably get over it and like the next one as well. 

 

2 hours ago, Moonhawk said:

we chose 2nd -tier

When you're saying 2nd tier, you mean the resolution on the screen and regular vs. pro? I hadn't kept up, so I was pretty surprised to see so many options. And macrumors was saying they may totally change the dimensions in the new models this year. 

Truth be told, I'd probably be good with a change. I like big, but my 27" is, well I'm just ready for a change. I had thought about going to a laptop instead, but I guess we'll see what the new formats are. I'm pretty sure my machine will no longer have OS updates, so in the next year or two things will become unsupported. At that point he will sadly die.

2 hours ago, Moonhawk said:

2nd-tier iMac + after market RAM + external SSD was the best option for us price-wise. 

So back when I did mine, SSD was horribly $$$$$$. I had it drop shipped to a computer company (OWC) who did aftermarket changes, adding RAM, adding an SSD for the OS, etc. That's part of why mine is still reasonably fast, because the OS is on SSD. Dh's is that stupid blended thing they did for a while, and you can't change it. Or maybe you can? I thought the whole gig was the back was soldered. I see now they're doing only SSD and the price just goes up really high. I can see why you added one. It would be a very sweet set-up. 

[PeterPan]

2 minutes ago, Moonhawk said:

What year is your DH's? I think all the ones we have are upgradeable, we currently have 4 iMacs. Maybe it's a 21" vs 27" difference? I had assumed it had been this way for all models, that's good to know! I will have to look into that.

late 2013. It was like Apple was behind the hackers (people hacking, making hackintoshes) so then they were fine we'll solder it, then apparently they loosened up again. 

I was noticing some of those new imacs cost as much as a car...

 

[Moonhawk]

41 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

What you're saying makes sense, but does the super slim form also contribute? Honestly I haven't kept up with the discussions. Mine just keeps going and going. I think I get headaches from the resolution. It's not as good as the two newer imacs and I don't seem to get headaches on those. But it just keeps going and going, hahaha. Actually I think I did the LAST UPGRADE. It's at the point where the browsers will stop being supported in a few years, and then that will be the end, sigh. So that's what I was thinking of is just that hard line. 

 

Mine is a mid-2010, still going strong.  I'll cry when I have to replace it. But then I'll probably get over it and like the next one as well. 

 

When you're saying 2nd tier, you mean the resolution on the screen and regular vs. pro? I hadn't kept up, so I was pretty surprised to see so many options. And macrumors was saying they may totally change the dimensions in the new models this year. 

Truth be told, I'd probably be good with a change. I like big, but my 27" is, well I'm just ready for a change. I had thought about going to a laptop instead, but I guess we'll see what the new formats are. I'm pretty sure my machine will no longer have OS updates, so in the next year or two things will become unsupported. At that point he will sadly die.

So back when I did mine, SSD was horribly $$$$$$. I had it drop shipped to a computer company (OWC) who did aftermarket changes, adding RAM, adding an SSD for the OS, etc. That's part of why mine is still reasonably fast, because the OS is on SSD. Dh's is that stupid blended thing they did for a while, and you can't change it. Or maybe you can? I thought the whole gig was the back was soldered. I see now they're doing only SSD and the price just goes up really high. I can see why you added one. It would be a very sweet set-up. 

(Oh my goodness, this is like catnip for me, lol)

The overheating I think was a design flaw that was there for a few years; I do think the slimmer designs contributed but I don't know if that was the only thing, I just know it seemed very common, especially for the 2013-2015 models.

Yay about your 2010! We still have our 2011! It's a great iMac! It's officially for the kids now, because once the retina screens came out it was necessary to upgrade (lots of visual design) but he's a super trooper and I expect he is going to outlast the one I'm using (2015). 

And I'm sorry, I think I misled you: only the RAM is upgradeable, the hard drives are still soldered now, I think. Or at least some are. For example, on the 2015, I have the soldered-on quasi-SSD type. Ick. We added a new SSD in November in trying to save this guy, put next to the soldered one. But, yes, can't do too much about the one stuck on. We'd have to replace the whole motherboard and that just wasn't going to happen. 

Coincidentally I had a late 2013 as well. First the Seagate hard drive on it was recalled, then there was another problem that had to be looked at with the motherboard, and then we had to take it back in because it was something wrong with I can't even remember what. Then when we went to pick it up from being fixed that third time, there was a chip in the screen (done by them) and so I kinda got ticked about that and after a long and arduous back and forth we got the replacement 2015. Who has had his own issues, but as I said earlier, that's more due to my DH just being relentless with it. 

