Shameless abuse of my flist.

[cherry]

If anyone could offer up some advice, that would be amazing.

I am looking at purchasing an external HD for my computer. I have an iBook G3, 30GB, which I keep filling up. Right now, I have 3.63 GB free, for example.

The thing is, I might be getting a new computer in the fall. I'm a Mac girl, though and through, so I'm not really looking at picking up a PC. I'm trying to decide between:

- A new laptop (probably a MacBook, unless I come across some crazy deal for the Pro), or
- A desktop, probably an Intel iMac, and a wireless card for my poor little G3.

- I have found a limited number of LaCie 250GB externals available for $170. Mac/PC compatible, but they are, however, USB 2.0 only.

Would the external still be a wise purchase, given that I might be picking up a new computer? Does anyone have any advice as to which path to follow?

Comments

GET A MACBOOK!

[acjohns.livejournal.com]

Hey there Cherry,

GET A MACBOOK! I just did, and it's WONDERFUL! Seriously, the best investment ever. I did a whole lot of comparison shopping before I bought it and really there is no comparison.

JUST DO IT! It will run Windows if you insist on installing it, although you would have to buy that separately. Which is a huge waste anyway because they're coming out with Vista in the fall.

GET MACBOOK. :-P

AJ

Re: GET A MACBOOK!

[cherryice.livejournal.com]

May I ask which MacBook you bought? The fact that my iBook KERPLODED has made things rather critical.

I'm trying to figure out if I should try to talk my way into the pimped out black one, or pimp out on of the 1.83GHz ones with 1GB SDRAM and 100 GB of storage, because they're about the same price.

Re: GET A MACBOOK!

[(Anonymous)]

I went with the 2 GHz Intel Core Duo in white, upgraded to 1 GB of ram (you'll want that minimum I hear) with the SuperDrive and 80GB hard drive.

I would suggest that 80Gb might be enough for you if you're not planning on doing a lot of video editing, especially with your external drive that you just bought, although if you can eat the cost, go for it.

Mine is about equivalent to the black one, although be forewarned there is about a $150 price difference due to nothing apparent but colour. Yes, for some strange reason, the matte black finish costs $150 more than the classic shiny white.

Mike's buying the same comp. as me but in black.

Are you looking to buy this summer or waiting until the fall? If you are, we'll be back right at the beginning of the school year if you wanna check it out in person. But that may not be soon enough. :-)

Oh, and they're also have deals where you get a free 2GB nano (or upgrade) with your purchase, and Microsoft Office for Mac is goin' for $229 with a $50 mail in rebate, but you get 3 licenses, so maybe you might be able to share with someone else. Have fun and email me if you want more info!

AJ

Re: GET A MACBOOK!

[acjohns.livejournal.com]

I went with the 2 GHz Intel Core Duo in white, upgraded to 1 GB of ram (you'll want that minimum I hear) with the SuperDrive and 80GB hard drive.

I would suggest that 80Gb might be enough for you if you're not planning on doing a lot of video editing, especially with your external drive that you just bought, although if you can eat the cost, go for it.

Mine is about equivalent to the black one, although be forewarned there is about a $150 price difference due to nothing apparent but colour. Yes, for some strange reason, the matte black finish costs $150 more than the classic shiny white.

Mike's buying the same comp. as me but in black.

Are you looking to buy this summer or waiting until the fall? If you are, we'll be back right at the beginning of the school year if you wanna check it out in person. But that may not be soon enough. :-)

Oh, and they're also have deals where you get a free 2GB nano (or upgrade) with your purchase, and Microsoft Office for Mac is goin' for $229 with a $50 mail in rebate, but you get 3 licenses, so maybe you might be able to share with someone else. Have fun and email me if you want more info!

AJ

Re: GET A MACBOOK!

[cherryice.livejournal.com]

I think this is possibly more of 'I am doing this as soon as humanly possible' thing, but thanks for the offer!

I was going to go with the 1.83GHz, but then I discovered that you can only get the DVD burner in the 2.0GHz. It looks like we're going to have perfectly matching computers! I've upgraded my own RAM before, but that sort of led to my first total computer crash -- the stuff we bought was bad, and killed my computer.

It seems to me that you are incredibly happy with yours -- are there any modifications you'd make, though?

(Personally, I prefer the white to the black anyway.)

Re: GET A MACBOOK!

[acjohns.livejournal.com]

I am supremely happy with my computer. I don't think I'd go with any less than what I got, and I'm not missing the extra memory (yet anyway). I hear the DVD burning capability thing, it was a bit of a must. That's also why I didn't bother with the additional space because I figured if I needed to make room, I'd just burn a data DVD!

It works well, so yeah, no complaints whatsoever.