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thoughts on 2nd hand macs ?

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 mike123 02 Mar 2015

I ve just had a look at ebay and I m none the wiser , as I dont really know what I want. I m happy to get something that s 2/3 years old. we have a lots of IT in the house but no mac. I want to write a simple ipad app from scratch for no other reason than I just want to, hence I cant really justify £900 for new. any thougths, other than the fact that the 7a at KK I keep failing on is soft touch , appreaciated .
Post edited at 13:56
 The Lemming 02 Mar 2015
In reply to mike123:
Have you thought about installing an apple os onto a PC as an alternative?

http://www.hackintosh.com
Post edited at 14:16
 jonny taylor 02 Mar 2015
In reply to mike123:

Not a direct answer to your question, but...
Apple's developer tools (which is what you will need if you are going to "write a simple ipad app from scratch") tend to only run on the most recent one or two versions of the operating system - and the most recent OS is not always installable on old hardware. So, you'll want to look carefully at specifications of whatever machine you do end up buying second hand. What is the most recent version of the OS that it can run, and is that sufficient to run the current version of Xcode?
OP mike123 02 Mar 2015
In reply to mike123:

thanks both. will looking to hacking one together. any thoughts on 2nd hand prices any one. seem high ?
Removed User 02 Mar 2015
In reply to mike123:
Have you looked at the Mac mini they start new at 399 and with a secondhand monitor would keep the price down. They also run the latest OS X. You might get one cheaper refurbished.
 butteredfrog 02 Mar 2015
In reply to mike123

I think 2011ish macs have a known graffic chip problem?
 rallymania 02 Mar 2015
In reply to mike123:

dunno there was a guy on a facebook group the other day trying to sell an imac 27" with a core 2 duo CPU (ie the one before they changed to i3/5/7 (which are now on their 5th generation)

he wanted £700 for it (it was about £1350 new)


 Oujmik 02 Mar 2015
In reply to mike123:

Your best bet is probably a used Mac Mini. I'm a big fan of the mini and it has a loyal (but small) following of developers, home entertainment enthusiasts and everyday mac users who don't fancy the whopping price tags on the rest of the range.

The latest 2014 model is quite cheap new, but was given a hostile welcome for being less powerful in many respects and less upgradeable than the 2012 model. The entry level in particular is very weedy, although perfectly adequate for some needs. Hence the top-end 2012 i7 quad-core is in high demand on ebay. For your requirement, your best bet might be trying to pick up an entry or mid level 2012 model - they go for around 300 to 400. If you can get one with fusion drive or SSD (or upgrade afterwards - fiddly but possible) then that will give you much better performance as the stock mini HDDs are not the best.
 Skipinder 02 Mar 2015
In reply to mike123:

I'd be asking Birdie Num Num for his opinion.
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