|
| 
 enlarge
| Brand: Apple
Category: Personal Computer
List Price: $1,799.00
Buy New: $1,769.00
You Save: $30.00 (2%)
New (4) from $1,769.00
Rating:  78 reviews
Sales Rank: 21
Media: Personal Computers
Operating System: Mac OS X
CPU Manufacturer: Intel
CPU Speed: 2.8
CPU Type: Intel Core Duo
Processors: 2
System Memory: 2000
Memory Type: DDR2 SDRAM
Hard Drive Size: 320
Display Size: 24
Shipping Weight (lbs): 25.4
Dimensions (in): 8.1 x 22.4 x 20.5
MPN: MB325LL/A
Model: MB325LL/A
UPC: 718908999318
EAN: 0885909203093
ASIN: B000WHZKGA
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
|
| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 78
 What doesn't work - if you're thinking of switching to Mac September 29, 2008
Chester (Dubai, UAE)
3 out of 7 found this review helpful
I switched to a Mac in February after getting fed up with my XP laptop. I expected some problems, but after about six months, realized I simply could not continue to use the Mac for work (even though I do like it). Here's a partial list of what doesn't quite work as hoped:
1) Microsoft Office compatibility. Simply put, while Office for Mac is pretty good, it's not seamless. I'd say it's a 90% job, and that's not good enough for many people. If you work with colleagues to co-author documents, you'll have small glitches a lot. I always used to write documents on the Mac, then do a round of "post-production" on a PC to make sure they looked OK in a Windows environment. Office for Mac crashes A LOT and I've lost a lot of work, even with frequent saves. (A common theme: there is a workaround - save frequently and do post-production, but this is time-consuming and makes my computing experience more difficult). Another example that really got to me: if you ever copy and paste Excel tables or PowerPoint slides into Word documents, the "enhanced metafile" option isn't available, and you end up with a low-res copy and paste job that doesn't look professional. I do financial services work, and we copy and paste charts, tables, etc all the time. It blew my mind that something as simply as copy and paste was beyond a $2500 computer.
2) Microsoft Messenger compatibility. The Messenger offered for Mac is terrible: no video chat, no offline messages, usually doesn't display pictures. (Again, you can use a third party program like aMSN, but again, it's time consuming, not straightforward, and still doesn't work as well as Messenger for Windows).
3) Entourage and Outlook simply aren't (easily or intuitively) compatible: I never got my old work e-mails over (and I'm reasonably computer literate). Now, I can't get the newer ones back from the Mac to my new Windows PC. (Again, this is possible, but certainly not easy).
4) Software / other compatibility issues: phone synchronization software (and many others) don't seem to work as well on a Mac. Maybe you can get them working, but it's a constant battle. After about three weeks of regular use, at some point the wireless simply stopped connecting to the office network - I hadn't changed anything. We had three professionals look at it, and nobody could figure out why. The Windows PC's all worked fine on our network. So in the end, we had to drill a hole in the wall so I could plug it in with a cable.
5) Browser - some web sites simply don't work unless you're using Internet Explorer. Personally I never use IE unless the web site won't work otherwise, but I find it's vital to have access to IE just in case you need it. A great example is a very well known vendor of audio books - their site simply doesn't work on Firefox or Safari. I use this very same site with IE on my Windows PC and it works fine. I recently had a problem verifying my account info with this company and they actually told me there is no solution on a Mac - only PC. So the web site was literally useless to me - I couldn't download or even listen to books I'd already purchased - and I love audio books! Similarly, I just tried to update my status in a professional organization I belong to, and their web site simply only works with IE. This happens more often than one might think... and IE doesn't exist for Mac anymore.
A common theme here (at least among points 1-3) is "it's Microsoft's fault". That might well be true - but the point here isn't to take a position on whether a monopoly is or isn't healthy for the computer industry, the economy, or anything else. It's to point out that to the extent that you use Microsoft software, or collaborate with people that do, I don't think you'll be happy using a Mac.
