Finally picked up my new MacBook

So I've been researching and dreaming about a white MacBook since the beginning of 2008.

After saving enough money(broke college student) and doing as much research as I could, I found a deal I could not pass up on.

I found a seller on Craigslist with a brand new unopened box for $1,300.00

I was a bit skeptical at first and thought it might be a scam. After contacting the seller we made arrangements to meet up today.

Sure enough it was an unopened and sealed box. I was drooling when I got a hold of it. As he was counting the cash, I made sure there wasn't a scratch and the unit was functioning. Booted it up and it was asking me to go through the setup process. I put it back in the box and headed home with my new toy.

So I just wanted to share with you my initial joy right now. I will post more experiences as I have more time on it. I'm on my XPS 1210 right now (that is for sale) because I'm downloading updates on the MacBook.

Specs are:

Unibody MacBook
2.4GHz
2GB RAM
250GB HDD

Tomorrow is my birthday and I'm headed over to the Apple store to pickup the 2x2GB RAM sticks using my student discount. ($133)

I'm also picking up a neoprene sleeve and a mini display - vga adapter for my monitor.

But for now, anyone recommend some things I should do first? I've already got it charging and downloading all the updates.

Thank You for reading.

 

congrats!

cheers ..

 

Enjoy it!!!

 

Congratulations! Enjoy it to it's fullest potential! . I would download iStat Pro, to monitor your system etc. It's a widget you can get off the download section of the Apple website. http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/status/istatpro.html There's a link to it..

 

Does that mean the Ram is $133?

That is WAY too much. 4GB kits are around $60 for DDR3.

http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other World Computing/8566DDR3S4GP/

 

Yeah, it's pretty expensive, but I've heard about issues with 3rd part RAM, so I think he's making the right decision with Apple RAM.

 

Bingo! I've searched and read many people having problems with third party RAM. It's almost like a hit or miss. I've been lurking the www.apple.com/support forums since the aluminum came out and I just didn't want to deal with any problems. The threads I found were almost a 50/50 split. Some say they have no problems with Crucial and some say they do? I've only seen one person so far post about having issues with the RAM apple supplied and once he took it back to the store and replaced it, he was back in business.

You're going to get mixed reviews here. I just opted to go with the ones supplied by Apple for piece of mind.

 

Thank You! Downloaded and installed sir.

 

Congrats on your purchase, might I add what a great deal! :O

 

I have had a good experience with OWC in the past with ram for the older white macbooks. Regardless of Ram vendor that was a great find !!

 

I did the math for shipping and taxes if I were to buy it at the Apple Store.

$1,603.93 Total using Georgia State University Student Discount
$1,300.00 Total what I paid =)

Savings = $303.93

 

Congrats! The new alum macbooks look awesome but there just isn't enough of a performance jump for me to justify buying one. I am currently using a 2.4GHz white macbook.

 

I'll ask the obvious question.
Why did the seller sell at this low price ?
Could he not have returned the laptop to apple if he did not want it ?
If it was for resale, how did he get it for such a low price ?

 

Congratulations with your new laptop! I find this freeware Maintenance programme to be very helpful. It's an automator action which runs on Applescript, and it has a very small footprint. You can download via Apple's site (see the link).

 

Gratz on the new Macbook, just got mine recently and am loving it

 

Congrats!you got it for great price!

 

Skype? The new msn messenger? FTP Client?

Congrats on the purchase as well

 

That is ture.. How did he get it for so cheap in the 1st place?

 

I think some are assuming the seller went to a local apple store and purchased it full price. He could've purchased it at wholesale. there are so many selling on ebay for way below retail price. as long as it registers with apple, who really cares why the seller is selling or why they're selling for so cheap. I purchased mine way below retail price as well.

 

is there even a "wholesale" market for MBPs ?
Laptops are not like produce...

 

of course there is. I don't think places like newegg, cdw, macmall is selling apple products for free. they all purchase them at wholesale prices whatever that may be.

 

They are all authorised apple resellers. They hence offer some discount, but not all that much.
So this guy happens to be ablel to sell a single macbook for way less than what these online retailers can mass sell ?

 

I too find it strange that random ebay sellers can sell brand new macbooks at such low prices....

 

Exactly. If there was a legit "wholesale" market at superlow prices, universities/companies could be purchasing it wholesale themselves.
At least universities dont have any profit motiv, so they could sell at cost (or near to it).

