Comparing Mac Models

Here's how I advise people in certain circumstances - all Macs can do pretty much the same basic work. Some do it faster than others; some let you attach more additional devices; some are more portable; some have larger screens; but that's about it - they all come with Mac OS X and many free programs and utilities. My comments below relate primarily to laptops (aka MacBooks), but also apply in large part to the not-so-portable Macs.

The very cheapest Mac laptop is very capable of performing everything a College student would likely need and is built to the same exacting standards as other more expensive Macs. The differences are in screen size of laptops, relative speed and performance, HD capacities and RAM memory, graphics performance and available ports (for attaching peripheral devices). They can all run Microsoft Office (see step 4 below).

1. Know your budget and your needs. If it's unlimited (!), then focus on your needs. If it's not unlimited but flexible within a range, select a Mac below the top end of your range and configure it up to the top end of the range.
2. Go to the online Apple store and click on the MacBook or MacBook Pro or MacBook Air (or whatever other type of Mac you're considering if not the laptops).
3. Learn about the Mac models from the web site and use the "Compare" tab to help you compare their features.
4. When you are ready to configure a particular model to see what it will cost, click on a "Select" button for that model and then (in the excellent interactive configuration page) select the optional features to configure it to get to your final cost (e.g. RAM, hard drive capacity and preloaded software like MS Office), which will be displayed at the upper right as you click on the options.
5. I recommend adding RAM rather than a larger hard drive.
6. I strongly recommend buying the AppleCare option to increase your service and support coverage.

It's possible to pick one laptop and configure it with a larger hard drive and more RAM memory and one or two other optional features and then find that it's about the same price as the next laptop up. If you find this happening as you configure it, consider reselecting that next laptop up and see what else it is providing for roughly the same price as your configured choice.