When do I buy a Mac?

So, you’re really excited because you’ve decided you’re going to buy a new Mac. Maybe it’s your first Apple computer. You’ve figured out whether you need a laptop (1, 2) or a desktop (1, 2, 3). Sure, you’ve not decided which of those models you’re going to be getting, but at least you’ve it that narrowed down, right? So the question is:

WHEN DO I BUY IT??!?

This question comes up on AppleNova so often that the curmudgeon in me really gets going. I wish that people would do their own research. Then my “compassionate” side kicks in because I realize that there aren’t many places to find this information.

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There’s something of an art to figuring out when to buy a new Mac. The most important link in your arsenal against Apple’s insane secrecy is probably this Mac Buyer’s Guide. If you buy that new MacBook when it hasn’t been updated for 286 days, and it gets updated while it’s on the FedEx truck, you’ve got no one to blame but yourself. So, please, do at least this basic amount of homework before you buy.

That’s the science part of the Mac buying madness and the really easy part.

Now, there are more parts of this complex equation that need to be factored in.

1. What type of computer am I getting? Is it a “consumer” product (MacBook, iMac, Mac mini)? Or is it the “pro” version (MacBook Pro, Mac Pro)? and
2. What time of year is it? In other words, is there a conference coming up?

While a real Mac fiend (or nut or zealot or…) knows all about Apple’s event throughout the year, the normal people of the world are blissfully ignorant of them until the media hype machine gets a hold of some or other juicy rumor. Well, here’s your chance to spin further into Mac-fiendism (you know it’s going to happen anyway, so you might as well embrace it) or at least get a sense of the holy-days in Apple fandom.

Major Apple-related conferences

• Consumer oriented conferences
  • MacWorld San Francisco also known as MWSF. This conference is occurring from January 9-12, 2007. Each year, it occurs during the second week of January.
  • Apple Expo. This conference has been hit-or-miss lately, so take it for what it is. It usually occurs around Sept. each year.
• Professional oriented events
  • Worldwide Developer’s Conference. Obviously, this conference is targeted at developers. Historically, it has occurred around July, but this past year it was pushed back to August, many suspected, correctly, to release the new Mac Pro.
  • National Association of Broadcasters. This is not an Apple sponsored event but Apple almost always has a big presence there. It occurs annually in April.
  • Photokina is an annual photography/imaging event. This year it took place at the end of September.

The Art

Anniversaries

Now that the “official” events have been outlined, we need to consider annual Mac-holidays, such as the Mac’s birthday (January 24th), Apple’s birthday (April 1st), the iPod’s birthday (October 23rd), OS X’s birthday (March 24th). Many of these are irrelevant to computer updates, but the rumor mills always get churning around these times. You need to determine which of these rumors have credence and which are just websites trolling for hits.

Press events

There’s also the occasional press event (see here and here for some examples) that you need to watch out for. There’s a method to this madness. Generally, when there’s a press event, we know about it a week or 2 beforehand. Once you’ve decided you’re going to buy, check the rumor and information sites listed below for an potential events. If there are none listed in the next couple of weeks, you’re probably okay on that front.

Promotions

The past few years, Apple’s run promotions during the back-to-school season for education buyers. These are good for anyone who’s got any affiliation with an institution of higher education. Specifically, these have been called Cram ‘n Jam in 2004 Student Union in 2005 and Major in Mac in 2006. These were great promotions for students, and faculty and staff when shopping for a new computer. These promotions provide a large rebate if you bought a Mac and an iPod at the same time. You can either sell the iPod (I prefer craigslist.org for sales) to subsidize your purchase or keep it for close to free. So be aware of the time of year when buying.

(Updated per AWR’s comment below) Imminent Major OS releases

Apple’s a bit on the cheap side when it comes to OS upgrade pricing. Historically, they haven’t given one red cent off the price of a new OS, even if you bought it two months prior. Everyone pays $129 unless you’ve got an education discount, in which case you’re likely to pay $69. The thing about Apple’s major OS upgrades is that they are almost always worth doing. (This is the result of a combination of Steve Jobs’ RDF¹ and actual technological upgrades.)

One such time is nearly upon us with Leopard due out in early 2007. If you buy a new computer after the release date is announced, you’ll probably get a greatly discounted upgrade. On the web, I’ve seen people claim that if you purchase within 30 days of the release, you’ll get this discount as well, but I’m not sure that’s official. The point remains that timing your purchase close to a new OS release will save you some cash. (Personal note: trust me, you will want to upgrade to the latest and greatest OS. They’re just so shiny!)

Sources of information

As with annual Apple events, not all rumor sites are created equal. Lately, these sites have been pretty bad at predicting updates and they’ve taken to mimicking one another since rumors have pretty much dried up. That said, always check them before you buy. There is very rarely a false negative, that is, no indication of an upcoming release prior to its release.

• “Top-Tier” sites

  • Thinksecret
  • AppleInsider
  • Mac OS Rumors

• “Second-Tier” sites

  • Mac Rumors
  • Crazy Apple Rumors
  • Loop Rumors

Take these all with a grain of salt. You might want to also check out digg to see what’s getting Apple fans excited.

Timelines

So, looking at the calendar, you should wait wait to buy a consumer Mac if it’s close to the beginning of January unless you want it for Christmas or it’s just recently been updated. I’d say you’re safe to buy if it’s been 3 months or less since the computer you’re looking at was updated. Remember to use the Mac Buyer’s Guide to get the dates updated and the dates since an update. Also, as summer approaches keep an ear to the ground for the promotions I talked about above.

If you’re looking at a professional machine keep in mind that not all events are created equal. Around WWDC, don’t buy a tower (that is, the Mac Pro). You’re safer buying an MBP but not entirely. NAB and Photokina are historically related to software updates but as these conferences get closer, hardware is often updated to take advantage of the software. Generally, these are quiet revisions to the hardware, but they’re revisions nonetheless.

Conclusion

All that said, buy a computer when you need one or want one. Keeping up with the joneses when it comes to tech is always a losing proposition. As long as you’re aware of the major points of the year and the most recent updates, you’re likely not to be too burned by the fast changing world of computers! For a much needed RAM upgrade to your new Mac, hit ramseeker.com for the best prices. It compares RAM prices across many vendors and is very easy to search by specific model so you can be sure you’re getting the right stuff.

Good luck!

Author’s note: I hope I hit all the high points. If I missed something, please post it in the comments below. I buy either in August (MacBook) because it’s the middle of the back to school season and a bump to current products would disrupt the brisk sales Apple generally experiences during that time or I buy in February or March (iMac) because it’s just after MWSF.

As of today, Dec. 5th 2006, the MacBook, MacBook Pro, iMac, mini and Mac Pro were all just recently updated. Who knows what that means for MWSF. I suspect the conference won’t be about computers at all this year. (See the iTV for some possible idea of what’s coming this year.)

If you found this article helpful, please digg it. Thanks!

1. Incidentally, the remote clicker he uses during the generation of RDF inspired this site. ↩