iMac And Back Again 2008 – 2015

iMac And Back Again 2008 – 2015

Admittedly, I’ve been an Apple user and serious fanboy since 1986; when I bought my first Mac Plus for my Bond Street recording studio in Asbury Park. From there a Mac II — and ten years later — a SuperMac Mac-Clone. What always amazed me — besides a Mac’s ease of use , and creativity boosting abilities — was how long they lasted!

I was never one to buy one Mac, then need to buy the latest and greatest out of Cupertino a year later. Mac’s initial costs were always hefty. But they also had high resale values on the other end. Buying a new Mac was a life event, in and of itself. And sometimes a new Mac coincided with other life events.This time is no different. And time may be the key factor in this purchase.

I’m getting old! There I said it! My eyes aren’t what they used to be. My vision had changed drastically in the past six months — or so it seems. My optometrist told me I had cataracts in both eyes. Even though my prescription hasn’t changed, it’s become more difficult to see. For the first time in my life I started using Apple’s Accessibility features — especially “increase contrast” and “display zoom” to make text larger and easier to read. This new vision issue has been quite sobering. Especially when I earn most my living sitting in front of a computer screen all day. My old MacBook Pro and 24″ LED Cinema display were the height of technology back in the day. The combination of computer age, my age, are compounding my eye issues and not helping things. Plus the processing power of the old MacBook Pro was not cutting it as well as it once did. It really was time to bite the bullet.

I had been looking at the new iMac 27″ with Retina Display and drooling for quite some time. To my joy, Apple had some very creative financing options going on. I could either go for 24 month “equal payment” financing through PayPal or 18 month no interest financing via a Barclaycard credit card. I opted for the later. Plus I’ll get cash back on the purchase in the form of an Apple gift card. I’ll end up using it to buy AppleCare for my new Retina iMac. Win, win!

This is the first time in a long while that I did not sell my previous computer to offset the cost of the new computer. I still need an “onsite” laptop for when I do onsite client calls. Though they have been pretty non-existent in the past four years since moving back to Asbury from Seattle. I do so much remotely. But hey … you never know!

The MacBook Pro and Apple 24″ LED Cinema Display (above) I purchased on a weekend trip to Portland, OR with my ex Chris. The plan was to have a great weekend and buy new computers, because there was no state sales tax in Portland. It was worth the three hour drive to hang out in Portland for a weekend, buy a computer, eat Hot Lips pizza, roam the stacks at Powell’s Books etc etc etc.

That MacBook Pro has lasted me 7 years, and is still kicking. Mind you I’ve beefed it up a bit. I maxed the RAM, added 250GB SSD (solid state drive) and a 750GB 7200 RPM internal HD replacing the obsolete internal DVD drive. it breathed some new life into an aging laptop. The 24″ Apple LED Cinema Display is also showing a little wear … but it’s fine as a second display in my new “deliciously evil” setup.

Do I really need to say I’m a happy camper? I really love the new Retina iMac. It’s the sharpest Apple display I have ever seen. Yeah, I might be gushing — but the truth’s the truth! AMD Radeon R9 M295X 4GB GDDR5I’m running it at a slightly lower resolution, to make text bigger without zooming. It still looks better than the old 24″ Cinema display now sitting to the iMacs left. I also love that the new iMac has the video power to drive both large displays without breaking a sweat!

I figured I might as well do an “unboxing” and take official photos. What the hell! Rocky & Rose needed to help … or course! New boxes? Where do they sign up! What is this new cardboard monolith before us? And it’s padded!

I also decided the new screens were so beautiful side by side I needed to show off some of my home-grown-from-seed sunflowers, that I also photographed back in Seattle. They look stunning!