So, 2nd-tier, I mean not the full bells and whistle 27" iMac, but the one between that and the base 27" model. It has a retina screen but a lesser processor and is a little less graphics, I think? I'm starting to forget all the specs.

We decided to use an extra external SSD connected via a port as an upgrade without the Apple price. So the SSD hard drive  on the motherboard is small but only used for applications and the OS, and the external is where he stores all of his files, documents, etc. It was a much cheaper way: he could get a 5TB SSD external drive for under $200, but to get that type of onboard hard drive (especially a SSD) would be prohibitively expensive (actually, 5TB isn't even available with iMacs, I think).

And yes!, we order our extra RAM from OWC, highly recommend them for that type of thing. To get an SSD in 2010 was super cutting edge, congrats, it was a great decision. No doubt it helped keep yours going so long so well!

[cjzimmer1]

Have you used Apples products and liked them?  I know that sounds like a dumb question but when we got our first tablet (which was much later in the game so there was plenty of other choices available as well), everyone raved about iPad's so I got one and them proceeded to get an iphone so they could talk to each other.  But I was constantly frustrated by them because I could never find settings/features and things just weren't laid out in a way that was intuitive to me.  I even upgraded each of them after a couple of years thinking I just needed more time to learn and be comfortable with the new (to me) technology.  Next upgrade I switched to Android.  It was like night and day.  I could always find settings, controls were easy to use etc.  It was like the designer of the Android thought like I did and the designer of Apple products did not.  It was such a relief to not struggle with my electronics anymore.  I'm only mentioning this because if you haven't really used an Apple enough to know for sure that it fits you best (rather than everyone else telling you how great it is),  I would be hesitant to drop that much money upgrading that many different items and then end up in a position where it doesn't "click" for you.  If you've already tried and like them just ignore me but it was an aspect that no one had mentioned to me to consider and I'm just glad I realized it before I also upgraded my computer/software.

But my experience with sales is they were pretty much non existent other than a very modest discount for Black Friday, but that was quite a while ago and perhaps they have changed their ways with more competition.  

[prairiewindmomma]

We are an Apple family, but we took about a decade to make the conversion. Dh was a longtime Linux fan, but started having to use a MacBook for work and really liked it and made the switch easily.

Dh needs two larger screens to WFH, but he mirror displays them from his MacBook. That way he also has the flexibility to take a laptop with him when he needs to.

 

[Slache]

13 hours ago, cjzimmer1 said:

Have you used Apples products and liked them? 

No. And I don't really have the opportunity to. I'm not going to go buy $4K in products, but everything will probably need to be replaced in 6 months to 5 years, and I've been thinking about this for a while. This thread has been helpful.

5 hours ago, prairiewindmomma said:

 

Didn't mean to quote. Hi!

[Katy]

Go to the Best Buy stores near you RIGHT NOW and ask about open-box items (returns).  If they have the computers and the iPad you want, you can likely get them for 50% off if you talk to the store manager, but they might require you to finance them through Best Buy (zero percent if you pay off in time).  I've never tried this with the apple watch, which we just buy through Verizon, but not only have I done this multiple times, I recommended this here a few times and a few other people had great luck too.  DO make sure you boot them up before you make the deal, especially if you live more than 20 minutes away from the store.  One of mine needed to be wiped by Geek Squad to work and I wished I didn't need to drive back and forth to the store to fix that.  They could have talked me through it remotely but we had slow internet at the time.

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, Katy said:

open-box items

Their open box items will show on their website. So she can see what they have (hopefully, assuming it's accurate) before she even goes in the store.

[Katy]

9 hours ago, PeterPan said:

Their open box items will show on their website. So she can see what they have (hopefully, assuming it's accurate) before she even goes in the store.

IME half of them don’t. But it’s been a year, maybe they’ve improved. 

[Soror]

Unless you just have piles of money you need to spend I'd looked at used and refurbished models. I bought an iPad used off of eBay years ago for school and it is still going strong. Otherwise we do not have any Apple products. I don't think they are worth the price and we have a budget to keep. For most of our school we use the Chromebook. 

[Slache]

9 hours ago, Soror said:

Unless you just have piles of money you need to spend I'd looked at used and refurbished models. I bought an iPad used off of eBay years ago for school and it is still going strong. Otherwise we do not have any Apple products. I don't think they are worth the price and we have a budget to keep. For most of our school we use the Chromebook. 

I loved my chromebook. And the Apple alternative is $1K. Right now we have 2 HP laptops that need to be replaced in the not too distant future. I just really wonder how much we'll use all of the apples talking to eachother features. I think I've made my decision. But I'm not spending piles of money.