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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Mac Desktops > to BTO or not

to BTO or not
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Aric
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Oct 11, 2004, 03:22 PM
 
i'm FINALLY close to getting a new computer and thinking about getting the dual 1.8G5. what i want advice on is whether i should use the BTO options to upgrade or is it cheaper to upgrade it myself. i'm thinking about upgrading the hard drive to a 160GB, adding more RAM, and not sure about the video card yet but $50.00 for the better video card doesn't seem bad.

so do you guys BTO or do it yourself? also if you do it yourself, any recommendations on where to buy from?
     
TimmyDee51
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Oct 11, 2004, 06:01 PM
 
I've done a mix of both in the past. The HDD isn't a bad deal, really. Some may claim it is, but what happens if you want to add a second HDD and feel limited by the capacity of the original? That means you have to take it out, put it in a case, etc., and any way you look at it you've lost money.

The video card is worth it. On a Mac, get the vid card BTO or you'll pay for it later.

RAM is definitely not worth it. You can get it cheaper almost anywhere else. Even good memory like Crucial is cheaper. And yes, I recommend Crucial.
Per Square Mile | A blog about density
     
striker100
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Oct 11, 2004, 06:57 PM
 
I never BTO a Powerbook. Why? because if there is a problem other than a DOA Apple will repair it and not replace it, not acceptable to me. The extra 64mb of vram and slightly faster hard drive isn't worth the the chance of having a brand new just out of the box Powerbook repaired.
     
Mafia
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Oct 11, 2004, 07:34 PM
 
Yes on video card, atleast the radeon 9600 xt (i got it, nice card) i would just do stock hd and ram then upgrade from 3rd party. newegg.com has good deals on hard drives, i think 250 gigs is like 140 dollars. then crucial for ram. a gig is about 400.
http://www.mafia-designs.com
     
Agent69
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Oct 13, 2004, 09:11 AM
 
Originally posted by striker100:
I never BTO a Powerbook. Why? because if there is a problem other than a DOA Apple will repair it and not replace it, not acceptable to me. The extra 64mb of vram and slightly faster hard drive isn't worth the the chance of having a brand new just out of the box Powerbook repaired.
I pretty much agree with you when it comes to any product with a built in LCD screen. I would personally rather pay a restocking fee than deal with dead pixels.

BTO on a PowerMac, I would have no problem with.
Agent69
     
discstickers
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Oct 13, 2004, 11:48 AM
 
Originally posted by Mafia:
Yes on video card, atleast the radeon 9600 xt (i got it, nice card) i would just do stock hd and ram then upgrade from 3rd party. newegg.com has good deals on hard drives, i think 250 gigs is like 140 dollars. then crucial for ram. a gig is about 400.
I got a gig of RAM from Macsolutions for 170...
"It's not like Windows users don't have any power. I think a lot of people are happy with Windows, and that's an incredibly depressing thought." -Steve Jobs
     
Mafia
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Oct 13, 2004, 03:08 PM
 
Originally posted by discstickers:
I got a gig of RAM from Macsolutions for 170...
200 from crucial i wonder if 30 dollars is worth crucial ram... has everything gone fine with your gig from macsolutions?
http://www.mafia-designs.com
     
Aric  (op)
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Oct 13, 2004, 04:08 PM
 
how is OWC ram compared to crucial? also, is it better to have 2 seperate hard drives? one that it comes with and a seperate internal hard drive, it seems like it'd be easier to have just one big one, but maybe there's some advantages in having 2 that i don't know about.
     
Mac Write
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Oct 13, 2004, 07:46 PM
 
When I did a BTO on my MDD G4 last September and my moms MDD G4 in November we both went the same route upgraded to Dual Processors, 160GB HD, SuperDrive+ComboDrive, paid the extra $700 Canadian but worth it long term.

BTO'ing a G5, I would go 9800XT, 250GB HD, and SuperDrive, then by your RAM third party (Kingston is my favorite).

[EDIT] Also as a MUST add the bluetoothe module.
( Last edited by Mac Write; Oct 13, 2004 at 07:52 PM. )
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Mafia
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Oct 13, 2004, 09:49 PM
 
Originally posted by Aric:
how is OWC ram compared to crucial? also, is it better to have 2 seperate hard drives? one that it comes with and a seperate internal hard drive, it seems like it'd be easier to have just one big one, but maybe there's some advantages in having 2 that i don't know about.
with 2 hard drives you will have the system data being loaded from one hard drive and then documents and other stuff loaded from another. having two is just nice to have so u can load data faster when the system is loading apps and stuff.
http://www.mafia-designs.com
     
jmiddel
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Oct 13, 2004, 09:55 PM
 
Posted by Aric:
also, is it better to have 2 seperate hard drives? one that it comes with and a seperate internal hard drive, it seems like it'd be easier to have just one big one, but maybe there's some advantages in having 2 that i don't know about.

The advantage of 2 is that you can use them for backup. I use Carboncopycloner and Synchronize, that way if one crashes I can continue work with a simple reboot.
     
discstickers
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Oct 13, 2004, 11:28 PM
 
Originally posted by Mafia:
200 from crucial i wonder if 30 dollars is worth crucial ram... has everything gone fine with your gig from macsolutions?
Yup, just fine. I was OK with it because of the lifetime warranty.
"It's not like Windows users don't have any power. I think a lot of people are happy with Windows, and that's an incredibly depressing thought." -Steve Jobs
     
Mafia
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Oct 13, 2004, 11:38 PM
 
Originally posted by discstickers:
lifetime warranty.
now this i like
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MrForgetable
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Oct 14, 2004, 12:24 AM
 
I BTOed my Powerbook with only the backlit keyboard. shrug, maybe I shouldn't have.
iamwhor3hay
     
TimmyDee51
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Oct 14, 2004, 02:28 AM
 
Originally posted by discstickers:
Yup, just fine. I was OK with it because of the lifetime warranty.
Actually, I think you'd be hard pressed to find a memory reseller that doesn't have a lifetime warrantee. Even 1-800-4-Memory has one. I used to purchase sticks from them for my iMac back in the day. I think I ended up RMAing 3 or 4 sticks. Pain in the a**.

Once I bought my dual 867 G4, it's been Crucial the whole way. Never RMAed a stick and I'm never looking back. This thing's my baby.
Per Square Mile | A blog about density
     
mike_pj
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Oct 14, 2004, 09:58 AM
 
Originally posted by Mac Write:
BTO'ing a G5, I would go 9800XT, 250GB HD, and SuperDrive, then by your RAM third party (Kingston is my favorite).

[EDIT] Also as a MUST add the bluetoothe module.
Just ordered a 2.5Ghz G5 in this exact config (+ a 20" cinema display and some peripherals) a few days ago to replace my older TiBook 667. I ended up getting an extra gig of OWC RAM though instead of Kingston. Everything came in yesterday except for the G5 (expected ship date of 11/17)...
     
   
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