How to buy a Mac Pro the right way and save money
June 1st, 2009 1:47pm in amazon, amex, apple, extended warranty, mac pro, macsales
I bought a brand new Mac Pro at the beginning of 2008 just after they were refreshed. I had tried to coast by without a new machine for the longest time, but finally decided to bite the bullet. If you read this article you’ll be able to afford buying a new Mac Pro (not refurbished, or previous generation) and you’ll save compared to walking into an Apple store to do it. You’ll also get 4 years of extended warranty, not the 3 years that AppleCare offers. How? Read on…
(This is an adapted post from an email I sent last year to the Twin Cities’ Creatives Group that I belong to… it started with a question on the list: “Fix it or put it down?” after someone was wondering if they should get a new one or just fix the one they had.)
When buying a Mac Pro
Buy it on Amazon
The cheapest place, by far, to buy a Mac Pro is on Amazon
Use your AmEx card. Get one if you don’t have one.
Use your American Express Credit card when buying this sucker: it adds one year on top of your manufacturer’s warranty. AmEx has a WONDERFUL program that extends the manufacturer’s warranty by one year for big buck purchases like computers. And, if you get the extended manufacturer’s warranty (which is what AppleCare is) then AmEx will add one year on top of that giving you 4 yrs of coverage on your hardware. If you don’t have an AmEx card, I’d suggest you apply for one, do it over the phone, and make sure that you ask the representative for the AmEx card that has the extended warranty program. The Platinum card has it, I don’t know if they all do, but you should certainly ask. If your hardware needs a repair in that last year, you take it in to the Apple Store, have them give you a bid, call AmEx, and after you pay for the repair using your AmEx card, they credit you the amount to your account. It’s really a great program and doesn’t cost anything. I’ve done it, I’ve used it and it works.
Get the AppleCare
Get the AppleCare: this is usually a rip off anywhere you get it. Since it is the same packaged box with the same coverage, you can buy it anywhere. The best place to get it, and where it’s been the cheapest always is at L. A. Computer Company. The AppleCare for a MacPro usually sells for $249 — LACC has it for $180. I’ve bought it, and applied it. It works. It’s not a gimmick. Here’s the link http://www.lacomputercompany.com/cgi-bin/rpcart/index.cgi?command=dispit…
Oh, and if you buy a display with your machine, and want the warranty to cover the machine AND the display, they have to be purchased at the same time from the same place. So, if you buy a display, buy it at Amazon with the Mac Pro. I have not found any deals on the displays anywhere — this is because the LCD manufacturers are typically really hard nosed on pricing. And so is Apple.
AppleCare can be delayed up to a year
The other thing that you have to remember is that you don’t HAVE TO buy the AppleCare right away with your machine. You have the first year of your ownership of the hardware to buy and apply. This is great to remember because it means you can delay buying the AppleCare by 6 months or 10 months if you want to cut it close… and not have to pay for it right away. Something to think about.
Buy 3rd party RAM Memory from MacSales - lifetime replacement warranty
Don’t buy the upgraded MacPro with more memory — you can install the memory yourself (it’s really easy) and save there too. I’d recommend getting another 2GB of RAM, and get it at MacSales. Here’s the direct link: http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/Mac-Pro-Memory — MacSales is great because they are almost the cheapest around, but… the largest benefit is that they sell memory that is guaranteed to work in your Mac, and comes with a Lifetime Advance Replacement warranty. I’ve used this before, and it’s awesome. After 2 years of use of my last PowerBook, the memory started causing crashes periodically. After determining it was the RAM, I sent it back to MacSales (without a receipt and after 2 yrs of use) and they sent me new RAM as replacement. Haven’t had a problem since.
Buy hard drives after market too
Hard drive space is a no brainer. If you want more space, buy that after market as well. Amazon is a great resource too, but so is your local MicroCenter. They have non-retail drives without fancy packaging that work exactly the same as the boxed ones just for less. You don’t need cables with the MacPro, it just slides in so the benefit of a cable that comes with the retail box really isn’t valid.
Don’t forget: use your AmEx card.
What have your experiences been? Did you find another way to save? Leave it in the comments below…