Hot answers tagged hardware-recommendation
21
The current low level Mac Mini with an upgrade to 4GB memory is probably the best bang for your buck. That's what I have except with 8GB; got my memory from Amazon for $130, cheaper than Apple memory. It's a very capable machine. If you use a lot of programs simultaneously, the standard 2GB is kinda cramped, but 4GB would do fine; it just seemed like a good ...
17
The primary cons for the MacBook Pro are:
heavier and more bulky compared to the Air
noticeably slower HDD versus SSD at the same price point
only has a 1280x800 screen resolution
Note: but is confirmed to be a better quality display than the one in the Air, with a more accurate color gamut.
Things that sold me on the MacBook Pro over the 13" MacBook ...
14
They write on the refurb store:
We test and certify all Apple refurbished products and include a one-year warranty.
They are even eligible to the AppleCare program if you buy it up to 1 year after your purchase.
So I don't see what problem you would face. It's a used device but verified, repackaged and certified by Apple.
13
I can only give you an overview of my own personal experience with the process and hardware I used. Alot of this is copy pasted from my posts on the thread related to this on macrumors.com. Here goes:
I bought the ebay optical bay caddy linked here. Works great. Depending on your model, I would recommend using the "Optical Drive Replacement" guide on ...
12
No. What they meant was that it runs on Macs with "built-in flash storage"1. That is to say, the MacBook Airs from 2010 to 2012 and the Retina MacBook Pro, i.e., the Macs with the (semi-) proprietary Flash hard drives and RAM soldered onto the logic board and Thunderbolt ports.
This means that it isn't supported by the 2012 non-retina MacBook Pros.
1 ...
11
There's one important thing, and only one important thing, about Apple-certified RAM.
If you:
Buy RAM that isn't Apple-certified
Install it (or have it installed by a non-Apple tech) in a Mac
Later have a (non-RAM-related) problem with that Mac and send it to Apple for servicing without taking out the added RAM
Then you may get a little love note in the ...
11
If you want something more elegant than a book under the iMac, you can can add vesa mounts to your iMac and Thunderbolt display and then attach it to a desk or wall mounted adjustable monitor arm. There are many to choose from but here is one pictured below to give you an example. So you could technically mount both or just one to a VESA stand. Note that ...
9
I've owned both and personally found the pro to be FAR FAR FAR superior to the air.
As stated in the other answers the air has the advantage of being a lot lighter and solid state drive is also reliable and faster. However, the air is essentially a netbook competitor. I found mine to be not up to the task for most of the things I wanted to do.
As a ...
9
No, no, no and no.
Have fun with the 7200 rpm drive of your choice. Mac drive mounting hardware is excellent and the drive screws are standard sized. Unless you get a drive with exotic firmware or physically too large to fit, there will be no issues relating to design. Only a faulty drive (or failing Mac) will cause issues.
Simple physics means a 7200 RPM ...
8
Generally, Apple refurbs are indistinguishable from a new product aside from the packaging.
I've found http://refurb-tracker.com to be very helpful for tracking which refurb models are in stock and past pricing. Often stock is limited but it changes daily.
I'm on my 2nd Apple refurb (MBP) and couldn't see buying any other way in the future unless I ...
7
Today, I'd go with either a 15" or 17" MacBook Pro. They would allow you to work with the iPad simulator at its native resolution. It's a bit too big to run full-size on the 13" models, so I always end up running it at half size, which is less than ideal. Even if you're not planning to develop for the iPad right now, I'd still plan the hardware purchase ...
7
Apple offers financing for a lot of their products. Typically you will see a link above the "Select" button for a given product on its page. See the image below from the Mac Mini catalog page...
The financing may not come from Apple directly, but it is an option.
7
I used to work as an Apple Hardware Technician, and the biggest non-damage related issue I've seen with those machines is usually the battery (which is not technically user-replaceable). I'd make sure that it runs for at least 3-4 hours on a full charge. Also make sure that the optical drive works, because I've seen a number of those go out, as well, but ...
6
Certain upgrades are possible, but it’s not that simple.
Accelerate your Mac is a nice source of information, you can find them here.
ANandtech did change the CPU of a Mac Pro.
OWC Mac Sales does have memory upgrades (there are others).
Video card: Unless you want to experiment with modified firmwares, your only choice in that model is the ATI 4870, which ...
6
I recommend buying an official Apple.com refurb - you'll likely save more than from Amazon and they often have very current models. The machine will be indistinguishable from new, aside from the packaging and comes with a full warranty.
Put the savings towards buying cheaper Applecare from Amazon :)
You can follow stock availability here: ...
6
Remapping a Windows keyboard so that the key positions match a standard Mac keyboard is pretty easy.