The fact that universities cant do it, makes me go

 

I have no clue why he didn't return it to Apple? But when asked why he was selling he said he had a change in heart and wanted a Mac Pro and needed the cash immediately? Now I don't know how much weight that holds, but I registered my MacBook with Apple last night with the serial number and everything was fine. Nothing out of the ordinary. I have an appointment to have more RAM installed at the Apple Store also.

 

If you are concerned, just call up Apple Care to verify if the system is legit (i.e. not stolen, etc.)

 

I assume that since he was able to register the warranty, the laptop was not *reported* stolen.
But questions remain on what the deal is with the laptop

 

Actually, you will be able to register your system even if the system is stolen. It is when you go to get service at a Genius bar or call in Apple Care that you will be denied service. I had a system which was stolen and when I reported it to Apple Care, I was told that they allow registration of a stolen system to get an address but will definitely deny service if the system ever required it.

 

Looks like you did most of your homework with questions to the seller along with a detailed hands on check of the unit.

Good luck with the new purchase and nice price.

I'm sure you'll enjoy it !

 

Good Luck! Congrats. You'll enjoy it fo sho.

 

thats a great deal! really wish i had gotton the 2.4 ghz model. im so missing the light up keyboard.

 

You know, I've been reading some of your responses on my thread and I got a little offended to say the least. Most of the people on here came by to say welcome and congratulations. Yet, I just feel this negative vibe from you. I don't know you and I'm definitely not here to cause any problems. I almost wrote something really negative back to you but realized that arguing on the internet made as much sense as wiping your before you take a poop. I took a long deep breath and walked away from my beautiful MacBook and started to just take things into perspective.

Perhaps you're just doing it in a benevolent way and showing you care by questioning. Regardless of your intentions, I realized that no matter what factual evidence may surface, there are some people in the world that refuses to accept it.

The story the seller gave me was legitimate to me. He didn't look like some criminal. He looked like a fellow college student. He drove a newer looking mustang. Before we met up he pushed back the time because he was at the gym. Sure enough, when I showed up, the seller was in his sweaty gym clothes and we met a Starbucks. No where do I pick up any vibe of criminal intent here. The system was registered and no problems with it. I even got a confirmation email back from Apple congratulating me on my purchase.

But no matter what evidence is there, people still believe that Elvis is still alive. That aliens crashed into Roswell and Area 51 is one big government conspiracy. Tupac is still alive and he is living with his wife and family in Mexico next door to Notorious BIG. We never landed on the moon and the video was fake. And last but not least, the world is really flat and not round.

I really do not care if you believe the system is stolen or not. The fact that it isn't probably won't prevent you from future negative posts. I hope to be a frequent resident on here as the members are more like myself, traditionally PC guys converted over to Macs. It's not that I'm naive, it's the fact that my cup is half full and I'm enjoying my beautiful aluminum MacBook that I purchased with my hard earned money from an honest guy.

Booji, Thank You. I called the Apple support and asked them to check the warranty status of my new MacBook. I gave Russ, the Applecare Agent, my serial number and he confirmed that it is new unit that was purchased recently. He also told me that it has the one year hardware warranty, complimentary phone service, and that I could purchase the extended Applecare Warranty within the one year time frame.

So there you have it folks. The confirmation. To those who are genuinely excited for me for finding such a great deal, my sincerest thank you. It feels great to have the warm welcomes. I hope that this could finally seal some lips so that I can post more of my personal experiences.

Again, Thank You all for the kind welcomes and congrats.

Len

 

Calibrating the battery according to Apple's link http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1490 would be good

 

len0475, I assume you are an honest guy.
If there is proof that the laptop was purchased legitimately, then there is no need to be offended if people question the deal; as it just means you got a darn good deal.

That being said, all you have determined is that the laptop has not been reported stolen, yet.
Did you ask to see the original purchase receipt from the guy ?
If not, then I'm sorry, doubts remain.
Have you considered the fact that the seller may himself have been duped ?
Its not that I'm certain the laptop is stolen. Its that even if there is a 5% chance, people need to confirm otherwise.

As you have bought the laptop, I'll put your mind at ease: There is very likely a very simple explanation for all this, eg., guy bought laptop off ebay off a reseller, then sold it to you because he did not want the hassle of returning and waitiing for a credit.

But in future, ASK to see the receipt.

Also, as booji pointed out, Apple may not tell you that the laptop is stolen (I know that Lenovo/IBM do not).

 

I think is was a great deal. Maybe daddy works for Apple or it was an unwanted gift. If it does end up being a stolen unit he has the guys contact info to give to the police.