Considering an iMac. Suggestions???

[cfulback32]

Also, you might want to run the Mini as a media server powering your TV.

I did this for a while. Worked great for holding all of my mp3's, ripping my DVD's, watching Hulu, and playing it all back through my receiver.

For the OP's purposes, if you do go MAC I think the mini is best value in the lineup. You probably already have a monitor, keyboard, and mouse that you would like and could use.

Or if you want a new monitor, do something like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824236052

1920 x 1080 resolution and 23" size.

adds $189, puts you at $790 with the mini for something that will be plenty adequate for basic use.

[nickdrak]

What about my old Windows Office documents (lesson plans, etc.)? Can I transfer them to the Mac if I get the Windows Office for Mac program???

[Littlelebowski]

What about my old Windows Office documents (lesson plans, etc.)? Can I transfer them to the Mac if I get the Windows Office for Mac program???

Yes. You can also just download OpenOffice for the Mac. I think that the Mac Mini has more than enough power for most users. The hard drive is also easily replaceable.

[redsox20]

You might want to stop by an Apple Store and check them out. The one I went to helped me quite a bit. I walked out with a macbook pro after using PCs for along time. The only quirk I've had is the track pad but that's more me then anything.

Another neat thing on a Mac is time machine that with a wireless router and an external hard drive you can back up you Mac at night or whenever you want to. I watched these videos before I bought my Mac and it helped me. http://www.apple.com/findouthow/mac/

I hope this helps.

Mike

[BVickery]

Now while i normally tell people to not get Extended warranties, you want to get Applecare.

I have had Machines fail bear the end of applecare over the years. Both times they have replaced the computers with the newest generation equivalent.

How long is the warrnty good for? I mean if they are as reliable as they say it is then why get the extended warranty?

I freely admit I dont like apple as I prefer to truly build my own system snd not be limited by what apple thinks my specs to be.

[madisonsfinest]

They usually have a 1 year warranty, and Applecare extends the warranty out to 3 years.

[Littlelebowski]

How long is the warrnty good for? I mean if they are as reliable as they say it is then why get the extended warranty?

I freely admit I dont like apple as I prefer to truly build my own system snd not be limited by what apple thinks my specs to be.

Because all hardware has a chance of breaking and AppleCare has outstanding customer service.

Re: building your own, yes for video gamers and the like, you can price out and build your machine that will be faster than a Mac. For those of us that value stability and reliability, Macs are a good choice.

[C0WB0Y]

How long is the warrnty good for? I mean if they are as reliable as they say it is then why get the extended warranty?

Reliability:
Most of the reliability complaints are OS and or SW related on "other" machines. The blue screen of death is not a Hardware problem for instance.

Why Ext. Warranty?
HW is still HW. Drives fail, batteries die, shit happens. The service is damn near no questions asked we fix it. I've only owned laptops and those by definition take more abuse than do desktops. I've been well cared for when I've needed to use it.

I freely admit I dont like apple as I prefer to truly build my own system snd not be limited by what apple thinks my specs to be.

Some people like to make sausage. Others like to eat. To each their own.

[Nevermiss]

Unless you MUST get a PC for specific software, I recommend a Mac. As others have suggested, go to a mac store and check it out. I had a G4iMac that was working great after 5 years (just upgraded the OS-it was getting a little slow). I now have three iMacs, a MacBook Pro, two iPod touches, one iPod nano and 2 iPod shuffles, a 1TB Time capsule and once Verizon has the iPhone, I will get one of those.

It just RUNS with no BS. It saves me time and makes my life easy, the way I want it!

All of my pics are synched between all machines, my 4,000 song library is shared on my home network and I can stream all songs wirelessly throughout my home and remotely control it with my iPod touch.

I edit high def video on my mac without ever needing to read a manual. I can upload pics from iPhoto to my website through iWeb. Any time we update a contact, calendar item, etc. on any iPod, computer, etc. it updates everything on all computers.

Everything on every computer gets backed up daily to the Time Capusle and all critical documents get backed up to my .mac account.

Oh yeah......I'm not a computer geek either and have no formal computer training.

The only software I've purchased is Microsoft office for the mac and Adobe photoshop elements. Everything else that I need is free on the mac!

It's kind of like buying a Noveske, KAC, JP, etc. You will never regret it and it will never you leave you wanting for a PC again! The Ballistic FTE program for the iPhone/iTouch is awesome as well.

Good luck!

[obucina]

I highly considered getting a Mac Mini back in december. But, the 160gb drive is way too small for me and it wont readily access the 500gb backup drive I have, it is formatted as an NTFS, when I asked the mac genius, he said, "good question". I looked at the other mac accessories, but I cant justify the price premium. I ended up buying a Shuttle brand barebones kit with a 2.8 dual core AMD, 750gb HDD, 4gb RAM Patriot brand, etc...with a clean copy of Windows 7. Furthermore, I did some investigating on the internals of the Mac Mini and it runs on laptop components. When I googles the NVIDIA 9400, I found out that it is a graphics chip also used in Dell laptops. While the iMac and Mac Mini are cool, for me, it came down to dollars, I built my own with more stuff for teh same as just a Mac mini outdadoor and got an Acer 23in HDMI monitor to boot.