(Note: I also spent $400 buying a copy of Windows Vista Ultimate and tried both Parallels and Bootcamp. I REALLY wanted this Mac to work! It works OK but not great, and in the end why would you want to switch back and forth all the time, not to mention the extra cost, when you can just use a PC?)
To be fair, I suspect that some, perhaps many, of my complaints could have been "fixed" by a competent IT professional. However, as I said, I'm reasonably computer literate - I've been using computers at work and school for 15 years, so I'm probably as capable as the average user. If it's this hard for me, then it will be for many others, and I don't think it's fair or accurate to describe Macs as easy or intuitive - or even more reliable, since you constantly have to worry about how a document produced on the Mac will appear once it gets to a Windows PC.
I loved many other things about the Mac: no bloatware, super reliable operating system, great search function, great looking, some really nice features (e.g. Spaces), etc.
However, my recommendation is: if your work is in any way dependent on Microsoft software, or if you collaborate with Windows PC users in Microsoft Office, or if you simply want to avoid a lot of compatibility headaches, stick with a Windows PC.
Bottom line: if I had known then what I know now, I never would have bought the iMac.
 APPLE SAYS THIS IS A "USED" COMPUTER-WON'T SUPPORT IT September 22, 2008
C. Ouellette (Fort Kent, Maine)
12 out of 14 found this review helpful
I purchased this imac at the end of August 08. It worked fine for 2 or 3 days, then it suddenly began to shut off for no reason. The computer would often reboot, cycle on, then reboot again. I called Apple for support but was told they would not give me any phone support because my computer had originally been purchased in May 2008. Not by me, of course, but by Amazon. It was bought new from Apple with 90 days free phone support. Apparently, the fact that I had purchased it new from Amazon in August doesn't matter to Apple.
I,m angry at Amazon for not informing me that my phone support had already expired and my hardware support was 3 months gone before I even bought the computer. I'm not so happy with Apple either. They told me that Amazon wasn't an "authorized reseller".
I had to ship the computer to an Apple store 200 miles away for repair. They replaced a faulty power supply. I decided to buy an extended warranty to protect my investment.
The computer seems to work fine now. I'm hoping this first "issue" with apple will be uncommon.
I know things can go wrong when you first buy something like this. So I'm a little surprised at this warranty situation and I wonder if it is true of many of the items from Amazon. I've been a long-time customer of Amazon, buying numerous products in the past. Are my warranties and support there when I need them? You may want to consider buying this item directly from Apple.
 Apple IMAC computer September 21, 2008
Dharold (Chicago)
fabulous product-- natural addition to a long line of apple computers I have
owned
FANTASTIC PURCHASE! September 19, 2008
Dimitri (Florida, USA)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
LOVED THIS DESKTOP IMAC! THIS IS ALL I WANTED. SWITCHED FROM PC ABOUT 5 YEARS AGO NOW AND LOVED EVERY SINGLE MAC I HAVE HAD EVER SINCE. THIS LATEST IMAC I BOUGHT TO REPLACE MY AGING MAC BOOK PRO G4 AND WHAT A AWESOME UPGRADE THAT IS. I FOUND IT TO BE THE BEST DEAL OUT THERE MONEY AND PERFORMANCE WISE TO BUY FROM AMAZON. I ALWAYS HAD A GREAT EXPERIENCE WITH AMAZON. SO EVERYONE OUT THERE IF YOU WANT A GREAT RELIABLE MAC COMPUTER FOR THE BEST PRICE, THAN GIVE IT A TRY FROM AMAZON, BEST PLACE TO SHOP FOR THE QUALITY AND PRICE NO DOUGHT!
The winner September 19, 2008
T. C. Jones (TEMECULA, CALIFORNIA United States)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I would give this a 6 star rating if possible. The only change I would suggest is longer cords on the mouse and keyboard. My first Mac but not my last. Everything functions like it should. Support from Mac is fast friendly and very intelligent. Thanks
|
|
|
|
Information about prices, products, services and merchants is provided by third parties and is for informational purposes only. Electronics-vault.com does not represent or warrant the accuracy or reliability of the information and will not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this information or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its display or use.
|
| |