Just open Keyboard Preferences, and click the Modifier Keys… button in the Keyboard tab.
This lets you change the behaviour of the keys on each attached keyboard (make sure you select your external one from the top drop-down menu).
To turn the Windows ...
5
Yes, I have this one. I got it at Fry's in exchange for one by sabrent that didn't work with my mid-2010 superdrive. This new one works just fine with my removed superdrive on 10.6.4, even though the box says it's compatible with basically every version of windows but does not mention OS X.
The one caveat... it comes with a wall adapter for powering the ...
5
Just looking at the entry on amazon.com, it appears to be because Amazon doesn't offer it directly, but sellers that use Amazon's store front do. They are likely selling them above Apple's price because of the high demand vs. lack of supply.
You can buy one of the 3G models without a contract; the main reason you have to choose a provider is because of the ...
5
Yes. I own a MacBook Pro 3,1. I installed 6GB memory and have been using it like that for more than two years. Note the specifications below. You can call the tech support people at Other World Computing if you have any questions.
The RAM in my system is as follows:
Bank 0: 2GB DDR2 SDRAM 667 MHz
Bank 1: 4GB DDR2 SDRAM 667 MHz
5
You can connect any Bluetooth mouse to your MB's integrated bluetooth module. Personally I'd recommend Microsoft mice as they are of good quality. My father recently had some problems with a el cheapo china model, but if you pick a brand, you should not have a problem.
Make sure it has this logo on it, and not some "Yeah we do our own kewl 2.5 GHz radio" ...
5
Macally makes two USB-based game controllers that are OS X compatible. Both are around USD$30 at the time of writing on Amazon.
Macally ISHOCKX
Macally ISHOCKII
Sony DualShock 3
You can also pair a Sony Playstation DualShock 3 bluetooth wireless controller with OS X without the need for any additional drivers. Everything you need is built right in ...
5
DarwiinRemote.app allows you to wirelessly connect a Wii Remote via Bluetooth and map each button to a key on the keyboard. Wii Remotes can be bought separately and are relatively cheap.
For a SNES emulator you’ll need to map the X and Y buttons. If you have a Wii Classic Controller, you can use it with DarwiinRemote.app as well. You may, however, need to ...
5
SD cards are categorized in different classes according to their speed. Generally, SD cards perform even slower than a normal HDD drive which is why I do not recommend using them as a major storage option.
You should invest in the most expensive type of SD to have an acceptable I/O performance. E.g. an Ultra High Speed SD card (UHS) such as this one.
For ...
5
The MacBook Air runs at a higher resolution (1440 x 900) vs the Pro (1280 x 800).
For development the higher resolution could be nice if you are only using the laptop screen, if you are running connected to an external screen, this doesn't really matter.
Having looked and worked on both (pre 2012 models), the Pro screen seems to be a better quality with ...
5
Nope. I don't know where that came from, but it's certainly not a current product, and it's unlikely to be a future one.
Thunderbolt requires expensive chips relative to other connector technologies, which take up a fair bit of PCB space, which is at a premium in iOS devices and iPods (just look at the iPhone 5 teardown). In fact, reducing the size ...
4
Allow me to recommend you the OWC ones. You have an “extreme RE” (which I believe you won’t need) and the Pro, which is arguably one of the fastest and most secure drives so far.
I’m sure you can google for comparisons with other drives but I’ve installed a various numbers of SSDs (albeit not only in Macbooks) and the OWC ones are what I’ve chosen for me.
...
4
I have an iPhone 4. I love it. Google has a sync service for iPhone which will do #1 and #2. Your desire #3 is easily done through the browser. There's a built-in google maps app to fulfill your wish #4.
So, the iPhone can do what you want.
That said, it sounds like you want an Android.
EDIT, since you asked about hardware
After over 2 years of use, ...
4
Printers are easy, they mostly all work with Macs. Scanners are another story, and drivers for those used to be complex to find and use.
However 10.6 introduced far better support for scanners and a number of those now work just out of the box. I recommend you go for one listed as compatible if possible as an Apple maintained driver is more likely to keep ...
4
I completely disagree with all Mac Mini suggestions.
Get a macbook. Used or new, depends on what you prefer. Or better yet - get the Air which is same price than the macbook.
Today a new mini is U$300 cheaper than both the notebooks (which goes for U$999) but you don't have to deal with keyboards, mouses and above all lack of battery. Any computer without ...
4
"Available", "supported", and "will work" are three very different things.
The officially compatible video cards for the original (1,1) Mac Pro are:
NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT
ATI Radeon X1900 XT
NVIDIA Quadro FX 4500 (and family)
NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT
These are the only cards that are supported in an original Mac Pro. Unfortunately, most are not ...
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