My 2008 iMac Crashed Today: So Do I Buy Another Apple or Get an Asus Laptop?

Blog activity could be sparse for a while as today my Apple iMac crashed. It's close to 7 years old so it's due. I have about $3,000 of iTunes songs and download a lot of podcasts on iTunes. Can I download iTunes on a PC, access my purchased songs and download podcasts from a PC to my iPod? 

If not, are there any alternatives? I'm leaning toward spending under $800 on an Asus 17-inch laptop than spending $1,300 to replace the iMac. 

Any suggestions, counsel, diatribes, etc? 

Update:

This link says I'll have to restore my iPod to make it compatible with iTunes. 

 

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Comments

[StarHalo]

Nope, spend the extra for a Mac, otherwise we'll be sitting through three months of posts about how awful Windows 8 is until you finally give up and replace it with a Mac.

[herculodge]

I bought a new iMac. I hope I'm happy. Right now I'm like whatever. We'll see.

[StarHalo]

Whatever is good. Whatever means it's not an encumbrance over what you're used to, so that's a fine start.

Any particular reason you haven't looked into an iPad? Blogging and music don't require desktop horsepower, and iOS is the simpler-yet "I'm not a computer person" interface designed specifically for the creative but not technical user..

[herculodge]

I guess as far as Macs are concerned, I've owned two since 2005 and both crashed. The thrill is gone. Part of me wishes I had gotten the Asus but I did save myself some ecosystem transfer headaches.

[Bill DeFelice]

You don't mention how it "crashed" which is an important detail. Did the hardware actually go bad (i.e., hard drive, main board, etc.) or did you have a software failure? If the computer itself is bad you might be able to get an Apple Genius to back up your info off it if they can manage to get the iMac into Target Disc Mode or by physically removing the drive and slaving it to another Mac. Software issues might be easily solved with the proper utility such as DiskWarrior, TechTool Pro, etc.

If you can retrieve your software from the old Mac it might save you the headache of dealing with restoring the iPod.

I've been an Apple technician having worked at various resellers and now working in the field of educational computer support. I recently migrated from a first generation Mac Pro desktop to a previous generation Mac Mini and except for needing a $30 cable the migration went well. I've had to recover documents for staff who hadn't performed backups and unless the hard drive is totally shot there's usually a way to retrieve the info.

[Bill DeFelice]

And I forgot to address your original question: I work with both Windows and Mac systems on a daily basis and the Apple hardware, while costing more, is usually more reliable than typical Windows systems. In the past decade we've ended up throwing out hundreds, if not thousands, of Dell computers due to manufacturing defects that Dell didn't want to own up to. We standardized with Hewlett Packard and while their systems are leaps and bounds better than the Dells we had I consider part of the bloat of the Windows operating system a congestion on performance unless you put in boatloads of memory. I use a Mac away from the office as I don't want to deal with the malware and cruft that occurs on a Windows box.

[herculodge]

My 2008 Apple won't even boot up. I get a flashing question mark. I just spent 1388 on a new iMac and another 130 on Office. I don't feel like spending any money fixing a close to 7 year old computer.

[jonnybardo]

Probably best to stick with Apple products. I've been wanting to switch over for years, but have always gotten pulled in by the cheaper cost and familiarity of Windows. I tend to be a bit rough on my laptops, so if I can get one to last three years then I'm in good shape.

Also, Windows 8 is bad. Windows 9 is coming out in the spring, so now would have been a bad time to buy a Windows computer.

On a different note, Jeff, I'm looking to buy a digital camera. I'd like to stay below $300 and it seems that the best way to go is to get slightly out-dated models. I'm currently looking at this one and similar cameras:

http://www.amazon.com/Canon-Powershot-Digital-Ultimate-Additional/dp/B00MANRV84

That said, while I'd like a DSLR for the quality, I am thinking a point and shoot is better for size and portability. I'm not a huge photographer, but want something a bit getter than my smartphone. I want something that I can take on trips, that isn't heavy.

Any recommendations? Maybe you could ask your readers what they recommend as

A) The best digital camera of any kind that you can buy for less than $300
B) The best lightweight (point and shoot) digital camera you can buy for less than $200

Thanks!

[Demetri]

Many great choices in your price range:

http://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/cameras/refurbished-powershot-digital-cameras/powershot-g15-refurbished

http://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/cameras/refurbished-powershot-digital-cameras/powershot-s100-black-refurbished

http://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/cameras/refurbished-eos-digital-slr-cameras/eos-rebel-t3-black-ef-s-18-55mm-is-ii-lens-kit-refurbished

http://www.getolympus.com/us/en/outlet/reconditioned-cameras/xz-2-reconditoned.html

http://www.getolympus.com/us/en/outlet/reconditioned-cameras/xz-10-ihs-reconditioned.html

http://shop.panasonic.com/shop/model/DMC-LF1K

http://store.sony.com/refurbished-alpha-nex-3n-with-16-50mm-lens-zid27-NEX3NL/B.B/cat-27-catid-All-Certified-Refurbished-Digital-Cameras

I'm sure there are many more.

[Gary]

Jonny,

You might also check DPReview.com. They have very thorough reviews of digital cameras.

[StarHalo]

Well my wife just upgraded to a MacBook Pro, and I'm pretty thrilled to have a full-power computer with no moving parts; I'm looking forward to finally having one laptop that can match the longevity of all the iPads we've owned.

[herculodge]

If my budget was 300 for a camera, based on my experience I'd get a Canon Powershot.

[jonnybardo]

Thanks Demetri and Jeff. Yeah, I'm probably going to go with a powershot. For a low-end DSLR style camera it is hard to beat that $260 bundle that includes the SX510 and a bunch of extras. My only concern is portability. I'm going on a two week trip in April that involves a lot of walking, and I'm not sure I want to lug it around. But I'm guessing that the quality between one of those and a $150 point and shoot is substantial.

[Demetri]

Jonny, Um just because a camera looks like an slr doesnt mean its good! The SX510 has a mediocre chip but a long lens which makes it look big. The cameras listed above have superior chips but lenses with moderate telephoto and are smaller. With a lesser chip a camera will have darker, fuzzier images.

[Bill DeFelice]

@Herculodge: Perhaps not worth the investment of getting the old machine fixed, but it sounds like you might have a good chance of retrieving your data from the machine. If you bought your replacement Mac at a local Apple store they might be willing to try getting your data off the old machine, especially considering your recent investment in the replacement machine.